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Six modules in the order they make sense: your skin type, why routines are sequenced the way they are, what actives can and cannot do, how to read a label, the myths worth dropping, and color basics. The Advanced shelf picks up where these leave off.
Six modules in the order they make sense, each one short. The aim is not to make you an expert; it is that the rest of this site stops sounding like jargon, and that you can tell the difference between a claim with something behind it and a claim with a good adjective in front of it.
When these stop feeling like new information, the Advanced shelf is the next layer: the same ingredient in four forms, and which of the four bottles is the one for you.
How to Know Your Skin Type: Four Questions, Not One Label
How to know your skin type using four independent traits instead of one label. What each one is, how to test it at home, and which ones change over time.
11 min readSkincare Routine Order: Which Rules Have a Source and Which Are Convention
Skincare routine order is mostly convention. Four sequencing rules have clinical sources, and two of the most repeated ones turn out to be drug-specific.
10 min readSkincare Ingredient Types: Five Jobs, and What Each One Cannot Do
Skincare ingredient types explained by function: humectants, occlusives, emollients, actives and preservatives. What each does, and where the limits are.
10 min readHow to Read a Skincare Ingredient List: What the Order Is Legally Allowed to Hide
How to read a skincare ingredient list using the labeling rule itself. Order means something above 1% and nothing below it, and percentages are never required.
10 min readSkincare Label Claims: What the Front of the Bottle Is Allowed to Say
Skincare label claims like hypoallergenic and non-comedogenic have no approved definitions. What the FDA says about each one, and what it leaves to the brand.
11 min readWhat Skincare Can and Cannot Fix: The Boundary, With Citations
What skincare can and cannot fix, drawn from clinical sources rather than marketing. Some things topicals reach, some they demonstrably do not, and it matters.
11 min readHow Long Skincare Takes to Work: Every Number I Can Source
How long skincare takes to work, sorted into what the clinical sources actually state and what nobody has published. Most of it is slower than 28 days.
11 min readHow to Patch Test Skincare: The 24-Hour Version Answers the Wrong Question
How to patch test skincare, using the protocol dermatology actually documents. The usual 24-hour arm test is too short, too brief, and tests the wrong thing.
10 min readCommon Skincare Myths: Which Are False, Which Are Half True, Which Are Just True
Common skincare myths sorted by what the sources say. Some are false, one is half true in a way that surprises people, and two turn out to be correct.
10 min readSkincare Glossary: The Words, in the Order You Meet Them
A skincare glossary grouped by where you run into each word: on the label, in the formula, on your skin, and in the evidence behind a claim.
8 min readSkincare Numbers: The Figures With Sources, and What Each One Is Limited To
The skincare numbers worth knowing, each quoted from its source with the condition attached: permitted concentrations, documented timelines, and label rules.
9 min read