Skincare and/or chemistry nerds: is there any reason I shouldn't mix my serums together into one bottle? Given I don't include known fragile stuff like retinoids or vitamin C?
Conversation
Show replies
Replying to
vitamin C and other acids (AHA/BHA etc.) are meant to be layered from lowest to highest pH. not sure if that's to decrease chemical (reactive) effects between them or increase skin penetration. i don't usually bother.
custom "one-bottle" solutions like do exist.
Replying to
If you want to experiment, you can do patch tests on a small part of your skin. Also, /r/SkincareAddiction may have your answers, assuming you haven't already checked.
Replying to
The most likely obvious answer is that they might not mix very well. Silicones, oils, water-based stuff, etc. might not be miscible.
Try a small test, if it looks like it separates or something, that's the issue. If the result is clean and uniform, you should be fine.
1
Replying to
your big pragmatic non-danger issue (not really directly addressed here as far as I can see, but touched upon) your various serums might react with each other in storage in ways that make them less effective once on your skin. They might only spend ~24 hours in contact otherwise.
1
6
Replying to
What's in 'em? Some ingredients counteract each other, making them ineffective. E.g, don't mix peptides and acids, as the latter break down the former (making them useless).
1
Replying to
I would be cautious about it, but more for preservation reasons than the stability of active ingredients per se








