I’m super excited to have our second product, FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum ($89.00, Shop.FutureDerm.com) shipping this Friday, April 19. Our state-of-the-art formula has taken us since last July to perfect, and it’s really incredible. It feels lightweight on the skin, drinks in quickly, and leaves skin softer and smoother. Best of all, after just ten days of using FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum, your skin looks better and more even-toned. That sounds crazy – typically, it takes at least 3-4 weeks of a product to notice much of a difference, due to the fact that skin cell turnover averages 21 days. But it really has made a substantial difference in those who have tested it within just ten days!
Other questions you may have are below:
1.) How is FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum Different From Skinceuticals CE Ferulic?
Skinceuticals CE Ferulic is like most vitamin CE serums on the market, in that its active ingredients are embedded in alcohols, including propylene glycol and ethoxydiglycol. Despite what you may have heard elsewhere, we recognize at FutureDerm that alcohol is not always bad for the skin. It honestly depends on the formulation: In the right formulation, alcohol acts as a thinning agent that dries out the layers of the product, not your skin. This is especially true for particularly viscous (heavy, sticky) solutions.
However, we recognized the need for a concentrated vitamin CE serum on the market that left skin soft and smooth. That’s what FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum does: Our base is cyclopentosiloxane and dimethicone, which feels soft to the touch. The molecular lattice that these compounds form on your skin also enable the beneficial ingredients to still reach your skin.
Yet, alcohols like ethoxydiglycol and propylene glycol also enable for L-ascorbic acid to penetrate the skin. Without it, non-microencapsulated L-ascorbic acid lays on top of the epidermis (the uppermost layer of skin). So to enable vitamin C to reach the skin without using alcohol, we used 8% BVOSC. As published in Dermatologic Surgery, tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate penetrates directly into the epidermis (the uppermost layer of skin) and dermis (the deepest layer of skin), even when it is not embedded in an alcohol-based solution or microencapsulated.
So our softening, smoothing FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum is 16% total vitamin C: 8% microencapsulated L-ascorbic acid and 8% BVOSC (tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate). Skinceuticals CE Ferulic is 15% non-microencapsulated L-ascorbic acid. We believe our microencapsulation affords more stability in the presence of light, air, and heat. We’ve honestly been working on FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum since July, and I’m a lifelong Skinceuticals CE Ferulic user who wouldn’t switch until we found something I found to be better. This was.
2.) How Does Microencapsulation Work?
L-ascorbic acid is microencapsulated in a mechanical process. Don’t worry – for those of you who are concerned, it is a safe process. (Though I hate the term because it implies chemicals are bad, which they are not, the process is “chemical-free”). L-ascorbic acid is microencapsulated as it is wrapped in very small amounts of a protective coating, and then combined into solution with the rest of the formulation. The protective coating is designed to protect L-ascorbic acid from oxidation, pollution, and heat. It is testable, because FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum doesn’t turn yellow or orange or have a distinctive smell when left out for a few hours at a time, as the L-ascorbic acid is protected from oxidation.
3.) What Does It Feel Like On Your Skin?
FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum feels a lot like a makeup primer on your skin: A dime-size amount glides across and drinks into your skin, leaving it soft and smooth for subsequent products. It is suitable for all skin types. Those with drier skin may wish to use a moisturizing sunscreen afterwards, while those with oily skin should use an oil-free sunscreen after. However, one of our testers had very oily skin and really liked our product, with no subsequent side effects. Still, my suggestion if you have particularly oily skin is to try FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum – if you’re not satisfied within 30 days, return it. We guarantee it for 30 days, no questions asked.
4.) It has “citrus oil” on the label. Doesn’t That Make Skin More Sensitive to the Sun?
FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum does not make your skin more sensitive to the sun. In fact, 15% vitamin C (though as L-ascorbic acid) in combination with 2% vitamin E has been shown to boost sunscreen protection by 400% (American Journal of Dermatology, 2005).
Citrus oil does make your skin more sensitive to the sun, that is true. Yet we wanted to include it for its amazing natural orange scent. (It’s really fresh and subtle!) To achieve this while maintaining the integrity of our product, we formulated FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum with less than 1% of a 10% citrus oil solution. So it contains very, very little citrus oil!
5.) What Other Products Should I Use With FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum?
I recommend that you use a broad-spectrum sunscreen, moisturizer, or BB cream with an SPF of at least 30 everyday after your FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum. Always remember: 90% of the visible signs of aging come from UV damage. Despite the fact that it is trendy to be ultra-concerned about preservatives, environmental pollutants, and industrial chemical exposures, too much sun is a known carcinogen.
I recommend using either a chemical sunscreen with avobenzone and oxybenzone under a physical sunscreen with zinc oxide, or just using the physical sunscreen. Some dermatologists use both types of formulas because chemical and physical sunscreens work differently: Chemical sunscreens change the UV light that hits your skin into a non-damaging form of energy, like non-UV light or heat, whereas physical sunscreens prevent UV light from hitting your skin to begin with. Considering zinc oxide blocks a higher percentage of rays than titanium oxide (Skin Pharmacology and Physiology, 2005), I always choose zinc oxide. A favorite formula is Vanicream for Sensitive Skin ($13.68, Amazon.com). If you prefer a more high-end product, I also like Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection SPF 60 ($30.95, Amazon.com), but this product will leave your face a bit on the white side. (For the record, I use it anyway!)
Bottom Line
I love FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum, and not entirely just because I created it. With 16% vitamin C, including 8% microencapsulated L-ascorbic acid and 8% BVOSC, plus 2% vitamin E and the powerhouse antioxidant caffeic acid, I think that FutureDerm Vitamin CE Caffeic Serum really is a game-changer!
Let me know your thoughts and questions in Comments below please! I’m excited to hear from you!
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