LÉ Blog

Vitamin C serums is probably one of the most popular products with countless new launches every year. Their lasting popularity make a lot of sense! Simply put, Vitamin C (specifically ascorbic acid) is one of the most validated actives in the skincare world for its clinical benefits. It has been proven to prevent free radical damage, brighten hyperpigmentation, and even boost collagen production. But given vitamin C’s popularity, it’s only gotten MORE difficult to choose the best vitamin C se...

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Since one of the chemists is now preggers, we can no longer avoid this can of worms. It’s time to tackle the topic of pregnancy-safe skincare and what that even means! We admit that the main reason for avoiding this topic for as long as we have is because, 1. This discussion is still best decided with your doctor. And 2. The data behind any sort of pregnancy-safe claims is sparse at best. Knowing this, let’s try to go through some of the data and why pregnancy-safe skincare may or may not mat...

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Restoring your “skin barrier” seems like a pretty hot skincare buzzword right now – and it’s actually for good reason! As much as we love our high-efficacy actives like glycolic acid and retinol, our core skincare philosophy is to always first have your skin barrier care down pat before diving into the other more glamorous skin concerns. But what even is skin barrier function and how do you take care of it? The good news is, you’re probably already doing a lot of things that are good for your...

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We’ve hit sunscreen season again! With summer in full swing, the most important yet basic fundamental for good sunscreen protection is simply applying sunscreen correctly to safeguard skin from sunburns, risks of skin cancer, and premature skin aging. It’s not enough to just remember to use sunscreen here and there. Proper application (and re-application!) is key to ensuring you’re getting the proper, advertised level of sun protection throughout the day. So whether you’re got grandiose trave...

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We’ve been dragging our feet on this topic for a while! The main reason we have been avoiding the big eye cream question for so long is simply because the data here is depressingly sparse. The few studies that exist in the eye cream category can lack logic or have lackluster results. All in all, not the most scintillating or uplifting of skin concerns for us to talk about. However, we can’t ignore the fact that eye area concerns are a big topic. Plus it happens to be a personal concern of our...

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Back in fall 2019, we wrote a blog post on CBD in skincare when it was all the rage. During the early days of Covid lockdowns, it really felt like there was a new CBD miracle serum or oil every other week. Even now in spring of 2023, there are still a lot of questions and mystique around this ingredient. So it’s time to revisit CBD and see just what CBD does in skincare, if there are any new clinical studies that have come out on topical CBD, just who might benefit from CBD skincare, and how ...

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Retinol’s popularity has only continued to grow in the past few years with no signs of slowing down. And for good reason! Of the actives out there, it comes with quite a resume of data behind it for reducing wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, and even a little acne assistance. However, with that popularity comes a lot of confusion. Choosing the right retinol product can already be complicated, but on top of that, there’s a whole slew of “retinol alternatives” available on the market. In fact, if yo...

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There’s an ingredient that's probbbaaabbbly not quite on your skincare radar yet - but we think it’s worth considering. The ingredient is called Silymarin (sih-lee-mae-rin), and comes from the extract of milk thistle. You'll find it on the ingredient list as "Silybum Marianum Fruit Extract", usually in a handful of clinical brands such as Skinceuticals, PCA Skin, and Dr. Dennis Gross…. And most recently our very own Mr. Reliable 2.0! Silymarin is a potent antioxidant with anti-inflammatory pr...

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We always talk a lot about the value of clinical tests in skincare and how helpful they can be in making a purchasing decision. Needless to say, we're doing celebratory dances over here because we finally completed our first clinical, designed with all the bells & whistles that we wanted. After 12 weeks of testing our Double Play Retinol Eye & Face Treatment, we’re excited to finally share the results. This has truly evolved into one of our more elaborate projects that took 2+ years to formul...

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In this (packed!) blog post: Ingredient Sourcing: a closer look at palm oil A Brand's Carbon Footprint Sustainable Packaging (plastic, glass, aluminum) Key Takeaways References Here at Chemist Confessions, we don’t avoid complex or loaded topics. And there are few topics as complex and as loaded as sustainability. The difficulty in coming up with solutions for a global problem with so many moving parts and people involved is enough to boggle even the brightest minds. Even if we were just addr...

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