SKINCARE
DECODED
The Practical Guide to Beautiful Skin
VICTORIA FU & GLORIA LU
Skincare Chemists & Creators of the Myth-Busting Blog
SKINCARE
DECODED
The Practical Guide to Beautiful Skin
SECTION 1: BASICS
SECTION 2: TREATMENTS
CONTENTS
Basics 101
Cleansers
Moisturizers
Sun Protection
Introduction
Beyond the Basics
Chemical Exfoliants
Retinoids
Vitamin C
Niacinimide
Other Actives
12
30
46
70
8
98
106
120
136
150
162
SECTION 3: BUILDING
YOUR ROUTINE
Routines 101
Acne
Pigmentation
Anti-Aging
Shopping Guide
Skincare Professionals
Glossary
Index
178
186
194
204
214
220
227
232
To the lost souls trying to figure out your skincare routine -
Read this book however you like, front to back,
back to front, or a section at a time. We hope it helps
you make some sense of the skincare world.
Enjoy!
T
he two of us met at L’Oreal, where we worked as skincare-formulation
chemists. We quickly became friends because we share the same (terrible)
sense of humor and the same frustrations with the industry. Thinking back,
our whole crazy startup journey probably began as a little vent session
powwow in one of our cubicles.
We both felt like the beauty industry is just inundated with useless crap
that gives consumers no way of navigating an overcrowded and overmarketed
product landscape. Moreover, the chemist’s voice (ya know . . . the people
who actually put the formulas together?) was completely absent. Ultimately,
we ended up leaving our comfortable corporate jobs, convinced that we’d
probably leave the beauty industry entirely and move on to bigger and better
things. During our time off, we created the Chemist Confessions Instagram
account in late 2017 as a last hurrah to the industry. We wanted to share our
insider knowledge in hopes that it would help someone find their next skincare
product a little more easily. Honestly, we thought it’d die into the abyss.
When the account, against all odds, started gaining traction, we
made a quick and perhaps foolhardy decision to jump headfirst into the
startup world. Nowadays, we juggle the brand, the blog, the edu-Insta,
and the podcast—all fueled by the belief that skin science should be fun,
approachable, and practical.
Chemist Confessions is the accidental
creation of two frustrated cubicle mates
All in all, people say startup life is full of surprises. But this book was not
even within the realm of what we could fathom creating. We used to joke
that we pitied the poor future intern who would eventually have to catalog
and organize our incredibly whimsical collection of Insta and blog posts.
Joke’s on us! This book was born from many nights of rereading all our old
posts, researching, cringing at our evolving writing style, rewriting, drawing
new sketches, brainstorming better ways to present difficult skin-science
concepts, and just generally questioning our life choices. Oh, and alcohol.
Lots of alcohol. Sorry, parents!
So, whether you’ve been a part of the Chemist Confessions journey all
along, or are just discovering us through this book, we hope this book can
help guide you on your next skincare purchase with a few laughs along the
way. And as always, if you have any questions, write to us!
Your friendly neighborhood chemists,
Gloria & Victoria
Get in touch with us at
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30
46
70
BASICS 101
CLEANSERS
MOISTURIZERS
SUN PROTECTION
Section : BASICS
2
30
46