Celebrity facialist Joanna Vargas knows a lot about skin. She’s the face behind some very famous faces (Naomi Watts, Emma Stone, Michelle Williams and Rachel Weisz, for starters), has an eponymous skin care line and really, really loves green juices. So much so that she found a way to create a serum inspired by them.
Her Daily Serum ($85) is one of those products that claims “to work for everyone” (a very lofty goal that anyone with sensitive skin tends to throw a stink eye at) but it’s her best-selling product and her secret weapon for dull skin. Plus, it promises anti-inflammation benefits and won’t cause irritation. Sold.
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As Vargas told me, it has a lot going on (vitamins A, C, E and F found in leafy greens, hyaluronic acid, and, her personal favorite ingredient galactoarabinan, derived from the larch tree, which she says causes more cell turnover than a glycolic). There’s also chlorophyll and oat grass juice—another ode to her green juice love—both of which help with the lymphatic system and skin oxygenation.
“It was formulated to address breakouts and hydration issues without clogging pores and with no harsh chemicals,” she says. “If you have acne skin or trouble with breakouts, you want to apply your products downward on your face because this encourages lymphatic drainage. If your skin is dull, lifeless and dehydrated, apply products upward to stimulate circulation.”
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I’m not completely sure I have the application process down to a science, but I do really like the way it makes my skin feel and even more so how my makeup goes on over it. It’s not one of those sticky, overly hydrating products, but it is very liquidy (it’s probably better described as a gel) and you only need a drop to cover your whole face. It makes skin feel smoother on contact, and, after a few days, you really see a difference in radiance and your skin somehow looks “fresher,” almost like it’s being resurfaced a bit, minus any redness. It also smells amazing (sort of like licorice-citrus, if that’s a scent) and has the slightest greenish tint, which convinces me it really does pack in all that green-juice goodness.