I usually strive to give new skincare products one month of time to see what they do. The pink serum from The Ordinary has had a firm place in my routine for about three months now – did it change my skin as promised? In this The Ordinary Soothing Serum review, I want to concentrate on long-term effects.
The Brand
The true skincare disruptor. Many may claim it, Deciem is the real deal. With them, skincare changed. Without them, skincare in general wouldn’t have had the incredible boom of the last years. Deciem, though, has been in the slumps a bit since Brandon Truaxe died in 2019 and Nicola Kilner took over. They’ve axed brands, slowed down significantly on releases, and those releases has been a bit so-so. In 2023, though, they’ve released a few new products under the The Ordinary umbrella, and each one of them sounded intriguing. Including this one.
The Ordinary Soothing Serum review: Description
A multi-active solution designed to help repair skin barrier, soothe discomfort, and reduce the look of redness.
The Ordinary
What it is
A milky-pink serum (it applies translucent) that is supposed to ‘recover the skin barrier in 2 hours’, hydrate, ‘soothe feelings of discomfort’, and ‘reduce signs of redness’. The Ordinary advises not to use Vitamin C together with it in your routine, and apply it in the morning and evening.
Ingredients
Aqua (Water), Propanediol, Isodecyl Neopentanoate, Pentylene Glycol, Niacinamide, Hexyldecanol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Xylitylglucoside, Ceteth-20 Phosphate, Anhydroxylitol, Ethyl Linoleate, Asiaticoside, Asiatic Acid, Madecassic Acid, Naringenin, Cyanocobalamin, Panthenyl Triacetate, 4-T-Butylcyclohexanol, Hydroxyphenyl Propamidobenzoic Acid, Cetylhydroxyproline Palmitamide, Bisabolol, Brassica Campestris Sterols, Sphingolipids, Phospholipids, Epigallocatechin Gallatyl Glucoside, Gallyl Glucoside, Propyl Gallate, Xylitol, Zingiber Officinale Root Extract, Stearic Acid, Dicetyl Phosphate, Isoceteth-20, Xanthan Gum, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Tocopherol, Dehydroacetic Acid, P-Anisic Acid, Phytic Acid, Sodium Phytate, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Hydroxide, Benzyl Alcohol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin.
The Ordinary
Noteworthy ingredients
We have 2% niacinamide, sugar-derived hydrators (which is nice if you don’t want to formulate a hyaluronic acid serum or use glycerin), various forms of centella asiatica and ceramide precursors.
I find the stress on ”phytoceramides” a bit ridiculous, though. Ceramides can either derive from plants, or can be lab-build (synthetic). Both versions can be the skin-identical ceramides your skin wants to strengthen its barrier.
Vitamin B12 colours the whole thing pink. There’s some debate over B12 and its effectiveness in skincare – it’s used on an anecdotal basis to treat eczema, and may or may not help to soothe itchiness and redness.
Behind the ‘soothing complex’ are a few molecules called SymCalmin and SymSitive (made by Symrise, obviously) that promise to reduce stinging and itchiness.
Definitely an unusual and interesting mix that should absolutely calm and soothe, and strengthen the skin barrier with long-term use. Especially when layering different hydrating products it’s good not to layer only hyaluronic acid-based products, but branch out to different hydrators.
- More on niacinamide.
- More on centella asiatica.
- Excurs to a healthy skin-barrier.
Sustainability
DECIEM is working to give back to the Earth in five ways: through more responsible packaging, fighting climate change, better waste management, responsible sourcing and product lifecycle, and water conservation.
The Ordinary
Deciem is also very active with community projects, especially in its homeland Canada.
Application
I use this as the serum step in my AM skincare routine, after toner and often after PSA’s The Most serum. I then continue with a moisturizer and SPF. After starting with Tretinoin, my sensitive combination skin is even more sensitive, and also drier (plus, the cold weather). I need all the hydration and soothing and barrier restoring I can get.
I use about half a dropper, and no, the milky pink liquid doesn’t turn your skin pink. It goes on completely clear, and sinks in quickly. I can detect a faint ‘fatty’ smell, but that’s it. (I often think that ceramides have that faintly fatty smell, but I could be wrong.) If you hate the pipette, order a pump from Niod that also works with The Ordinary’s bottles. I haven’t had any problems with the packaging.
It performs very well with other products. I didn’t have any problems with layering products from other serums, moisturizers or sunscreen over it.
Texture
This one has a thicker milky texture that doesn’t feel goopy or sticky at all. It’s easy to apply and spread, and my skin absorbs it very quickly.
Effect
As always, I find it difficult to pinpoint changes of or effects on my skin on a single product. The Soothing & Barrier Support Serum is incredibly pleasant to use, and that may skew my perspective. That’s also an astonishing turn of event with The Ordinary products, as also seen by their Beta-Glucan Moisturizer (review) that also feels great. That often wasn’t the case with TO products, especially with the single-ingredient ones they used to churn out.
The texture and performance do A LOT of heavy lifting here: it’s pink! It’s silky smooth! It doesn’t pill or do something similarly unpleasant! My skin feels soft and glowy after using it! As right now, I want a pleasant skin-feel and a generally nice experience from my skincare, and boy, does the serum deliver.
It also nourishes my skin, undoubtedly. The ‘recover the skin barrier in two hours’ claim is completely ridiculous, in my opinion, though. It also doesn’t soothe redness (for me). It makes (together with my whole skincare routine) my skin look and feel well-hydrated.
Comparison
I do find the whole formulation really interesting, and comparable to excellent A-Beauty products. I could also imagine a similar thing from Paula’s Choice (they would undoubtedly throw more antioxidants and some peptides in for the fun of it). For that, it’s really well-priced, and well-worth a try, especially if you like products with centella asiatica. It’s also great when you feel that hyaluronic acid serums might make your skin feel tight and drier than before.
For me, it performs similar duties as PSA The Most or the discontinued Paula’s Choice CBD Milk: all are very pleasant to use due to their milky and smooth texture. They all hydrate and soothe to some effect, but the main USP for me is the wonderful skin-feel they create.
The Ordinary Soothing Serum review: Rating
I like it a lot and can imagine buying it again. Just don’t expect wonders!
After three months of use, it definitely has a place in my skincare routine. I’m curious to see how it’ll perform during allergy season, when my skin is generally a bit itchy. I personally do find it a bit far-fetched to market it towards exzema- or psoriasis sufferers. I’d be interested to hear from you if you suffer from rosacea and this did (or didn’t) help you!
Availability & Price
$17/ 20.40€ for 30ml at the brand’s own website.
Please note that this post is not sponsored in any way! Twindly is an independent blog, and our reviews reflect that. Sometimes we’ll use affiliate links that will be clearly marked. Affiliate links mean that if you choose to buy a product through this link, I’ll earn a small commission at no extra cost for you. If you decide to do that, thank you for helping to keep the blog afloat! (No matter if the link is affiliate or not, the reviews will always truthfully reflect how any product performed when I tested it.)
