What Is an Emulsion, and How Can You Add Emulsions into Your Skincare Routine?
Emulsions play a key role in skincare layering, enhancing both the appearance and feel of your skin. But what is an emulsion? And where should it sit in your skincare routine order?
Once you start using emulsions, they quickly become an integral part of your skincare, providing lightweight hydration that promotes a balanced, refreshed complexion – all while helping your other products absorb more effectively.
Ahead, explore the fundamentals of skincare emulsions, the advantages they offer, and the best ways to include them in your daily skincare regimen.
What is an emulsion?
An emulsion is a gentle fusion of oil and water – two liquids that normally separate. Special ingredients called emulsifiers help blend them into a light, silky formula that combines the benefits of both.
There two main types of emulsions: one mixes fine oil droplets into water; the other suspends tiny water droplets within oil. These different forms create distinct textures, making emulsions adaptable for many purposes, especially in water-based skincare products.
What is an emulsion in skincare?
In skincare, emulsions are light, water-based blends that provide gentle hydration without heaviness. Various types of emulsions can be layered with cleansers, toners, and moisturisers to promote soft, revitalised skin while boosting the effectiveness of your entire routine.
Top 5 benefits of skincare emulsions
Your skincare routine can feel instantly more effective with the right emulsion.
From lightweight hydration to improved product layering, using an emulsion for your face benefits the complexion in a number of ways. Below are our top five benefits.
1. Weightless hydration: Emulsions provide a refreshing layer of moisture without feeling heavy or greasy – perfect for creating a fresh finish.
2. Ideal for layering: With their fluid texture, emulsions layer easily between serums and the best moisturiser for your skin type. This helps the rest of your products absorb more effectively.
3. Supports skin smoothness and balance: By supporting your skin’s natural function, emulsions help promote a soft, even-looking complexion that feels cared for and conditioned.
4. Delivers care for all skin types: Light and versatile, emulsions support a range of skin types – including combination, sensitive or dry skin – to visibly enhance tone.
5. Maintains skin’s moisture balance: Emulsions help to regulate hydration throughout the day, making them an effective choice for oily skin or any skin type that needs some additional hydration.
Emulsions, toners and serums: differences explained
Understanding where emulsions fit into your routine can help you get more from your skincare overall. If you’ve ever asked, ‘what are emulsions in skincare?’, it’s helpful to see how they compare to toners and serums – and how each plays a unique role.
- Toners: Applied straight after cleansing, toners help sweep away any leftover residue and prep your skin for what comes next. Their lightweight texture feels refreshing and works well to reset your skin after cleansing.
- Serums: Lightweight in texture and molecular structure, the best serum for your skin concerns have efficacious ingredients that deliver targeted care and nourishment beneath the skin surface.
- Emulsions: Think of emulsions as the perfect bridge between serums and moisturisers. Their silky texture adds breathable hydration and helps maintain well-balanced skin. Emulsions work quietly but effectively to support moisture levels and visibly enhance your skin tone.
Where an emulsion fits in your skincare routine
Adding an emulsion to your skincare routine is a simple, seamless step. These fluid formulas are made for layering – usually applied after serum and just before your moisturiser.
Keep reading to learn how to use face emulsions effectively within your daily regimen.
1. Cleanser
Every effective skincare routine begins with a deep cleanse. This initial step clears away surface dirt, excess oil, and daily impurities – preparing your skin for maximum product absorption.
The Ultra Facial Oil-Free Cleanser is a gentle yet thorough facial cleanser for normal, oily and sensitive skin. Its lightweight foam formula works to refresh and clarify your skin, while desert plant extract offers a touch of hydration as well.
2. Toner
After cleansing, toner plays a key role in clearing away any lingering residue while priming your skin for hydration and high efficacy ingredients. It helps to refine the skin’s surface and promotes a more even-looking tone.
We suggest using the Calendula Herbal Extract Toner for this step. Free from alcohol and enriched with calendula flower extract, its gentle formula supports skin clarity and leaves your complexion feeling refreshed and balanced.
3. Serum
Serums provide focused, lightweight nourishment that penetrates deeply into the skin. They’re designed to improve your skin’s unique needs and boost the overall vitality of your complexion.
Ideal for an anti-ageing skincare, apply our Vital Skin-Strengthening Super Serum after toner. Infused with hyaluronic acid, it helps reinforce skin resilience, while an adaptogenic herbal complex works to visibly brighten and even out your skin tone. Its qualities contribute to a healthier, more luminous appearance.
4. Emulsion
Once you’ve applied your serum, an emulsion delivers a lightweight boost of hydration that enhance comforts and supports glowing skin. This step is perfect for locking in moisture without the heaviness of richer, more traditional creams – one of the standout benefits of emulsions for your face. Thanks to different types of emulsions, hydration can be delivered in various textures and intensities, making them adaptable to your skin type or concern.
The Calendula Skin-Soothing & Stabilizing Emulsion combines a silky, breathable formula with a potent triple vitamin B complex. It supports optimal hydration while helping to maintain your skin’s natural barrier, shielding it from environmental stressors with gentle care.
5. Moisturiser
Following your emulsion, a moisturiser helps to seal in hydration and further support your skin. This step is key for minimising moisture loss and visibly improving your skin’s surface – whether your skin leans towards dry and sensitive or simply needs extra care.
Our Ultra Facial Cream provides lasting hydration with ingredients squalane, glycerin, and glacial glycoprotein. This soft, lightweight texture absorbs easily, leaving your skin feeling supported, nourished, and visibly smoother.
6. Sun protection
A fundamental step in your morning lineup, no skincare routine is complete without sunscreen – especially in the summer. Sunscreen offers vital protection from UV exposure and daily environmental stressors.
Our Super Fluid UV Defense Daily Facial Sunscreen SPF 50+ is a lightweight, non-comedogenic formula with a soft matte finish. Enriched with baicalin and vitamin E, it provides antioxidant support to help defend against pollution and free radicals – keeping your skin protected and comfortable.
Now that you can confidently use different types of emulsions, take your nourishment one step further with our guide to choosing the best face mask.
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Ultra Facial Cleanser
A gentle yet effective foaming facial cleanser that removes excess oil, dirt and debris while supporting the skin’s natural balance.
Ultra Facial Toner
A gentle, alcohol-free facial toner for all skin types.
Midnight Recovery Concentrate Facial Oil
Midnight Recovery Concentrate is a nighttime face oil infused with lavender, squalane, and evening primrose oils, designed to nourish, hydrate, and leave skin radiant, soft, and supple by morning.
Ultra Facial Cream
Our best selling daily face cream for ultra-lightweight, 24-hour hydration, formulated with Squalane. This lightweight moisturiser is suitable for all skin types, including sensitive, and provides instant hydration for soft, smooth and healthy-looking skin. Fragrance-free.
