How to layer a serum, a cream and SPF without pilling
Those little rolls of product on your cheek are a layering problem, not a product problem. Here is the fix.
- Concern
- Routine
- Step
- Morning
- Read
- 2 min
Pilling happens when a layer has not settled before the next one goes on. The top product drags the one beneath it into little balls. It is annoying, it wastes product, and it usually means your sunscreen is no longer an even film.
Thin to thick, and wait
Apply in order of texture: water-light serum first, then cream, then sunscreen. Between each, give the skin sixty seconds. Brush your teeth, make the bed, anything. The wait is the whole trick.
Use less than you think
A serum is two or three drops for the whole face. A moisturizer is a pea for the cheeks and another for the forehead. Sunscreen is the exception: a full two finger lengths for face and neck, no shortcuts.
Press, do not rub
Rubbing works product back and forth across the surface and lifts what is already there. Pressing with flat fingers lays each layer down and leaves it alone.
If it still pills
• Check for silicone-heavy products stacked on top of each other. Two of them rarely get along.
• Try skipping the moisturizer in the morning if your sunscreen is already hydrating.
• Apply sunscreen to slightly damp skin instead of fully dry skin. It spreads further and grabs less.
Once the layers behave, you get the thing that matters: an even coat of SPF that stays put all day.
