Brightening: Key Skincare ingredients To Increase Radiance

Brightening: Key Skincare ingredients To Increase Radiance

Time to read 6 min

Radiant, glowing skin is one of the ultimate signs of strong health and vitality and looking the picture of health is a goal for many. As one of the main focuses throughout our products, we believe bright skin comes as a result of using ingredients that cater to our skin's needs and make our complexions glow with glee. Luckily, you can transform skin that looks dull and tired with just a few key ingredients. 


Here are our Fade Out favourites:

Niacinamide

An extremely versatile ingredient with a plethora of benefits, you’ll find Niacinamide in all of our products as it is a brilliant skincare ingredient for more radiant skin. Gentle yet extremely effective, Niacinamide is great to incorporate into any skincare routine for any skin type to help brighten and even the skintone. Additionally, this hero ingredient supports the skin’s lipid barrier which in turn helps retain moisture and gives the skin a look of luminosity. Who doesn’t want that?


Niacinamide, also known as Vitamin B3, is a versatile and well-researched ingredient in skincare with several benefits, one of which is its ability to brighten skin. Here's how niacinamide works to improve skin tone and radiance:

Inhibits Melanin Transfer

Melanin is the pigment responsible for dark spots and uneven skin tone. Niacinamide interferes with the process of melanin production by inhibiting the transfer of melanin from melanocytes (the cells that produce melanin) to keratinocytes (the surface skin cells). By reducing this transfer, niacinamide helps to prevent dark spots, age spots, and hyperpigmentation from becoming visible on the skin's surface. Over time, this leads to a more even skin tone and reduced appearance of discoloration and more radiant skin!.

Reduces Inflammation

Inflammation can lead to post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH), which is common after acne breakouts or skin irritation. Niacinamide has potent anti-inflammatory properties, which help calm the skin and reduce redness. By lowering inflammation, it minimises the likelihood of developing dark marks or uneven pigmentation following skin trauma or irritation. This prevents the formation of dark spots and promotes a more uniform complexion after breakouts or irritation.

Enhances Skin Barrier Function

A healthy skin barrier is crucial for retaining moisture and protecting against environmental stressors, both of which are important for a radiant complexion. Niacinamide strengthens the skin barrier by increasing the production of ceramides, fatty acids, and lipids. This helps the skin stay hydrated, plump, and smooth, which can improve overall skin brightness and reduce dullness. Hydrated, well-protected skin appears more radiant and luminous.

Improves Cell Turnover

Niacinamide encourages faster skin cell turnover, meaning old, damaged skin cells are replaced more quickly by new, healthy ones. This process helps fade existing dark spots and uneven skin tone, resulting in a brighter and more even complexion over time. You’ll see a reduction in dullness and reveal fresher, brighter skin.

Boosts Collagen Production

Niacinamide also stimulates collagen production, which helps reduce fine lines and improve skin texture. Smoother skin reflects light more evenly, giving the skin a brighter, more radiant appearance. Your Skin will look smoother, more even, and glow with natural radiance.

Protects Against Environmental Stressors

Niacinamide acts as an antioxidant, protecting the skin from damage caused by free radicals and environmental factors like pollution and UV rays. By reducing oxidative stress, it helps maintain a healthy, youthful glow and prevents further darkening or dulling of the skin.


This prevents external damage that can lead to a dull, uneven skin tone. Niacinamide is great for combating pigmentation and tackling fine lines and increasing radiance!

Vitamin C

The use of Vitamin C can inhibit the production of pigment in skin, helping to reduce dark spots and give the appearance of a brighter complexion. Vitamin C brightens the skin by offering multiple benefits related to its antioxidant and collagen-boosting properties:

Inhibiting Melanin Production 

Vitamin C helps to inhibit the enzyme tyrosinase, which is involved in the production of melanin (the pigment responsible for dark spots and hyperpigmentation). By reducing melanin formation, it helps fade dark spots, leading to a more even skin tone.

Antioxidant Protection

Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that neutralises free radicals from UV exposure and environmental pollutants, which can damage skin cells and cause dullness. By preventing oxidative stress, it keeps the skin looking fresh and bright.

Boosting Collagen Production

Vitamin C plays a crucial role in collagen synthesis, which keeps the skin firm, smooth, and elastic. With better collagen production, the skin appears plumper and more radiant, reducing the appearance of fine lines and giving it a youthful glow.

Exfoliation and Renewal

Vitamin C mildly exfoliates the skin, encouraging cell turnover and the shedding of dead skin cells, which reveals fresher, brighter skin underneath. These effects combined make vitamin C a popular ingredient for achieving a brighter and more luminous complexion. Use the Pure Glow range to refresh and hydrate skin with active Vitamin C and Pink Pomelo extract – just don’t forget your SPF after! Discover 5 reasons to incorporate Vitamin C in your beauty regime!

Lactic Acid

Lactic Acid works similarly to Vitamin C as a melanin suppressor that helps to even out skin tone and reveal a brighter and more radiant complexion without drying side effects or high risk of irritation. Lactic acid brightens the skin through its role as an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA), offering several benefits for exfoliation and renewal:

Exfoliation

Lactic acid works by gently exfoliating the top layer of dead skin cells (the stratum corneum). This encourages skin cell turnover, revealing fresh, new skin underneath. As dead cells are removed, the skin appears brighter and smoother.

Reducing Hyperpigmentation

By increasing cell turnover, lactic acid helps fade dark spots, sun damage, and other forms of hyperpigmentation over time. This evens out skin tone, contributing to a brighter appearance.

Hydration

Lactic acid is also a humectant, meaning it draws moisture to the skin. Well-hydrated skin reflects light better, giving it a more luminous look.

Stimulating Collagen Production

Regular use of lactic acid can stimulate collagen production, improving skin texture, firmness, and elasticity. Firmer skin can appear more radiant and youthful. Through exfoliation, hydration, and cell renewal, lactic acid helps in creating a smoother, more even-toned, and radiant complexion. Incorporate Lactic Acid into your skincare regime with our best-selling Advanced Brightening range. Find out more about the differences between physical and chemical exfoliation using AHAs!

HALOXYL


If you haven’t managed to catch your full 8 hours, the use of Haloxyl which can be found in our Advanced Brightening Eye Defence Cream is the next best thing.


Haloxyl is a synthetic peptide that cleverly mimics the behaviour of matrikines, the body’s naturally occurring cell-signallers and regulators. Nothing will give you a bright eyed and bushy tailed appearance more so than reducing dark circles and puffiness.


It helps make your skin more radiant in a few ways:

Breaking Down Hemoglobin

Dark circles under the eyes are often caused by the breakdown of blood under the skin. Haloxyl works by helping to break down and clear away the pigmented byproducts of hemoglobin (bilirubin and iron), which can cause the bluish or brownish discoloration often seen in under-eye circles.

Strengthening Capillaries

Haloxyl helps to strengthen the delicate capillaries around the eyes, which reduces the likelihood of blood leakage and pooling (a common cause of dark circles). By improving microcirculation, it decreases the accumulation of blood pigments that cause skin darkening.

Anti-Inflammatory Properties

Haloxyl has anti-inflammatory benefits that help to reduce puffiness and swelling, which can exaggerate the appearance of dark circles and make the skin look dull.

Stimulating Skin Detoxification

It encourages the skin's natural detoxification processes, improving skin health and brightness by reducing the buildup of waste products and toxins that can contribute to discoloration. By targeting both the pigmentation and structural issues related to dark circles, Haloxyl brightens and revitalises the skin, especially in the delicate under-eye area.

You can check out our full list of powerful active ingredients that have been specially selected and included in our formulas to give your skin a boost in radiance!

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