CEO 15% Vitamin C Brightening Serum.

"The Sunday Riley CEO 15% Vitamin C Brightening Serum uses a vitamin C derivative, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, which is also great for people with more reactive skin who can't tolerate L-Ascorbic acid. The downside, other than it being quite expensive, is that it has quite a few essential oils, so if you're switching to a derivative because your skin is so reactive, this might not be the best choice. It's really a treat to yourself because it smells divine and has an amazing texture, but still I'll go back to Geek & Gorgeous."

"I'll be honest, not actually my favorite vitamin C. My favorite is either Geek and Gorgeous or the new one by Transparent Lab. I did a whole video on it. I loved it that much. I'm going in with this because I hate waste. It's a good product. I prefer the Geek and Gorgeous and the Transparent Lab, but this is a good product. This is a nice gentle vitamin C, so I think it works. It'll work for most people's skin type and it's in a cream formula. You won't get any peeling and it will still sink in really, really well."

"I really like THD ascorbate because it's a very stable lipid soluble form of vitamin C that it tends to be a little less irritating than acid, so for a sensitive skin girly that's the one I usually gravitate towards. I have been testing this and really liking it. It's hydrating, so it's very moisturizing as a serum. It doesn't sting my skin at all. It's 15% THD ascorbate but it also contains some other goodies too. It has a soybean derived phytosterol complex which helps to calm down the skin. It also has saccharide isomerate extract which helps reduce the appearance of large pores and it has glycolic acid which is an alpha hydroxy acid that helps to exfoliate. So all in all this is really great for helping to brighten up dark spots and that vitamin C will give you that antioxidant activity that helps to decrease free radical damage from the sun and oxidative damage from the sun and from pollution."

"I love this option if you've already tried the lower percentage and you're ready for something more with no irritation, you're going to go up to this one. Or if you have redness prone skin, because this has some added ingredients into it to reduce redness of the skin, which is such a problem for me, it's something I struggle with. So this is a really good option for wanting vitamin C benefits with sensitive skin, rosacea prone, redness skin. I love this option for that group of people."

"It has a type of vitamin C that is more stable than ascorbic acid, more stable, easier to get in the skin, however less evidence-based for things like improving collagen production. So if you really want the benefits of topical vitamin C, THD may be easier to tolerate, maybe more reliable of an ingredient for formulators to work with, but for you the consumer you may not be getting the full package of benefits, but you may be getting just enough benefits to meet your needs. For example, THD as an antioxidant, it may be helpful in fading hyperpigmentation, it may be helpful in combating against oxidative stress from environmental exposures. This also has glycolic acid in it, which is an alpha hydroxy acid that can smooth and soften the skin. You do want to be careful that you are protecting your skin from the sun when you are using alpha hydroxy acids, because they can make your skin more sensitive to a sunburn."