In partnership with SkinCeuticals.

If you’ve ever been on a train at peak hour you’ll be familiar with the picture we’re about to paint. Be it a handbag in the crook of a suited woman’s arm, a laptop case spilling from the backpack of a schoolboy or a phone case with hot pink ‘LEM’ printed on the back of it — there’s no shortage of personalisation now-a-days. Whether it’s initials, names, symbols, friendly jokes, it seems everyone has at least one customised goodie that is theirs and theirs only. 

So, it was only a matter of time before the customisation philosophy infiltrated the beauty space. First it was personalised foundation shades, then it was facial consultations and now, it’s a customisable corrective serum. Made for you, to address your specific skincare concerns and with your name on it (cute).

Not to brag, but we may have called this in our first Gritty Pretty Radio episode of 2021 (you can listen here) where we named personalisation as one of our trend predictions. And while we stand by our interest in customisable beauty, we’d like to retract the term ‘trend’ and state that personalised skincare is very much here to stay.

Here, the latest offering from SkinCeuticals, Custom D.O.S.E, proves why:

A personalised skincare service, Custom D.O.S.E is as its name suggests. Combining high-potency ingredients with professional expertise and state-of-the-art technology, the offering delivers a unique and completely customised serum formulation, to help address your specific  skincare concerns like never before. Plus, the whole process takes no longer than 10 minutes in the sleek compounding machine, so an in-clinic appointment can easily be slotted into your lunch break.

How do they achieve this mystical powerhouse serum, you ask? With advanced science and expertise — duh! With over 250 combinations of skin traits considered when formulating your personalised serum, the qualified SkinCeuticals skincare professional, will sit down with you to talk through your skin concerns. The bespoke consultation is anchored by a diagnostic assessment that is used to select the appropriate high-potency ingredients for your skin. Not only that, but you’ll also have two photos of your face taken (one in natural light and one in blue light) via the SkinCeuticals SkinScope device, to identify any concerns you may not be aware of. Warning: these images will reveal every single pore on your face, so be prepared!

From there, over 85,000 lines of code process data from a nifty little tablet combined with 1227 unique mechanical parts dispense and mix the serum. With 1200 rotations per minute yielding industrial quality compounding, watching your little bottle of great skin come to life has never been more satisfying.

Or should we say, the why not? Rather than spending precious minutes layering six different serums, you can now get everything you need in one. A commitment to the three-month program will also ensure you’re adapting to your skin’s ever-changing needs as a fresh bottle comes with a fresh consult. This quarterly consult is important as it allows the doctor to reevaluate your skin, assessing where the product has worked and where the skin may have changed. (SkinCeuticals understands that that your skin journey will evolve). At $295, if you do the maths, it’s a pretty good deal.

So, what did Gritty Pretty think of the skincare equivalent to an initialled phone case? We loved it. Like, loved it. Think waking up after the first application looking glowier, more hydrated and brighter than ever before – and that was from multiple women in the Gritty Pretty office. Yep, it’s that good. 

We like to apply ours at night because of the actives in our personal formulas, but we recommend chatting through application with the skincare professional during your consultation, as many of the formulas can be applied in both the AM and the PM. All in all, for about 30 minutes of your time, this personalised service produces a corrective serum that is a serious skincare pocket rocket. Our only warning would be that once you go personalised, you’ll be hooked.