Serums and moisturisers are simple enough on their own. It's putting them together that catches people out, and it's almost always one of two things: the order, or the amount.
One small change makes most of the difference: apply it to slightly damp skin, and add a splash of water in your hands.
A quick note on names first. Face oil, facial serum, oil-based serum. Different words for the same thing, and we called ours serums for years before settling on face oils. If you arrived here looking for one and we're saying the other, you're in the right place.
Here's the method, how much to use, and why that little bit of water helps a concentrated oil spread across your whole face without leaving you shiny an hour later.
How to apply face serum
If you're using a waterless, oil-based serum, this is the whole thing.
- Cleanse, and leave your skin slightly damp rather than towelling it completely dry.
- Add a few drops of serum to your palm. Start at the lower end, around 3 to 6 drops, and adjust from there.
- Add a little water to your hands. A few drops flicked from your fingertips is plenty, or use a mist or hydrosol if you have one.
- Warm them together lightly between your fingertips.
- Press over your face and neck, starting with the driest areas, then massage gently.
- Let it settle before deciding whether you need anything else.
Your skin should feel soft and comfortable rather than coated.
Should serum go before or after moisturiser?
This is the question we get asked most, and the usual answer, "thinnest to thickest", is right by accident rather than for the right reason.
The real reason is that oil and water don't mix.
An oil sits on the surface and forms a barrier. That's its job, and it's a useful one. But it means that if you put an oil down first, anything water-based that follows has a much harder time getting through it. You've sealed the door before the guest arrived.
Go the other way round and everything works with the grain. The water-based product goes on and does its thing, and the oil goes over the top and holds it there, slowing the water from evaporating away. An oil-based balm is more occlusive again, so it's the strongest seal of the three and belongs last.
The order, if you use all three
- Water-based serum or moisturiser. Onto clean skin. This is your water step.
- Oil-based face serum. A few drops with a splash of water in your palms, pressed over the top. This seals in step one.
- Oil-based balm. A small amount, warmed and pressed on last, where you need extra comfort and protection. This is your barrier layer.
Most people under 40 don't need all three. Two is plenty for most skin, and one is fine in summer.
If you only use a waterless face oil and a balm
Serum first, balm over the top. Give the serum a few minutes to settle before deciding whether you need the balm at all, because you may need less than you expected. No need to dampen your skin again at that stage, but you can if you find it helps to spread the balm more evenly.
If your moisturiser is water-based
Moisturiser first, face oil pressed over it. Apply the oil the way you always would, a few drops with a splash of water warmed in your palms.
Why add water to an oil-based serum?
This is the part that most people miss.
Adding a splash of water in your hands is not the same as adding water to the serum.
A properly formulated waterless facial oil has no water in the bottle, and that's deliberate. Once water goes into a cosmetic formula, it creates an environment where microorganisms can grow, which means the product needs an appropriate preservation system and stability testing behind it.
Your hands are a different matter. The water you add at the moment of use isn't going anywhere near the bottle. It's there to help a very concentrated oil spread evenly on your skin and lock-in the hydration you would otherwise miss out on.
Why damp skin makes such a difference
Oil and water behave differently, which is exactly why the technique matters.
A concentrated oil on completely dry skin is being asked to cover a large surface entirely on its own. It can feel heavy in the places it lands and thin everywhere else, so you reach for more and likely over-apply. On slightly damp skin, the same few drops spread easily and go where you want them.
What you needed was slip, not more oil.
This is the answer to a thought most people have had at some point: this feels lovely, so why am I still shiny an hour later? Usually it's simply too much product.
How much face serum should you use?
With a concentrated, waterless serum, less really is more.
Start with around 3 to 6 drops for your face and neck. Depending on the formula, your skin and how damp it is, you may work up to 10. Our fuller guide to a waterless skincare routine sets out amounts for each step if you want the detail.
Two rules of thumb worth keeping:
- Feels greasy? Don't reach for a different serum. Try using less of this one first.
- Not spreading far enough? Add a little more water, not another five drops of oil.
You're aiming for skin that feels comfortable and supple, not a layer sitting on top.
Can you use face serum on oily skin?
Yes, and plenty of people with oily or blemish-prone skin do.
Having oily skin doesn't rule out facial oils. What matters is choosing a blend suited to your skin and using a sensible amount of it. Applying one concentrated oil sparingly is often a much simpler approach than layering three or four products trying to get the same result.
If you're new to it, start with a few drops on damp skin and see how you get on over a week or two.
What about dry skin?
Dry skin is where the layering order earns its keep.
If your skin feels tight rather than just lacking richness, it's usually short of water, not only oil. An oil on its own will slow water leaving, but it can't put any back. That's the case for a water step underneath: damp skin at minimum, or a water-based product if you have one, then the oil over the top to hold it.
Some other things worth trying if you're properly dry:
- Start with the driest areas, since whatever you apply first gets the most.
- Follow with a balm on the patches that need it, rather than more serum everywhere.
- Apply more generously at night.
When to use it
In the morning
After cleansing, while your skin is still slightly damp. Give it a few minutes to settle before anything else goes on, including makeup.
At night
Evening is a lovely time for a facial oil, and there's no makeup to work around. Cleanse, leave your skin damp, apply more generously at nigh than in the day time. If your skin is particularly dry, follow with a richer balm.
The five mistakes worth avoiding
Where it usually goes wrong
- Using too much. A concentrated oil doesn't get applied like a water-based moisturiser.
- Applying to completely dry skin. Damp skin is what lets the serum spread.
- Adding water to the bottle. Never dilute a finished oil serum. Water belongs in your hands, at the moment of use.
- Rubbing hard. Warming it between your palms and pressing it in is all that's needed.
- Layering before the first step has settled. Give the serum a minute before deciding you need more.
Why our serums work this way
We make our facial oils as waterless, concentrated formulas, built around plant oils and botanicals rather than using water as the main ingredient. Most conventional skincare is up to 95% water. Ours is 100% water-free.
That's why a few drops go further than you'd expect, and why the technique matters more than it would with a water-based product. The concentration is the point, and the splash of water in your palm is what makes it practical.
The rule to remember
Cleanse. Leave skin damp. A few drops of face oil + a splash of water in your hands. Mix. Press it on. Stop before you think you need more.
That's genuinely all of it.
And if you've ever decided facial oils were too heavy, too greasy or just not for you, try changing how you apply them before writing them off. There's a good chance you were using a concentrated product the way you'd use a water-based moisturiser.
Common questions
Is a face oil the same as a face serum?
In practice, usually yes. "Serum" just means a concentrated product applied under moisturiser, and it covers both water-based formulas and oil-based ones. Ours are oil-based, which is why we call them face oils now. The application method in this article is for the oil-based kind.
Can I use a hyaluronic acid serum with a face oil?
Yes, and it's a good pairing. Hyaluronic acid is water-based, so it goes on first, onto damp skin. The face oil goes over the top and holds it in place. That order matters more with hyaluronic acid than most things, since it needs water available to work with.
Does a face oil count as my moisturiser?
For a lot of people, yes, particularly in warmer months. If your skin still feels tight a few minutes on, add something over the top: a balm goes over the oil, whereas a water-based moisturiser goes on first with the oil pressed over it. Let your skin tell you rather than following a fixed number of steps.
Can I use it around my eyes?
Gently, and staying on the orbital bone rather than right up to the lash line. Press rather than rub, since the skin there is thinner than the rest of the face.
What if I wear makeup?
Give the serum a good few minutes to settle first. Applying makeup onto skin that's still tacky is the most common reason people find their base doesn't sit properly.
Can I use tap water, or does it need to be a mist?
Tap water is fine. A hydrosol or mist is nice if you have one, but the water is there to add hydration and help the oil spread, and any water does that job.
