Skin Signal, Your SPF|YI: October 2025
Hi friends,
Welcome back to the second issue of Skin Signal! Thank you to everyone who voted in last month’s poll. With your input, I’m working on a new guide that will focus on at-home skincare devices—so stay tuned. And congratulations to the winner of our first skincare giveaway, Lina!
This month I have BIG NEWS, and I want you to be the first to hear it: I helped formulate a new mineral sunscreen SERUM, launching this week! More details below.
Skin Scoop: My Top 3 Fall Moisturizers
When the air turns cooler and drier, your skin needs extra barrier support. Here are three moisturizers I actually recommend for fall into winter—no matter your skin type or budget:
Budget K-Beauty Find: Illiyoon Ceramide Ato Concentrate Cream – Lightweight yet deeply hydrating, packed with ceramides to strengthen the skin barrier. A Korean cult favorite that won’t break the bank.
Acne-Friendly Option: Naturium Niacinamide Gel Cream 5% – An oil-free gel with niacinamide to calm redness and help control breakouts, while still keeping skin hydrated.
Splurge-Worthy: SkinCeuticals Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2 – A rich, luxe cream with ceramides, cholesterol, and fatty acids that mimic skin’s natural lipids. Pricey, but delivers visible plumpness and lasting comfort.
I Made a Sunscreen! Solserum.
A couple of years ago, while I was on vacation in Arizona, two sisters, Lauren and Ali, recognized me and struck up a conversation. After dinner, they asked, "Would you help us create a sunscreen?" I said yes, and that was the start of something special.
A couple of years ago, while I was on vacation in Arizona, two sisters, Lauren and Ali, recognized me and struck up a conversation. After dinner, they asked, "Would you help us create a sunscreen?" I said yes, and that was the start of something special.
Our goal was simple: to create a 100% mineral sunscreen that doesn’t feel like one. Lightweight, blendable, hydrating, and packed with skin-loving ingredients. After dozens of lab samples and plenty of rejected versions, we finally landed on something I’m so excited to share with you: Solserum.
It is a serum-meets-moisturizer with ingredients I know and trust: Centella Asiatica, niacinamide, vitamins C and E, green tea, aloe, hyaluronic acid, prickly pear, and iron oxides for extra protection.
We're a tiny brand - literally just the three of us - which is why this launch means so much. If you'd like to be among the very first to try it, I made a secret discount code just for my newsletter subscribers: SOLSERUM10
Derm Hack of the Month: Healing Cracking Heels After Sandal Season
If your heels are looking like dry riverbeds after months in sandals, here’s how to fix them:
Step 1: Apply an over-the-counter 40% urea cream. It’s the best at exfoliating thickened skin while hydrating at the same time.
Step 2: Seal it in with a layer of Vaseline and put on socks overnight. Or, for a no-mess option, try ready-made “moisturizing socks” from Aveeno or Aquaphor.
Step 3: Want to go big? Try a Baby Foot–style foot peel mask. It’s a medicated sock treatment that makes thick, callused skin shed over the course of a week—kind of like a snake shedding its skin. The results can be dramatic (and a little gross, in a strangely satisfying way).
Repeat for a week, and your feet will feel ready for cozy October slippers—not July flip-flops.
Prime Deal Days Are Here
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Inside My Routine: Two Skincare Gems I Found in Korea
Traveling in Korea was basically a skincare treasure hunt and I came back with two products that are now permanent residents on my shelf:
IOPE Stem II Clinical Recovery Serum
Shhh…this one hasn’t launched in the U.S. yet, but it’s a total game-changer. The brand actually conducted a split-face study comparing this serum to the viral Rejuran PDRN injections and the serum, which features algae-derived PDRN encapsulated in liposomes, outperformed the injections in categories like moisture plumping, hydration, and pore volume. I think it’s a great addition to your skincare routine and could even replace a hyaluronic acid serum. For now, you have to order it from Korea if you want to try it.
COSRX Peptide Collagen Hydrogel Eye Patch
I’ve always been hesitant about eye patches, but these soon-to-be-viral ones combine so many of my favorite ingredients for under-eye concerns that they’re a winner for me. Besides caffeine (to depuff) and niacinamide (brightening), they feature two standout peptides: Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5 (aka Eyeseryl)—a four-amino-acid peptide shown in clinical studies to reduce under-eye puffiness by improving fluid retention and protecting against glycation—and Argireline (aka the Botox peptide), which helps muscles contract less to minimize wrinkles.