The Ordinary Soothing & Barrier Support Serum – Review

This post will review The Ordinary Soothing & Barrier Support Serum.

The other day, someone mentioned that skincare brands are currently in the barrier repair phase after feeding us mild to harsh exfoliants for years.

They have encouraged people to exfoliate daily to damage their skin barrier and are now offering products to repair said damaged barrier.

I had seen a few brands guilty of this, but I did not think The Ordinary would be as well.

I’m always excited to try innovative barrier repair serums because I haven’t been a fan of any new releases, except maybe the Multi-Peptide Lash and Brow Serum.

Speaking of innovations, it takes a lot for me to be impressed after using over a dozen Korean serums.

I have specific standards for hydrating serums and automatically judge every serum by my standards.

So yes, I’ll also be judging this serum intensely.

I know The Ordinary is trying to make this serum go viral by marketing it as ‘The Pink Serum’, but is it really that good, or is it primarily gimmicks?

Let’s find out.

First Impressions of The Ordinary Soothing & Barrier Support Serum

According to The Ordinary:

Soothing & Barrier Support Serum is a multi-active solution targeted at reducing the look of irritated skin. It helps recover the skin barrier in 2 hours*, and provides an immediate 86%** boost in skin hydration.

This helps soothe feelings of discomfort, and reduce signs of redness.

While strengthening the skin barrier, the Soothing & Barrier Support Serum also improves the look of uneven texture for a smoother appearance.

Formulated with multiple vitamins, lipids, and phytotechnologies, this comprehensive serum is suitable for all skin types, including sensitive skin.

The multi-active formula contains 8 key technologies:

Ingredient List & Fragrance

In my opinion, The Ordinary hasn’t really had the best track record regarding soothing and hydrating ingredients.

They formulate harsh exfoliants without enough buffers, so it feels super raw on your face.

But if it feels like they have been saving all those ingredients for a standalone serum.

Anyway, let’s see if they delivered with one.

The key ingredients include:

• 2% Niacinamide
• Centella Asiatica Phytotechnologies including Asiaticoside, Asiatic Acid and Madecassic Acid
• Vitamin E
• Ceramide Complex, which includes Phospholipids and Sphingolipids
• Vitamin B12
• Ginger Root Extract
• Bisabolol

According to The Ordinary, these ingredients come together to hydrate the skin, reduce signs of redness and restore a damaged barrier in as little as two hours.

While this serum might temporarily relieve irritated skin, so can Petrolatum Jelly.

There’s no magic formula to restore a damaged skin barrier in two hours.

For most people, it can take up to 24 hours up to a few days, so take that claim with a grain of salt.

As always, this serum is alcohol, essential oil and fragrance-free, which is excellent for anyone with sensitive skin.

Looking at the ingredient list, I think it is a solid one.

Rather than loading it up with plant extracts, which could lead to further sensitivities, it is stuffed with all the good stuff, which I honestly applaud.

Packaging, Texture & Consistency

The serum is packaged in the typical 30ml dropper bottle.

FYI, the dropper shouldn’t be touching your face.

It’s a lightweight viscous serum with a gorgeous baby pink hue, which comes from one of the key ingredients: Vitamin B12.

If you’re familiar with the Granactive Retinoid 2% Emulsion, this serum has the same creamy texture that The Ordinary does really well.

They need to formulate more creamy products, to be honest.

The serum hydrates and immediately sinks into the skin upon application without leaving a greasy finish.

Thus making it suitable for all skin types.

Price & Avalaiblity

The serum currently retails for £17.30/$17, which is not bad for the quality of the product.

This product will be enough for some people and will not need to be layered with any other product.

So, yeah, the price is fair.

As always, you can get it anywhere The Ordinary is sold.

Review Of The Ordinary Soothing & Barrier Support Serum

I’m currently using Tretinoin 0.5%, and I need all the hydration and barrier repair I can get.

So, this product is definitely up my alley.

I layer the serum in the AM and/or PM after my watery toner and before applying my Tret.

By layering it this way, I can reinforce my skin barrier and prevent any potential irritation from using Tret.

As always, my dry, dehydrated skin drinks it all up.

Performance

To test the bold claims of this serum restoring a damaged barrier in two hours, I used it when my skin felt very irritated.

While I felt a temporary relief, I wouldn’t say it stopped the irritation entirely in two hours.

It’s more like it accelerated the speed of the recovery,

Other than that, it’s a good product.

It reminds me so much of all the fantastic Korean serums I’ve used.

It feels familiar and innovative simultaneously, thanks to the pink hue.

In Conclusion

Once again, The Ordinary has come through with a great product.

Compared to the first barrier serum they released, the Aloe 2% + NAG 2% Solution, the Soothing & Barrier Support Serum is much more impressive.

So, if you have a compromised skin barrier from over-exfoliating or using Retinoids incorrectly, this is the right product to get your skin back on track.

In fact, I recommend using it with your Direct Acids and Retinoids to keep your skin in top shape.