If there's one thing that any sensible person can learn from the advent of the 12-step skin-care routine, a simple takeaway that does not involve adding 10 additional steps to your current, most likely perfectly adequate regimen, it's that layering is the new multitasking. Instead of one hero product that purports to do it all, the idea is to have many individual products that are all very good at serving their own singular purposes. A balancing oil smoothed on top of a fine line-reducing serum, a brightening essence splashed on over an exfoliating toner or an acne-fighting spot treatment — the possibilities are endless, and the ability to mix and match different functions to your liking is liberating, if a bit expensive.
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But sometimes, you just want a damn good moisturizer. A simple, elegant cream that needs no other reinforcement to do its job and do it well, something you can slap on straight from the jar and not have to worry about your skin not getting the essential nutrients it needs because you only managed to put on one of your eight usual serums before you tumbled into bed. For those nights, or every night — and every day, too, for that matter — there is Drunk Elephant's new Protini Polypeptide Cream.
A heavy-duty moisturizer with a surprisingly lightweight, almost gel-like texture in a germaphobe's dream packaging (no top to unscrew or pot to dip your grubby fingers into; just press down to release the perfect dime-sized serving every time), this one-and-done formula packs in the motherlode of vitamins, proteins, and nutrients — and, yes, enough peptides (the short chains of amino acids that trick your skin into thinking, and therefore acting, like it's young, smooth, and full of collagen) to warrant the prefix "poly," meaning many.
Of course, this wouldn't be a Drunk Elephant product without the brand's proprietary star ingredient, marula oil. In fact, it's right at the top of the ingredients list, guaranteeing you get all the hydrating properties of the oil within the cream. Rich in antioxidants, and beloved for its ability to deeply hydrate the skin without clogging pores, you'll occasionally heard it referred to as — literally — the elixir of youth. But a strictly anti-aging formula this is not: It's for anyone of any age who wants dewy, bouncy, perfectly moisturized skin in a matter of days... without having to mix anything other than a cocktail.