Power Pacts

Ingredient cocktails are the only plot twist your skincare routine needs.

- By JHANVI DUGGAL

Over years of building up my skincare army, one thing I've realised is that it is never too late to decode a new language in beauty. Just when you think you've mastered the act, a fresh ingredient is waiting to scooch by your existing stack and magically take that zit away. But, skincare gods believe, it takes two to tango, and that's where skincare's best-kept secret steps in—ingredient cocktails. The practice of combining two active ingredients in tandem is what ingredient/skincare cocktailing loosely translates to.

It may not be a new phenomenon, but it sure has paved the way for some of the best skincare combinations to take over our routines. Being a victim of sebaceous skin, I thought ceramides were my holy grail until I paired them with peptides. Now, they're the duo my skin refuses to function without. Hence, pairing is the key! So, we turned to experts to uncover some of the best ingredient combinations and here are the ones you simply can't go wrong with.

VITAMIN C & VITAMIN E

THE POWER DUO: Vitamin C and Vitamin E are considered to be one of the most effective antioxidant defences you can give your skin. A power pact duo that swears by brightness, or as Dr Chiranjiv Chhabra, Founder and Chief Dermatologist at Alive Wellness Clinics, says “consider them like best friends in skincare, as each makes the other stronger.”