If you’re a beauty buff, chances are you’ve seen the Gods Eye Masks on your Instagram or Tik Tok feed. Behind the viral masks under the eyes hides Charlotte Palermino. THE The co-founder of Dieux is a major pioneer in the world of beauty and wellness and has made her mark as a leading voice and advocate for inclusive and transparent practices. With a strong background in journalism and a passion for challenging industry norms, Palermino has blazed her own trail in the ever-changing beauty landscape.
Palermino began her career as an editorial director and strategist, working at major organizations like Cosmo at Hearst and Snap Inc. where she launched and developed local and overseas media partners, including high-profile titles like THE New York Times, Washington Post, And vogueamong others. During this time, she witnessed the lack of transparency within the beauty industry. This eventually led to the creation of Gods, a mark of care wwith an emphasis on sustainable packaging, results-driven formulas and ingredients backed by clinical studies.
Like everyonecertified beautician and The ultimate beauty guru, Palermino is also expanding her influence on social media, sharing the intersections of beauty, skincare and personal care. In the latest episode of Who What to Wear with Hillary Kerr, Palermino answers pressing beauty questions, reveals what’s on the horizon for the Gods, and more.
For excerpts from that conversation, scroll below.
I also want to talk about layering because I feel like the order in which you do things is critical on many levels. What questions do you have the most about layering do’s and don’ts and proper application?
The only rule I have is not to block your ingredients. And I say that because I see so many people using really thick, rich products and then applying their serum. You’ve just created an impenetrable barrier, and now you want these sensitive assets to somehow get through it. It is not possible. So start with your water-based products, that’s the easiest way to think about it. I would say start with water and then move on to oil. It’s like dropping a glass of water on the floor, it will eventually evaporate. [But if you] drop oil on the ground, it will not evaporate. I like to think of it as if you want to put the moisturizing things first and then you’re going to wrap it up with an oil-based product. Keep it simple; three steps are more than enough. As long as you cleanse, moisturize, and use sunscreen, you really don’t have to do anything extra.
What about the time in between? Does it matter, and do you need deliverance? For example, do you need to let a product soak into the skin before you put something on before you put on your moisturizer?
I like to wait because I think of it this way: if I don’t let it dry [before] I put on my moisturizer, I go where the assets go. So it won’t be a full layer. It will not be distributed fairly. But I like to apply moisturizer on damp skin because it allows permeability. There was a study done in the 70s [that] shows that if your skin was damp when you applied products, it simply absorbed more. You don’t want this for all products, especially those with very potent ingredients. It also really depends on the situation. For example, if you put glycolic acid on a wet face, you may actually reduce its effectiveness because it can be neutralized with water. It really depends as it also changes the pH of the acid which is really important in terms of efficiency as pH is for acids. [There’s] a lot of chemistry that goes into skin care.
Are there general things – like if you don’t know anything about moisturizers, here’s my 101 – that we should know from an expert?
So when you have oily skin, sometimes it’s because your skin isn’t hydrated, so your skin produces more oil to overcompensate for it. But the reality is that when you have oily skin you can sometimes be more prone to breakouts because you have [more] oil. Then, if you use a very rich product in addition, you will trap this oil, which is food for bacteria, in your pores, and this will create an infection. That’s what breakouts are, so you have to be careful. We [Dieux] having a moisturizer, Instant Angel, which has helped some people with breakouts.
With moisturizers, you want to avoid D4 and D6, cyclic silicones. And again, it really depends. If you have really oily skin, I would recommend using lightweight, water-based moisturizers, like these lightweight, not too heavy moisturizers, because what you really need is hydration.
I really like very rosy, juicy, bouncy things. I’m always looking to bounce back, then I put Vaseline on it to keep it there. But if you have oily skin, you can use really hydrating products and then control that oil. And so there are so many good moisturizers for you that do that. They are usually called moisturizing gels or water moisturizers. And you’ll never be looking for anything too rich or creamy unless you move to New York in the winter!
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. Then check out our previous episode with Halle Bailey.