Most Watched: Glow For Your Holiday Photo | Skincare Must Haves!

When you think of glowing, radiant skin, chances are you think vitamin C. But with serums ranging anywhere from $20 to over $200, how do you know what’s actually worth the investment?

In this popular segment from our most watched episode, Jane digs into the truth about one of skincare’s most essential ingredients. She breaks down why vitamin C is a cornerstone of any routine, what makes the famous (and pricey) SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic such a gold standard, and whether you can get the same results with more affordable options.

You’ll hear:
 ✨ Why vitamin C became the original antioxidant superstar
 ✨ The real story behind CE Ferulic’s cult status
 ✨ How today’s technology makes high-quality vitamin C available at every price point
 ✨ Where splurging matters more (hello, peptides and exosomes)
✨ Affordable vitamin C products that deliver, including budget-friendly picks from La Roche-Posay, CeraVe, and Vanicream

If you’ve ever wondered whether to spend $20 or $250 on a serum, this episode will help you make smarter skincare decisions—without compromising results.

Check out the full conversation here!!

#AgelessWithJaneMcGarry #JaneMcGarry #SkincarePodcast #VitaminCSerum #SkinCareTips #HealthySkin #AntiAging #BeautyOver50 #WomenOver50 #GlowingSkin #CEFerulic #AffordableSkincare #SkinCareRoutine #BeautyPodcast #ApplePodcasts

Creators and Guests

Host

Jane McGarry

Good Morning Texas host, inspiring women 60 plus to fully live their purpose driven lives with faith & style. Loves: God, travel, fashion, color, food, interior design, and of course family.

What is Ageless with Jane McGarry?

In a world that profits off of the youth and those trying to recapture it, I call B.S.

Every episode will bring expert guests, heartfelt advice, and down-to-earth conversations designed for women just like us—curious, open, and determined to live fully at every age. I’ll be asking the questions I want answers to for my own life, and offering a safe, supportive space for all of us to learn together.

I sincerely invite you to be among the very first to listen, subscribe, and join this vibrant new community of women redefining what it means to be “ageless.”

Subscribe to Ageless with Jane McGarry wherever you get your podcasts!

Most Watched: Vitamin C
Jane: [00:00:00] Okay, let's talk about vitamin C because when I think of your skin looking radiant, I think of vitamin C. How much vitamin C do you need to put on your skin? Are there. Really, this is a, I think there's no downside, but the, they can be expensive. Is there, the splurge probably would be, uh, the c ferulic, is that the one I'm thinking of?
Which is everybody says, oh, that's the gold standard. Can you get a good result with a lesser, less expensive vitamin C.
Alyssa: Y certainly. So vitamin C is kind of one of the, the three essential, um, skincare ingredients. Things have evolved now, and so a lot of products have more than just vitamin C in 'em. But let's talk about kind of the original gold standard, which is sic acid. SkinCeuticals was the first company to put out a beautiful product.
It was shelf stable. Um, vitamin C fights free radicals helps. Kind of create a shield to prevent all of that stuff. Trying to break down our [00:01:00] collagen. Um, people love CE fruit, like it's been around since two, 2005. They sold a L'Oreal so before that, so it's been around a long time. It's expensive. I think it's upwards of $200.
It is their most popular skew out of that entire line, and people will not stray from it. Now every company has a vitamin C. The, the technology is out there to have a shelf stable vitamin C at a much lower price point. Um, so I personally don't think you need to spend a ton on a vitamin C. I am spending my money somewhere on a peptide or exosome product at this point that doesn't have a steal to it.
Whereas the vitamin Cs out there now Laroche say CeraVe Vanny cream. Everybody, you can get a vitamin C from 20 all the way to two 50, and they all work great.
Jane: So what I hear you saying then is, see, Ferulic, they were like the first, and at the time that was the only one that was available that was of that quality. But now [00:02:00] they're so name again then because I wanna save some money. So four or five vitamin Cs that are gonna give you as good a results at a lesser price.
What are they?
Alyssa: There's a company that is widely popular at Sephora called In Beauty Project. I love a lot of their, um, products. They have a vitamin C called the Green Machine. Um, Vanny Cream, which is a very skin sensitive line, has a vitamin C that has a little bit different. Ingredient called THD. SkinCeuticals is SIC acid.
That is one of my favorite steel products. I think it's $20 and it's super tolerable. LAROCHE Poe has a vitamin C, very similar to SkinCeuticals that'll land you about 40. So I think you some of those kind of liter brands that you've heard of all have vitamin Cs now that are great.
Jane: Oh wow. That's great information. I could save a lot of money with those. Okay, finally, speaking of saving money, all these skincare products, [00:03:00] all these procedures can just. Add up to a lot of money, and it's money that most people don't have. Um, I'm careful about the, I'm try to be very selective on the products that I pick.
Plus, I don't wanna use a thousand products. I don't have time, I don't, can't figure it all out. What are the things you think are essential? Let's look first at, if you were gonna pick one or two procedures that you think are really important for women. Um, over 50 my age. I'm well over 50. Um, but, and then three or four products for a skincare routine. What, what are your, what are your recommendations?
Alyssa: So procedures, which we haven't touched on, I love. Microneedling, plain microneedling, not in energy based radio frequency, which I also love and have done, but I think an out instead of facials, if I'm going to my aesthetician, I'm choosing microneedling. One of the most famous [00:04:00] microneedling companies is called Skin Pin.
So a lot of people call it skin pin. Um, it is a 30 minute procedure. Tiny little needles that go into the skin. We're back to that whole stimulate. Collagen products penetrate better, so a lot of my patients are like, Alyssa, should I do a facial? What should I do? Skin pin four times a year is a great thing there.
It runs maybe three to $400, so you're gonna get a really good service, um, for what I would consider out of all the things semi affordable. Um, and then I would pick, I would do a laser once, I would do a big laser once a year, I would do a halo. I would do a Fraxel, um, CO2, um, one of these big lasers and kind of set aside, you know, you're gonna spend a thousand, $2,000 on one of these big lasers.
Once a year, and I think those two things are a great kind of procedural based, um, approach to aging skin.
Jane: Okay. What about products Everyday products
Alyssa: I wanna talk about a product because I, I haven't been able to talk about it. Um, and you've probably [00:05:00] seen me talk about it. It is a company out of MIT, um, and I want everybody to know about this because she's the first to market with this very special ingredient.
The company is called Pavis. Um, and she is a scientist. She's 32. Um, she came from China when she was 16 and has accolades. She's got a star named after her. I mean, this, this woman is brilliant already. Um, she created a molecule in her MIT lab. She was a cancer researcher, created a molecule in her lab called Diamond Core, and her Hallmark product is a treatment.
So it's got peptides, antioxidants. It doesn't have vitamin C, but it has your antioxidants, which we don't necessarily need specific vitamin C anymore. Um, peptides. Those are the collagen strengtheners, pigment correctors. And the coolest part, which she hates me, starting out by saying this, it has sunscreen.
So if you want a single product that will yield you amazing results, and I'm not getting paid for this. I just love to support her. Um, Pavis Daily Dynamic Age defense is a really cool product. It can be your [00:06:00] all in one. Morning product. I personally do layer it, um, with my plated and a vitamin C just because I like how it feels.
But it is a great Dewey moisturizer. I do not skip a day without it. It goes beautiful under makeup. So that's her leading product. Jane, I want you to try it. You will love it. And all the women, every woman I've sold it to over 50 loves it. It is so hydrating. Um, it is a beautiful product. She's now come out with an eye cream.
There's an evening product and a face wash, but. This is a company you wanna be looking out for because there's gonna be a lot of innovation from her lab. She's got patents beyond patents for things. So look into that. Outside of that, we did not touch on sunscreen. So if you have a solid routine, you've got retinol, you've got your vitamin C, um, you're washing your face and you've got a moisturizer.
This is so funny still to me. I don't, I'm gonna out my mom. I don't know that my mom wears sunscreen every day outside of the house. My kids know that I cannot walk out of my house. No matter if I'm going to exercise or whatever without [00:07:00] sunscreen on. So if I can drive one thing home, put a sunscreen on every day, especially on your face, we don't have to be perfect about our body every day if for in and outta the car, but a sunscreen is gonna be truly one of the best things you can do for antiaging.
Jane: I'm convinced it's a generational thing. I'm like your mom. I might not use the sunscreen every day. My son and his girlfriend don't go anywhere without a sunscreen. I'm convinced
More power to you. I wish I would've done it earlier.
Alyssa: Uhhuh. That's what I think. I think everyone's like, well, it's a losing battle at this point. I'm like, well, but you're doing all these other things, so let's just add sunscreen to the mix. So I think it's not too late to start sunscreen.
Jane: Alyssa, you're just wonderful. I really appreciate your time. You've given us so much knowledge, so much care for women who really, really appreciate your time, your knowledge, and your gorgeous skin. Thank you so much.
Alyssa: Thank you, Jane, for having me.
Jane: Thank you so much for joining me for this episode of Ageless with Jane McGarry. I'm calling it ageless [00:08:00] because I want us to be in good enough health, good enough spirituality, emotional health style, beauty, all that kind of stuff.
That age truly is. Just a number. I want you to also know that this is a community. It's not just a podcast. It's a community of women caring about each other, inspiring each other. Without you, it's not possible. So I really appreciate you being here, and I look forward to seeing you on the next episode of Ageless with Jane McGarry.