I’m horizontal with my eyes closed at facialist Georgia Louise’s Upper East Side Skin Atelier when she starts to tap my face almost aggressively. Mid-pat (she’s putting on SK-II’s iconic Pitera Facial Treatment Clear Lotion), I finally get up the guts to ask her the question about a trend I’ve been seen percolating on TikTok: Should I be applying seven toners to my face?
“Oh my god,” she says without even stopping product-application stride. I can feel her eyes roll without even opening my lids. “I really want to see the scientific papers backing up this theory.”
Known as the “seven skin method,” this practice comes from K-Beauty, where either seven different toners or seven layers of toner are applied to the face after cleansing. It’s the latest way to get smoother, more hydrated “glass skin.”
For those who need to truly start from the beginning: A toner is a feather-light liquid you apply to freshly cleansed skin to help balance the pH post-wash, and there are different sub-categories on the market. Exfoliating versions, like Biologique Recherche’s P50, are akin to paint stripper for the face, removing any hint of leftover grime from the day along with taking a pass at clearing pigmentation and smoothing fine lines. There are also hydrating toners (back to SK-II’s Pietra and La Mer’s the Treatment Lotion), which take a more gentle approach to giving you a glow.
So, why seven? Well, it’s really meant to be applied up to seven times—you should intuit how much your skin needs it. But Louise assures us, one go of whichever toner you choose to use is the right amount. “Think of your skincare like it’s medicine, because that’s how it’s formulated. It’s dosed to be the right amount of product—and the right amount of ingredients—in a single pass.”
For things like a stripping toner, it can be truly detrimental for your skin. But Louise adds it’s not that great for the more hydrating versions, either. “By over hydrating the skin with too much toner, you’re just setting up a block for other products like your serums to properly work. Your regime really should be all about the serums, because that’s where the actives are. Don’t spend all your time and money on layering a toner seven times.”
