My New Favourite Skincare: Riversol
Many years ago, I worked for a Vancouver-based skincare company called Enzo Trevi. It was the early 80s, and skincare was nowhere near as prevalent as it is today. I started using the products because I worked at the company.
I will always remember spending an afternoon with one of the product architects, Ursula Wagstaff, who told me, “It doesn’t matter what product you are using; you MUST cleanse, tone and moisturize morning and night.”
And I have done that ever since.
The idea behind Enzo Trevi was refreshingly simple: offer affordable skincare products that people would actually use every day. That philosophy stuck with me. I have never been particularly interested in buying an expensive jar simply because the jar looks fabulous on the bathroom counter. I want good ingredients, a sensible routine and products I will consistently use.
From The Ordinary to Riversol
Several years ago, that philosophy led me to The Ordinary, the skincare line from Canadian company Deciem. I loved what they were doing. Instead of relying on elaborate packaging and mysterious claims, The Ordinary puts ingredients such as glycolic acid, vitamin C, hyaluronic acid and retinol front and centre, often at remarkably low prices. I became a fan.
But skincare changes. Products change. And, perhaps more importantly, our skin changes.
These days, the products in my bathroom cabinet are from another Canadian company, Riversol.
And there is something rather nice about the story coming full circle. My skincare education began with a Vancouver company all those years ago, and my current favourite is also formulated and produced in Vancouver.
Meet Dr. Jason Rivers
Riversol was founded by Vancouver dermatologist Dr. Jason Rivers, a board-certified dermatologist with more than 30 years of clinical experience. He has also served as a clinical professor and dermatology program director at the University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine.
What appealed to me about Riversol is that it feels less like a beauty company trying to practise dermatology and more like dermatology that happens to come in rather nice bottles.
The line was developed particularly with sensitive skin in mind, and the company formulates its products without many of the fragrances, dyes and other common irritants that can be troublesome for sensitive skin.
The Very West Coast Ingredient
One of the things that makes Riversol particularly interesting is its signature ingredient, hinokitiol, which Riversol also calls Beta-T. Hinokitiol is an antioxidant derived from the Pacific red cedar. Riversol uses it throughout its skincare line to help improve the appearance of skin clarity and texture.
Pacific red cedar in my skincare? Now you’re speaking my language.
Depending on the product, Riversol combines Beta-T with familiar skincare ingredients such as vitamins C and E, glycolic acid, retinol and niacinamide. For example, its Anti-Aging Serum combines vitamins C and E, while its exfoliating peel uses 4% glycolic acid and its retinol treatment contains 0.5% retinol.
I like this approach because I can understand what the products are intended to do without feeling as though I need a chemistry degree and a flow chart to wash my face.
Skincare Doesn’t Need to Be Complicated
Perhaps this is where Ursula’s advice from the 1980s comes back into the story.
Cleanse. Treat. Moisturize. Protect. Repeat.
Riversol has expanded that basic philosophy into a straightforward routine with cleansers, treatment serums, moisturizers and sunscreen. You can add targeted products based on your skin’s needs, rather than assembling a bathroom cabinet with 17 mysterious bottles you can’t remember how to use.
And consistency still matters more to me than chasing every new skincare trend that comes along.
Try It Before You Buy It
This may be my favourite part.
If you’re curious about Riversol but don’t want to invest in full-sized products before knowing how your skin will react, the company offers 15-day sample regimens.
There are sample options geared toward anti-aging and redness-prone skin, with cleanser, serum and moisturizer samples selected for your skin type and concerns. The company recommends introducing the products gradually over 15 days rather than throwing everything at you on Tuesday morning and hoping for the best.
That’s a smart way to sell skincare. Don’t tell me how wonderful it is. Let me put it on my face and decide for myself.
What Hasn’t Changed Since Enzo Trevi
The goal of my blog has always been to share products that I actually use and enjoy.
There is still no magic jar.
Good skin is influenced by all the decidedly unglamorous things we already know about: hydration, sleep, nutrition, sun protection, and consistent skin care.
No serum can replace the basics.
But after all these years of trying different products, I’ve come back to something remarkably close to what Ursula told me in Vancouver more than four decades ago: find a routine that works for you and actually use it, morning and night.
The products have become more sophisticated. The ingredients have become more interesting. My bathroom cabinet has certainly changed.
The advice really hasn’t.
And right now, the skincare earning its place on my bathroom counter is Riversol, Canadian, dermatologist-developed and, rather fittingly, made here on the West Coast.
