Beauty This Skincare Brand Says Its Unique Bottle Doles Out a Perfect Dose, So I Tested Its Shopper-Loved Retinol The separate, powdered retinol keeps the formula fresh for longer. By Ariel Scotti Ariel Scotti Instagram Twitter Ariel Scotti is a Commerce Partnerships Writer with six years of experience in food, cooking, and kitchen tools, beauty and skincare products, health and wellness reporting, style, and all things cleaning, organizing, and holidays. Along with story production, headline crafting, and copy editing experience, she has specialized in SEO for four years. She has been with Dotdash Meredith since 2021 and written for brands like Food & Wine, PEOPLE, InStyle, Real Simple, Travel + Leisure, Health, Shape, Martha Stewart Living, and more. She earned her masters in journalism from New York University where she wrote for the school blog and paper. An avid home cook, reader, and skincare lover, Ariel has made herself an expert in the areas she covers in her professional life via her real-life passions. InStyle's editorial guidelines Published on August 17, 2022 @ 11:30PM Pin Share Tweet Email We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Learn more. Photo: Exponent Beauty Retinol is far from a new ingredient in the skincare world. In fact, it seems as if every beauty brand on the market is releasing a newer, more powerful retinol to fight wrinkles and smooth skin texture to outperform the rest. The truth is that finding the right retinol comes down to you and your skin, but if you're looking for something that approaches retinol in a completely unique way, we have a recommendation for you. The Exponent Beauty Time Rewind Retinol System uses retinol in what the brand calls its "most potent powder state." This powdered retinol is not yet mixed into the rest of the serum in order to keep the anti-aging ingredient fresher for a longer period of time. Exponent Beauty argues that this prevents the retinol from oxidizing, reducing in potency, or expiring the way that other products do when they're exposed to light and opened repeatedly. When the brand sent me its retinol to test, I was admittedly intimidated by all of the pieces that needed to be assembled, but the directions couldn't be more straightforward. Plus, the retinol itself was worth any effort on my part. Courtesy Shop now: $166; exponentbeauty.com After screwing the serum bottle and the retinol powder jar into the container that mixes and dispenses the perfect dose, I applied the retinol onto my freshly cleansed face and was pleasantly surprised to feel practically nothing. As someone with sensitive and easily reactive skin, retinols have been hit or miss for me and my skin usually lets me know how it's feeling right away. Fast forward to four weeks of continuous use, and the fine lines around the corners of my mouth and eyes are far less noticeable, my acne-related uneven skin texture is now smooth, and any early signs of lessening elasticity in my cheeks and neck have all but reversed. Shoppers who have tried "a lot of retinols and serums'' for fine lines agree that this one is "by far" their "favorite." One reviewer acknowledged that they were also "a little worried" about putting the bottle together themselves but agreed that it was "so easy" thanks to the included booklet. Another wrote that their 72-year-old mother is replacing her other anti-aging products with this retinol and added that she has "totally embraced her inner chemist" thanks to the manual aspect here. And a third person wrote that their skin feels and looks "flawless" since using this serum. Channel your inner aesthetician and find a retinol that might work for you by giving the Exponent Beauty Time Rewind Retinol System a try.