Sea Serum

The inner light bulb
$135

Adding to Cart Added to Cart

THE INNER LIGHT BULB. A luminosity-boosting super protector, this antioxidant-packed serum first soothes and hydrates so that its marine actives can boost vibrance, resilience, and elasticity to optimal levels over the long term.

Aqua (Water), Propanediol, Glycerin, Lactobacillus, Squalane, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Ascophyllum Nodosum Extract, Crithmum Maritimum Callus Culture Filtrate, Asparagopsis Armata Extract, Porphyra Umbilicalis (Red Algae) Extract, Macrocystis Pyrifera (Kelp), Chondrus Crispus (Carrageenan) Extract, Niacinamide, Panthenol (D), Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Fruit Extract, Spirulina Platensis Extract, Bisabolol (L-alpha), Sodium Hyaluronate (L), Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder, Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Polygamma-Glutamate, Palmitoyl Dipeptide-5 Diaminobutyroyl Hydroxythreonine, Palmitoyl Dipeptide-5 Diaminohydroxybutyrate, Malachite Extract, Caprylyl Glycol, Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate, Sodium Gluconate, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Root Extract, Maltodextrin, Sodium Lactate, Lecithin, Alcohol, Hydrolyzed Gardenia Florida Extract, Sodium Hydroxide.

AM and/or PM, apply to clean face, neck, and chest; follow with the moisturizer of your choice. Get all the tips below!

HOW IT GIVES BACK:

5% of each sale supports climate organizations through 1% for the planet

WHY WE MADE IT

Most of us feel like our skin is dull; without the perfect level of hydration & calm, all the actives in the world can’t brighten it.

We wanted an antioxidant serum that could do it all. This innovative, multi-dimensional, and adaptive serum starts by addressing what your skin craves the most, and its benefits build on one another in an intelligent, cumulative way for more vibrant, resilient skin. 

WHAT IT DOES

The Dara Kennedy Sea Serum is powered by ingredients clinically demonstrated to:

- Significantly reduce brown spots, even on darker skin tones that can't easily use lasers
- Improve firmness by up to 62% in just two months
- Prompt a 20%+ increase in NMF production after 14 days (which means that it helps your skin lock in and regulate moisture more effectively)
- Reduce redness and protect skin's microcapillaries, limiting UV stress-induced activity by up to 74% for more resilient skin
- Provide protection against UVA- and UVB- induced free radical damage (important note: it’s not a sunscreen, it’s a sunscreen helper — please wear your sunscreen!) 

This is important: with protective and brightening abilities that muscle even Vitamin C out of the way, the Dara Kennedy Sea Serum packs a serious punch, but it suits the most sensitive skin.

Bonus superpower: it’s also an incredible team player. Use it under any face oil, lotion, or cream to feel like you’re cocooning your skin in a protective, rejuvenating, healing bubble — and you’ll notice that the products you apply over it seem to work better, too. 

HOW IT WORKS

At the heart of the Sea Serum's formula are marine plants that have evolved and adapted over hundreds of millions of years with protective, rejuvenating mechanisms. 

The gorgeously green, silky formula features local, sustainably harvested Giant Kelp, the same ingredient in the Sea Soak; even the first application feels healing and rejuvenating, like a dip in the ocean. 

And over time, with a proprietary blend of actives that includes 5 additional seaweeds and coastal plants from California, France, and Ireland — natural master adapters — this multi-dimensional vibrance booster has clinically proven power to brighten, firm, soothe, and fortify while deeply hydrating, obviating the need for multiple treatments.

Working with those master adapters are tried and true ingredients like multi-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid, hydration-boosting polyglutamic acid, multi-benefit niacinamide, collagen-boosting peptides, and barrier-restoring squalane that enable the formula’s benefits to continue getting better and better. 

As a holistic system, it addresses skin’s needs at the surface and below, even nourishing nascent skin cells so they grow stronger and healthier—creating a virtuous circle of benefits.

Key Actives & Their Provenance

Our antioxidant-rich, hand-harvested giant kelp (macrocystis pyrifera) has highly regarded antioxidant, soothing, and hydrating properties; we blend it with probiotics, including lactobacillus and leuconostoc/radish root ferment filtrate, to help the skin’s microbiome maintain a healthy mix of flora. Multi-faceted ingredients like niacinamide, panthenol, bisabolol, and aloe fill in where your skin needs them, adding even more soothing, hydrating, and pore-tightening properties.

We blend our hand-harvested giant kelp with a red algae from the Irish coast (porphyra umbilicalis) known for its ability to actively protect skin against UVA-induced stress and photoaging — the type that travels through windows and clouds. Sea fennel (crithmum maritimum), one of the earliest plants to migrate from sea to land, supports their efforts: it’s also clinically shown to help protect skin against UVB-induced free radical damage.

A special, polyphenol-rich brown algae from the coast of France (ascophyllum nodosum) improves radiance and luminosity; it also helps to prevent the formation of future dark spots, as it has been clinically proven to neutralize the free radicals that can cause hyperpigmentation as well as ascorbic acid, the most powerful form of Vitamin C. It works with the sea fennel, also harvested off the coast of France, to gently lighten existing hyperpigmentation and encourage a more even skin tone.

We all know and love hyaluronic acid for the way it attracts and creates a breathable barrier on the surface of the skin, providing it with a natural reservoir of moisture. We blend multi-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid in our proprietary blend with red seaweed (chrondrus crispus), sourced from the Pacific coast. These two ingredients are dramatically more effective than just one or the other, working together to trap moisture in the skin. And polyglutamic acid is what takes our hydration blend to the next level: it’s an amino acid that encourages the production of skin’s natural moisturizing factor. This helps skin hold onto moisture more effectively and pull it in more deeply so that it doesn’t just stay on the skin’s surface. Along with sea fennel and other favorites (squalane, propanediol, glycerin), this creates a perfectly complete cycle of hydration.

Yet another seaweed from France (asparagopsis armata) works with the others in our blend to shield skin's microcapillaries from external stressors, with clinically proven ability to reduce UV stress-induced activity that can lead to redness.

Sea fennel, the all-around power player, supports it all — helping to hasten skin’s natural healing processes and improving epidermal metabolism for healthier, more vibrant skin. Two tried-and-true peptides (there are a lot out there that are all talk) work with it to increase skin’s collagen production, helping to improve its structural integrity and leading to firmer skin with fewer fine lines.

How to Use It

The basics

Shake well and apply to clean face, neck, and chest (2-3 pumps per application). Skin can be either dry or damp (from mist/hydrosol/toner) when you apply your Sea Serum. Follow with the moisturizer or face oil of your choice.

Extra tips

- The Sea Serum can be used day and night; it’s a must during the day due to its incredible antioxidant capabilities, but it's also helpful at night as a collagen booster.

- If you're a retinoid user, or want to be, applying the Sea Serum under the Sea Retinal can amplify its benefits while alleviating sensitivity.

Hint

Sea Serum plays nicely with our other serums (and everything else we've ever come across).

Shop all serums

sea serum press coverage & awards

Dara on substack

What does skin really need?

How did we get here?

The Sea Serum origin story

Behind the product-development scenes

4.9
Rated 4.9 out of 5 stars
Based on 37 reviews
Total 5 star reviews: 36 Total 4 star reviews: 0 Total 3 star reviews: 0 Total 2 star reviews: 0 Total 1 star reviews: 1
97%would recommend this product
37 reviews
  • MC Profile picture for Meghan C.
    Meghan C.
    Verified Buyer
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    1 month ago
    Loving this

    I’ve purchased this twice now and one for my mom. It’s incredible. Over Christmas I broke my new replacement during travel ;( so looks like I’m headed back to get another one since I really can’t live without this hydration magic.

  • DH
    Denyse H.
    Verified Buyer
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    4 months ago
    5 Stars

    The best product that you didn't know you couldn't live without.

  • A
    As
    Verified Buyer
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    5 months ago
    5 Stars

    I use two pumps morning and night and my skin drinks it right up. Makes my skin feel fresh, calm and somehow bouncier. I love it!

  • MF
    Maria F.
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    8 months ago
    5 Stars

    I can't live without the sea serum. It brightens my skin and gives me a glow. I see such a difference in my complexion since I started using it!

  • P
    Patricia
    Verified Buyer
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    9 months ago
    5 Stars

    The best addition to my skincare regime. Thank you for this product! My skin had been so stubborn and now it is more clear.