Tested and approved by our beauty editor for your gifting needs.
True life: I’ve been obsessed with all things Nécessaire since the brand’s launch in 2018. I’ve praised the OG and upgraded natural deodorant formulations, bestowed The Body Cream with a coveted Best New Beauty Award win, and gifted myself a ridiculous number of Body Washes and Body Exfoliators because they’re truly next-level good. I’ve been testing and gifting the brand’s full suite of products for years, but one Nécessaire product that has always come in clutch for healing my sensitive skin is The Body Serum. After a few years of testing, I can confidently give my honest Nécessaire body serum review.
The brand is a master of elevating skincare basics with science-backed ingredients we know and trust
This special treatment remains firmly in my top three products from Nécessaire, which is saying a lot because I genuinely adore the brand. So what makes this body serum an essential part of my routine — and why do I think it’s your next great skincare gift idea? Well, the ultra-gentle, fragrance-free formulation is a major component, which I’ll dive into in a bit. But first, I want to tell you more about my testing experience, which confirmed that The Body Serum is my dream product.
My Testing Experience
I’ve been using The Body Serum on and off for several years. While I’d love to keep it as a mainstay product in my daily routine, editorially, I need to test other skincare products to bring you the best editor-vetted gift ideas possible. That being said, I was inspired by a recent eczema flareup that started to visibly improve once I slathered on this product.
For background, I have lifelong eczema that now flares up mainly during the winter when the radiator is cranked up too high inside, and the outdoor temperature is far too blustery to leave the comfort of my wintertime duvet cocoon. Interestingly, I never experienced eczema on my chest until I wore an at-home heart monitor for a few days. I tried a few budget-friendly skincare products, like baby-safe Aveeno, figuring the gentle body wash and moisturizer would help my skin. The itching temporarily stopped, but the redness and bumps were still there, and I was unsatisfied with what I saw in the bathroom mirror.
After rummaging through my overflowing at-home beauty closet, I realized I still own a half-full bottle of the Nécessaire Body Serum and felt optimistic. It’s worked in the past when I’ve been overzealous in testing new skincare products, but would it still be helpful now?
The consistency was just as I remembered: a clear, gel-like body serum with a medium thickness that takes a little extra effort to fully spread across my body and fully disappear into the skin. Once worked into my chest, a single layer of The Body Seurm disappeared almost instantly. I decided my skin must have been extremely dehydrated, so I slathered on two more layers for good measure because I wanted results ASAP. My chest became a little sticky, especially once I layered the Aveeno Baby Balm on top, but the initial results were so worth it.
Minutes later, my itching started to subside, and the urge to scratch my chest disappeared after about 30 minutes. After lounging around my apartment, fully engrossed in my rewatch of Succession, I soon forgot about the flareup on my skin. Before bed, I marched over to the bathroom and noticed some of the bumps had faded, and I was hopeful the results would improve by morning.
The next day, I noticed about 20% of the bumps on my skin were gone, and the redness was less noticeable. Given my initial results, I was motivated to consistently apply the Nécessaire Body Serum to my chest twice daily. As part of my experiment, I kept everything the same, with the Body Serum as my only new variable. After two extra days, my skin was about 50% clear of eczema, but I wanted even faster results, so I supercharged my shower time with a fully Nécessaire body routine consisting of my beloved jumbo-sized refillable Eucalyptus Body Wash, Body Serum, and Body Lotion. This trio of Nécessaire products sped up my skin healing, and after two extra days of following my routine, I was positively elated. The redness and bumps were 90-95% gone!
Nécessaire Body Serum’s Best Ingredients
Here are some of my all-time favorite skincare ingredients included in The Body Serum, and why they helped improve my skin — and can work for yours or a loved one with sensitive, eczema-prone skin.
- Hyaluronic acid is ubiquitous, and by now, you’ve likely heard that it is good for your skin — dermatologists have even told me that hyaluronic acid is beneficial for hair. Hyaluronic acid is a clear liquid and my favorite moisture magnet. Dermatologists previously told me the ingredient attracts up to 1,000 times its weight in water to surge our parched skin with some much-needed hydration. Nécessaire takes things a step further by combining five molecular weights of hyaluronic acid — 0.07, 0.40, 0.73, 1.25, and 1.65 MDa — into one product to help reach different layers of the skin.
- Sodium hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid, but it doesn’t hold as much water as HA, which is totally fine. Sodium hyaluronate still does a stellar job of maintaining the skin’s water balance and helps maintain the skin’s natural microbiome.
- Niacinamide, sometimes called vitamin B-3, is an antioxidant-rich skincare ingredient lauded for its anti-aging effects (buh-bye wrinkles and fine lines). Plus, niacinamide helps refine large pores and unlike other antioxidants, such as vitamin C, niacinamide remains stable in light.
- Ceramides are naturally occurring fats and lipids that help rebalance the skin barrier function. They prevent water loss, helping the skin remain supple, soft, and moisturized. Ceramides also promote skin elasticity, which gives your skin a plump appearance.
- Glycerin is naturally found in our skin, but its inclusion in skincare products like the Nécessaire Body Serum means we can experience more moisturize with daily use. The ingredient also helps protect the skin’s natural barrier, and it has antimicrobial properties.
- Aloe barbadensis leaf juice, more commonly known as aloe vera, is that girl! The superstar ingredient doesn’t just soothe red, itchy sunburns. In my guide to the best aloe vera products, board-certified doctors told me it naturally contains salicylic acid to prevent acne and promote gentle skin exfoliation. The ingredient also helps brighten discolored skin and is rich in moisturizing fatty acids, enzymes, and antioxidants.