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The best gel-cream moisturisers for weightless hydration

Hydration without the sl-ick factor

By Briar Clark

BEAUTYcrew Content Producer / February 26 2021

Moisturisers are a staple in our skin care routines but modern innovation means we no longer need to settle for occlusive creams that sweat off our faces by lunch.

We’d like to give a special shout-out to whoever invented gel-cream formula moisturisers because the lightweight, fast-absorbing format is a literal godsend.

Catering to everyone from oily to dry skin types, these moisturiser formulas are packed full of hardworking hydrators that help to rehydrate skin without disrupting your makeup, making them the perfect pick for your day-to-day comings and goings, whatever they may be.

Dermalogica Cooling Aqua Jelly

Oily skin rejoice, this one’s for you. Dermalogica’s innovative jelly offering fast tracks water-based hydrators like hyaluronic acid into skin, while a bioflavonoid complex (an imitation retinol) refines your complexion and keeps unwanted oils at bay. Blue tansy flower oil calms and soothes inflammation, and antioxidant-rich blueberry extract protects the skin against free radical damage.

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Summer Fridays Cloud Dew Oil-Free Gel Cream

This unassuming oil-free option is packing a triple dose of hyaluronic acid for weightless hydration, plus the addition of ceramides, minerals and amino acids doesn’t hurt either, helping to reinforce the lipid barrier. Tone and texture is covered too, with a slurry of pineapple enzymes that gently melt away dead skin cells for that oh so covetable bright, youthful-looking complexion we’re all after.

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Clinique iD Dramatically Different Hydrating Jelly + Active Cartridge Concentrate Kit

Pumped full of hyaluronic acid and Clean Shield Technology™ this super smart jelly moisturiser base only retains the moisture you need, meaning no excess shine after application. Personalise and pair with your pick of Clinique’s Active Cartridge Concentrates – there’s a serum for just about everything, including: blue for pores and uneven texture, orange for fatigued skin, white for uneven tone, purple to tackle lines and wrinkles, and green, which is all about soothing irritation.

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FENTY SKIN Instant Reset Overnight Recovery Gel-Cream

This handy, refillable compact-style moisturiser is complete with a secret compartment housing its applicator spatula. Conveniently and hygienically apply the Kalahari melon oil and baobab-infused offering to your face and let the hyaluronic acid formula quench thirsty skin, locking in a solid 8-hours of hydration post-application.

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LANEIGE Water Bank Hydro Gel Moisturiser

Green mineral water is the secret to this ultra-lightweight pick. Using a special extraction method called ‘Ocean Brewing’, concentrated skin-moisturising minerals are streamlined into skin for silky smooth, non-sticky hydration.

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Need a lightweight serum? Here are 8 hydrating hyaluronic acid serums for glowing glass skin.

Main image credit: @fentyskin

Briar Clark

Briar is a Content Producer at BEAUTYcrew. Her 'down for anything' attitude has resulted in more than a handful of hair transformations, and she doesn't mind being used as a guinea pig for the industry's most unusual products and treatments. Her work has also appeared on Girlfriend and beautyheaven.