Concept site Assay is a fictional skincare brand, designed and built by Patrick Bushe to show what I make for skincare brands. Fictional, by Patrick Bushe

Skincare with the numbers on the front.

Every Assay bottle prints its active, its strength and its pH where you can see them, so you know what you’re putting on your face and what not to mix it with.

  • 11 formulas
  • 0 fragrance
  • $14 to start
A woman dabbing white cream onto her cheek

How to read an Assay label

Four things on the front of every bottle, in the same place every time. No marketing words, no hidden percentages.

  1. 1

    The strength

    The biggest thing on the bottle. 15% means 15% of what’s inside is vitamin C.

  2. 2

    The active

    The one ingredient doing the work, named the way a dermatologist would say it.

15% L-ascorbic acid pH 3.2 · 30 ml assay · A-1015
  1. 3

    The pH

    Acids and vitamin C need a low pH to work. It also tells you what will sting together.

  2. 4

    The strip

    The color says the step: blue cleanses, violet treats, pink exfoliates, green moisturizes, gold protects.

The ones people come back for

Shop all 11

Can I use retinol and vitamin C together?

Yes, just not in the same routine. Tell the checker what’s on your shelf and it lays out your morning and night, and which nights to swap.

Check my routine
RetinolVitamin C

Split them

  • Morning: vitamin C, then sunscreen
  • Night: retinol, then cream

Four steps. Shop by the one you need.

What it feels like

A smear of clear gel
Gel Cleanser, hyaluronic acid, salicylic acid
Three serum drops in clear circles
Serum Niacinamide, vitamin C, retinol
A smear of white cream
Cream Barrier cream, azelaic acid

This is where you’d pay

Assay is a concept store, so nothing is for sale.

On a real Assay store this button opens Shopify checkout with Shop Pay, Apple Pay and cards.

Your bag stays saved in this browser, so you can keep trying the routine checker.

Patrick Bushe designed and built this store to show what a skincare brand’s site can look like.

Get a store like this