Deliverance Serum

When an indie brand reformulates one of its founding products, it usually happens quietly. Ingredients get swapped, labels get updated, and customers either notice or don't. Dieux did the opposite with Deliverance. The brand publicly announced on social media that they were removing the CBD from their cannabinoid serum and replacing it with a more rigorously-supported calming stack, and co-founder Charlotte Palermino walked through the reasoning with the kind of detail that most brands reserve for investor decks. The explanation came down to two things. First, the scientific evidence for topical CBD, while emerging, was never as robust as the evidence for ingredients like niacinamide, centella, and ectoin — and Dieux wanted the product to lead with its strongest cards. Second, the regulatory environment around CBD in cosmetics had become a real operational burden that was limiting where and how the brand could sell. Rather than hide the change, Dieux turned it into a public argument about what they wanted their products to stand for, and that's the right place to start when reviewing this specific version.

What you actually get in the reformulated bottle is a thin, watery serum that absorbs on contact with no tack, no grease, and no residue. The texture is closer to a toner-essence than a traditional serum — you can layer anything over it within thirty seconds without any pilling, which matters more than it sounds if you're trying to build a multi-step routine on reactive skin. Dispense two or three drops onto a clean fingertip, pat it across your face, and within minutes you'll feel the cooling, slightly cushioned finish that tells you the soothing actives are doing their job.

The formulation reads like a tour of every well-studied calming ingredient in modern skincare. Niacinamide sits near the top of the list, reducing transepidermal water loss, strengthening the stratum corneum, and calming visible redness. Centella asiatica extract delivers asiaticoside and madecassoside, two traditional wound-healing compounds with a growing evidence base for reactive skin. Ectoin, the less famous standout, is an amino-acid derivative that stabilizes cellular membranes against osmotic and oxidative stress — it's the reason this serum still handles reactive skin well without its original cannabinoid. Bisabolol contributes fast anti-inflammatory action, panthenol and allantoin add classic comfort, and ceramide NP alongside phytosphingosine and squalane rebuilds the actual lipid barrier that lets sensitivity develop in the first place. The layered, multi-mechanism approach is the whole point. Most soothing serums pick one calming ingredient and build around it. Dieux stacks six or seven, and the result is a serum that addresses inflammation, barrier loss, oxidative stress, and cellular stability all in the same bottle.

On reactive skin, the results build in predictable ways. Within the first few uses you'll notice an immediate cooling sensation and a softer look after application. Over one to two weeks of twice-daily use, baseline redness tends to recede and triggers like weather changes, stress, or active ingredients produce less dramatic reactions. Over four to eight weeks, the barrier story takes over — your skin becomes genuinely more tolerant, and the serum stops being something you reach for to calm a flare-up and starts being a maintenance layer that prevents flare-ups from happening in the first place. That's the real value of a well-built soothing serum, and this one delivers on it as reliably as anything we've reviewed in the category.

The reformulation also fixed the one meaningful practical problem with the original Deliverance. The old version contained hemp seed oil, which made it unsuitable for anyone with fungal acne or Malassezia-driven conditions. The new version swaps that out for squalane, which is a saturated hydrocarbon that doesn't feed yeast, and this means an entire group of readers who couldn't use the original can now use the reformulation without issue. That's not a minor change — fungal acne is a relatively common issue that many 'soothing' serums ironically make worse. Dieux fixed it quietly in the reformulation, and the product is stronger for it.

The flaws are few and mostly predictable. The price remains high for the category at $85 for 30ml, and it's fair to point out that comparable niacinamide-and-centella serums from other brands are available for less. The glass pipette can be fussy for daily dispensing, though this is a common complaint across the Dieux line and part of the trade-off for refillable glass packaging. And the formula is intentionally minimal on richer emollient ingredients — if you have very dry or mature skin, you'll want to layer a heavier moisturizer on top, because this is a serum that calms and rebuilds but does not provide substantial occlusive comfort on its own.

The value conversation is where honesty matters most. This is a genuinely well-built product and it's probably the best-formulated entry in Dieux's lineup after Forever Eye Mask. The $85 price tag is defensible if you care about the refill program, the brand's transparency ethos, and the specific multi-ingredient stacking approach. It's harder to defend on pure ingredient-to-dollar math, because you can get niacinamide, centella, and ceramides in a single serum from several established brands at $30-$50. What you can't get elsewhere is this specific combination of ingredients, this level of formulation care, and this particular brand's public commitment to evolving its products transparently over time. Whether that package is worth the premium is a personal call, but for readers who value it, this serum earns its place in a routine. For readers who don't, there are good alternatives, and you shouldn't feel bad about picking one.

Formula

The Science

This reformulated serum is anchored by some of the best-studied calming actives in modern skincare. Niacinamide has extensive peer-reviewed support for reducing transepidermal water loss, improving barrier function, and reducing visible redness — a body of evidence going back decades that makes it one of the most reliable ingredients in the category. Centella asiatica extract contributes asiaticoside, madecassoside, and asiatic acid, triterpenoid compounds with published research on wound healing and anti-inflammatory effects. A commonly cited review in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology documented centella's role in modulating inflammatory cytokine expression and supporting collagen synthesis, which aligns with the reputation centella has earned in Korean skincare as a go-to for compromised skin. Ectoin, though less famous, has emerging research supporting its role as a cellular membrane stabilizer under osmotic and oxidative stress, particularly in the context of environmental aggressors and sensitive skin. Bisabolol, a sesquiterpene derived from chamomile, has well-documented anti-inflammatory effects and has been used in dermatology for decades for its ability to reduce acute erythema. The barrier-repair story is completed by ceramide NP, phytosphingosine, and squalane, which collectively rebuild the lipid matrix of the stratum corneum. What makes this specific formulation interesting is the stacking strategy. Rather than relying on any single soothing ingredient, Dieux layers six or seven complementary mechanisms — barrier reinforcement, anti-inflammatory action, cellular stress protection, and wound-healing support — so that the final performance on reactive skin is less dependent on the variability of any one ingredient. This is sophisticated, evidence-literate formulation.

Dermatologist Perspective

Dermatologists typically welcome well-formulated soothing serums with niacinamide, centella, and ceramides as appropriate choices for patients with rosacea, eczema, post-procedure skin, and general sensitivity. Board-certified dermatologists often point out that multi-ingredient soothing stacks have a real advantage over single-active formulations because reactive skin is rarely a single-pathway problem — barrier dysfunction, inflammation, and oxidative stress all contribute, and a formulation that addresses multiple pathways simultaneously tends to perform more consistently in clinical practice. Deliverance is generally considered a safe layer to recommend alongside prescription treatments for rosacea and eczema, and is often used as a buffer for patients starting tretinoin or other retinoid therapies. The main caveat from dermatologists is that this serum will not replace prescription treatments for moderate-to-severe inflammatory conditions.

Guidance

This version of Deliverance launched in 2023 as a reformulation of Dieux's original 2021 cannabinoid-containing serum. Dieux publicly announced the reformulation on social media and explained that the CBD was being removed in favor of a stack of more rigorously-supported calming ingredients, while preserving the core barrier-repair ethos. The reformulation was controversial with longtime fans of the original but has been well-received on its own merits.

About Dieux Skin Emerging Brand (2–5 years)

Dieux Skin was co-founded in 2020 by Charlotte Palermino, Joyce de Lemos, and Marta Cros. The brand has built credibility through transparent formulation communication and a commitment to refillable packaging. This reformulated version of Deliverance replaced the brand's original CBD-containing serum.

Brand founded: 2020 · Product launched: 2023

Myth vs. Reality

Myth

The reformulated Deliverance is weaker than the original because CBD was removed.

Reality

CBD was only one ingredient in the original soothing stack. The reformulated version actually strengthens the core barrier-repair story by adding phytosphingosine and increasing emphasis on well-studied soothers like ectoin and centella. On most measures, this version performs equally or better on reactive skin.

FAQ

Common Praise

"Visibly reduces redness"

"Buffers retinoid irritation"

"Lightweight and absorbs fast"

"Fungal-acne safe unlike original"

Common Complaints

"Still expensive for 30ml"

"Some users miss the original CBD version"

"Pipette can be fussy"

Notable Endorsements

AllureByrdieVogue

Appears In

best serum for redness best barrier serum best serum for sensitive skin best indie soothing serum

Related Conditions

sensitivity rosacea compromised skin barrier post procedure

Related Ingredients

niacinamide centella asiatica ectoin ceramides