Spicules are a cutting-edge treatment that delivers dramatic improvements in skin texture, acne scars, hyperpigmentation, and fine lines—all without a single mechanical needle or aggressive chemical acid.
Spicules have been used in Asian skincare for centuries but, this is no traditional, slow acting treatment.
Spicule peels are called many things: green sea peel, algae peel, liquid micro-needling, bio needling, and more.
What are spicules?
Spicules are a cutting-edge treatment that delivers dramatic improvements in skin texture, acne scars, hyperpigmentation, and fine lines—all without a single mechanical needle or aggressive chemical acid.
Spicules are microscopic, needle-shaped structures harvested from purified freshwater or marine sea sponges. Under a microscope, they look like tiny, ultra-fine crystalline darts, almost like snowflakes. These bio-microneedles are blended into a rich, nutrient-dense serum and when massaged into your skin, they create millions of microscopic channels without tearing or puncturing the outer layer of the skin like traditional metal tools.
What are in spicules?
Spicules are generally more superior to micro needing because the bio needles are naturally loaded with minerals and vitamins, peptides and more that all help the skin in numerous ways. Think of spicules as a major dose of nutrition for your skin.
Some of the natural ingredients in spicules are:
- Pure Silica (Nature's Glass): This makes up about 90% of the spicule. It is a natural mineral—the exact same element found in quartz crystals and sandstone. It gives the spicules their hard, needle-like shape so they can gently press into your skin without bending or dissolving instantly. Silica is also a direct building block that your body needs to make fresh, bouncy collagen.
- Calcium: Just like the calcium that strengthens human bones, some spicules contain natural calcium minerals to keep their structure strong.
- Marine Trace Minerals: Because these sponges live underwater, their tiny skeletons naturally soak up healthy nutrients from the sea, including Magnesium, Potassium, and Iron. These minerals help soothe irritated skin cells.
- Natural Vitamin D (Sterols): Sponges naturally produce vitamin D-like compounds to survive in the ocean. When absorbed by the skin, it acts as a powerful anti-inflammatory agent that calms irritation, reduces redness, and helps heal active acne.
- Vitamin B3 (Niacinamide): Rides down the micro-channels to stop dark spots, regulate oil production, and shrink the appearance of large pores.
- Pro-Vitamin B5 (Panthenol): Acts like a deep moisture magnet to prevent the skin from drying out or stinging while it undergoes rapid cellular peeling.
- Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid): Gets pushed directly into the deeper tissue to aggressively target sun damage, fade stubborn acne scars, and instantly brighten a dull complexion.
- Vitamin B12 (Cyanocobalamin): Speeds up cell recovery and minimizes the mild redness caused by the peel massage.
Now, let me ask... does any micro needling treatment deliver this much to your skin? Nope!
How do spicules work?
Unlike chemical peels that dissolve skin cells from the top down, a spicule peel works from the inside out.
- Micro-Channel Activation: As we massage the formula into your skin, up to 5 million microscopic spicules embed themselves into the upper layers of the skin.
- Product Boosting: These tiny channels act as a direct pathway, allowing active ingredients (like peptides, hyaluronic acid, and vitamins) to penetrate deeply into the skin.
- The "Wake Up" Call: Your body recognizes the spicules as a foreign object and triggers a localized healing response. For 36 to 72 hours, your dermal cells are actively working, boosting blood circulation and generating fresh collagen and elastin.
- The Natural Purge: As new skin cells push to the surface, old dead skin, excess sebum, and impurities are naturally sloughed off.
- Metabolic Shedding: Within a few days, your skin naturally metabolizes and sheds the microscopic spicules, leaving behind a completely renewed complexion.
How do spicules help your skin?
Because spicules stimulate cellular turnover so rapidly, you can expect noticeable results in a single week.
- Erases Acne & Unclogs Pores: Destroys acne-causing bacteria and flushes out trapped oil.
- Fades Hyperpigmentation: Accelerates the shedding of dark spots, sun damage, and melasma.
- Smooths Texture & Scarring: Plumps up indented acne scars and refines rough patches.
- Firms & Plumps: The 72-hour stimulation tricks your skin into producing youth-boosting collagen.
What does this treatment feel like?
During the massage, you will feel a distinct "spicy" or prickly sensation. It feels similar to a mild physical scrub or rubbing sand gently on the skin.
For 24 to 36 hours after the facial, you will experience a unique "tingling" feeling whenever you touch your face. This is completely normal! It simply means the spicules are still actively working deep inside your skin.
Recovery timeline:
You will have some degree of flaking and/or peeling.
- Days 1–2: Skin may look slightly flushed (like a mild sunburn) and feel tight. You must stick to cool water, a gentle cleanser, and intense hydration.
- Days 3–5: Mild to moderate flaking or peeling begins as dead skin cells make their exit. Do not pick or pull at the skin!
- Day 7: The peeling stops, revealing a bright, glass-like, radiant complexion.
For days 1-2, you will do nothing to your skin, avoid exercise and showering.
Day 3-6, you can gently add in an evening cleanse, with a gentle, non active cleanser, then moisturize. No serums until week 2. If you are outside, please apply SPF.
After day 7, most peeling will be done and you can generally return to your normal routine but, avoid hot water directly on the face, and avoid any actives, such as acids or retinoids.
Note, these peels do not contain acid and are pregnancy safe and safe for anyone except those with facial rashes.
How to prepare for a spicule treatment:
The week prior, stop use of all strong actives like acid toners, acid cleansers, retinoids of all kinds.
About our spicule treatments:
The spicule treatments we perform range in potency. We carry multiple types of spicules from Korean top tier companies.
We generally offer two options with spicule peels: One with stem cells and one without stem cells.
Stem cells act as a booster to massively coach and direct repair to damaged tissue. The stem cell booster is a better option for those who have done our spicules prior without stem cells, or those who have deep acne scars, melasma, deeper congested acne, deeper lines or those wanted the skin to get a major dose of help.