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Posted by Dain, Wednesday, July 11, 2007 12:14 AM (Eastern)
Sorry about the long introduction. But before I go on to the products, themselves (ha), I'd like to give credit where credit is due. For natural ingredients, I used the site fromnaturewithlove.com, and for chemical ingredients, the skin deep cosmetics safety database. It's hard to say how these products would really work out, but I've tried to research not only products I admire, but to examine ingredient lists of products that weren't quite right and to try and identify the culprit.
CLEANSE Of all the possible formulations of cleanser, I like balm cleansers the best, because they are supremely effective cleansers, and have the added benefit of exfoliation. Unfortunately, they are not the most practical option. If you do not remove them with a washcloth, they leave an unpleasantly greasy film (cleansing balms are much like latter day cold creams in that respect). I wonder perhaps if it is possible to make one that is water soluble, but I wouldn't know how to do that. My problem with most balm cleansers is that they utilize peanut oil, which breaks me out, so mine would use a combination of grapeseed oil (which is very light and penetrative) and jojoba oil, mixed with essential oils of lavender, rose geranium, and sandalwood. Next, orange blossom water and aloe vera. Some beeswax and jojoba esters (perhaps some rose floral wax too) to give some stiffness to the oils, and some sort of emulsifer, like lecithin or emulsifying wax. And finally, a preservative like rosemary CO2 extract. Additionally, I would add honey (antiseptic and pore cleansing), calendula extract, and some very finely ground rice bran meal, for barely detectable exfoliation. I'd want it to have the consistency of a paste, so that it emulsifies more easily.
PURIFY I favor face oils in lieu of more traditional moisturizers because they build a more balanced relationship. After cleansing, a few drops of oil may be enough for good skin that has no other issues. A base of jojoba oil, mixed with lighter, astringent oils like grapeseed (the lightest, most easily penetrative oil, read: least greasy), hazelnut (penetrative, slightly astringent), and neem (antiseptic, great for ance prone skin). Add some essential oils: ylang ylang, lavender, rose geranium, and sandalwood. Plus calendula for healing. Add some vitamin E or rosemary CO2 preservative, and that's it!
RESTORE For drier skins, a face oil serves to anchor the next layer of moisturizer. I'd pack this one with the most regenerative, nutritive oils: jojoba as a base again, plus rosehip (the most famous anti-aging oil), borage (rich in nutrients), and seabuckthorn berry (exceptionally vitamin rich). As for essential oils: lavender, chamomile, rose, and neroli. Calendula, again. And preservative.
HYDRATE One standard moisturizer, that's it. I wouldn't push one on oily skin types, and I wouldn't differentiate between moisturizers that have "ultra hydration" and "anti-agers" and "radiance enhancers" or such nonsense. Plain, simple, and good for you, that's it. That doesn't mean that making a face cream is easy, far from it: it needs to avoid any greasy heaviness, it needs to have a lovely texture and scent, but above all, it must provide intense moisturization. I would put only good-for-you oils and waxes, but a mix of moderate quantities, so that none dominates and leaves you feeling tacky: jojoba oil, rosehip oil, seabuckthorn berry, rose flower wax, beeswax, jojoba esters, shea butter. There would be plenty of water-based ingredients, though: a mix of hydrosols (orange blossom of course, but also rose, lavender, chamomile), plenty of aloe vera, and glycerin. Add more essential oils: lavender, rose geranium, calendula, neroli, rose, sandalwood. Emulsifying wax and preservatives. The ingredients aren't novel, but I think the real trick is how you proportion them, so that I have a velvety, mediumweight cream (similiar to La Prairie Cellular Day Cream) that can be worn layered or alone. I have researching all of these products for possible irritants, and it is very, very low.
PROTECT A lightweight sunscreen with Mexoryl SX, something with enough slip to apply evenly, but with minimal use of emollients so that the sunscreen can be used as a "topcoat" of sorts, or on oily skin without a tacky feel. I would avoid a "matte finish", because that has residue, rather, something weightless.
So much for maintenance, now onto the treatment.
SPOT Acne treatment, with at least 2% salicylic acid, in a rhassoul clay (rich in minerals) base. This makes it a night treatment alone, but I wanted something that would really draw out impurities. Tea tree oil and neem extracts as natural but powerful disinfectants. Calendula to aid in the healing process. Very simple, I think, but effective: it exfoliates, kills bacteria, draws out the nasty gunk, and heals.
REFINE A vitamic C serum with a stable derivative like magnesium ascorbyl phosphate which is water-soluble. A base of aloe vera and rosehip oil, mixed with a powerful antioxidants like pomegranate, grapeseed, and above all, green tea extract. I haven't decided whether it ought to contain some AHAs. Can be used for acne (daytime), "anti-aging", and mild lightening of hyperpigmentation. I think this product would need a good emulsifier, probably something to give it a pleasant "slip".
SOOTHE An unctuous salve composed of: calendula oil and calendula extract, chamomile, neem, honey, shea butter, emu oil, seabuckthorn berry oil, lavender, and rose geranium, and beeswax to give it stiffness. Used not only to heal rough, chapped, sensitive skin, but also as a general multipurpose emollient, including lip balm, cuticle salve, and a nighttime eye balm.
And that, my friends, is all. No eye cream (there are three products that would work just fine in that capacity, an oil, a cream, and a salve), no makeup remover (the cleansing balm does that exceedingly well), no stand-alone exfoliant (the cleansing balm, again, does double-duty, in a very gentle and continuous way). No toner, because it isn't really necessary in the first place. No mask, for the same reason. I wonder a little if I shouldn't include a lightweight moisturizer, but my rationale is that one can always use the face oil or the antioxidant treatment alone, and I want to encourage maximum versatility from the simplest of routines. The one thing I might add is a water-soluble cleanser, for those who prefer a simpler process when washing their face. These eight products would cover the vast majority of skin concerns, and the lack of conflicting, irritating ingredients and the simplicity of the routine enhances the natural processes of the skin.
Labels: alchemist's apprentice, beauty notes, skin
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