Our Skin Blog

Meet our chemist Jaana
Cosmetic chemist Jaana Ailus is Head of R&D at Laponie of Scandinavia and the one in charge of product development in our laboratory in Otaniemi, Finland. We talked to her about getting into cosmetics chemistry, about the most interesting parts of her job and also about the challenges of creating simple, yet effective skincare.

Meet our founder & CEO Kristina
Kristina Pentti is the founder and CEO of Laponie of Scandinavia. Here, she shares her story of an almost lifelong struggle with skin issues and the road to healthy skin, and how it all lead to the creation of Laponie.

Which cosmetics ingredients are safe?
Which cosmetic ingredients are safe? There's a lot of talk about “clean” and “non-toxic” ingredients in skincare, and we receive a lot of questions on what is safe to use. Which cosmetic ingredients are safe? Here our chemist Jaana runs you through the basics of ingredient safety.

The story of Laponie's packaging artwork
The abstract elements on our packaging come from a unique piece of art, created for us by the talented Aino-Maija Metsola, a Helsinki-based illustrator and designer. With a particular interest in colour, Aino-Maija creates bold but subtle images using a diverse selection of techniques, from water colour to ink, markers and gouache. Read on to get the inside story of how Aino-Maija created our look.

Welcome to the Laponie lab
If you take the metro West from central Helsinki, you’ll eventually reach Otaniemi. Here’s where Laponie’s lab is located. It’s a delightfully retro space, where our chemist Jaana and founder Kristina work their magic. Every Laponie product is developed right here, in our own lab. For a skincare start-up having an in-house lab is quite rare. However, we always knew we needed and wanted ours. Why?

Laponie logistics partner Logitrail
For any web shop, good logistics are essential. Please meet our stellar Finnish logistics partner Logitrail, who have a soft spot for sustainability and focus heavily on re-using materials, recycling and carbon-neutral transport. Read on for Logitrail COO Jaakko Vikman's thoughts on sustainability and working with Laponie

Sulfates in skincare
Sulfates, specifically SLS, in skincare receive a lot of negative attention. Here our chemist Jaana breaks down what they are, for what they are used and whether sensitive and problem skins should be concerned.

Laponie x Fazer Mills
The oat oil we use in our Face Oil, Face Cream and All-around Balm is sourced from Fazer, a Finnish family-owned, 128-year-old food and food service company, who produce their oat oil using Finnish oats. We spoke to Markku Mikola, head of R&D at Fazer Mills Finland, to dig deeper into oats and their skin and health benefits.

Microplastics in cosmetics Q&A
Microplastics are synthetic polymer particles smaller than 5 millimeters that resist (bio)degradation. The legislative definition of microplastics is currently under debate, and it is yet unclear which cosmetic ingredients will fall under the definition. In skincare, microplastics are typically used as skinfeel enhancers, thickeners and stabilisers or in the case of microbeads, to add mechanical exfoliating properties to the product. Our chemist Jaana fills you in.

There is no such thing as a chemical free skincare product
If you can touch a skincare product, it's all chemicals. Our chemist Jaana explains why there is no such thing as chemical-free and why chemicals aren't dangerous.

How to recycle our packaging
Our packaging philosophy is fairly simple - we prioritise practical design and recyclable materials. That's why we opt for aluminium and glass, with a minimum of plastic, for materials.

How we source our ingredients
All Laponie of Scandinavia products are developed in our own lab in Espoo, Finland. Having an in-house lab allows for us to manage and control the entire R&D process from the very beginning, including the sourcing and testing of raw materials.

How we pack our products
Our packaging philosophy is fairly simple - we prioritise practical design and recyclable materials. That's why we for 12/13 products opt for 100 ml or less when it comes to size, and aluminium and glass, with a minimum of plastic, for materials.

Creating the Laponie logo: meet Emelie Cheng
Our logo is the work of talented graphic designer Emelie Cheng. We talked to her about how the logo came to life, the symbolism in the Laponie of Scandinavia logo and how it interprets our no-nonsense approach to skincare.