Full Routine for Combination Skin

What each ingredient does

• Aqua: Solvent

  Water. The main vehicle for our water based products

• Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil: Emollient and skin conditioning

  Argan oil. A staple for us. It is obtained from the non-roasted organic kernels of Moroccan Argania Spinosa, i.e. argan nuts. We love it in almost everything, and especially like its repairing qualities. It is slightly higher in oleic acid, but is usually suitable for clog prone skin, as it contains a fair amount of lupeol, a triterpenoid with anti-inflammatory benefits.

• Avena Sativa Kernel Flour: Skin protecting

  Colloidal oatmeal. The whole oat grain, including the bran layer, is milled and sieved. This results in a light cream coloured, fine powder. The bran layer of the oat contains a high proportion of natural actives, including oat beta-glucan, avenanthramides, oil and protein, all of which are beneficial for cosmetic use on the skin. A 'colloid' or colloidal suspension is defined as a substance with dispersed insoluble particles suspended throughout. Colloidal oatmeal soothes and relieves redness, itching and minor skin irritations caused by eczema or skin rashes and is monographed by the FDA as a skin protectant. It reduces TEWL (transepidermal waterloss) and effectively forms a physical barrier on the skin surface. The oatmeal we use is made from Finnish oats.

• Avena Sativa Kernel Oil: Skin conditioning

  Oat kernel oil. This dark golden oil has a nearly 50/50 balance of oleic and linoleic acids. From a skincare point of view, it's an excellent skin softener and has some calming properties too. We source our oat oil from Fazer, a Finnish family-owned, 126-year-old food and food service company, who produce their oil in Finland, using Finnish oats. The Finnish-ness matters because a) the soil in Finland produces outstanding quality oats and b) it is quite rare for an oil producer to have a 100% local supply chain.

• Bisabolol: Soothing, anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial agent

  Bisabolol. A colorless viscous oil that is the main constituent of German chamomile essential oil. The bisabolol we use is organic, and produced not from chamomille but from the South American Candeia tree, and contains no farnesol, a potential fragrance allergen.

• Canola Oil: Emollient and skin conditioning

  Sustainably produced, deodorized and purified Swedish canola oil (from rapeseed oil) gently dissolves makeup and dirt. Canola oil is commonly used in cosmetics and is well-tolerated, skin wise. It is slightly higher in oleic acid (at around 60%), with linoleic and alpha-linolenic acids at a total of just over 30%, making it a good all-around oil for most, and especially for drier and eczema prone skins.

• Cetyl Alcohol: Thickening and emulsion stabilising

  A fatty alcohol made from RSPO certified palm oil. Please note that like sugar alcohols, e.g. glycerin or xylitol, fatty alcohols are not the same as denatured alcohol (ethanol); both sugar alcohols and fatty alcohols have moisturising and conditioning properties, whereas denatured alcohol has a completely different function in skincare products (and can be drying on skin).

• Citric Acid: Buffering agent

  Citric acid is a commonly used buffering, i.e. pH adjusting, agent in cosmetics. It is made through bacterial fermentation and shifts the pH of the product into the acidic range. This is closer to the natural pH of the skin, which may range from 4 to 7, but is usually thought to be between 5 and 6, with recent studies, however, indicating it to be below 5.

• Dehydroacetic Acid: Preservative

  Dehydroacetic acid is chemically synthesized through a multi-step reaction, starting with acetylene. Although it is not plant derived, it is approved by natural certification institutes such as COSMOS thanks to its mildness to the skin and body, as well as the absence of any alternative registered (approved) natural preservatives under the EU cosmetic regulation.

• Dipotassium Glyhyrrhizate: Humectant and skin conditioning

  Another skincare multi-tasker, dipotassium glycyrrhizate is the dipotassium salt of glycyrrhizic acid derived from liquorice root. It improves the appearance of dry or damaged skin by reducing flaking and restoring suppleness, and possesses anti-allergic and anti-inflammatory properties. Studies also suggest it inhibits the skin’s tyrosinase activity and melanin production, making it an agent against hyperpigmentation. And if that’s not enough, further studies have demonstrated that the salt aids in reducing the redness and irritation associated with rosacea, psoriasis and acne. This one is made in Japan.

• Ectoin: Skin conditioning

  Ectoin is a powerful, small, multi-tasking and natural stress-protection molecule, a so-called extremolyte. From a chemical point of view, it is a cyclic amino acid derivate. Extremolytes protect extremophilic microorganisms and plants from the extreme conditions of their habitats like salt lakes, hot springs, permanent ice or deserts. The properties of ectoin have been proven by various in-vivo studies: its benefits include long-term moisturisation, diminished skin roughness, skin barrier repair and anti-inflammatory and anti-irritant properties. We get ours from a lovely little company in Germany, where it is produced through biotechnological fermentation from a specific, non-GMO strain of the halophilic bacteria Halomonas elongata.

• Glycerin: Humectant and skin protecting

  Technically a sugar alcohol, glycerin is one of the oldest, most common and most versatile humectants used in cosmetics. It moisturises and protects the skin, accelerates skin barrier recovery and has antimicrobial properties, among other things. We use vegetable, rapeseed-derived glycerin.

• Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax: Emollient and thickener

  Sunflower wax. A hard vegetable wax made through the winterisation of sunflower seed oil. We use it for solidity and a light feel. Sunflower oil on its own is a basic, widely used and well tolerated oil for skincare. The kind we favour is high in linoleic acid, and the wax we use is made from high linoleic sunflower oil.

• Honokiol: Antioxidant and skin conditioning

  Magnolia bark contains two potent anti-inflammatory substances, magnolol and honokiol, which synergistically inhibit the activation of NF-KB, a key inflammatory mediator. These two compunds can protect skin against chronic inflammation, and reduce skin redness. Honokiol boosts the effect of our Cream’s preservative system.

• Hydrogenated Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil: Emollient and thickener

  Hydrogenated argan oil. It is the reduced, or dried, form of argan oil. Apart from the lovely qualities of argan oil as such, we use the hydrogenated form to lend structure and a nearly matte finish to our balm.

• Lecithin: Skin conditioning, emollient and emulsifying

  Lecitihin is a widely used natural emulsifier in skincare, to enable the mixing of water and oil into an emulsion. Lecitihin leaves a light powdery feel to skin when used in e.g. creams. This one is soy-derived.

• Macrocystis Pyrifera Extract: Skin conditioning

  Giant kelp. Macrocystis pyrifera is a species of kelp, and is one of the fastest growing organisms on Earth. It smooths and hydrates skin, with some studies indicating it has the ability to improve collagen synthesis and maintain skin elasticity. The kelp we use comes from South America and the extract is tailor-made for us in France, to ensure a as high as possible concentration to the plant-based glycerin into which it is extracted.

• Magnolol: Antioxidant

  Magnolia bark contains two potent anti-inflammatory substances, magnolol and honokiol, which synergistically inhibit the activation of NF-KB, a key inflammatory mediator. These two compounds can protect skin against chronic inflammation, and reduce skin redness. Like honokiol, magnolol boosts the effect of our Cream’s preservative system.

• P-Anisic Acid: Masking

  Star anise derived, mild and skin friendly organic acid. We use it to boost our preservation system and also to regulate the pH of our Essence. It also exhibits anti-inflammatory properties.

• Papaver Somniferum Seed Oil: Emollient

  Poppy seed oil. A sustainably sourced virgin oil containing sterols and Vitamin E, and with a high linoleic acid content. It is a 100% UK product, fully traceable and with a sustainable supply chain: the oil is a pharmaceutical byproduct. Our chemist Jaana has actually met the guy living next to the field of poppies from which the oil is harvested by a 5th generation family farm. Poppy seed oil has excellent skin barrier recovery properties, and is especially suitable for sensitive skin. The oil is obtained by lightly pressing the seeds of the White Poppy.

• Polyglyceryl-3 Dicitrates/Stearate: Emulsifying and surfactant

  An emulsifier, put simply, enables the mixing of water and oil into an emulsion. This particular one is gentle on the skin, non-ionic, based on glycerin, stearic acid and citric acid, and is made from rapeseed and RSPO certified palm oils.

• Polyglyseryl-6 Distearate: Emulsifying

  An emulsifier, put simply, enables the mixing of water and oil into an emulsion. This one is gentle on the skin and skin barrier, as it is of the non-ionic variety. It is derived from RSPO certified palm oil.

• Potassium Sorbate: Preservative

  Potassium sorbate is widely used in a variety of foods and personal care products. It works by inhibiting the growth of molds, yeasts and bacteria to preserve the freshness and quality of foods, beverages, or cosmetic products. Potassium sorbate is the potassium salt of sorbic acid, which is naturally occurring in some berries, although virtually all of the world's production of sorbic acid, as well as potassium sorbate, is manufactured synthetically.

• Pullulan: Film forming

  A natural and commonly used filmformer in cosmetics, pullulan is a polysaccharide, and produced by fermenting corn, potato and tapioca starch syrup with the yeast Aureobasidium Pullulans.

• Rosa Canina Fruit Oil: Emollient and skin conditioning

  Rosehip oil. It is rich in linoleic acid and provitamin a, which lends it regenerative properties. It can be beneficial in treating acne, rosacea and pigmentation. Coldpressed and organic.

• Rubus Idaeus Seed Oil: Emollient and skin conditioning

  Raspberry oil. It contains a large amount of linoleic and alpha linolenic acids, along with vitamin e. Among its central benefits is its ability to soothe skin. Raspberry seed oil may also be useful for treating eczema. Coldpressed and organic.

• Sclerotium Gum: Thickening, skin conditioning and emulsion stabilising

  A natural and commonly used thickener in cosmetics, sclerotium gum too is a polysaccharide produced from sugars through fermentation. This one gets its name from the Sclerotium rolfsii bacteria species. Origin: glucose syrup from wheat/corn.

• Silica: Thickening

  Silica is a mineral found abundantly in sandstone, clay, and granite, as well as in parts of plants and animals. It’s often used as an absorbent powder, i.e. a mattifying agent, in cosmetics. It is derived from sodium silicate which is acidified, then filtered, washed and dried.

• Sodium Anisate: Antimicrobial, flavouring agent and preservative

  The salt form of star anis derived organic acid.

• Sodium Dehydroacetate: Preservative

  Sodium dehydroacetate is the sodium salt of dehydroacetic acid. It is chemically synthesized through a multi-step reaction, starting with acetylene. Although it is not plant derived, it is approved by natural certification institutes such as COSMOS and the Soil Association, thanks to its mildness on the skin and body as well as the absence of any alternative registered (approved) natural preservatives under the EU’s cosmetic regulation.

• Sodium Levulinate: Skin conditioning and preservative

  Sodium levulinate is the sodium salt of levulinic acid, which is an organic acid derived from in this case sugarcane.

• Sodium PCA: Humectant and skin conditioning

  Sodium PCA is a widely used humectant in skincare. Chemically speaking an amino acid derivative, it is the sodium salt of pyroglutamic acid, which in turn is naturally present in human skin, and a part of the so-called NMF (natural moisturizing factor) of the skin. It has excellent moisture-binding capacity. The one we use made by the cyclization of beetroot derived L-glutamic acid. The sodium hydroxide used in the process is synthetic.

• Tocopherol: Antioxidant

  Vitamin E. A common antioxidant for fats and oils used in skincare. We use the vegetable kind, derived from soybean and rapeseed to prevent rancidity.

• Xanthan Gum: Thickening, gel forming and emulsion stabilising

  A natural and commonly used mainly thickener and gelling agent in cosmetics, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide produced through Bacterial fermentation of pure culture Xanthomonas Campestris with protein and carbohydrate sources, in this case from soy or corn.

• Xylitol: Humectant and skin conditioning

  Xylitol is a sugar alcohol and moisturises and conditions skin, whilst possessing anti-bacterial properties. There is some interesting research that suggests xylitol has the ability to inhibit bacterial biofilm on skin, which in turn may be the cause of many skin issues. The one we use is made in Finland from Finnish oats, and has probiotic properties.