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Spring Clean Your Skincare Routine. It’s Not Just The House That Gets The Attention.
16 MAY 2022 You’ve heard of spring cleaning your home, but what about applying that to your beauty dressing table? As the skin slowly adapts to more moisture in the air, you are likely to start to notice an increase in oil production and signs of more long-lasting hydration in your skin throughout the day, making the rich cream that was your dry skin winter saviour no longer your best friend. You don’t need to do a full beauty overhaul but below are our best ways for how you can get your skincare line-up spring ready. 1/ Prep Your Base Properly Start with an oil-based cleanser designed to effectively break down and remove the days’ worth of makeup, skincare and SPF. Next, follow this step with a second cleanse to remove any remaining stubborn impurities and to kickstart the skin’s natural exfoliation process with mild lactic and salicylic acid. This prepares your skin for the following steps after cleansing where you target, treat and hydrate the skin. Both cleansers work on tackling excessive sebum production which increases with warmer weather. The first cleanse works to attract and melt oil from the pore lining, whilst the salicylic acid has oil controlling properties. Feeling cleansed and fresh without the over-dried squeaky clean feeling? We think so! Then we move on to picking the right treatment mask for your skin. 2/ Treat Correctly For Even-Toned Skin For sensitive skins, our Emulsion Clay Mask containing bentonite and kaolin clay can dislodge sebum to decongest the pores, absorb ionic-charged toxins & impurities and nourish the skin with its Shea butter and plant oil complex. This also helps to calm those complexions in need whilst giving it a pampering, in-clinic style experience. For dry, combination skin our Pure Active physical peel is recommended. Plant oils and AHA complex clarify, attract and breakdown excess oil whilst Shea butter softens the skin as it is massaged over with dry hands before melting the sugar beads and emulsifying with water. The results: baby-bottom soft skin. For dehydrated, mature skin, oily/acne skin try our Resurface and Radiance chemical peel. A leave-on mask designed to actively renew without compromising the skin’s natural hydration levels. Containing fruit enzymes to balance sebum production, refine pores and brighten the complexion and the legendary healing cica, also known as ‘Tiger Grass’. Don’t forget to treat your neck and chest area that may be looking a bit dull and dehydrated after being covered throughout the winter months. 3/ Seal With Permeable Hydration A neutral, lightweight moisturiser is ideal for wrapping the skin in antioxidants and permeable hydration for better defense and repair both day and night. AOX B-complex Collagen Cream harnesses regenerating powers of B-vitamins to build skin resilience to prevent skin water loss, glycerin to attract and retain moisture and vitamin E for DNA and pigmentation protection, leaving the complexion with a natural matte satin finish for all day wear. Rich enough to hydrate but light enough to be layered under makeup and SPF without upsetting the skin.
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3 Ways To Transform Your Skin This Spring
31 March 2022 Tip 1 Cleanse with foam Foaming cleansers have a reputation for being too astringent, drying and oil-zapping. Our Exfoliating & Conditioning Silk-Gel Cleanser with soothing chamomile and rose will perform a dual action deep cleanse with mild exfoliation with lactic acid. Allow the product to emulsify with a bit of water in your hands first, to avoid performing this process on the face and leaving the skin feeling dry. Using this, particularly as your second cleanse in the evening, will reduce a build-up of congestion, blackheads and smooth the skin texture, all of which can play up after an increased production of sweat, perspiration and oil. Tip 2 Hydrate using non-heavy products Heavy formulas can leave the skin feeling uncomfortable throughout the day. Instead, layer your hydration in a powerful water-based formula such as our Imperial Life Force Qi Elixir, perfect for the time of year where life is blossoming. Containing Ginseng and Angelica Root to create life force in TCM as they stimulate bioactivities, while containing anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Combined with AHA & BHA complex to boost cell turnover and ward off congestion and infused with vitamins ABCE and hyaluronic acid to hydrate, repair and brighten all day long. Tip 3 Protect, protect, protect Protection is important for all skins types, skin tones and all ages and this makes SPF the biggest contender for that. To enhance the protection of your SPF, applying an anti-oxidant serum underneath will offer an extra layer of production. Anti-oxidants work great at defending your skin against the damage of free-radicals which are the collagen depleting pollutants in the air. Our Active Marine Collagen Serum contains Green Tea, Raspberry, Vitamin C and Co Q10 all containing skin defending anti-oxidants. Layer this after your Imperial Life Force Qi Elixir and under your SPF for protection with visible radiance.
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Transitional skincare and what changes may be happening
SEPTEMBER 28, 2021 As we transition into another season this year, we start to notice the air becoming colder, our skin maybe feels like it needs a hit of moisture and what is left of our summer glow is making our complexions appear duller. At this time of the year, the air tends to become dryer due to the reduction in humidity and consequently moisture in the air, which naturally has you re-considering what is best to use on your skin. Naturally the change in weather impacts the environment our skin is regularly subjected to both inside and outside the home. At home the heating may start to be coming back on and this dries out the air quality indoors. It can leave your skin feeling rather moisture zapped and sensitive. To combat this, apply a generous layer of our Zinc Oxide & Protein A+ Clarifying Comfort Cream to soothe and protect stressed, sensitive, inflamed skin. This cream envelopes the skin in a deeply hydrating layer while helping to calm and battle sensitivity. To make hydration last in the skin throughout the day, its important to build up a variety of layers of hydrating ingredients all at different molecular weights to truly allow hydration to be contained within the skin on a deeper level rather than a superficial one. Underneath your moisturising cream, applying a water-based serum, followed by an oil-based serum is great way to do this. To form a rich barrier over the skin that won’t clog the pores, apply a few drops of our VA Repair and Reglow or our VF Detox and Balance oil concentrates and to enforce the skin barrier and form a protective film, finish off with our Zinc Oxide & Protein A+ or our AOX B-complex Collagen cream, both perfect additions to a routine for this time of the year. Now is a great time of the year to add regular exfoliation into your regime. You may not think it but encouraging newer cells to the surface works to strengthen your skin barrier. It is incredibly important, however, that this step is not over-done otherwise it leaves the skin feeling overly dry and angry. Getting the skin into a regular pattern of cell turnover, helps with any damage that appeared during summer including pigmentation, post-acne scarring and un-even skin tone. Our peeling exfoliators are recommended to be used 1-2 times a week. They are all formulated with natural acids and enzymes at a concentration to be effective at loosening the top layer of dead skin cells and accumulated sebum whilst not disturbing the skin’s natural barrier. Our Resurface and Radiance peel is perfect to hydrate the skin whilst simultaneously renewing it. Our Pure Active peel is ideal for those wanting to smooth the skins surface whilst deeply cleansing. Another way to add reintroduce moisture to leave the skin barrier feeling much happier, is to use a humidifier, especially overnight. This puts moisture back into the air to relieve the feeling of dry/tight skin. Using a humidifier at night is a great option to restore an impaired barrier as we lose our highest amount of water content in our cells through the night. This will leave you waking up with a much glowier, plumper complexion. It is a natural reaction for the skin to feel triggered by a change in seasons but with the right care and focus on calming the skin to get it back into a state of healthy equilibrium, the skin balance will be restored, and the happy, healthy, and radiant look of your bare-faced skin shall return.
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Summer Skincare Recovery
SEPTEMBER 10, 2021 As the temperature starts to drop and the presence of the intense heat from the sun disappears, it’s the perfect time to assess how your skin is feeling as the summer months draw to a close. SENSITIVITY Heat from the sun, causes heat to build up within the skin and cause the capillaries to dilate. These capillary walls are responsible for the flushing you see in skins and after the summer is over you can feel like your skin isn’t feeling quite as calm as it normally is. As well as this, any potential sunburn you may have accumulated over the summer can cause the skin to be feeling dried out, tender and a bit lack lustre. To support this, our Zinc Oxide & Protein A+ Clarifying Comfort Cream includes sea buckthorn to help soothe and promote elasticity and skin hydration. It also works on repairing the natural skin barrier by layering it in lipids and ceramides from sunflower, olive and coconut oils. PARCHED SKIN Tackling dehydration and skin dryness is a big part of the summer rehab programme for skin. If you’ve been abroad, the skin is likely to have been subjected to air conditioning, the drying recycled air from the plane, not to mention the moisture zapping sun rays. It isn’t just the external environment that leaves our skin feeling parched, it is also what we have (or haven’t!) been putting on it. The natural instinct with summer skincare is to avoid rich creams and opt for lighter textures. For lots of people’s skin a lighter texture can do the work and holds all the hydration they need to quench their skin under their SPF but sometimes the skin isn’t being hydrated enough due to skimping on the hydrating serums and creams for fear they would be too much. Now is the time to lock in those hydrating serums with a cream. Our Alpha Glow Flash Facial serum can be used to build up the layers of hydration before sealing in with a cream. This serum contains sodium hyaluronate and phospholipids provide lasting hydration and Aloe Polysaccharides, Vitamin E & Rose Stem Cells offer protecting & soothing properties. Try generously layering this under our AOX B-complex cream to nourish and balance the complexion. This cream is also great for whitehead and blackhead prone skin to offer non-comedogenic hydration. CONGESTION Congestion and a build-up of bumpy skin happens for a few reasons. Perspiring under a mask often leads to congestion in the areas where you sweat more and a bacterial build up of spots or ‘maskne’ accumulates under the areas where the mask lies. Prolonged use of constantly layering SPF also takes a real toll on the skin. The face can feel like its full of spots and bumps and its important to tackle these whilst minimising the chance of any scarring. To deal with the congestion hanging around, it’s important to increase the cell turnover to bring fresh cells to the surface. These fresher cells lift dull complexions and offer radiance as their smoothness offers light reflecting abilities to give the skin a natural, healthy glow. It also encourages the removal of excess sebum and dead skin cells that may need a little kick to get the complexion back to a balanced state. The key to aiding with new cell turnover, however, is to make sure it is done gently and not over-done otherwise the skin will produce more oil to compensate as it will have been stripped of too much of its moisture. PIGMENTATION After a summer spent in the sun, you might notice an increase in pigmentation and darker areas or lighter areas across the face. Hyperpigmentation often occurs after being exposed to the sun as it is an increase in melanin production which the sun is responsible for increasing the production of anyway. Our Alpha Glow Flash Facial Serum is designed to target areas of melanin imbalance seen with pigmentation issues. This serum contains alpha arbutin which can brighten dark spots and discoloration by reducing the melanin pigment found in the skin and providing a more even skin tone. This serum is easily buildable as a serum under heavier creams, used as a primer before applying makeup to fill imperfections and as a layer over the skin as a night mask to bind all the moisture together. LIFESTYLE After an active and social summer, you may find that you are feeling lethargic and in need of a rest. Often, we find ourselves staying out later to enjoy the warm nights and the new refreshing drinks menu, as well as attending more social gatherings with friends, but that can lead to the skin functioning very sluggishly. Sugary drinks (from the new drinks menu!) increase our natural insulin levels. When this goes up it increases our chances of causing inflammation within the body which can lead to a surge of future breakouts and can be very problematic for already acne-prone skins. If you still feel like getting a sugary hit, consider the health benefits of fruit alongside their sweetness to tempt you away from the sugary drinks. Increasing your fruit and vegetable intake actually increases your hydration levels and is one of the best ways to allow hydration to reach the layers of the skin as sadly water doesn’t offer that. Eating water-rich foods allows the water content to be absorbed slowly and doesn’t flush good nutrients out the body like downing a bottle of water would do.
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MICRO-LAYERING with MICRO ALPHA-GLOW SYSTEM
1 JUN, 2021 The Micro Alpha-Glow System, containing the revolutionary HF-Dermal Microniser and the brand's best selling Alpha-Glow Flash Facial Serum 30ml. This is a break-through beauty gadget enhanced system designed to transform our skincare routines for good. Quietly in the making for the past few years, this newest launch is set to completely revolutionise our skincare routines for good. Working by essentially supercharging everything we already know about good skincare, the HF-Dermal Microniser is designed to optimise the function of their cult Alpha Glow Flash Facial serum to provide complete and lasting hydration. Acting like a drink of water for our complexion, this multi-functional design uses atomisation technology to convert their facial serum into micrometre particles, enhancing the delivery and efficacy of its active ingredients. “Our skin is made up of 65% water, making hydration the foundation to maintain skin health and solve problematic skin. The HF-Dermal Microniser allows for deep infusion of hydration to get through our 20 layers of dead skin to facilitate active delivery for the repair and rejuvenation of our skin.” HOW TO USE Designed to fit snugly in our handbag, this portable USB chargeable device can be used any time to provide a nourishing boost of moisture, nurture a healthy skin barrier no matter your skin type and promote a genuine plumped and translucent glow from within. Get yours now to take your skincare routine onto a whole new level. FIND OUT MORE
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SPRING CLEAN AND TRANSITIONAL SKINCARE
MAY 21, 2021 As we delve deeper into spring it's important to change up our skincare routine as the weather changes. The humidity in the British air from winter to spring drops by 20%, meaning you need a good amount of hydration to ensure your skin doesn't get dry. Transitional skin care is important to help layer products to help calm acne/redness from the change of season. Read below for some of our top tips for your spring skincare fix: 1. Use our Alpha Glow Flash Facial Serum to create a light moisturiser with your existing products. A way to not waste your winter creams and serums is to combine them with our Alpha Flash Facial Serum. As we venture into spring and summer we tend to have more oiler skin due to more sun exposure, a thicker winter cream will become suffocating. Therefore mix your AMINO-ACIDS & LIPIDS RECOVERY CREAM which contains a lot of fatty acids with your ALPHA GLOW FLASH FACIAL SERUM to create a light serum emulsion. When the temperature and humidity rises in the summer, your skin produces more oil which can clog pores and lead to breakouts. You need a lightweight moisturizer such as water-based gel or oil-free lotion that will hydrate without feeling heavy on your skin. Therefore you still have all the benefits of the moisturisers, but a lighter and thinner mixture which won't be too heavy on your skin in spring. Beneficial for wrinkles, sensitive skin, pigmentation and dryness. 2. Apply an oil and water balanced serum. A thick and intense oil serum will again be too heavy on the skin making it uncomfortable in the sun and promoting your skin to look too oily. Add 2 drops of our ALPHA GLOW FLASH FACIAL SERUM to your INTENSIVE ELIXIR TREATMENT SERUM. This will create a water and oil mix which is great as the skin is made out of 65% water and the rest is oil. Especially as the Intensive Elixir has great star actives and is sumptuous, lightweight oil-serum crafted with 3 precious essential oils, 4 refined bio-dynamic oils and 4 pure plant extracts, for a powerful boost of youth, soft and supple skin and a healthy glow. Oils attract water and absorb gently into the skin to lock in moisture and minimize excess oil production, while creating the protective barrier that results in radiant, nourished skin. Layering clean skincare products delivers benefits to the skin that just water or oil alone can't provide. 3. Don't forget your sun protection! It's important to layer up your products especially to help defend against sun damage. We suggest using our ACTIVE MARINE COLLAGEN SERUM. Made up of a multitude of antioxidants to protect from environmental damage and collagen breakdown. Containing Citrus actives, Green tea & Vitamin C to perform a skin brightening, protective and energising action. Recommended for morning and evening use to hydrate and give an immediate collagen plumping effect. Adding antioxidants in your layering technique will brighten, protect against sun damage and promote collagen production. Don't forget the last step of adding a SPF to complete the look.
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Caring for your eyes, the right way
10 NOVEMBER, 2020 With lockdown and working from home swelling our screen time easily past the eight hour mark, it’s hardly surprising our eyes are beginning to suffer. Combined with disjointed sleeping patterns, fatigue and stress creates the perfect storm for dark, puffy eye areas. The skin around our eyes ages so much quicker than the rest of our face for a number of reasons. As well as being around ten times thinner, to enable blinking and rapid movement, the fat and muscle structure is a lot less dense. This leaves the skin more vulnerable to issues such as sagging, puffiness and habitual lines due to lack of cushioning and support. Blinking and facial expressions like smiling and frowning throughout the day means your eyes are constantly moving and working, this alone can contribute to ageing. Interestingly, eye products are routinely skipped, dismissed and ignored. All too often the skin around our eyes is neglected whilst we carefully exfoliate, moisturise and pamper the rest of our complexion. Eye creams and serums are quickly dismissed as overpriced gimmicks, with many of us plumping for a sweep of our regular moisturiser, our eyes really are crying out for some tender love and care. The sensitive, delicate nature of this area requires all the hydrating, brightening and rejuvenation of our other skincare products, but with gentle, soothing formulas to avoid irritation. WHAT DO YOUR EYES NEED? according to your concerns My eyes are puffy, tired and prematurely ageing? Puffy, tired eyes are all too common; factors such as stress, fatigue, diet and dehydration can lead to your undereye area looking swollen and feeling sensitive. To combat this, you should reach for deeply hydrating, soothing products to cool, depuff and smooth. Our newly launched AOX HYDRO-CORRECT BRIGHT & TIGHT EYE SERUM is a multi-action, hydro-gel eye serum that works to brighten and tighten your fragile eye area. Enriched with Almond Oil (high in Vitamin A and E, Zinc and Omega 3’s) to nourish, smooth fine lines and ultimately prevent premature ageing. It’s also got Aloe and Glycerin to moisturise and soothe reddened skin and Hyaluronic Acid to stimulate collagen synthesis and provide total hydration. Packed with antioxidant powerhouse Raspberry to brighten dark circles, restore healthy barrier function and aid regeneration. Gently tap up to 3 drops around your eye area using your fingers or apply generously and use as an SOS leave on mask. My eyes are dry, dull and wrinkled? Dry and dull eyes can be easily rectified with some intensively moisturising and plumping star actives. Our rich, silky LYCOPENE PROTEIN & WRINKLE RELEASE EYE CREAM is the ultimate soft, anti-ageing eye elixir. With a formula combining 10 different skin identical oils - Apricot, Sunflower and Avocado to name but a few - to plump wrinkles and provide a consistent cross-layer moisture release. Loaded with smooth Oat Silk and zingy Raspberry to brighten, smooth and boost radiance, it’s also loaded with antioxidant high Passionfruit and Green Tea to neutralise damaging free radicals that can contribute to premature ageing. Allantoin soothes irritation, softens skin and encourages cell regeneration whilst the ultimate hydrating molecule Hyaluronic Acid keeps skin plumped and hydrated. Apply up to 4 drops above and under eyes and massage using circular, tapping motions. I feel like only botox will help my crows feet and wrinkles? We hear you, fine lines and wrinkles can really knock your self esteem and it’s easy to think invasive procedures like Botox are the only route to go down to see actual results. This is where Peptides come in. Peptides are strings of amino acids that act as the building blocks, which make up proteins in our body, including the collagen and elastin fibres in our skin. We literally couldn’t function without it. As we age, we begin to lose collagen, so when we apply peptides to our skin in the form of topical serums or moisturisers, they act as a messenger to urge our body to create more collagen. Our newly upgraded POLY-PEPTIDES FOCUS CONTOUR HA EYE SERUM is formulated with neuropeptide technology to regenerate skin from the inside out. We have boosted our already award-winning formula with a higher concentration of actives for ultimate anti-ageing effects. This multi-tasking wonder product utilises hexapeptide Argireline to relax the muscles responsible for the formation of lines and in turn minimises their depth. Boosted with Matrixyl 3000 to stimulate collagen production; consisting of two peptides working in tandem, it sends signals to cells to produce more collagen, rejuvenates dermal structures, reduces photo damage and encourages ageing skin to behave like younger skin. Hydrating elixir Hyaluronic acid moisturises the eye area, aids plumpness and boosts collagen synthesis. Apply a pea sized amount to the eye area, massaging around the eye socket with circular motions and patting pressure points and temple to stimulate circulation and enhance toxin drainage. For ultimate brightening anti-ageing: We recommend using either of our water based serums: AOX Hydro-correct Bright and Tight eye serum or Poly-Peptides Focus Contour HA Eye serum In tandem with our protein rich eye cream Lycopene Protein+ Wrinkle Release Eye Cream to seal in moisture and enhance cross-layer release. Boost it further: Each of these products can be used with our multi-award winning Eyecicle® beauty device. Designed to be chilled in the fridge for at least half an hour before use, this cooling massage tool is delicately crafted with artisan glass techniques for a smooth, seamless result. Different parts of the Eyecicle® can be massaged around the eye to enhance circulation, encourage drainage and boost oxygen, which in turn stimulates skin cell growth to reveal a brighter, tighter and smoother appearance.
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Treating breakouts kindly and gently
Acne, breakouts, maskne
2 NOVEMBER, 2020 Post lockdown life and the stress of working through a pandemic has wreaked havoc with many of our complexions. Working from home, limited exposure to sunlight and irregular sleeping patterns has left our skin dull, tired and congested. Add anxiety brought about by the ever-changing nature of our situation and face coverings becoming mandatory within many spaces and adult acne has the perfect environment to thrive. It’s a well known fact that heightened and prolonged periods of stress can negatively impact your skin, with breakout prone skin likely to become even worse. COVID-19 has seen the coining of the portmanteau ‘maskne’ which refers to the skin irritation and spots formed in the area our mask is worn. Since becoming a legal requirement in most shops, restaurants and public transport, the dreaded maskne is becoming harder to avoid. The friction between the mask and our skin, combined with the pore-blocking sweat and moisture that forms under our face covering creates the perfect storm for breakouts around our mouth, nose and cheeks. Aside from frequently washing our masks and keeping makeup to a minimum, there are many other ways to combat this unwelcome inflammation. One of the main things to keep in mind whilst treating acne and skin problems is treat your complexion with kindness and compassion. Whilst it might be hugely tempting to pick or squeeze and introduce harsh, stripping products to your routine; what your skin really needs is gentle, hydrating and nourishing products to rebalance and reset. Detoxifying masks, gentle exfoliants and calming moisturising creams are your best friends when struggling with acne. Inflammation is usually the root cause of breakouts and often leads to imbalanced sebum secretion, however people all too often make the mistake of reaching for skin-drying formulas which in fact only exacerbates the problem. Instead the products to reach for should be deeply hydrating and soothing to calm redness and rich in antioxidants with anti-bacterial properties to fight against angry spots. Active ingredients such as Zinc Oxide, Sandalwood and Allantoin assist in the healing and recovery of blemishes, soothe flare ups and regulate sebum production without compromising any of your skin’s natural moisture. Congested skin hugely benefits from gentle exfoliation with fruit enzymes and antioxidants rather than harsh, manual scrubbing. Products enriched with Pineapple and Mango enzymes work to balance sebum production, refine pores and brighten your complexion. 001 Skincare’s newly launched Acne Kit consists of three powerhouse formulas designed to treat, heal and combat problem skin. The Sebum & Redness Neutralising Water Shield is a 4 in 1 hybrid product that can be used as an overnight mask come primer come moisturiser come blemish treatment. Packed with cooling Aloe Vera and Glycerin to hydrate and calm reddened skin, anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial Blackcurrant to address bacteria caused breakouts and mild astringent Mint which has a high salicylic acid content to prevent clogged pores and loosen dead skin cells. Our brand new feather light, mattifying moisturiser Zinc & Protein A+ Clarifying Comfort Cream blends Vitamin E for brightening, Oat Silk to calm flare ups, skin-saving essential oils such as Tea Tree and Geranium and Seabuckthorn to hydrate and promote cell regeneration. For an extra dose of clearing and brightening, our third hero product Resurface & Radiance Hydro-lipids Micro Peel utilises skin elixir CICA to reduce appearance of acne scarring and encourage production of collagen. CICA earned the nickname Tiger Grass after it was noticed tigers roll in the herb to help heal their wounds! It’s also loaded with antioxidant rich Green Tea and Liquorice for brightening and zingy, exfoliating fruit enzymes.
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