Chia Seed Oil – The Newest Skincare Secret You’ll Want to Know

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acne-prone skin, all skin types, anti-inflammatory properties, antioxidants, avocado, boost of hydration, brighten complexion, Broccoli, calm, calming effect, Chia Seed Oil, collagen production, creamy texture, dark circles, dehydration, delicate skin, Dermalogica Biolumin-C Eye Serum, Dermalogica Biolumin-C Serum, detoxify, dose of radiance, dullness, easily absorbed, Elemis Superfood Vital Veggie Mask, environmental stressors, essential fatty acids, even skin tone, firming ingredients, formulated, free radicals, green goodness, healthy, hydrate, hyperpigmentation, improve skin elasticity, irritated skin, kale, Lactic Acid, lightweight, Maskology Niacinamide Professional Sheet Mask, minerals, moisture loss, natural ingredients, Niacinamide, nourish, oily skin, omega-3 fatty acids, peptides, premature ageing, products, puffiness, radiant, radiant complexion, redness, reduce fine lines, reduce pores, refreshed, regulate oil production, rejuvenated, revitalise, Salvia hispanica plant, seeds, sensitive skin, signs of ageing, skin concerns, skin's barrier function, skincare, soothe, sophora japonica flower extract, strengthen, target blemishes, uneven skin tone, visible signs of ageing, Vitamin C, vitamins, Wheatgrass, wrinkles, youthful appearance

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Chia seed oil has gained significant recognition in the skincare industry for its numerous beneficial properties. Extracted from the seeds of the Salvia hispanica plant, chia seed oil is packed with essential fatty acids, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. When applied topically, it helps nourish and hydrate the skin, promoting a healthy and radiant complexion. The high concentration of omega-3 fatty acids in chia seed oil helps strengthen the skin’s barrier function, reducing moisture loss and preventing dehydration. 

Additionally, the potent antioxidants present in chia seed oil combat free radicals, protecting the skin against environmental stressors and premature ageing. Its anti-inflammatory properties also make it effective in soothing and calming irritated or sensitive skin. Chia seed oil is lightweight and easily absorbed, making it suitable for all skin types, including oily and acne-prone skin. With this in mind, we’ve curated a list of our favourite products which contain this fabulous ingredient:

Dermalogica Biolumin-C Eye Serum

Dermalogica Biolumin-C Eye Serum is a groundbreaking skincare product that offers a comprehensive solution for addressing the delicate skin around the eyes. Infused with advanced vitamin C technology, this serum works wonders in reducing the signs of ageing, dark circles, and puffiness. Its lightweight and easily absorbed formula penetrates deeply into the skin, delivering a powerful blend of brightening and firming ingredients. The serum’s key ingredient, vitamin C, helps to boost collagen production, promoting a more youthful and radiant appearance, while chia seed oil helps the skin to retain moisture. 

Maskology Niacinamide Professional Sheet Mask

This innovative sheet mask is infused with a potent dose of niacinamide, a powerhouse ingredient renowned for its ability to address a wide range of skin concerns. With its lightweight and comfortable design, the Maskology Niacinamide Professional Sheet Mask adheres perfectly to the contours of the face, allowing for maximum absorption of the nourishing formula. Upon application, the mask works to reduce the appearance of pores, regulate oil production, and promote a more even skin tone. It also effectively targets blemishes, redness, and hyperpigmentation, leaving the skin looking refreshed, rejuvenated, and radiant. Chia seed oil tops off the formula as a key ingredient to enhance hydration.

Elemis Superfood Vital Veggie Mask

The Elemis Superfood Vital Veggie Mask is a skincare gem that nourishes and revitalises the skin with its potent blend of natural ingredients. This nutrient-rich mask is a powerhouse of green goodness, infused with a variety of superfoods like avocado, kale, broccoli, and wheatgrass. Packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, as well as a healthy dose of chia seed oil, it works to detoxify the skin, leaving it refreshed and rejuvenated. The creamy texture glides effortlessly onto the skin, providing an indulgent and pampering experience. Whether your skin needs a boost of hydration, a dose of radiance, or a calming effect, this mask delivers it all. 

Dermalogica Biolumin-C Serum

This potent serum from Dermalogica is specifically formulated to address the visible signs of ageing, dullness, and uneven skin tone. Packed with an advanced blend of vitamin C, this serum delivers a powerful dose of antioxidants to combat free radicals and protect the skin from environmental stressors. Its unique formula also includes peptides, lactic acid, sophora japonica flower extract and chia seed oil which work together to brighten the complexion, improve skin elasticity, and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

Pumpkins Aren’t Just for Halloween!

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acerola cherry, antioxidants, Australian caviar lime, avocado, Broccoli, cleansing, complexion, cranberry, dermalogica, Dermalogica PowerBright Overnight Cream, Dermalogica Rapid Reveal Peel, dry skin, Elemis, Elemis Superfood AHA Glow Cleansing Butter, Elemis Superfood Facial Wash, epidermal cell, extracts, fatty acids, fermented, kale, Lactic Acid, luminosity, mattifying, microbiome, moisturiser, Nettle, nourishing, oat kernel flour, oily skin, plant enzyme, prebiotic, pumpkin, pumpkin enzyme, pumpkin seed extract, pumpkin seed oil, radiant, Refinery, Refinery Mattifying Moisturiser, shine, texture, Wheatgrass

Photo by Kristina Paukshtite

When it comes to pumpkins, we choose them, carve them, roast them, bake them, even take our kids to be photographed in fields of them, but we don’t often think about slathering them onto our faces. That is, until recently, when a flurry of cosmetic companies began incorporating the potent plant, which is abundant in enzymes, amino acids, antioxidants, and vitamins A and E, into their line of skin care products. Now, instead of thinking of pumpkins as something we use once a year to carve a scary face into and place a candle inside for spooky shadows, we’re looking at five of our favourite products which harness the power of this humble member of the squash family:

Dermalogica PowerBright Overnight Cream

As the name suggests, this cream from Dermalogica is intended for nighttime use and is formulated to optimise skin moisture recovery and help restore luminosity. As well as containing pumpkin enzyme, which smoothes and evens skin texture, it packs in antioxidant-rich cranberry and raspberry seed oils to help protect against the damaging effects of free radicals from pollution, and deliver essential fatty acids that moisturise to help reduce the appearance of fine lines. 

Elemis Superfood AHA Glow Cleansing Butter

If you suffer from a dull complexion, finding a cleanser which doesn’t further strip moisture and radiance is important. This cleansing butter from Elemis is a nourishing facial cleanser that removes makeup, daily pollutants and daily grime to reveal a healthy-looking radiance. It’s packed with brightening AHAs from pumpkin and acerola cherry, to help to reveal a fresh-faced glow and can be used as a daily cleanser, a deep cleansing mask or a hydrating makeup remover around the eyes and face for smooth and glowing skin. 

Refinery Mattifying Moisturiser

While many people with oily skin steer clear of moisturiser, mistakenly assuming that they don’t need it, the reality is that oily skin often has underlying dryness that needs to be rebalanced to reduce sebum production. This moisturiser from Refinery contains pumpkin seed extract, which reduces shine with special optical effects, while oat kernel flour soothes and protects skin, and powerful sodium hyaluronate gives a boost of moisture. It’s a light, easily-absorbed formula which instantly reduces shine, making it perfect for oily complexions. 

Dermalogica Rapid Reveal Peel

This potent exfoliator from Dermalogica contains a unique complex of potent phytoactive AHA extracts, lactic acid and fermented plant enzymes to increase epidermal cell turnover to reveal new, firmer skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. It’s packed with pumpkin fruit enzyme and rice bran extract to resurface and help even out skin tone, while smoothing Australian caviar lime extracts brightens skin for a more radiant complexion. There are ten applications per tube and should be used once a week for best results. 

Elemis Superfood Facial Wash

The Elemis Superfood range contains a bunch of naturally derived active ingredients, and this facial wash is no exception. As well as pumpkin seed oils, the wash is packed with extracts from avocado, broccoli, wheatgrass, kale, and nettle. These are paired with a natural prebiotic to help balance the skin’s precious microbiome. The result is a nourishing facial wash that revives and refreshes whilst deeply cleansing the skin.

Vaping and The Effects on Your Skin

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acne, ageing, antioxidant, balanced, chemicals, cleanser, cream, daily routine, dangers, dark spots, day, discolouration, dry, dry skin, drying, dryness, e-cigarette, enlarged, exfoliator, flaky, hydrated, hydration, hyperpigmentation, inhaling, irritation, itchy, nicotine, oily skin, oxygen, patchy, pores, rashes, resurfacing, sagging, sebum, sensitive, sensitivity, skin, smoking, soothing, supple, texture, toxins, uneven, Vape, vaping, vapour, wrinkling

Photo by FORMM agency on Unsplash

Vaping is something which has gained HUGE popularity the world over in the last decade. When e-cigs first came along, we were all assured that they were far safer than cigarettes and the health benefits of making the switch would be numerous. Now that we’re a few years down the line and more research has been done, we’re now aware that vaping presents its own dangers, not least of all to your skin. Here’s an overview of some of the negative effects of vaping on the skin and what you can do to reverse them:

E-Liquids Contain Toxins Which Can Damage The Skin

Exposure to the chemicals from e-cigarettes are twofold – as well as inhaling chemicals which can be harmful to your skin, you also create a cloud of vapour when you exhale, which also enrobes your skin in chemicals. The best way to stop the effects on your skin is to stop vaping altogether, but adding a potent exfoliator such as Dermalogica Skin Resurfacing Cleanser can also help to remove toxins and reverse some of the damage. 

It Makes Your Skin Dry

One of the ways that smoking ages the skin is by depriving it of oxygen and drying it out, and that can also be said for vaping. Every time you take a puff of a vape, you’re drying your skin out and exacerbating dry skin. Ironically, for some people, this can then lead to OILY skin, as your natural sebum production will ramp up to overcompensate. We recommend Elemis Hydra-Balance Day Cream, which is an ultra-light, antioxidant rich day cream that provides continuous hydration, to leave skin feeling perfectly hydrated, balanced and supple.

It Can Make Acne and Redness Worse

Vaping contains lots of chemicals and nicotine which come in contact with our skin. This may cause the skin to become dry or flaky. It can also aggravate those with naturally dry skin by making it patchy and sometimes itchy. The chemicals in e-cigarettes can also cause skin sensitivity and irritation which can lead to rashes and even acne. To combat these effects, we’d recommend adding Elemis Sensitive Soothing Milk to your daily routine, as it is infused with red sage and aloe vera, whilst bisabolol complex helps to protect against visible daily aggressors that might cause irritation. 

It Accelerates the Signs of Ageing

Despite being touted as “better than smoking” for our health, vaping is still incredibly damaging when it comes to the signs of ageing, as it deprives our skin of nutrients. This will lead to premature ageing in the form of dryness, enlarged pores, sagging, wrinkling, hyperpigmentation, and uneven texture. Using Aromatherapy Associates Anti-Ageing Overnight Repair Mask will help to smooth out lines and firm the skin, treating you to an overnight facial. 

It Can Cause Dark Spots

We all know that smoking can cause discolouration to the skin, but it’s also possible to suffer from hyperpigmentation, thanks to vaping. The nicotine in cigarettes is often what contributes to dark spots, and nicotine is still usually present in e-cigarettes too. Murad Correct and Protect Serum SPF45 is a satiny-smooth serum with 100% mineral SPF that’s tested and scientifically proven to visibly correct discolouration and prevent future hyperpigmentation, making it the perfect product for vapers and smokers. 

Allantoin – The Best Soothing Ingredient that Nature Has to Offer?

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acne, acne scars, alcohol, algae extracts, Allantoin, anti-irritant, Arnica, blue Lotus extracts, botanical, botanical extracts, breakouts, chamomile, cleansers, combination skin, Comfrey, cuts, debris, decongest, dirt, dryness, dullness, Europe, exfoliate, face masks, Glycerin, glycolic acid, hands, herb, hydrate, hydrolipid, ingredient, ingrown hairs, irritation, itching, Lactic Acid, lightweight, lotions, Magnolia Essential Oil, moisture, moisture balance, nails, natural sources, normal skin, nourish, oil, oily skin, organic, pore minimising, pores, purify, Salicylic Acid, salicylic acid serum, scrapes, sensitive skin, serums, Shea butter, skin problems, skincare, smooth skin, soothe, sugar beat, tobacco seed, urea, uric acid, Vitamin E, water, wheat sprouts, white meadowfoam oil

Photo by Ron Lach

As you’ll know if you’re a regular visitor to our site, we like to keep our fingers on the pulse when it comes to skincare ingredients and trends. One such ingredient which has been popping up a lot lately is allantoin. It’s something which has been around for some time, but it’s going through something of a renaissance, with many major skincare companies including in their products. Here’s the lowdown on allantoin:

What is allantoin?

As we mentioned above, allantoin is used in many skin care products, including cleansers, lotions, serums, and face masks. Due to its anti-irritant properties, companies tend to add it to products that hydrate and soothe the skin. This ingredient is perfect for sensitive skin and is usually derived from natural sources.

Where is it found? 

In its natural form, allantoin is found in several plants, such as sugar beet, chamomile, tobacco seed, and wheat sprouts. A popular source of allantoin is the extract of comfrey, a species of herb native to Europe. It can also be prepared synthetically for cosmetic use, either by oxidation of uric acid, reaction of dichloroacetic acid and urea, or condensation reaction between glyoxylic acid and urea. (Don’t worry, that’s the last time today that we’ll get so scientific!)

What is it good for?

Allantoin might be your ticket to super smooth skin. It’s one of those amazing ingredients that offers a major bang for your buck and is great if you’re dealing with dryness, dullness, irritation, acne scars and even cuts and scrapes. Allantoin is also known for its ability to add more water to your skin. It can help your skin hang on to moisture longer, and helps fight annoying skin issues like dryness, itching, and irritation, which can ultimately lead to more skin problems, like acne or oily skin. 

Which products contain allantoin?

Decleor White Magnolia Hand and Nail Cream

This light cream is ideal for use throughout the day to leave skin beautifully scented and provide essential care for hands and nails. Key active ingredients include white meadowfoam oil to regenerate the hydrolipid film, shea butter and allantoin to nourish and soothe, plus magnolia essential oil to help protect and reinforce the skin.

Lycon Ingrown X-It Solution

With allantoin, salicylic acid, lactic acid and arnica, Lycon Ingrown X-It Solution is a break through spray formula for the face and body. It mildly exfoliates, decongests and helps minimise the appearance and discomfort of ingrown hairs. 

Medik8 Blemish Control Pads

Pre-soaked in a clarifying maximum strength salicylic acid serum, Medik8 Blemish Control Pads dissolve oil and dirt from deep within the pore to purify problem complexions. Crafted without alcohol and infused with allantoin and glycerin, they protect the skin’s natural moisture balance to ward off dryness, while caring for the most sensitive of skin types.

Murad Clarifying Body Spray

Murad Clarifying Body Spray is a quick-drying formula that helps prevent body breakouts. Salicylic acid helps clear up blemishes as glycolic acid helps clear away pore-clogging debris. Allantoin and blue lotus extract help soothe irritation for healthier-looking skin.

SkinCeuticals Daily Moisture

SkinCeuticals Daily Moisture is a lightweight, pore minimising moisturiser, designed to hydrate and nourish normal, combination and oily skin. It contains an exclusive combination of vitamin E, three nutrient-rich algae extracts, and a blend of seven botanical extracts including allantoin. 

Five Masks to Add to Your Summer Skin and Hair Care Routine

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absorbed, air conditioning, and skincare, beta glucan, blemishes, brassy, breakouts, brittle, Centella Asiatica Extract, chest, chlorine, comforting, complexion, concentrated, cooling, cosmetic procedures, Dalton, dehydration, dry hair, dull, exercise, face, face masks, frangipani, frizzy, hair, hair care, hair damage, heat wave, holiday, hot weather, intensive, irritable scalp, lip area, macadamia, mask, masks, moisture barrier, Moringa, neck, non-sticky, oily skin, oversensitivity, pink clay, potent, protected, radiant, redness, reparative, Rose Essential Oil, routine, salt water, scalp, sensitive skin, sesame, softness, strength, stress, summer, sun, sun exposure, sweet almond plant, temporary redness, treatment, white mushroom extract, wind, wind burn, yeast

Photo by Anna Shvets

It’s easy to associate the summer with oily skin, blemishes, breakouts, dull and dry hair and an irritable scalp. However, waiting for the summer to end for that radiant face and shining hair isn’t a viable solution, so a quick fix to beat the heat is needed. The best solution is to switch up your skin and hair care routine by adding effective cooling hair and face masks to your stock of beauty products and we’ve got some awesome ones to help you to get through the heatwave:

Olaplex No.8 Bond Intense Moisture Mask

With summer fun unfortunately comes summer hair damage and after spending time in the wind, sun, chlorine, salt water and air conditioning your hair may be dull, brassy, frizzy, dry or brittle. Olaplex No.8 Bond Intense Moisture Mask is an at-home reparative treatment mask that provides intense moisture to treat damaged hair. It’s an intensive, concentrated treatment that only needs ten minutes to transform your locks. 

REN Clean Skincare Evercalm Ultra Comforting Rescue Mask

Hot weather can play havoc with sensitive skin, increasing redness, causing dehydration and exacerbating the key signs of sensitive skin. REN Clean Skincare Evercalm Ultra Comforting Rescue Mask is specially developed to combat over-sensitivity and will strengthen the protective moisture barrier to aid recovery and increase skin’s ability to cope with stress, improving skin well-being. It contains white mushroom extract, which helps to protect the skin against discomfort and beta-glucan from yeast, which moisturises and reduces signs of sensitivity.    

SkinCeuticals Phyto Corrective Masque 

This mask from SkinCeuticals is designed to soothe skin after sun exposure, exercise, windburn and even cosmetic procedures. It delivers intense cooling and calming comfort to skin sensitivity and is suitable for irritated, sensitive skin prone to temporary redness. It can be used on the face, chest and neck (avoiding the eye and lip areas) and is ideal for taking on holiday…or using during an unseasonably hot summer! 

Decleor Organic Harmonie Calm Soothing Comfort 2 in1 Cream and Mask

This multi-functional product can be used as both a soothing cream and a potent mask, depending on how you wish to use it. Rose essential oil, sweet almond plant oils and centella asiatica extract soothe the complexion, even the skin tone and stabilise your skin all day long. With its fresh and non-sticky texture, this cream and mask is rapidly absorbed so your skin is protected and soothed without any discomfort. 

Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Hair and Scalp Mask

Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Hair and Scalp Mask is a luxurious weekly, intensive hair and scalp mask treatment formulated with frangipani monoi and pink clay to help restore softness and strength to dry, damaged hair. The pink clay provides hair with a deep clean, while a moisturising blend of sesame, moringa, macadamia and frangipani oils nourish the hair, making it the perfect partner during the long, hot summer.