Cloud Skin – The Newest Skincare Trend

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Aromatherapy Associates Mattifying Deep Cleanse Face Wash, balance, blurred, blurring, cloud, Cloud skin, complexion, Elemis Superfood Berry Boost Mask, Evolve Organic Beauty True Balance Lotion, influencers, lotion, make-up, matte, oil, oily, pores, Refinery Mattifying Moisturiser, skin, skincare, SkinCeuticals Oil Shield UV Defence Sunscreen SPF 50, smooth, soft, TikTok, viral

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*sigh*

Another day, another viral skincare trend. 

Last week, we were all trying to make ourselves look as though we had doughnut glaze on our faces, while this week, it’s ‘cloud skin’ we’re all striving for. 

So what is cloud skin and how can we achieve it? Cloud skin is all about a soft, matte finish on the skin which looks blurred, soft-focus and ethereal. Think of cherubs on a cloud and you get the idea. And surprisingly, it’s not as difficult to achieve as it might sound, providing you use the right combination of skincare and make-up. With this in mind, we’ve put together a list of products which should definitely be in your cloud-skin arsenal:

Aromatherapy Associates Mattifying Deep Cleanse Face Wash

Every good artist knows that the quality of the canvas is of utmost importance and the same can be said for our faces. Using a mattifying wash is essential in achieving cloud skin, and this one from Aromatherapy Associates is one of the best. It contains lavender and tea tree, which are natural antibacterial essential oils, whilst jojoba helps to balance the skin. It will remove makeup and leave skin feeling balanced, toned and deeply cleansed. 

Refinery Mattifying Moisturiser

Many people make the mistake of thinking that oily skin doesn’t need moisturiser, but that’s rarely the case, and moisturising oily skin can actually help to rebalance your complexion. This moisturiser from Refinery is a light and easily absorbed moisturiser to instantly reduce shine, resulting in matte looking skin. It contains pumpkin seed extract which reduces shine with special optical effects while oat kernel flour soothes and protects skin. 

SkinCeuticals Oil Shield UV Defence Sunscreen SPF 50

Even if you want your skin to look like a cloud, you still need protection from the sun! This SPF from SkinCeuticals offers broad-spectrum SPF50 protection while helping to mattify the skin. It’s an invisible lotion which offers a lightweight, residue-free formula with mattifying properties to help reduce skin oiliness. It contains silica silicate, which absorbs sebum for a light-scattering and blurring effect, perfect for use under make-up to achieve cloud skin. 

Elemis Superfood Berry Boost Mask

If you struggle with imbalanced skin, you’re going to find it difficult to maintain the cloud skin look throughout the day. This mask from Elemis helps to draw out skin impurities whilst gently exfoliating to leave the complexion looking balanced and smooth, and will help to soak up excess oil in 10 minutes. It contains omega-rich fatty acids derived from berries and a prebiotic, naturally derived from sugar, which helps to maintain balance in the skin’s microflora for a healthier looking complexion.

Evolve Organic Beauty True Balance Lotion

Cloud skin relies on looking smooth and soft, as well as having a matte finish, and this lotion from Evolve Organic Beauty can help you to achieve that. It contains ingredients which are clinically proven to tighten and reduce the appearance of pores as well as having a mattifying, firming and moisturising effect. Avocado extract helps to limit excessive oil production by inhibiting an oil producing enzyme (5 alpha-reductase) and therefore reducing the shiny appearance of the t-zone, while hyaluronic acid helps to reduce the appearance of wrinkles, making the skin look fresher with an improved skin tone, and reduces the appearance of pores.

Ingredient Focus: Linoleic Acid

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acid, barrier, brightening, cacay oil, collagen, Dermalogica Melting Moisture Masque, Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Body Cream, Evolve Organic Beauty Superfood 360 Serum, fatty acids, free radicals, hyperpigmentation, ingredient, irritants, lipid, luminosity, Medik8 C-Tetra Luxe, Medik8 Lipid-Balance Cleansing Oil, moisture, oil, oils, omega, omega 6, red ginseng, rejuvenation, serum, skin, skin protection, skin tone, smoke, soft, squalene, superfoods, supple, texture, vitamin, Vitamin C, Vitamin F, wrinkle depth

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Here at Pure Beauty, we make it our business to know exactly what’s in the products we sell so that we can make targeted recommendations for our clients’ skincare needs. One ingredient we’ve seen popping up a lot lately is linoleic acid, also sometimes referred to as vitamin F. Linoleic acid is actually an essential fatty acid, which means it’s essential for human health but isn’t created by the body.

Linoleic acid, or vitamin F, provides moisture and plumpness without making the skin feel heavy or weighed down. It fortifies the skin’s barrier, helping to fend off UV rays and air pollutants such as smoke, both of which cause free radical activity that can result in wrinkles and signs of ageing. It also lightens sun induced hyperpigmentation, making it an excellent all-rounder in the skincare game. It’s found in a number of naturally occurring oils, such as sunflower seed oil, hemp oil, grapeseed oil, and prickly pear seed oil.

With this in mind, we’ve put together a list of some of our favourite products which contain vitamin F. 

Medik8 Lipid-Balance Cleansing Oil

Oils are perfect for cleansing the skin as they can melt away dirt and make-up without stripping away the skin’s own barrier. This cleansing oil from Medik8 features an optimised ratio of essential lipids to replenish the skin’s natural defense barrier. This leaves the complexion soft, supple and protected from everyday irritants. The Omega-6 (yet another name for linoleic acid!) helps to rebalance the skin’s lipid levels to encourage a healthy complexion. 

Dermalogica Melting Moisture Masque

This mask from Dermalogica starts as a balm but melts to become a highly hydrating oil for your face. Activated by skin’s natural heat, this luxurious mask delivers a satisfying melting sensation as it penetrates skin’s surface layers to deeply nourish and rehydrate. As well as containing linoleic acid, which helps protect against skin-damaging free radicals for healthier-looking skin, it also contains micro-algae. This marine algae contains hydrating properties which help soothe and protect skin against the drying effects of pollution

Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Body Cream

It’s not just the skin on your face which benefits from the use of linoleic acid. This body cream from Elemis contains sesame oil which is hugely rich in linoleic acid and antioxidants, and has a well-balanced lipid profile, providing excellent emollient and skin softening properties. The unique infusion of exotic Tahitian monoi oil, a blend of tiare flowers soaked in coprah oil, is fragranced with frangipani flowers to leave skin feeling beautifully soft, supple and delicately scented.

Evolve Organic Beauty Superfood 360 Serum

This lightweight serum from Evolve Organic Beauty is pretty unique in that it can be used by all skin types and ages! The formulation is packed with highly effective natural superfoods which deliver comprehensive skin protection and rejuvenation benefits including improvement in skin tone, wrinkle depth, texture and luminosity. The linoleic acid contained is sourced from cacay oil, obtained from the seeds of a majestic Amazonian tree. Cacay oil is also packed with bio-retinol to support the skin barrier layer and to lock moisture into the skin.

Medik8 C-Tetra Luxe

The final product on our linoleic list is this lipid Vitamin C enhanced radiance serum from Medik8. As well as being packed with vitamin F and C, it contains vitamin E, which protects the skin from free radicals as well as optimised red ginseng, which boosts the serum’s brightening powers while stimulating collagen production. It’s also got a dose of squalane, which  helps to restore the skin’s natural defensive barrier while deeply hydrating the skin. What more could you ask for?!

How to Protect Your Skin’s Biome

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antioxidant, bacteria, biome, black tea, blackcurrant, brighten, complexion, Elemis, good bacteria, jelly, make up, mattified, micellar, microbiome, Murad, Nordic bilberry, Nouveau, nutrients, oil-free, oxygen, prebiotic, primer, probiotic, protect, protective matrix, skin, smooth, soft

Photo by Daniel Apodaca on Unsplash

As we’ve mentioned previously, the skin’s biome is an umbrella term for all of the bacteria which lives on your skin. We’re primed, as humans, to see bacteria as a bad thing, but actually, protecting your skin’s biome is incredibly important if you want a balanced, healthy complexion. Fortunately, we have everything you need to protect your skin’s biome, regardless of your skin type. Here are five of the best products for the job:

REN Clean Skincare Perfect Canvas Clean Primer

REN Clean Skincare Perfect Canvas Clean Primer is a probiotic Primer that plumps skin, mattifies and fills in fine lines for the perfect makeup application. It contains skin-boosting extracts that help balance your good bacteria, reducing breakouts and promoting a healthy microbiome. It can be used on its own to give you smooth, mattified skin or as a primer underneath make up for the perfect canvas. 

Advanced Nutrition Programme Skin Clear Biome

These capsules do exactly what it says on the box – they work on your skin’s biome to give you a clear, blemish-free complexion. Skin Clear Biome is designed to work from the inside out: feeding the gut with bacteria to clarify and brighten skin. The formula is housed within a protective matrix to ensure active bacteria reach the area of the gut where they are most needed. 

Elemis Superfood Blackcurrant Jelly Exfoliator

The Elemis Superfood range is all packed with naturally occurring ingredients, derived from superfoods, and this jelly exfoliator is made from antioxidant rich Nordic bilberry and black tea for healthy looking skin. It contains a prebiotic, naturally derived from sugar, that helps to leave skin feeling soft and smooth, without stripping natural oils while black seed oil supports the skin’s lipid barrier for a healthy glow.

Nouveau Prebiotic Eye Make-Up Remover Gel

The eyes are a tricky area – the skin is ultra delicate and finely balanced, while make-up for this area is often hardy and long-lasting. That’s why a specialist product is required to adequately remove cosmetics while protecting the delicate biome of the skin around the eye. Nouveau Prebiotic Eye Make-Up Remover Gel is an advanced oil-free, micellar gel eye make-up remover that contains powerful prebiotic ingredients to promote healthy skin microbiome, and to help prevent irritation.

Murad Prebiotic 3-In-1 MultiMist

Make-up can play havoc with the skin’s natural biome, preventing the transfer of oxygen and other nutrients. Murad Prebiotic 3-In-1 MultiMist is a 3-in-1 hydrating mist that hydrates, primes and sets makeup.The formula features hydrating sugars to moisturise and refresh skin, while a yeast peptide helps lock in hydration, making it the perfect, hard-working multitasker that your face needs. 

Your Guide to the Best Moisturising Ingredients

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aggressors, area, cells, ceramides, complexion, crows feet, dermatitis, dry, environmental, exfoliant, exfoliates, eye, face, Glycerin, humectant, hyaluronic acid, hydrate, hydrating, hydration, hyperpigmentation, irritants, Lactic Acid, lipids, moisture, moisturise, moisturised, moisturising, pigmentation, pollution, protect, Psoriasis, retain moisture, skin, skin’s barrier, skincare, soft, supple, urea, wrinkle

Photo by Jessica Felicio on Unsplash

Skincare is one of those things which can be entirely subjective – a product which one person swears by could be far less effective for someone else. This is usually down to the key ingredients in each product and how our skin reacts to those ingredients. With that in mind, we thought we’d take a look at some of the best ingredients for hydrating your skin, to help you to choose which might be best for your skins’ individual needs.

Hyaluronic Acid

Most people have heard of hyaluronic acid, but people continue to be surprised that it’s a moisturising ingredient (maybe because of the common perception of what an acid usually does?). When you apply a hyaluronic acid serum to your skin, it acts like a sponge by attracting moisture to boost hydration on the surface of skin. Dermalogica Daily Resurfacer is a 3-in-1 treatment which harnesses the power of hyaluronic acid to offer maximum hydrators to resurface, smooth and brighten the skin without causing irritation or redness.

Ceramides

Ceramides are lipids that help form the skin’s barrier and help skin retain moisture, while also helping the skin protect against environmental aggressors like irritants, and pollution. Dermalogica Overnight Repair Serum is packed with ceramides which mimic the natural fats found in our skin to help lock in moisture and stop skin from drying out.

Glycerin

Glycerin is actually a bit of a special ingredient as it actually traps moisture from the environment around you, allowing your skin to absorb it, giving you a softer, more supple complexion. It’s often used in hand creams or areas which need an extra boost, but is also found in Elemis Daily Defence Shield SPF30, which protects the skin from environmental micro particles and harmful UV rays, as well as leaving the skin feeling nourished, soft and supple.

Lactic Acid

Lactic acid is a ‘best of both worlds’ ingredient in that it act a both a mild exfoliant, as well as an humectant. This means that it gets rid of dead, dry skin cells at the same time as locking moisture in. It can be found in Dermalogica Biolumin-C Serum, which also exfoliates and reduces unbalanced pigmentation while nourishing the skin with moisture.

Urea

Urea might not sound like something you want to rub on your face, but it’s actually synthetic urea which features in skincare and it can be used to treat even the worst cases of dry skin, dermatitis and psoriasis. Urea works in part by loosening dry skin, and Dermalogica Age Reversal Eye Complex is made to target the eye area by reducing wrinkles, crows feet and puffiness which occur due to dehydration.

When soap won’t cut it turn to Pure Beauty

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acne prone skin, ‘Wash your face with soap water’, balms, cleans, coconut, creamy, Decleor Bi-phase Caring Cleanser and Make-Up Remover, deep cleansing action, Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser, Dermalogica Precleanse, dirt of the day, dissolves, dry faces, easily rinses away, elderberry and starflower extracts, Elemis BIOTEC Skin Energising Cleanser, Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm, excellent products, excess sebum, floral water, fresh, glycolic acid, grandmothers, Jan Marini Bioglycolic Facial Cleanser, jasmine, layer up, light, lips, make-up, mantra, murumuru seed butter, non-irritating, nourishing, oomph, optimum performance, palmarosa, pampers, past generations, plant-based cleansing oil, plump, radiant, rebalance, removes make-up, results, revived, revolutionary formula, Rice Bran, rose, scientific blend of virgin botanical oils, soap free, soft, soothed, stubborn, sunscreen, surface oils and impurities, tired, trio of acids, ultra-clean, vitamin E oils, waterproof lip liners, waterproof make-up

‘Wash your face with soap water’ was often the mantra for our grandmothers, but today there are better, gentler ways to take the dirt of the day off your skin, so we’re going to look at some of the excellent products on the site that we think past generations would’ve approved of.

The Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser is a light creamy product that cleans the skin as well as nourishing it. Perfect for dry faces it takes away dirt and make-up and thanks to lush coconut and murumuru seed butter skin gets stronger and is soothed as well as being refreshed thanks to palmarosa and jasmine.

If you are looking for something with a little oomph, look no further than the Elemis BIOTEC Skin Energising Cleanser. This offers optimum performance, because it is packed with a trio of acids mixed with an energising electrolyte solution and the results are explosive. The unique deep cleansing action reduces surface oils and impurities to rebalance your complexion leaving it fresh and revived.

The Decleor Bi-phase Caring Cleanser and Make-Up Remover is powered by a scientific blend of virgin botanical oils and floral water, and we love it. This revolutionary formula pampers the skin as it removes make-up (even stubborn, waterproof lip liners) and leaves it feeling soft, plump, soothed, and radiant.

For ultra clean, healthy skin we suggest the Dermalogica PreCleanse which is a fav of the pro’s. This plant-based cleansing oil breaks through the excess sebum, sunscreen, waterproof make-up, and residual products that build up during the day and make our skin look dull. Rice bran and vitamin E oils have been added to create a gentle blend that can be used around the eye area so that panda eyes in the morning will be a thing of the past.

Jan Marini Bioglycolic Facial Cleanser is totally soap free and leaves skin soft, smooth and more refined. It is non irritating, easily rinses away and because it comes with natural sorbitol from berries it leaves your skin soft and hydrated. This cleanser has added glycolic acid and the deep cleansing action makes it perfect for acne-prone skin, but don’t use this if you are pregnant or trying to conceive.

Balms aren’t just for your lips! The Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm dissolves the make-up, grime and pollution that can layer up and make us look tired. All skin types can benefit from the rose, elderberry and starflower extracts that have been mixed with delicate oils because together, they supercharge your complexion and leave it glowing.

If you have any questions about the best soap free products for you, let us know and we would love to help.

Team Pure Beauty