Danish Skincare

By Achilles - Blue Jasmine Facial Serum

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Everyone tells us that they have had at some point, either an overly dry or oily complexion. Today at The Amazing Blog we are sharing another of our #Amazingfinds, with a serum made with potent natural and organic ingredients that are specifically designed to relieve and treat all types of skin issues – we think that this Blue Jasmine Facial Serum By Achilles is a bit of a miracle-worker.

The founder of By Achilles is Michelle Zenia Achilles, a certified holistic aesthetician, with expertise in aromatherapy and skincare formulation.  Her interested in beauty started early on, as she formulated her very first skincare elixir while still in school, and this Facial Sunshine Elixir is still sold today. Since then, she has developed a whole skincare collection, with beauty tools, pure oils, and teas. Her recipes are inspired by the treasures that nature has to offer and information about skincare formulations that she has gathered throughout the years. All formulas are handcrafted from her atelier in Copenhagen, with organic, wild-grown, and sustainably sourced ingredients, and lots of positive energy! Because Michelle believes her formulas should only bring good to both the soul and skin, all of her products are created without additives, preservatives, or colourants. A good example is this Blue Jasmine Facial Oil that we’re reviewing today, where the only preservatives used here are willow bark and rosemary oil extract. The beautiful cerulean colour makes the formula unique together with its floral, yet calming, fragrance. If you are wondering where this deep cerulean blue comes from, keep reading on…

If you’re a fan of super-potent formulas that target atopic skin, then you won’t be disappointed with this Blue Jasmine Facial Oil 100% vegan cocktail. Packed with antioxidants, nutrients, and rebalancing ingredients that do an excellent job at locking in moisture and protecting the epidermis while renewing the cell structure by unclogging the pores and stimulating the collagen production at the same time. This oil is a must-have for anyone facing skin disorders whether it be acne, imperfection-prone combination skin, an uber-sensitive skin suffering from eczema, or mature skin in need of a regeneration boost. Today we’re going into a little more detail than usual with this product.

Its all-natural composition is without chemicals and silicones, makes it the perfect formula for any skin that needs rebalancing. The primary carrier oil here is jojoba, which is probably the best natural-based hydration source that exists for oily and acne-prone skins, because of its composition which is close to our skin’s own sebum. The formula also contains multiple other non-comedogenic vegetal oils, like olive squalene – which is the plant version of human skin’s lipid. The other extracted oils from watermelon seeds, shea, kukui, evening primrose, and palmarosa, are all very light, with similar moisturising properties as jojoba. This makes the serum extra-light in texture and super easy for the skin to absorb. Extremely high in oleic and linoleic fatty acidswhich also resemble human sebum, as they trick the skin into thinking that it has produced enough sebum while giving it just the right amount of nutrients to hydrate the epidermis and protect it. These fatty acids and olive squalene which is also a good source of antioxidants, as the molecules act as protection against free radicals that damage the epidermis and make the skin more prone to age faster, leaving scars, dark spots, and fine lines. The palmitoleic and stearic acid from the apricot kernel, andiroba, shea butter, and evening primrose help detoxify the pores and clear the complexion. Not forgetting the super-antioxidant actives like phenols and phytosterols that are found in red berries like the açai berry and pomegranate, and grapeseed, all known for their cell exfoliation and renewal boost. These ingredients not only protect from skin radicals, but they also target the scar tissues to ensure that the scars are correctly formed for healing.

The Blue Jasmine Face Serum has been formulated with essential oil extracts from extra potent plants renowned and used for thousands of years by ancient civilisations for their medicinal and analgesic properties. These include lavender, jasmine, blue tansy, rosemary, geranium, and calendula, which all contain significant doses of powerful antiseptic, antibacterial and antifungal properties; making them the perfect ingredients to free your skin from acne, eczema, psoriasis, and dermatitis. These essential oils are also the perfect ally for atopic skins, as they have the anti-inflammatory action needed to carry out by the other ingredients mentioned earlier (jojoba, shea, palmarosa). The watermelon and evening primrose oil with terpenes like limonene, camphor, a-bisabolol, and chamazulene act on our cannabinoid receptors to help soothe inflammation. You might have noticed the name ‘blue tansy’ (pictured above). This tiny rare flower is indeed the one that provides this beautiful and compelling colour to the formula, along with chamomile, which it is related to. This deep blue colour, which is not originally found in the flower, is obtained during the extraction process when the chamazulene and guaiazulene are released. These are actually exceptionally potent compounds used for treating all sorts of skin issues and redness due to their highly anti-inflammatory action. These essential oils are also a signature of the brand, where their knowledge of medicinal plants and aromatherapy come into play.  

Although on paper, it says it’s the perfect care for combination and imperfection-prone skins with the fatty acids, purifying actives and healing compounds that all balance each other. This also creates the ideal balance of hydration, cell regeneration, and antioxidation, restoring for both oily and dry skin to obtain a ‘normal’ epidermis, while treating and preventing inflammations acne and ageing. This all-encompassing serum, we tried alone and under our regular moisturiser, it is easy to use and gave an excellent hydration boost to the skin – we found it calmed, did its work and left our skin blooming! To purchase the 30ml bottle, see here for £49.93.

 

Myrto Natural Cosmetic's Summer Face Oil and Argan Eye Serum

We're almost at the end of February, and if we're honest, our New Years Resolution to make a better effort with skincare has slightly fallen slightly to the wayside. That’s why we have turned to Myrto Natural Cosmetics, and their all-natural, vegan, alcohol-free and perfume-free products. Made by hand in small production, we were quickly encouraged to up our skincare game after discovering their richly laden ingredients. Having tried their Argan Eye Serum and Summer Face Oil - we couldn't wait to share our new found secret for healthier skin on The Amazing Blog.

Founded by Eva Silvana Kruck (who has over 20 years of research and experience in natural cosmetic skincare) and Professor Dr Peter Kruck (the technology driver of the company) - this brand aims to produce premium quality products that are free from preservatives, conventional additives and emulsifiers. In a less technical sense, their products do not contain chemicals and processed ingredients.

Firstly, having noticed ever increasing dark circles (thank you cold weather and deadlines) we were keen to try Myrto's Bio Argan Eye Serum Roll On. Promising to firm the under eye area, with the use of specific ingredients which promote regeneration and hydration, this serum contains organic and hand-pressed Argan oil, to regenerate vitamin C; and hyaluronic acid, added to improve hydration and reduce fine lines and wrinkles. The formula also contains powerhouse ingredients such as pomegranate extract, sea buckthorn fruit oil and rose water - all of which are organic, working simultaneously to hydrate, counteracting pesky dark circles and premature ageing. Packaged in a sleek glass roll-on-bottle, this is best applied twice a day to reap the full benefits. We found the bottle lasted well and were thankful for the floral fragrance. To purchase this little bottle of magic for yourself, click here, where it is available for £24.50.

Secondly, we noticed that many of our go-to facial oils are great at hydrating our skin, but not so great at protecting it. We were therefore pleased to discover the Bio Summer Day Oil , an effective anti-ageing oil that also contains herbal sunscreen. Despite the summer feeling oh so far away, we try our best to protect our skin on a daily basis, so a 2-in-1 face oil and sunscreen which entirely ticks the box. Designed mainly for blemish-prone combination skin, this day oil moisturises without a greasy finish. Bio Summer Day Oil contains powerful ingredients: organic grapeseed oil for strengthening properties, organic seabuckthorn pulp oil to delay UV damage and schizandra berry extract for anti-inflammatory results. However, the star ingredient has to be avellana oil, a natural sunscreen with factor 10 to reduce skin ageing. This oil has helped to not only hydrate our problem skin but also to protect it against daily UV rays. To try this multi-tasking product for yourself, visit the Myrto Natural Cosmetics website here, where it is available for £29.90.