Baobab
The majestic baobab tree, native to Africa, is distinctive for its ‘upside down’ look, with a thick trunk and small branches that look like roots sticking up into the air. Prized for its medicinal properties and with an average lifespan of more than a thousand years, the baobab tree is known in Africa as the “tree of life” or the “pharmacy tree”. The oil is pressed from its seeds, and is both consumed and used topically to treat a variety of conditions.
Extraordinarily nutritious, baobab oil packs a powerful punch of vitamins, minerals, protein and essential fats. Its fruit is 7-10 times richer in vitamin C than an orange, whilst the seeds provide calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, zinc, vitamins A, E and more. Its impressive content of omega 3 fats make this oil profoundly moisturising. It softens the skin, improves its elasticity, helps to repair broken or damaged skin and reduces inflammation, all without leaving a greasy residue. It is a valued treatment for eczema, acne and extremely dry skin, and is prized for its rejuvenating and healing properties.
Bee Venom
Often called nature’s botox, this incredible ingredient is one of the Earth’s most potent anti-agers. Bee venom has been used therapeutically for thousands of years for a variety of health conditions and as a rejuvenating treatment. In skincare, it tricks the skin to thinking it has been stung, causing the cells to lift, plump and tighten. This increases blood flow to the skin, boosting the delivery of nutrients and fresh oxygen, thereby enhancing the skin’s own mechanisms for healing, nourishment and renewal. It also stimulates the synthesis of collagen and elastin, improving skin tone, texture and elasticity. In larger doses, bee venom is known to cause inflammation around the sting site, but in small doses it can be powerfully anti-inflammatory. One of its primary active ingredients, melittin, is a wonderful anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial, targeting acne, eczema and other skin inflammations.
Our bee venom is harvested ethically from African bees, renowned for their powerful stings and the high concentration of active ingredients. A glass panel with a very light electric current is placed near the hive, slightly agitating any bee that comes into contact with it and causing it to sting the glass. The sting glances off the solid panel and the bee flies away unharmed, leaving behind a small quantity of venom that is later collected. Studies show that this practice neither damages the bee colonies nor honey production, allowing us to enjoy the wonderful benefits of this ancient medicine without causing harm.
Calendula
Extracted from the gleaming petals of beautiful marigold flowers, calendula oil is famed for its anti-inflammatory potency. These colourful blossoms have been valued worldwide for centuries for their power to reduce inflammation, both internally and externally. Today, it remains a venerated natural remedy for healing a wide variety of skin conditions.
Calendula oil is wonderfully soothing to the skin and the body’s systems, and possesses antifungal, antibacterial and antiseptic properties. It accelerates wound healing whilst preventing infection, and is a powerful treatment for eczema, psoriasis, rashes, sunburn and dermatitis. Its calming nature works to dramatically reduce irritation, swelling, redness and bruising, and studies show that it can help to relieve pain in cases of severe discomfort. It is also prized as a treatment for acne, healing blemishes and preventing future breakouts. Calendula oil promotes deep and lasting hydration, can improve skin texture and firmness, and its impressive arsenal of antioxidants support skin health and repair.
Frankincense
“Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”
Famously gifted to the baby Jesus by the three wise men, frankincense is an ancient and powerful elixir for full-body health and longevity. It is the oil or resin extracted from the Boswellia serrata tree, native to India and prized by Ayurvedic and other Eastern medicine practices for hundreds of years. Boswellia produces an array of remarkable active compounds that have powerful anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and even anti-cancer properties. Aromatherapeutically, it is an incredibly calming and grounding oil, and studies have shown it to reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression.
On the skin, frankincense oil is antiseptic and astringent, purifying, cleansing and tightening the pores. It strengthens and tones the skin, providing lift and improving elasticity, preventing wrinkles and slowing signs of ageing. Whilst it reduces inflammation it also improves the skin’s own defences by stimulating and enhancing the immune system, calming skin irritations and conditions such as eczema. It is also a beautifully nourishing and soothing oil that helps to reduce the appearance of scars and blemishes, heal wounds and repair dry or cracked skin.
Meadowfoam
This incredible oil has a unique fatty acid structure, making it one of the most stable oils known and giving it the marvellous property of extending the life of other oils. Its exceptional oxidative stability prevents it from going rancid, and this quality is shared with any product into which it is blended. This improves the longevity and efficacy of our products, as it protects the stability of the wonderful nutrients that we pack into every jar.
On the skin itself, meadowfoam oil imparts this same protecting quality, helping to guard against damage from free radicals. It is made up of 98% long chain fatty acids, which are uniquely moisturising, helping the skin to maintain its own natural protective layer, retaining and safeguarding its optimal moisture balance. It is rich in vitamin E and a range of potent antioxidants, providing deep nourishment and helping to fortify the skin against the damaging effects of ageing.
Rose
Associated throughout prose and poetry with love, this iconic flower is imbued with powers far beyond its physical beauty. Studies have indicated that the exquisite scent of pure rose oil releases endorphins in the brain, relieving pain and uplifting the spirit. It is well known for reducing anxiety, easing symptoms of depression, and as a gentle yet powerful aphrodisiac. On the skin, it has wonderfully soothing, nourishing and antimicrobial properties and is one of the most prized oils for use in skincare. It is an amazing anti-inflammatory, helping to control acne, dermatitis, eczema and other skin irritations. With hundreds of active components, including a potent array of antioxidants, it fights damage from free radicals, speeds up healing and reduces the appearance of scars, whilst moisturising and balancing the skin.
Energetically, rose oil resonates at a uniquely high frequency of 320mHz, the highest possible resonance of any substance. Raising our vibrational frequency helps us attune more with feelings of pure love for the Earth and humankind, making rose one of our greatest energetic teachers and healers. It is one of our most favourite ingredients for the skin and the senses, which is why you’ll find it in most of our products, both in its pure oil and hydrolat forms.
Rosehip
This beautifully moisturising, age-defying oil is derived from the seeds of the fruit of the archetypal rose bush that charmingly adorns the English countryside and its cottage gardens. Its wonderful content of essential fats deeply penetrate the skin, providing extensive nourishment and hydration. Lack of moisture is one of the primary drivers of skin ageing, and rosehip oil prevents this by improving the skin’s ability to retain its natural hydration.
It is extraordinarily nutritious, abundant in antioxidants and especially rich in vitamins A and C. These nutrients encourage skin cell renewal and regeneration, and support the production of collagen in the skin, decreasing the appearance of wrinkles and improving skin strength and elasticity. Both vitamins are highly effective at reducing and reversing skin damage due to sun exposure or environmental toxins. Vitamin A, also called retinol, is superb for treating hyperpigmentation, visibly reduces wrinkles and fights acne. Vitamin C is wonderfully protective, enhances wound healing and prevents dry skin. Rosehip oil’s nutrients work further magic by boosting the skin’s immunity, promoting healthier, stronger skin with increased longevity. Its anti-inflammatory properties also make it an excellent treatment to support rosacea, psoriasis, dermatitis and eczema.
Sea Buckthorn
The “holy fruit of the Himalayas”, sea buckthorn has been used for millennia across Asia and Europe as a traditional remedy for a wide variety of ailments. Growing high up in the salty Himalayan ridges and throughout the harsh climates of China, Mongolia and Russia, it withstands extreme weather conditions, building a resilience that it can pass onto us.
Sea buckthorn oil overflows with revitalising and restorative nutrients: vitamins A, C, E and K, biotin, potassium, magnesium, phosphorous, selenium and an exceptional array of phytonutrients, including the antioxidants quercetin and beta-carotene. It is the only plant source of all four omega fatty acids, omegas 3, 6, 7 and 9, which have tremendous benefits both internally and externally. It is, in fact, the best known vegetal source of omega 7, a rare omega fat that is especially prized in skincare for its moisturising and healing properties, directly supporting the formation of collagen and protecting the skin from invading microbes. All of these remarkable nutrients provide sea buckthorn oil with the incredible capacity to regenerate skin tissue and accelerate wound healing. It also reduces inflammation, offers significant protection from UV damage and combats the visible effects of ageing by promoting skin elasticity, deep hydration and by stimulating skin cell renewal.
Tamanu
A true miracle of the earth, tamanu has been called “nature’s green-gold”. Originating in the tropical forests of South East Asia, tamanu oil is extracted from the seeds of the tamanu nut tree. Used medicinally for centuries by Asian, African and Pacific Island peoples, it is renowned and revered for its potency in healing and rejuvenation. By stimulating collagen and GAG production in the skin, tamanu oil increases cell renewal and dramatically reduces the appearance of wrinkles. At the same time, scientific studies show that it can absorb UV light and prevent the further formation of wrinkles by reducing DNA damage by up to 85%!
Its particular ability to penetrate the skin deeply and promote cellular regeneration, combined with its powerful antioxidant properties, make tamanu oil an incredible treatment for dark spots, acne scars and uneven skin tone. With its anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, it even targets acne-forming bacteria, whilst its soothes any skin irritation, including acne, eczema and rosacea. It really is one of nature’s most extraordinary skin healers and anti-agers, and one of our most treasured ingredients.
