Over the last 12 months, my interest in botanicals has grown a hundredfold. That is from none at all to very very interested.
As I explore what ingredients are in my skincare products, the natural versus synthetic argument and my growing knowledge of skincare product formulation, I’m finding it harder to ignore my desire for high-performance botanicals. Some of you may be wondering what I mean when I say botanicals. The dictionary definition is:
“a substance obtained from a plant and used typically in medicinal or cosmetic products.”
And the definition by Cosmeticinfo.org doesn’t differ:
“A Botanical Ingredient is a component of a cosmetic or personal care product that originates from plants (herbs, roots, flowers, fruits, leaves or seeds).”
I am not a die-hard team natural person but, I am certainly intrigued by the notion that we can get all our body and skin needs from nature.
If indeed this were possible, I would lean towards that over synthetic alternatives. However, let me caveat that by saying I am not at all against synthetic, chemically derived ingredients. In some cases, rather than obtaining something from nature, it is easier to manufacture it in a lab for formulation purposes. Let me also add that my view of ‘natural-means’ is quite broad; I subscribe to the nature-identical school of thought.
Ok so I’m going off on a tangent but guys I love learning about botanical ingredients. Here are a few of my favourites (in no particular order) as they are multifunctional and best of all super effective.
Rose-hip Seed Oil, Vitamin E, Squalane, Sea Buckthorn, Flaxseed, Chia Seed, Almost all of the citrus fruit family,
Almonds, Coconut oil, Hemp seed oil, Tamanu oil, Neem oil, Argan oil, Aloe vera extract, Rose extract, Rosewater and Cucumber water
I could go on, but I’ll stop here.
What are some of your favourite botanical ingredients? What is your view on the natural to synthetic spectrum?
Fikayo runs SK Beauty, a skincare focused retail store in Lagos selling high-performance products and empowering consumers with knowledge to achieve healthy skin. She is a skincare enthusiast turned skincare expert turned formulator for her newest baby Amoke Skincare. You can find her on instagram, twitter and facebook @myskbeauty and @amokeskincare, online at www.simplykayo.com and via email fikayo@simplykayo.com
