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december 2010
Shea butter:
a present from the African savannah
Shea butter plays an important role in numerous cosmetic products.
- Shea butter has excellent skincare properties. This is mainly due to its high content of unsaponifiable components.
- These unsaponifiable components are a true beauty treasure. Most oils contain between a half and two percent of such components. Shea butter contains about 10 percent. Oils and fats with a high content of unsaponifiable components are very valuable: they penetrate well into the skin, make it soft, bind moisture and promote the absorption of other active ingredients.
- In Africa, shea butter has long been established as a traditional beauty product. Shea butter is of particular benefit for dry skin, stressed hands and the sensitive skin in the neck and cleavage area.
- The shea tree grows in the savannahs of West Africa and bears nut-like fruit. These are used to produce shea butter.
october 2010
New series: the young generation of natural and organic cosmetics
 The traditional brands expand, reinvent and present themselves in a new light and many new brands are finding their way into the market. To name a few examples:
- The L’Occitane subsidiary Melvita opened its own shops in the German city of Karlsruhe, in London, Moscow and Prague.
- Logona opened a flagship store in Tokyo under the name Logona & Friends.
- The Latvian brand Madára is a rising star among the new brands. It is presented in Switzerland, Germany and Moscow, among other places.
- Dr. Bronner’s, Burt’s Bees, Aveda and Origins from the USA are trying to conquer the European market with certified organic cosmetics.
Lovers of natural and organic cosmetics face an ever-increasing product range in almost any country. To keep you informed, I will present a series of trendy, young, new, small or newly revised brands over the next few months. The new series includes, for example: Lush & Neobio, Urtekram & Mádara, Officinea and Aquabio, Origins Organics, Lilas Blanc, Snö Bioflowers, Surya and a few others.
september 2010
Avocado oil: a blessing for dry and flaky skin
 Avocados are truly delicious and nutritious as food. Their mouth-watering flesh is particularly prized in southern countries. It makes a delicious dip or sandwich spread and can be spiced and used as a tortilla filling. Avocado purée can be seasoned to individual taste with salt, pepper, tomatoes, chilli, garlic, onions and in many other ways. To ensure that the avocado cream does not turn brown, some lemon or lime juice may be added.
- Its high fat content (up to 25%), minerals, vitamins and trace elements also make the avocado a first-class beauty aid. The oil obtained from the flesh has an abundance of excellent properties. It provides a beauty treatment for dry and sensitive skin.
- Avocado oil counteracts flaky skin and calluses, accelerates wound healing and has ideal cosmetic qualities. It can be spread evenly over the skin and is easily absorbed.
july 2010
Ideal for dry and mature skin: wild rose oil and goji berry extract
Which natural ingredients and active agents are particularly valuable? I should like to start this new series with wild rose oil and goji berry extract
Wild rose oil (Rosa canina fruit oil)
In comparison with some other roses, the wild rose – also known as the dog rose – is of modest appeal. Its advantage lies in its inner beauty. Any rose species that has developed without human intervention is known as a wild rose. Worldwide there are about 200 species. The INCI term “Rosa canina fruit oil”, for example, refers to wild rose oil extracted from a European species of wild rose. Cosmetics ingredients extracted from wild roses may also have the INCI references “Rosa mosqueta” or “Rosa rubiginosa”.
- As a Bach flower, the wild rose is used to restore a joie de vivre and the willingness to face life, to free oneself from old habits and resume an active role in life.
- The fruit of the wild rose – the rosehip – is used to produce healthy teas and jams. Rosehip contains a lot of vitamin C, counteracts lethargy and boosts the immune system.
- Wild rose oil is a beauty elixir because of its high content of unsaturated fatty acids and especially its unusually high levels of alphalinoleic acid. Only sallow thorn oil, which is very expensive, contains comparable levels.
- More than most other oils, wild rose oil helps to regenerate the skin, stimulates the production of collagen and thus improves the ability of the skin to retain moisture. As wild rose oil also has a positive effect on cell regeneration, it is an ideal oil for dry, mature and sensitive skin.
Goji berry extract (Lycium barbarum fruit extract)
Many new cosmetics ingredients are especially used for their advertising effect. This does not apply to goji berries, as goji berry extract offers some real advantages. Also, the goji berry is new only to Europeans.
- In China, goji berries have long been a part of the diet and play an important role in naturopathy. Modern science has even managed to come up with some solid proof of the medical efficacy of these sweet berries.
- This deciduous bush grows in China and Tibet and has conquered the world. To us, it is better known as “wolfberry”.
- Its vitamin content (vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamins B1 and B2) and its wealth of minerals make goji berries a healthy fruit and an effective cosmetic ingredient, especially for protecting the skin against premature aging.
A July highlight: the lotus blossom
 In our latitudes, the legendary lotus flower is considered a little capricious. This is understandable, as in its home regions – India, southern China, south-east Asia – it gets a lot more sunshine. Here it is quite frequently deprived of sunlight, which does not do it any good at all. Nevertheless, you will not have to travel half-way round the globe to admire wonderful lotus blossoms. You could simply take a trip to your local botanical gardens. Lotus should be in full bloom from the middle of July to the middle of August – provided that the sun is cooperating.
- Buddhists consider the lotus to be a holy flower. It embodies the complete harmony of yin and yang, as lotus comes from water (yin) and reaches for the sky (yang). It symbolizes immortality, serenity, constant change and the victory of good over evil. Thus, according to a legend, all arrows with which Buddha’s enemies aimed to kill him fell into a pond, where they turned into lotus flowers.
- In Asian naturopathy, the use of the lotus plant has a long tradition. The rhizome, leaves and fruit can also be eaten. Seaweed soup with small dumplings made of ground lotus rhizome is considered to be a delicacy, for example.
- Nelumbo nucifera flower extract is the INCI term for lotus blossom extract from Indian lotus flowers. It has excellent astringent properties, for example, thus refining the skin.
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