Some New Loves from Jurlique: Purely Age-Defying Skincare and Rose Silk Finishing Powder

If you live in the UK or Australasia and you're into skincare, the name Jurlique is probably not new to you.

Born in 1985, the credo of the company has always been centered around natural, eco-friendly, organic plant-based beauty, and today, they have a comprehensive range of skincare and body products targeted at different skin issues and concerns.

The bestselling Purely Age-Defying range is targeted at fighting visible signs of aging; namely those who are starting to see fine lines, some slackness and loss of elasticity, and some unevenness in skintone. So I wanted to start my Jurlique journey with some of the cornerstone products in this series.

First there is the key item in any skincare range, and the item that I usually advise most people to invest in. Far better to skimp on a basic moisturizer and invest in a good serum, because they usually contain a concentrated amount of active ingredients, are formulated to penetrate faster and deeper, and also work quite well with most lotions and creams you want to put on top.

Purely Age-Defying Firming and Tightening Serum (SGD$137) is targeted at smoothing wrinkles and improving skin clarity. It contains:

• Oat Kernel extract - anti-inflammatory and soothing; as we get older our skin starts to react more easily to environmental aggressors and hormonal imbalances, and anti-inflammatory ingredients are critical to keeping everything balanced and well-behaved, which is a key to reduction of oxidative stress in the skin.
• Beech Tree Bud extract - extracted from a plant that lives for hundreds of years, beech tree bud extract contains a lot of flavonoids and peptides, things which counteract oxidation and help strengthen your epidermis structure.
• Tapioca starch - this sounds strange but actually it's a great humectant and can help to hold water on the skin surface longer.

And if these are not enough, the serum also contains all the most popular skin protectant/repair ingredients like Licorice extract, yeast, algae, and squalane. The best thing is despite all these nourishing ingredients, it sinks in quickly and doesn't leave a heavy film on the skin, so even if you have oily acne-prone skin, this can fit nicely into your existing skincare routine.

Purely Age-Defying Mist (SGD$76) is one of those face mists we all love and can't get enough of.
This is an alcohol-free, glycerin-based hydrating and antioxidant mist (for those of you who want to avoid all alcohol in your skincare), and key ingredients include:

• Beech Tree Bud extract
• Rock Samphire - also called sea fennel, this is a rare plant whose extract helps to soften and condition dry skin
• Licorice extract
• Ascorbyl Glucoside - Vitamin C is a powerful topical antioxidant which has been proven not just to even out skintone, but also to fight effects of aging and photo-damage. Ascorbyl Glucoside is a stabilized derivative of Vitamin C (non-stabilized Vitamin C starts to degrade the moment it is exposed to light and air, so before you invest in any Vitamin C products make sure you ask if it is a stable formula)

I'm not a fan of mists that are just "spring water". If you're going to use a mist, make sure it contains plenty of other good stuff, because it's a convenient way to deliver extra hydration and antioxidants to your skin over the day, especially if you're wearing makeup and going in and out of dry air-conditioned environment and hot humidity.

And this particular one contains tons of "good stuff". It has a slight herbal scent that's not offensive, but the mister does spray quite a bit of liquid out with each pump, so just aim properly and hold the bottle some distance away so you don't drench your face. (Or simply spray in your palm and press it on gently.)

P.S. the glass bottle is just beautiful, but if you want to travel with this you might want to decant it into a plastic bottle as it's quite heavy.

Pure Age-Defying Firming Face Oil (SGD$106) is my absolute favorite product of the lot. Hands-down. You might not be surprised since I'm a bit of an oil-junkie. I love how calming face oils are, and how they can help balance oil production with regular use, while helping to condition the skin without additional fillers and chemicals that can sometimes cause reactions in sensitive skin.

This product is based on safflower seed oil, which means it is very conditioning and emollient, and contains lots of essential fatty acids that help to repair and protect skin barrier. If you have thin, dry or fragile skin that is prone to mild sensitivities, safflower is a pretty good option, although it's not all that commonly used compared to jojoba, grapeseed and sweet almond. 

Other than safflower, this also contains a lot of other conditioning and antioxidant extracts including:

• Sunflower Seed Oil
• Macadamia Seed Oil
• Rosa Canina (Dog rose) Oil
• Avocado Oil
• Black Currant Seed Oil
• Rock Samphire extract
• Buriti Oil
• Vitamin E
• Vitamin A
• Licorice extract

What stands out to me are the Vitamin A and Buriti which contains beta-carotene (a Vitamin A derivative). If you haven't heard, Vitamin A is a powerful wrinkle-fighting ingredients which also helps cell turnover. Retinol and Retinoids are all Vitamin A derivatives used to fight fine lines and hyper-pigmentation.

Of course, some people are sensitive to certain oils, so make sure you try a sample or do a patch test (as with any skincare product). This is not a comedogenic formula so I don't see it being problematic for most people, but you might still find it feels a little too nourishing for you if you are very oil-prone. You can get around this by changing your method of application.

TIPS FOR FACIAL OIL APPLICATION:

1. Press it on over clean-skin, BEFORE serum/lotion. The lighter product you massage on top of the oil helps to emulsify and increase absorption of the oil. This is my favorite method for application because I find everything absorbs faster and I can apply makeup over it.
2. Add a few drops in your palm, spray a pump or two of the face mist over it, and mix between your palms to emulsify before pressing over your face. This turns everything into a light milk which you can use in place of a regular moisturizer if you don't want too much product on your face.
3. Mix a couple of drops into your regular oil-free lotion or cream and apply together as the last step of your skincare. This boosts the nourishing effect of your lotion or cream.

You can use a regular cream in the day and leave the oil for night, but I personally have slightly combi/dry skin and apply this anytime of the day. It leaves my skin feeling comfortable and smooth for hours, and really helps my makeup to glide on. In fact, it's calmed my skin down so well that I didn't even have a breakout when I was PMS-ing recently, which hasn't happened for a long while.

One last note on facial oils - Jurlique doesn't have a ton of preservatives in the formula and the oil is not mineral-based so you do have to store the product in a cool dry place and try to finish it within a year (6 months is best) so it doesn't go rancid, which is the same for all plant-based oils. If you store it in the fridge, you can extend the shelf life quite a bit as well. Just a tip!

Lastly, a cult classic. Rose Silk Finishing Powder (SGD$63). 

This is something I've been meaning to try for years (ever since I saw Lisa Eldridge talking about the Citrus Silk Finishing Powder, which has sadly been discontinued), but kept forgetting about. Well I am very glad I finally did because it's gorgeous. I want to bathe in this stuff. This is a translucent mattifying powder that balances the skin and subtle evens out skin-tone without looking like makeup. 

It contains Sage and Rosemary extracts to help naturally reduce surface oiliness and also Daisy, luxurious Iris (Orris Root), and even Witch Hazel for a refreshing and cooling feel on the skin. My skin just feels smooth and silky, not powdery or overly-matte and cakey looking.

And did I mention the divine smell? Dust it on and you immediately feel like you're sitting in a 1920's boudoir in your beaded gown, powdering your nose with a luxurious, delicately rose-scented French powder, before going out for an evening at a jazz club. It's a beautiful thing.

A round-up of some new (and evergreen) skincare, makeup, fragrance, and fashion loves!

Now that I've given Jurlique products a nice test-drive, I'm keen to try more of their face oils and masks.

The range is pretty extensive, and they have a number of items for sensitive skins which I am very curious to check out next. So far I haven't been disappointed with any of the items I've tried, which is not surprising given their focus on effective, simple, but elegant formulas made with pure ingredients, many of which are grown and harvested on their own biodynamic farms in Adelaide, Australia.

Highly recommend swinging by a store if you haven't already taken a look at their range!

Jurlique is available in Singapore at Ngee Ann City #B1-56, TANGS Vivocity Lev 1, Raffles City Robinsons Lev 1, Robinsons Heeren Lev 1. 

You can also stay posted on any promotional news and updates on their Facebook page and Instagram @jurliquesg!

Oily-Skin Night Treatment: Clarins Lotus Face Treatment Oil

Once a month, when I'm PMS-ing my skin goes haywire. I get extremely sensitive and can come out in rashes and eczema spots at the slightest things. At the same time, I can get congested pores AND dry flaky skin at exactly the same time, so I do need to take care of both dry and oily areas while avoiding potentially sensitizing additives and preservatives.

Few skincare products are more minimalist that face oils, as long as you check that:

1. you have no known personal allergies to the active/essential oils listed
2. the base oils are non-comedogenic (do a quick look on sites like these to see the comedogenic ratings of the oils in the ingredient list; the oilier and more clog-prone your skin, the more you should stick to ingredients with 0 and 1 ratings)

I own several face oils that I like, but a couple of the Clarins Rebalancing Face Treatment Oils are some of my recent faves, so I'm going to talk about Huile Lotus for oily and combination skins today, since more people seem to have issues with oil and congestion.

Clarins uses hazelnut oil as a base for its face treatment oils, and it contains a lot of Vitamin E, which is a natural oil-based antioxidant and can help soothe the skin and help reduce fine lines. Lotus Face Treatment Oil contains Rosewood, Geranium, and Lotus extracts, which are supposed to help tighten pores, purify the skin to reduce breakouts, and refine skin texture.

What you're supposed to do is to take a few drops in the palm of your hand nightly (after toner, if you use that), rub your palms together to warm it up, and then gently PRESS (not rub) to distribute a thin, even layer over the problem-prone areas of your face. Your T-zone, inner cheeks, jaws, anywhere you're likely to get clogged and oily.

If you're not used to the feeling of applying oil straight to the face, an alternate way to use this (as instructed on the Clarins site) is to mix a couple of drops into a splash of alcohol-free toner in your palm, rub together, then press on. This makes it feel a little fresher on the skin.

Unlike with other oils, you are NOT advised to apply this to areas where you're dry; it can actually dry them out a bit.

And I know if you struggle with oily skin, it can feel downright scary applying oil to your face before bedtime, but I have tried this several times, and it really leaves my skin feeling smooth and comfortable - actually less oily - in the mornings.



I also have a bottle of the Blue Orchid Face Treatment Oil for dehydrated skin, which I use only on parched areas of my face. (And no - there isn't an oil for normal skin because normal skin doesn't need "rebalancing".)

I would suggest getting a sample to try if you can, and then seeing how you like it. Not every skin responds well to oil, but I do really believe oily skins are out of balance. Constantly drying it out on the surface with all sorts of mattifying, oil-absorbing products and acne treatments can sometimes drive it further off-balance and result in a vicious cycle where your skin detects that it is "dry" and keeps trying to produce more and more oil to compensate.

Skin needs a balance of moisture and oil.
We often get told that we need water, not oil. But I'm personally not so sure about that. Oils are required for certain skin protective functions and water-based ingredients aren't always adequate substitutes. Besides soothing and signaling the skin to stop producing so much sebum, some essential oils also have therapeutic properties that prevent inflammatory responses (redness and swelling), or might have anti-bacterial and pore-refining properties.

While this might not be the solution for every single person since our skin issues are often unique, it's certainly worth checking out a sample if none of the "oil-free", "mattifying" products are working for you.