Summarized from a consultation originally recorded on June 26, 2024.
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Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: From there, we can jump into products and routines and all of that good stuff.
So the basic routine that we recommend for pretty much everybody to do morning and evening is a four step routine that is: cleanse, tone, use a serum, and a facial oil or a moisturizer. All of our facial moisturizers are oils. So that's the basic routine we recommend. I always tell people to really just kind of customize your routine, find what works best for you, what works best for your lifestyle.
Maybe that four step routine doesn't work well for you, and that's fine. You can just adjust it to what works best for you. If you're somebody who has no skin care routine and you're just wanting to get started and you want something that's the most simple option, you would want to start with at least a cleanser and a facial oil, and then you could build from there.
I know somebody mentioned in their survey that they have a hard time being consistent with their skin care routine. So for that person, yeah, maybe keeping it really, really simple is the best option to kind of focus on consistency and then you could always add stuff in as you want to. But whether your routine is two steps or if your routine is 10 steps, you're going to start out with cleansing.
So we'll start with talking about cleansing and cleansers. So cleansing is just going to remove makeup and impurities. A thorough cleanse is going to help to prep the skin so that it can better absorb the treatment products that you're using. I always like to really encourage people to take their time as they cleanse to really do a thorough cleanse instead of just kind of just rushing through that step. I feel a lot of times. It does get rushed through. So, all of our cleansers are pH balanced. We have four cleansers in our line. All of them are pH balanced. So, your skin's pH is a 4. 5 to a 5. 5 on the pH scale. And all of our cleansers are 5. 5 to a 5. 6, which is actually printed on our packaging, on our labels.
So a pH balanced cleanser is going to just ensure that you're not stripping your skin of its natural oils, you're not drying out your skin, you're not disrupting your skin's acid mantle, your skin's protective barrier. So I think that's something important, so I always like to mention it. We don't use any harsh surfactants in our cleansers, like we don't use any lauryl sulfates. The surfactant that we use is a safe, low foaming option. It's called a sodium lauryl glucose carboxylate, which sounds very fancy, but it's really just saponified oils and plant starches and sugars.
The first cleanser that we'll talk about is the Aloe Herb Cleanser. I think I left this one in my shower, but this is our most popular cleanser. People love this one. I always tell people if you're feeling unsure where to start, if you're feeling overwhelmed this cleanser is a good one because you just can't go wrong with it. So this one is in the Signature Collection. We have a few different collections in our line. The two main collections that we have are the Signature Collection and the Wild Alchemy Collection. All of the Signature Collection products have tan labeling and all of the Wild Alchemy Collection products have black and gold labeling. The Signature Collection, a lot of these products are our best sellers. A lot of them are products that have been around since we first got started. And then our Wild Alchemy collection. This collection is our luxury collection. So the products in this collection contain higher levels of activated ingredients. And then they also contain more exotic ingredients. A lot of times the crafting process. It's just a little bit more laborious with those products as well.
Back to the Aloe Herb Cleanser. So this one's a cream cleanser. It's got some coconut oil in it that contributes to that creamy texture. It's got aloe, of course. Aloe is rich in vitamins and minerals. It's rich in phytonutrients and enzymes. That one has some lemon essential oil, so that's going to be purifying and brightening. It also gives it a really lovely scent. People love the way that one smells. And then some calendula as well, so really soothing and calming, so it can be a good choice for sensitive skin types. So that's the Aloe Herb, and like I said, that one is great for just about anybody. You can't really go wrong with it.
The Citrus Mint, I don't know that anybody in this group from your surveys would really need this one. This is our purifying gel cleanser, so more for oily skin types. It feels very cooling, very deep cleansing on the skin. Again it's that aloe base and then it's just got a purifying herb blend in it. There's some neem in there. There's a witch hazel distillate in there.
And those are the two cleansers in the Signature Collection.
And then in the Wild Alchemy Collection, we have the Phytonutrient Cleanser and the Restorative Cleansing Oil. So the Restorative Cleansing Oil, this one is a little bit different than the others. All of the others are traditional cleansers. So you wet your face, you pump your cleanser into the palm of your hand, you massage your cleanser into the skin, and then you just rinse clean and pat dry.
This one is a cleansing oil, so you're gonna apply this one to dry skin. Dry hands, dry face. You massage it in. And then you can just rinse it clean and that can be it. So you can use this as your cleanser on its own, or you could use it as the first step in a double cleanse routine. And if you wanted to do that, you just would massage it into the skin, rinse, and then you would follow with whatever cleanser you like as your second cleanser. This one is great for all skin types. I personally am a huge fan of oil cleansing. I love this product. It's one of my favorites. You can use it for any skin type. So for dry and mature skin, it feels very nourishing. It actually leaves a bit of an oil on the skin, especially if you're just using it on its own, as opposed to using it in a double cleanse routine. And then for oily skin or for congestion prone skin or something like that, it actually can be a great choice too because like attracts like, so that oil is going to help to kind of soften up and break down excess oil and congestion in the skin.
This one, it's a jojoba oil base. So jojoba very closely resembles the texture of your skin's natural sebum. It also has castor oil in there. It's got some tea tree oil, which is very purifying. And then it's got Manuka oil. So Manuka is going to be really deep cleansing and very calming as well to the skin. I am obsessed with jojoba and Manuka. So this has both of those things. So again, one of my favorites.
And then the Phytonutrient, that's the last cleanser. That one is also in the Wild Alchemy Collection. That one is also a cream cleanser like the Aloe Herb, but it's a little bit thicker, it has a richer, almost fattier texture. It has mango seed butter in it. So, it gives it kind of that fatty texture. That one is good for all skin types. It's great for dry and mature skin. It's great for brightening the look of skin. So a good choice if dark spots, pigmentation, and brightening are a focus of yours. The Phytonutrient Cleanser is a great choice. That one, like I said, has mango seed butter. It's got some acai, which gives it an antioxidant component. It's got our Signature Serum Blend in there. And then that one's got an apple extract in it too. So that apple extract has malic acid and vitamin C which are going to help to brighten the skin. So those are the cleansers. Questions about cleansing or cleansers at all? No?
Okay. We’ll move on then. So the next step in your routine would be toning. And we have three toning mists in the line. They are the Neroli Toning Mist, the Rosemary Toning Mist, and the Botanical Hydration Mist With Immortelle. So we'll start with the Neroli. This one is one of our best selling products. It's very popular. People love this one. It's great for all skin types. Especially for normal to dry, maybe a little bit of sensitivity. It's a very simple formula. This one's an aloe vera juice base, and then it's got the neroli in it, of course, which is derived from fresh orange blossoms, so it has a really lovely scent, another reason I think people love this one so much and then this one has aspen bark extract in it too, which acts as a natural preservative and is also a natural source of salicins.
And with your toning mist, after you cleanse, you rinse, and then you pat dry, and then you just mist your toning mist over your face and neck. Your toning mist is just offering a dose of hydration, it's offering a dose of skin supporting nutrients, helping to complete the cleansing process. You can also mist your toning mist throughout the day, if you just want a little extra hydration, or a little refresh.
The other one in our Signature Collection is the Rosemary Toning Mist. So this one is going to be more for normal, combination, and oily skin types. Again, it's the aloe vera juice base. It's got the rosemary in there. It's got white willow bark. So that again is a natural source of salicins. This is my favorite, but I'm a congestion prone girl.
And then in the Wild Alchemy Collection, we’ve got the Botanical Hydration Mist With Immortelle. This one is a larger size too, just a little side note, larger bottle.So the other two toning mists are an aloe vera juice base. This one is a hydrosol. So a hydrosol is like this watery runoff that you get when you create an essential oil through a steam distillation. And it has just like this really soft texture to it. So I'd say this one is maybe a little bit more moisturizing than the other two. But this one is excellent for mature skin. This one is excellent for sensitive skin. It's got a blend of four different types of chamomile in it, and it's got rose in it, so it's very calming and then this one's also got frankincense in it, which is known to tone, tighten, and rejuvenate. It's got immortelle, of course, or life everlasting flowers which are a potent antioxidant. This one, the scent profile is definitely more herbal than say the Neroli, which is kind of sweeter smelling. The Rosemary mist of course smells like rosemary. But this one, the Botanical, is very popular. This is the favorite amongst the team. This is one of Grace's holy grail products. Grace is our sensitive skin poster child here at Annmarie Skin Care. So she's our go to for all things sensitive skin. But so that is the Botanical. Any questions about toners or toning mists at all?
Customer: So, the last one, that was Grace's favorite. The Botanical, it's more expensive. I wanted to just get some idea how much. I've actually got both the Neroli and the Rosemary. I like them both, but Neroli's been my favorite. I'm just curious what the price difference is?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Well, like I said, it is a larger bottle, which is nice. I think it's twice as big actually. And, as I mentioned earlier, this one, it's the hydrosol base. So that kind of sets it apart. And then also, it's got the frankincense in there and the immortelle. So a little bit more of those kinds of anti-aging ingredients. And just kind of in general, like I said, those types of ingredients, this collection, the Wild Alechemy Collection, just has more of those exotic ingredients, more of those activated ingredients. That's kind of why there's the price difference between the two collections.
Customer: What is the price difference?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Oh, how much? I'm sorry. I have to look at the website to tell you that. One second.
Customer: And I know frankincense, I have found it's hard to get pure frankincense. So I mean, they are actually using really pure frankincense oil?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: It is a frankincense distillate. I was just going to check on the sourcing for you, but I can’t even pronounce that! I will put it into the chat, where it is sourced from. It is certified organic. And like I said, known to tone, tighten, and rejuvenate the skin.
Grace Murray – Annmarie Skin Care Marketing Assistant: I'm going to put the prices in the chat. So it's twice the price, basically. But it's also twice the size.
Customer: So how long do they get? How long do you think those ingredients stay fresh? That would be a concern I would have to, you know?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: All of our products do have the expiration date printed on the bottom. It's kind of hard to see sometimes, but it's there. Most of them, the expiration date is like two years out. But it's always printed on the bottom.
Customer: Ok. I had just asked if they needed refrigeration in the chat.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: You don't need to refrigerate them. You can and that can help to extend the shelf life. So like, say we have a big sale and you really want to stock up on your favorite products, you could keep them in the fridge. And that would help to extend the shelf life. You don't really need to keep it in the fridge. Like once you start using it, you know, it's maybe not convenient to have to go to your fridge every time you wash your face. But just until you open it and start using it. Typically, you just want to store them in a cool, dry place.
All right. Good questions. Any other questions?
Customer: I have a quick question on the cleanser. Like say that Phytonutrient Cleanser that you were talking about. You use that over your eyes? Like over eye makeup? Will it remove eye makeup?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: If you're looking for something to remove makeup the Restorative Cleansing Oil is the best option. This is great for removing makeup. You can use it over your eyes to remove mascara, even waterproof mascara. This is also great in the summertime. I like to use it after I've been at the beach and I have sunscreen on or something like that. You can use the Aloe Herb Cleanser too. I know that people often use that one around the eye area.
I wouldn't really recommend using the Phytonutrient over your eyes. I would probably stick to the Restorative or Aloe Herb if you're using it on the eye area.
Good question, though. Any other questions? All right, cool. Okay, so next up is serums, and serums and oils I feel like are where things get a little bit tricky just because we have so many of them, but hopefully we can help it be less confusing, not more confusing. Okay, so your serum, serums in general are excellent hydrators. There's the difference between water-dry skin and oil-dry skin. Most people have a little bit of both. They have a little bit of dehydration, which is water-dry, and then a little bit of dryness, which is oil-dry. And so that's why we recommend using a combination of both types of products, hydrating products and moisturizing products to achieve optimal moisture levels in your skin.
So your hydrating products are your toning mist and your serum, and then your moisturizing product is your facial oil. So serums in general are excellent hydrators. They're concentrated, so they have high levels of activated ingredients, so they allow you to really target and treat whatever your specific concerns are.
In the Signature Collection, we have the Anti-Aging Serum, the Probiotic Serum With Tremella, and then we have the Citrus Stem Cell Serum. So the Anti-Aging Serum, this one in the Signature Collection, this is our best selling serum. One of our best selling products always. People love this one. This one is good for all skin types. The way that I say the Aloe Herb Cleanser is a good place to start if you're feeling kind of unsure. I say the same with this because you just really can't go wrong with this one. I like to refer to it as a daily dose of overall skin nutrition. It's very rich in antioxidants. It's got the life everlasting flowers. It's got buddleia extract. There's some rose in here. So, it's soothing. This one is also very deeply hydrating. It has hyaluronic acid in it, so we use a non GMO vegetable sourced hyaluronic acid. And hyaluronic is a humectant that binds water to the skin. Hyaluronic in particular holds 1,000 times its weight in water, so it's considered a super hydrator. So it's going to really deeply hydrate, which kind of has a plumping effect on the skin. So it's going to help to minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles when you plump up the skin. So that's the Anti-Aging Serum. This one, the scent profile, I feel like it's more vetiver heavy, a little bit floral.
And then the Citrus Stem Cell Serum, that one is also in the Signature Collection. That one is great for targeted brightening. So if brightening the look of dark spots and pigmentation is a concern this can be a great choice. There's kind of two components or like two aspects for that one. There's the citrus derived stem cells. So we used plant derived stem cells in a lot of our products. A lot of other product lines use stem cells that can be derived from various places that you might not want your stem cells derived from. So all of ours are plant derived and these stem cells are going to help to provide proteins and peptides and amino acids that are really going to help to strengthen the skin. And then the brightening component in this one, there's like a trio of brightening ingredients. There's the amla berry, which is very rich in vitamin C, and then there's licorice root and uva ursi as well. Those are both lightening and brightening ingredients. Licorice root is often used in natural products as an alternative to using, like, hydroquinone which is a yucky ingredient that's banned, like, everywhere except the U. S. But that's the Citrus Stem Cell serum.
And then the Probiotic Serum, the last one in the Signature Collection, that one is good for all skin types, but especially sensitive skin, or skin that's kind of out of balance. That one has got the tremella mushroom extract which works very similar to hyaluronic acid, so it's very deeply hydrating. That one has olive leaf in there. It's got astaxanthin, which is a really powerful antioxidant that we use in a lot of our products. And then that one also has a probiotic ferment in it. And that can help to balance the skin's pH as well as eliminate impurities on the surface of the skin. So that can be a good choice again for sensitive skin or even skin that's more congestion prone or just, again, kind of out of balance.
So those are the three serums that are in our Signature Collection.
And then in our Wild Alchemy Collection, we have our Wild Fruit Serum. This one, I usually say it's like, more all encompassing. I like to refer to it as our “do it all” serum. I love this one. So it is hydrating, it is brightening, it is anti-aging, it just does all the things. So this one is good for all skin types as well. This one has copper infused water in it. It has apple extract. So it's the same apple extract that's in the Phytonutrient Cleanser. So rich in vitamin C and malic acid, which helps to brighten. This one has knotweed extract, which is rich in resveratrol. Kakadu plum, another really potent source of vitamin C. Kakadu plum also contains phenolic acid, which acts kind of similar to an alpha hydroxy acid on the skin. Alpha hydroxy acids help to kind of dissolve the glue that holds the top layer of skin cells. So they have a resurfacing effect, kind of an exfoliating effect on the skin. And then this one also has the plant stem cells also. This one has Madonna lily plant cells, and there's about 1.5 million active plant stem cells in each bottle of the Wild Fruit Serum. So just a really dense infusion of those plant cells in there. So this one is my favorite.
And then the other one in our Wild Alchemy Collection is the Activated Night Serum. This is our most recent serum launch. This is fantastic. It contains our bioactive A complex, and this is our alternative to/our version of a retinol or a retinoid type product. So the bioactive A complex is actually derived from algae. So it's a completely safe ingredient. It's a Made Safe approved ingredient but it has a similar effect on the skin as a retinol. So again having a renewing, resurfacing, retexturizing effect on the skin. So a lot of times, you know, with a traditional retinol they can be very irritating. Oftentimes somebody with more sensitive skin is not able to use it. If you're using it over an extended period of time, it can really start to thin the skin. And you don't really want to thin the skin as we age. We want to have healthy, resilient skin. We want to strengthen our skin. And then of course other health concerns, like it's not great for reproductive health and things like that. So that's kind of why we came out with this alternative. And then this product is really nice because it's a nice blend. We've paired the active bioactive A complex with some really soothing, calming ingredients like blue chamomile and lavender. So it gives it a really nice balance. It's very hydrating. It's kind of a thicker, creamier texture than some of our other serums are. But that is the Activated Night Serum. You do want to use this one only at night as the name suggests. And you do want to use it with an SPF during the day as well because it can make you a little bit more sensitive to the sun.
And I think maybe I'll stop there. Maybe we won't cover CBD. Just so that I'm not overwhelming people. I don't know. Does anybody want me to cover CBD? How are we feeling? Do we have questions?
Customer: I actually have two questions. The Activated Night Serum, do people typically use it like if you have breakouts and stuff? I mean, cause I use, I think a retin, what was it? Retinol or whatever is for breakouts.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Yeah, you absolutely can use it for congestion prone skin. It definitely can be helpful.
Customer: What's the other reason to use that as opposed to the other serums?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: So this one is going to be excellent for anti-aging benefits, and it can be helpful for congestion as well because of the resurfacing effect that it has on skin.
Customer: And does it thin the skin?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: So it's not going to thin the skin the way that a traditional retin A product would. This is supporting the skin. It doesn't have a true retinol in it. It contains the retinol alternative. So it's not going to thin the skin the way that a traditional retinol product will.
Customer: But you probably shouldn't use it for really long term, possibly?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: So that kind of is just dependent on your skin. Usually when you start using it, you can kind of gauge how your skin is feeling. So for example, when we first got it, like when the team first got it our COO, her suggestion was everybody should use it for two weeks straight. Just to see the difference in your skin. Well, like Grace, for example, has very sensitive skin. So what'd you say, Grace? You got to maybe day four?
Grace Murray – Annmarie Skin Care Marketing Assistant: Yea, I can't remember exactly how long, I think day four sounds about right, where I was kind of like, ooh, my skin's a little, just a little irritated. So now I do it like every other day or two days on one day off. I just take a break in between and my skin loves it.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Yeah. So I think you can kind of gauge it just based on how your skin is feeling. I feel like some people can use it every night and it's no problem. If you start to feel like you're feeling a little bit sensitive, then I would just lay off for a couple days.
Customer: I have seen you guys talk in your emails about blackheads. I don't get blackheads really, but I have whiteheads. And I don't know what the best thing is for those guys, but it's been like several months and they don't go away.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Well, it could be more like milia. Are they sort of hard? Because if it's milia you could go to a dermatologist or an esthetician, depending on where you're at, and they could probably extract it. But aside from having it extracted by a professional, exfoliation can be really helpful. Are you already using exfoliants?
Customer: I have some, I rarely use them, just it's a time thing, you know, I basically do the basic four that you talked about in the beginning, you know, the cleansing, the toner, the serum, and the oil.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Yeah. Well, this could be really helpful then, because then you're getting that exfoliating effect without having to take that extra step to exfoliate. You know what I mean?
Customer: Yeah.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: And also, because it's more of a chemical exfoliant versus a physical scrub, it's going to be more effective for you, probably. For what you're looking to address.
Customer: The other question I had, Grace put something in here about the prior serum, the fruit serum, the Wild Fruit Serum, where you said, Grace, it's the least hydrating serum, but then you said you recommended it for mature skin. So confused about that.
Grace Murray – Annmarie Skin Care Marketing Assistant: Sorry for the confusion. The Citrus Stem Cell Serum is the least hydrating serum. And then I recommended the Wild Fruit Serum for those with dry skin. Sorry for the miscommunication.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: And just to further clarify, it's not that the Citrus Stem Cell Serum is not hydrating. All of the serums are hydrating. I think what Grace means is just that the Citrus Stem contains less hyaluronic acid than, say, the Anti-Aging Serum or the Wild Fruit Serum, so it might not be quite as hydrating if dehydration is your main concern.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: And then, okay, let's go over CBD real quick. Because someone in the chat did ask that we go over it.
So the Activated CBD Serum, this is also in our Wild Alchemy Collection. It's sort of like an offshoot of the Wild Alchemy Collection. It just has to be sold in its own little boutique on our website because of the legality of selling a CBD product. But this one is excellent. This one is especially good for dry or sensitive skin types. This is Grace's other holy grail product. This one, similar to the Activated Night Serum, has that thicker, richer texture. And that one has both hyaluronic and the tremella mushroom in it. So very hydrating. And then of course it's got the CBD in it. So when we decided to make this serum we wanted to source the best. So we partnered with Ojai Energetics to source our CBD and create this product. They are really a leader and a pioneer in the CBD space. And it's a little bit hard to say exactly what CBD does for the skin because it works with your body's natural endocannabinoid system to kind of go where it needs to go and do what it needs to do. But like I said, it definitely has a soothing and calming effect on the skin making it ideal for sensitive skin types.
And then this one also has a lot of powerful antioxidants in there. There's the astaxanthin. This one also has black cumin seed oil, it has mangosteen oil, it's got the superoxide dismutase, which is a really powerful antioxidant. It smells really lovely. But I'll let Grace talk about this one a little bit too because I know she loves it so much.
Grace Murray – Annmarie Skin Care Marketing Assistant: I love this serum. So, as Emily kind of mentioned, I have extremely sensitive skin. I also have extremely dry skin. There's just usually a lot going on here. And the Botanical Hydration Mist I use, every single day multiple times a day, but I use the CBD serum predominantly at night just because it's a little heavier. I love it because it just calms down the redness extremely quickly. It's just really, really soothing. And my skin drinks it up. It just loves it! So I always highly recommend it for those who have sensitive skin and for those whose skin is maybe just a little out of balance. It's just really, really helpful. I almost think of it as kind of like a bandaid for my skin issues.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Awesome. Thanks, Grace.
All right. Any other serum questions? I know serums are confusing.
Customer: So is the Wild Fruit Serum, is that okay to use on the under eye? Or do you not use serums under your eye like that?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Yeah, so the facial serums, you definitely want to keep outside of the orbital bone. You don't really want to use them under the eye. We do have two eye care products. We have the Fruit Ceramide Eye Serum and the Anti-Aging Eye Cream. So those are the two that you can use around the eye area. We still, even with these, recommend using them on the orbital bone, and the facial serums I would keep below the orbital bone.
The eye products you could use on the orbital bone. And they kind of will move to where they need to be. I do break that rule a little bit. Sometimes I will use the Anti-Aging Eye Cream like a little bit on my lid, just because I feel like it's a little droopy. And for me, that's fine. I feel like it depends too on how sensitive your eye area is, you know? If you're super sensitive in that area, you might not be able to use this on your lid. But our recommendation as a company is to use the eye products on the orbital bone and these serums and oils below.
Both of the eye products are excellent. I tend to recommend that if you're going to choose one or the other, I personally really like the eye cream. For me, my eye area is just always really dry and this one feels very nourishing.
This one, the Fruit Ceramide Eye Serum, this one is more of a true serum consistency. So it's a thinner consistency. And for me, it just doesn't feel quite moisturizing enough.
They can be used together. So if your under eye area is your main concern, you might want to use both together. And if you were going to use both together, you would layer the Fruit Ceramide Eye Serum underneath the Anti-Aging Eye Cream. The Fruit Ceramide Eye Serum, this one has got sake peptides and pineapple ceramides. So the sake peptides are great for kind of helping to re-texturize that under eye area so it can help to have a brightening effect. The Anti-Aging Eye Cream has damas rose plant cells in it. It's got cucumber, which is of course cooling, rich in silica, helps with puffiness. But so those are the two eye products. I do also tell people with the Fruit Ceramide Eye Serum you want to make sure that you only use a very tiny bit of it. It's really concentrated and you don't need that much. If you use too much, it just doesn't apply nicely. So you can layer the two. You also could do one in the morning and the other at night if you wanted to incorporate both into your routine.
That's another thing that you could do with the serums. Like we don't really recommend mixing the serums, but say there were two that you really wanted to use. You could use one in the morning and one at night, that sort of thing.
Customer: So I've used Annmarie for many years, and I'm glad she mentioned that the Citrus Stem is not that hydrating because, you know, so many people have been touting vitamin C serums. I had been using the Citrus Stem Cell, but since I'm mature anyway, that was not working well for me. And I was using the Anti-Aging Serum for years also, but I can see where you're saying that this Wild Alchemy would be a better choice, but my question now is just so since you're talking eyes, I really want to focus on that area. If I were to buy just one eye product and not both. Which one would you suggest?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Like I said, I always suggest the eye cream if you're going to choose just one or the other. Any other serum questions or eye products questions since we are talking about the two eye products now?
Customer: I mean, usually when I think of something for the eyes, it's going to be, there are two things. It's puffiness or darkness. Maybe wrinkles also, but puffiness or darkness. So you're saying the cream would be good for both of those issues?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: I would say the Fruit Ceramide Eye Serum is a little bit more targeted for addressing the look of darkness under the eye, but the Anti-Aging Eye Cream does have some licorice root in there, so that can be helpful for brightening the look of skin as well.
Customer: Okay.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: And you could even, since we were talking about putting products in the fridge earlier, you could even keep it in the fridge because then just the coolness of it can be helpful for the puffiness too.
Customer: Is this just like a temporary fix on the darkness or the puffiness? It's like just when the product's being used, as soon as you stop using the product, it's all right away back to the way it was.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Well no, not necessarily. The Fruit Ceramide Eye Serum for example has those sake peptides that can help to retexturize the undereye area. So something like that is not just a temporary effect.
Okay, any other serum or eye product questions? or anything else? Okay, so the next step in your routine would be your facial oil or your moisturizer. So all of our facial moisturizers are oils. We do plan on coming out with a cream. It's in the works, but I don't know exactly when that will be released. But we love the oils because oils are pure. They don't require any fillers or waxes to be used. They're easily absorbed by the skin. Your skin's natural form of moisture is oil, so it's readily absorbed. And so that's why we've chosen oils. That's why we love oils. And again, we have several different ones.
In the Signature Collection we have our herbal facial oils. So there's the Herbal Facial Oil for Normal and Combination Skin, the Herbal Facial Oil for Oily Skin, and the Herbal Facial Oil for Sensitive Skin. I tend to not go into these ones too deeply just because they are sort of self explanatory. They are named for the skin type they are designed for.
All three of these are a grapeseed oil base. So grapeseed oil is a very light textured, skin balancing oil. It's quickly absorbed. And then they all just contain an herb blend that is suited to the skin type they're made for. So the Herbal Facial Oil for Normal/Combo, this one has got some goji in there. It's got some echinacea in there. Tamanu as well.
The Herbal Facial Oil for Oily Skin. That one's got neem. It's got the black cumin seed oil.
The Herbal Facial Oil for Sensitive Skin. That one doesn't have any added essential oils in it. That one's got sacha inchi oil, camellia seed oil, and squalane.
And then lastly, in the Signature Collection, we've got the Anti-Aging Facial Oil. This one is very popular. Again, one of our best selling products. This one is a jojoba oil base. Like we talked about, jojoba very closely resembles the texture of your skin's natural sebum. And then this one, it's a very nourishing, restorative facial oil, so it's very moisturizing for dry and mature skin. It's got a bunch of different seed oils in it. So there's carrot seed oil, chia seed oil, broccoli seed oil. Chia, for example, is rich in vitamin B and zinc. This one has some goji in it as well, I believe. It's got Plantago in there, which is purifying to the skin. So those are the Signature Collection facial oils.
And then in the Wild Alchemy Collection, the facial oil is the Rejuvenating Facial Oil. This is our most potent facial oil, it's our most active facial oil. I love this one. This is good for all skin types except for very sensitive skin. So the reason that it's more potent, more active is the way that it's made. So our other facial oils contain several different seed oils and CO2 extracts. Like the Anti-Aging Facial Oil. I think there's like 20 herbs in the herb blend. This one, it just has one herb. It's the butterfly pea flower. And then it has fewer of the seed oils and the CO2 extracts. And the reason that we included fewer in that one is because then we were able to include them at higher concentrations at higher percentages. So it makes it more active and more potent. So that is the Rejuvenating. And this one has, like I said, the butterfly pea flower. It's got blue tansy in there. It's got baobab oil, which is really brightening. It's got mongongo oil which really softens the skin. It's got marula oil, which is very rich in antioxidants. So that's the Rejuvenating Oil. And, there's only one facial oil in the Wild Alchemy Collection, so those are all of the facial oils. Questions about facial oils?
Customer: So I think I was maybe the one that talked about oils with congestion. So that's my concern. But it seems contained. It's not like I'm getting a whole bunch more, but I'm concerned about that.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: So I love oils. I used to be, I was very prone to congestion and struggles quite a bit with it. I used to be very anti oil and I wanted oil free everything because I thought that it was going to cause more congestion. But it really just depends on the type of oil that you're using. And even the like our richer facial oils, say, the Anti-Aging Facial Oil or the Rejuvenating, for example. Those two are both a jojoba oil base. So we as a company recommend jojoba oil for more dry and mature skin, whereas we have the grapeseed oil base for the herbal facial oils. But I personally love jojoba oil for any skin type. And when I was really struggling with my skin, jojoba oil was recommended often, as I researched. So even our richer facial oils that are the jojoba base, I have found I've had no problem with them causing congestion in my skin. So I wouldn't think that the facial oils would cause congestion, but everyone's skin is different. I've personally not had that issue, that experience with our facial oils and I wouldn’t expect someone to because they are not comedogenic oils. If you wanted to try something lighter, you could try the Herbal Facial Oil for Oily Skin. That one, like I mentioned before, has the neem and black cumin seed oil. Or you could even try this one just in those areas where you feel like you're getting congested.
Which facial oil are you using now?
Customer: Just the most popular one you mentioned. No, I'm just using the Herbal Facial Oil. It's the one for normal and combination skin.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Okay. Yeah, I mean, I would think that would be fine. I feel like my first suggestion would be to incorporate some sort of exfoliation. Like we talked about that Activated Night Serum. Or we haven't got to it yet, but the Resurfacing Facial Exfoliant, some type of chemical exfoliant like that. I would try to incorporate that first and see if that helps. And then if not, then you could maybe think about switching your facial oil.
Customer: Okay, and then the other question with oils is rancidity. Length that an oil stays really healthy or good for? Because oils tend to become rancid, you know. So is there any information about how long, you know, you can reasonably keep your oil without it being, expecting it to become rancid?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician:Yeah so like I said, the expiration date is printed on all of our packaging, so your oil should be good through then for sure. I wouldn't recommend you know, taking off the top, like unscrewing it, because you don't want bacteria or anything to get in there. You shouldn't need to unscrew it and take off the top for any reason, but it should definitely stay good, fresh and fine through the date printed on the packaging. If you're concerned about it, you could always keep it in the fridge like we talked about. I don't think that's necessary. Your product is going to be fine through the date printed on the packaging even if you don’t keep it in the fridge. I was just saying if it's something you're really concerned about and you wanted to keep it in the fridge, you could. I don't think that you need to do that by any means. We do also have a blog post that could be helpful because I know that rancidity and that sort of thing can be a concern with seed oils. Because we do have that grape seed oil base as a base of our Herbal Facial Oils. Maybe Grace could link that blog in the chat, but all of our seed oils that we used are high quality, they're cold pressed or expeller pressed, so they're not exposed to heat, which can cause that rancidity. So Grace can throw that link in the chat if you want to learn more about how we kind of process those oils, but that's not something that you should have to be concerned about, especially if you're using your product within the date that's printed.
Customer: The only thing with a date is usually that those dates are good up until the time you open it. Once you open it, usually there's a shorter date span within which you need to use a product. You know, once you start using it, but if there's any air getting into there or any, you know, oxygen or whatever. Anyways, I guess if you just, I don't think you can probably get that much air into it, I'm looking at this bottle, I suppose, as long as you just pump it, it's probably not getting any oxygen in it.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Right, like I was saying, you want to try to avoid untwisting it and taking off the top. Also the packaging that we use, the miron violet glass, like I said, helps to protect and preserve our products. I do know a lot of products like you're saying they have that picture of a little jar on the back and it'll say like 12 months or whatever. And that is the expiration, it's saying that you have 12 months from the time you open that product to use it. With our expiration dates. This is the date, whether it's opened or unopened. And like you're saying, air is not getting into here. And with the miron violet glass, that's also helping to preserve the product too. So you shouldn't have to worry about that.
But back to your skin concern, I would try incorporating one of those chemical exfoliants. And then if that's not working, you could try switching up your oil and seeing if that helps. Any other facial oil questions?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Cool. Good question.
Customer: Okay. I'm sorry. The oils. So those still don't go past the bone, correct? Technically,
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: No. Again, I feel like you can kind of see how your skin does with it. Like I personally, when I apply my facial oils, I tend to overuse my facial oil because I really like to massage it in and I feel like I am not super careful about keeping it below my orbital bone and it is not an issue for me. So I think if you're not super sensitive, most of the time it's not going to hurt if you go a little bit above the orbital bone, you know? It also depends on the product. You would not want to put the Activated Night Serum above the orbital bone, but it probably wouldn’t be an issue if you were using say the Herbal Facial Oil for Sensitive Skin.
Yeah. Cool. Okay. So that is your basic routine, your basic four steps. And we already covered eye stuff. So then we just have extras like masks and exfoliants and boosting elixirs and all of that good stuff.
So maybe we'll touch on exfoliants really quickly since we were kind of talking about exfoliation. We have three exfoliants in the line. They are the Ayurvedic Facial Scrub, which is this guy, the Kaolin Micro Exfoliant, and then the Resurfacing Facial Exfoliant, which again I left in my bathroom. But the Ayurvedic and the Kaolin, these are both Physical exfoliants. So they have that scrubby, gritty texture that is physically polishing the skin.
The Resurfacing Facial Exfoliant is a chemical exfoliant. So chemical in the way that it's working on the skin. Not that it contains a bunch of chemicals. The Resurfacing Facial Exfoliant, it's a honey-derived lactic acid. That is the exfoliating component in that one. Lactic acid is a very mild alpha hydroxy acid. That one, pretty much all skin types can use it except for really sensitive skin. It can feel, it just depends on the person because I feel like I've had people who use it and say they don't feel anything, but it can feel pretty active and tingly on the skin. I just used it the other day and to me, it does feel pretty tingly. And you want to start out, most people will start out by using it for two to three minutes. You just put it on clean skin, it's a smooth gel texture. You use it like you would a mask. So you just apply it, leave it on for two to three minutes and then rinse to remove. You want to make sure that you remove it thoroughly. You can work your way up to using that one for like 10 minutes if your skin is a little bit more resilient and can handle it. That one, you only want to use it in the evening. Although I just used it in the morning the other day. But you do want to make sure that you're using an SPF with it as well. I did use my SPF. And that one can be really good for signs of aging. It can be really good for lightening and brightening the look of dark spots and pigmentation. That's the Resurfacing.
And then, like I said, these are our two physical exfoliants. kind of like the more traditional exfoliant, what you think of when you think of a facial scrub.
The Ayurvedic Facial Scrub, this one is a dry powdered exfoliant. It's good for all skin types including sensitive skin. It's very, very gentle, so even very sensitive skin types can use it. You just dump a little bit into the palm of your hand or shake a little bit and then you can mix it with some water to kind of create a paste. You can also mix it right in with your cleanser. It mixes in really nicely with the Aloe Herb or the Phytonutrient. Again, it’s very gentle. If you wanted to, most people could use this every day or you could use it a few times a week, whatever you want.
The Kaolin Micro Exfoliant is a cream facial scrub. It's very popular. People love this one. It's got kaolin clay, which is very purifying and mineral rich. It's got lavender essential oil, so it has that nice lavender scent profile. The exfoliating property in this one is a crushed bamboo powder. The exfoliating property in the Ayurvedic is fenugreek. And this one, the Kaolin, I would say it's still fairly gentle, maybe like a little step up from the Ayurvedic. Most people would use this one like two or three times a week. If you felt like it was too scrubby for you and you wanted to make it more gentle, it mixes really nicely again with the cream cleansers. It mixes beautifully with the Aloe Herb Cleanser because then it smells like lemon-lavender, it’s lovely. So that's the kaolin. Those are the three exfoliants and exfoliating can be really helpful because it just helps to improve texture and tone. If you don't exfoliate, you know, you can get this sort of buildup on the surface of the skin and then your treatment products are not able to be fully absorbed to really work effectively.
Exfoliant questions, any questions about exfoliants?
Customer: Does the Restorative Cleanser have any type of exfoliant in it?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: No, the Restorative Cleansing Oil does not have an exfoliant.
Okay, then what should I talk about? Maybe we'll do elixirs and then masks because we're getting a little low on time. Oh, we didn't talk about sun love yet either.
Sun Love is our everyday sheer sunscreen. It is an SPF 20. It is reef safe. It's a non nano zinc oxide. It's a broad spectrum, so protecting against UVA and UVB rays. That one, it's got buriti fruit oil, it's got pumpkin seed oil, so it's still very nourishing to the skin. Some people like to use that one as their daytime moisturizer, just on its own, or some people like to use it over top of a facial oil, that's just, personal preference, really. But that is the Sun Love. And again, if you are using the Activated Night Serum or the Resurfacing Facial Exfoliant, you want to make sure that you're using your Sun Love.
Okay, cool. So then I'll talk about the elixirs really quickly. These are the Concentrated Boosting Elixirs. They sort of fall into the serum category. These are just a fun extra product. People often are like, do I need the elixirs? No, you really don't need the elixirs.
They're kind of unique. I don't feel like a lot of other skin care lines have a product similar to this. They allow you to really kind of customize your skin care routine even further. And they allow you to really just boost the level of activated ingredients that are in your routine. So they come in the set of three. They come with the Hydrate Elixir, the Brighten Elixir, and the Revitalize Elixir. They come with a little dropper top. They're a pretty liquidy consistency. And the way that you use them, they are never to be used directly on the skin. Don't put them directly on your skin. You mix them with either a serum. We recommend mixing with a serum. Or if for some reason you're not using a serum, you could mix them with your facial oil. So you would pump your serum or your oil, you would drop one to three drops of your elixir, you would mix it up and then apply it. The Hydrate, this one is a hyaluronic acid with vegan collagen pre peptides. So again, the hyaluronic is very deeply hydrating, plumping, and the peptides are very strengthening.
And then the Brighten Elixir, this one is a pure vitamin C with seabuckthorn. So obviously good for brightening the look of skin, of dark spots and pigmentation. The vitamin C that we use in this product is a tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate or THDA. And the reason that we have chosen that particular vitamin C is that it is a very non irritating form of vitamin C with a pH of seven. A lot of times vitamin C products can be really irritating for sensitive skin types. It also is a very stable form of vitamin C. So a lot of times vitamin C products contain vitamin C that is not stable. So you open a product and it goes rancid really quickly. And then it's not effective. So this particular form of vitamin C is a very stable form of vitamin C, so that doesn't happen.
What else? I'm trying to think if there's anything else with this one.
And then lastly, we have the Revitalize. This is the bioactive A complex with astaxanthin. So the bioactive A complex, this is the exact same activated ingredient that is in the Activated Night Serum. Same ingredient. So you do want to use this one at night and with an SPF if you're using that one.
And you can kind of mix and match. So maybe in the morning you want to add like two drops of hydrate and one drop of brighten to your serum. And then maybe at night you want to do three drops of the revitalize. Or maybe you want to do one drop of the hydrate and two drops of revitalize at night. So you can kind of mix and match and play around with it.
Like I said, they're just kind of fun. They're kind of extra. And they allow you to get more of those activated ingredients into your routine.
Okay. The only thing we have left, I think, is masks. So we have a few different treatment masks. We'll just go over them super quickly. The Coconut Honey Mask. That one is great for dry skin. It's great for sensitive skin. It's a very thick, balmy texture. It's a very simple formula.
The Illuminating Pearl Mask. This one is very popular. Everybody loves it. Everybody should get it. It is a hydrating, brightening treatment mask. It's great for all skin types. It's got mountain wildflower honey, a humectant to draw moisture to the skin. It's got licorice root and uva ursi. So the same two lightening and brightening ingredients that are in the Citrus Stem Cell Serum. It's also got crushed pearl powder in it. So it gives it kind of this radiance, this luminosity that it imparts on the skin. This one can be used on the under eye area. If you are not sensitive, it can be a nice little under eye treatment mask. I do like to use this one in the morning because it's this sort of creamy, jelly texture and it feels really cooling on the skin. So it can be great for tired, puffy looking skin. So that's the pearl mask.
The Charcoal Cacao, this is a very purifying, very antioxidant rich mask. It's got the activated coconut charcoal, which is detoxifying and purifying. It's got turmeric in there and cacao, so those are providing the antioxidant properties.
And then the Purifying Mud Mask, this one is a dry powdered mask, a purifying treatment mask. I actually really love this mask. You can mix it with water. You can mix it with a toning mist. I like to mix this with Manuka honey. Like I said, I'm obsessed with Manuka. I mix it with a Manuka honey UMF 15. And I love that combination because Manuka honey has a lot of really awesome skin benefits. And then you get the purifying properties of the mud, and then the honey is also acting as a humectant. So then the mud is not drying at all to the skin. So I personally love this one, even though I feel like it's not one of our most popular products. I always mention it because I like it.
And I think that's it. That's a lot of stuff! Questions about anything, any of the products or just anything?
Customer: Elixirs. You had a special sometime ago and it said in the email or wherever I was reading that you must use them all three together, you know, if you use one you should be using them all, not just to use one. So I didn't understand for sure why, but I ended up using up the Hydrate and the Brighten, they're all gone, and I still have the Revitalize. So based on what you were saying, the Revitalize could be like the night serum or the night thing that you were mentioning?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: So we actually found that people were going through the Hydrate Elixir more quickly than the others. So we did come out with that one on its own in a larger size that customers can purchase.
What, what serum are you using now? I can't remember.
Customer: The serum is the Anti-Aging one.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Okay. So before you get the Activated Night Serum, since you do have the Revitalize Elixir and it is the same activated ingredient, you could start by adding 1-3 drops of the Revitalize Elixir to your Anti-Aging Serum at night. Then you're going to be getting that bioactive A complex that's going to have the resurfacing effect that might help with your congestion.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Awesome. Any other questions?
Customer: On the Illuminating Pearl. If you're taking it off after you've left it on, how does the illumination stay on your skin?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: I don't know, to me, I feel like I notice a brightening effect right after use, but with the licorice root and the uva ursi and the pearl powder those three ingredients are working to lighten and brighten the appearance of darkened areas to have a more long-term effect. There is a compound in the pearl powder that I cannot remember the name of, but I will find it and I will tell you, or I could just pull it up in my email. Here it is. Okay there is a protein in the pearl powder called Conchiolin. And that ingredient has been shown to reduce the appearance of dark spots and pigmentation by inhibiting the enzyme Tyrosinase, which is something that is responsible for melanin production in the skin.
And that one you really can't overuse it. You could use it every day if you wanted to. You can leave it on for 10 minutes or you can leave it on overnight. Some people use it overnight. So you can't really overdo it with that one.
Customer: Is there a general recommendation for masking? Once a week, once or twice a week?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: I feel like with masks, it's kind of whatever you can do. If you can do, once a week, that's great. If you can do it twice a week, even better. If you can do it once a month, that works too. You know, I feel like it's just kind of whatever you can work in, because they do take a little more time. I feel like masking for me is actually a little bit easier to fit in because I'll put on a mask and then I'll, I mean, I work from home, so I'll work or like clean the house or whatever, you know.
Customer: Well, that's good. And I wanted to just ask about plant stem cells, really what are they, what I mean you've talked about them a lot, and I know stem cells are incredible in human bodies or baby, you know, anyways from embryos and stuff, but that they can help regenerate areas, fix whatever part of the body needs to be fixed, is that what these do? Where do you get the plant stem cells from? From the stem of the plant? Or is it doing the same thing generally, is it repairing?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Yeah, so as I mentioned a lot of other companies will use stem cells derived from animal embryos or even humans. As I said, we use only plant derived stem cells. And where exactly they come from depends on the product. Like the Citrus Stem Cell Serum uses citrus derived stem cells or the Wild Fruit Serum uses Madonna Lily plant cells. And while plant stem cells in skin care aren’t actual living stem cells with DNA, this doesn’t mean they’re ineffective. Your skin is still receiving the plant extract, or the rich nutritive components inside each of these cells. They contain highly concentrated doses of nutrients like polyphenols, vitamins, polypeptides, lipids, fatty acids, enzymes, sugars, essential amino acids and proteins from these activated plant extracts that help nourish, revitalize and revive the look of your skin.
Customer: The other thing you've talked about is CO2 extracts. So carbon dioxide? What's the function of carbon dioxide on the skin?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: So topical Co2 extracts in skin care refer to botanical extracts obtained using carbon dioxide (Co2) as a solvent in a supercritical extraction process. So it is not necessarily that the product contains Co2, but that the Co2 is used in the extraction process.
Customer: Do you have a recommendation for crepey skin on the arms and legs?
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: I would probably suggest the Radiant Skin Silk Body Lotion. We have the body oils, like the Coconut Body Oil and then the body lotion that we have is the Radiant Skin Silk, and I would say that one's probably gonna be the better option for the crepey skin.
Emily Haupt – Annmarie Skin Care In-House Esthetician: Okay, you guys. Well, thanks so much for hanging out and chatting about all the products and all the skin things with us. I hope everybody has an awesome afternoon. And like we said, if you have any other questions just email us and then we can get back to you.
Customer: Thank you.
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