shelf life
Forget high-tech tools and cutting-edge formulas – the latest buzz in beauty is all about keeping it fresh
A new wave of beauty products is subscribing to the philosophy that fresh is best.
You want to be tucking into your fish straight off the boat and slicing your fruit soon after it’s been plucked from the tree, but how fresh is that moisturiser you massaged into your face this morning? “The beauty industry standard for shelf life is 30 months,” explains Jasmi Bonnén, founder and CEO of Scandi skincare brand Nuori. “When I found that out, I started reading about the effect of time on cosmetic formulations and I was surprised to find numerous studies showing that commonly used active ingredients, such as vitamins, start losing their beneficial properties in just a matter of months, due to oxidation.”
So Bonnén did what any smart woman unable to find a solution to her problem would do and created her own line of skincare products. Nuori is a collection of “fresh skincare” – mixed up in small batches every 12 weeks in a Danish lab, then sent to glowing faces all over the world. Each product is stamped with two dates: the one by which you should start using it as well as when to give it up if you want optimal efficacy. They all have beautifully sophisticated formulas, but the easiest to incorporate into your regimen is the Perfecting Facial Oil, a silky blend of grapeseed, apricot-kernel and rosehip oils and vitamin E that’s suitable for all skin types.
This farm-to-(beauty)-table concept has also been embraced by new local line Hop & Cotton as well as Blend & Boost, which custom-create their skincare products based on a personalised prescription and send it your way straight after it’s mixed. Hop & Cotton also lets you select your own specific formula and leave out any ingredients that you know don’t suit your skin. Their products aren’t without preservatives, but since they’re created just for you (and not blended until you place your order), it’s an easy way to be assured of the fresh factor.
It’s not only niche brands working hard to power up the freshness of your skincare heroes. Recent packaging innovation for Ultraceuticals Ultra A Skin Perfecting Serum, Lancôme Advanced Génifique Sensitive and Clinique’s Fresh Pressed vitamin C treatment means the ingredients responsible for skin smoothing don’t go near destabilising oxygen, bacteria or aren’t actually activated until you take your jar home.
If you’re serious about your skincare, you have to look beyond what’s in it and figure out how long it’s been there. “Fresh skincare makes sense the same way fresh food does – it’s more nourishing and has less additives,” says Bonnén. Beauty products that work smarter, not harder, are on their way.