DIP INTO AQUATIC BEAUTY

DISCOVER THE HEALING POWERS OF MARINE-BASED INGREDIENTS

Blue is the colour, detox is the game: Track down all oceanic treasures from the deep to make your body the healthiest it’s ever been, inside and out

BEAUTY TRENDS MAY COME AND GO, BUT THE CURRENT OBSESSION WITH ALL THINGS AQUATIC HAS, LET’S FACE IT, BEEN POPULAR FOR CENTURIES. DEEPLY THERAPEUTIC, A DEEP-SEA CLEANSER, ANTI-AGER AND TOTAL BODY DETOXIFIER (SHIFTING SIGNIFICANT WATER WEIGHT IN ONE TREATMENT), MARINE INGREDIENTS ARE ALSO KNOWN TO HAVE ANTI-INFLAMMATORY AND IMMUNEBOOSTING PROPERTIES. IT’S NO COINCIDENCE IN NATURE THAT SEAWATER AND OUR OWN BLOOD PLASMA ARE NEARLY IDENTICAL IN CHEMICAL COMPOSITION IN TERMS OF MINERAL AND TRACE ELEMENT LEVELS. ADD TO THAT THE NATURAL OSMOTIC EFFECT OF THE SKIN WHEN WE’RE IN SEAWATER, ALLOWING THE TRANSDERMAL FREE-FLOW OF MINERALS TO A CERTAIN DEGREE TO BOOST OUR SKIN AND BODY; IT KINDA MAKES MARINE THE MOST NATURALLY HOLISTIC INGREDIENT TO ANY BEAUTIFIER THERE IS, DON’T YOU THINK?

WHILE SOME BRANDS, LIKE THALGO, PHYTOMER AND LA MER, ARE ESTABLISHED FANS, NEW HARVESTING TECHNOLOGY IS MAKING MARINE MORE READILY AVAILABLE AND SUSTAINABLE, SO YOU CAN EXPECT TO SEE A LOT MORE ALGAE IN SKINCARE TO COME. TAKE REN’S NEW RENERGY ATLANTIC KELP AND MAGNESIUM BODY COLLECTION, AN ENERGISING BOOST OF SEA KELP AND OTHER SEAWEEDS DERIVED FROM THE WEST IRELAND COASTLINE, DESIGNED TO REVITALISE AND ENERGISE; AND ESTÉE LAUDER’S NEW NUTRITIOUS MICRONISED ALGAE SKIN WELLNESS COLLECTION, WHICH USES SPECIALLY CULTIVATED, COLD-PROCESSED NUTRIENT-DENSE ALGAE

FOR THE CLEANEST PORES YOU’LL EVER SEE. FANCY A DIP? I VOW THERE ARE A FEW LITTLE DEEP SEA TREASURES HERE TO DISCOVER…

WRAP IT

Great for when your body feels jaded and stressed, a mineral-rich seaweed mud wrap perks you up and boosts a lazy lymphatic system. It involves being slathered in an algae mud, usually icy cold to encourage the body to perspire more once wrapped in foil or plastic.

CONTINENTAL STYLE

AT ESPACE CHENOT WELLNESS SPA, L’ALBERETA RELAIS & CHATEAU ON LAKE ISEO IN ERBUSCO, ITALY, THE Chenot Phyto-Fango Detox Therapy INVOLVES A VIGOROUS SCRUB, HYDROTHERAPY BATH AND THEN YOUR ENTIRE BODY BEING COATED IN FRESHLY MIXED ALGAE, MUMMIFIED AND LAYING ON A WARM CHROMOTHERAPY BED THAT ENCOURAGES PERSPIRATION. MY DRY SKIN FELT AMAZING FOR DAYS AFTERWARDS, AND IT DEFINITELY PUT ME BACK ON THE PATH TO A BETTER SUMMER BODY REGIME. COSTS £130; TRY A 3-DAY OR 7-DAY SPA PACKAGE – HENRI CHENOT PROGRAMMES START FROM €1,260 PER PERSON*, CHENOT.COM

BRIT STYLE

AT THE HOUSE OF ELEMIS, THE TTT Targeted Toning Tightener, £130 for 90 minutes, IS POSSIBLY THE NEATEST ALGAE MUD

WRAP I’VE EVER KNOWN. A MULTI-LAYERED TREATMENT THAT COMBINES SALTS, MINERALS AND SEAWEEDS, A SERIOUS DRY BODY BRUSHING IS FOLLOWED BY A FIRM LYMPHATIC MASSAGE, THEN AN ICY COOL ALGAE MUD IS PAINTED ONTO THIGHS AND UPPER ARMS, DRYING TO A NEAT, PEEL-OFF MASK. SKIN IS WITHOUT DOUBT REVITALISED AND SUPER SMOOTH, AND YOU FEEL SO RELAXED.

TRY IT AT HOME…

Laminaria Slimming Seaweed Body Mask, £30 for 500g FROM NATURALSPA FACTORY.COM – ADD A COUPLE OF CAPFULS TO RUNNING WATER FOR A DETOXIFYING SEAWEED BATH OR MIX A LITTLE MORE INTO A PASTE AND APPLY TO AREAS OF YOUR BODY YOU WANT TO TONE. JUST PREPARE FOR A BIT OF MESS!

SOAK IT

Like no other bath, a thalassotherapy bath uses mineral salts identical to those in seawater, to help rebalance the body, and is believed to help relieve joint and muscle aches and pains, including arthritis.

IN SPA

Champneys Thalassotherapy Pool, £20 for 25 mins wade through, WAS ONE OF THE UK’S FIRST EVER SALTWATER POOLS WITH HYDROTHERAPY JETS; OR WHY

NOT DIP INTO A SEAWEED SESSION SUCH AS A Voya Lazy Days Detox Seaweed Bath, around £40? CALL 0353 71 916 1872 OR VISIT VOYA.IE TO “BOOK A BATH” THAT COMBINES AN INITIAL STEAM TREATMENT WITH A SKIN-LOVING ALGAE BATH.

AT HOME

HAVE A VITALITY BATH BY ADDING A HEFTY SPRINKLE OF SALTS TO YOUR BATHWATER.

FOR ME IT’S A NIGHT-TIME THING: TOTALLY LOVE Kneipp Sweet Dreams Valerian and Hops Mineral Bath Salts, £8.95 AT CULTBEAUTY.CO.UK, OR TRY Westlab Pure Mineral Bathing Dead Sea Salt, £14.99 for 1kg. ADD A CAPFUL OF REN Atlantic Kelp and Microalgae Anti-Fatigue Bath Oil, £26, TOO, WHICH FEATURES SEAWEED OIL TO MOISTURISE, RELAX AND DETOX A BIT MORE.

SCRUB DEEP DOWN

FAVOURITE PRE-SOAK SCRUBS: (3) Voya Effervescence Nourishing Sugar Scrub, £34, WITH HAND-HARVESTED SEAWEED FROM THE IRISH COAST; THE SUPER SPA AROMA OF

(4) Collistar Talasso-Scrub Revitalizing Exfoliating Salts, £21.90; THE YUMMY YET SUPER AFFORDABLE (1) Soaper Duper Ginger & Sea Salt Body Scrub, £7.50; OR ALL-TIME FAVE (2) Bliss Spa All-Over Sea Salt Body Scrub, £30.50, THAT’S SPIKED WITH MINDALTERING EUCALYPTUS AND ROSEMARY. >>

WHAT A BOOST!

Collagen is crucial to the bounce and beauty of our skin, responsible for our skin’s strength and resilience as well as its smooth, plump appearance. And if you bear in mind that by the age of 20 our own supply is already in decline, only imagine by 50 we’ve lost over half our collagen reserves! So I don’t know about you, but I’m up for any way there is to bump up my supplies, inside and out.

DRINK IT

SIP IT… I’M TALKING FISHY, MARINE-BASED COLLAGEN HERE! IT GIVES YOUR BODY THE MEANS TO REPAIR CONNECTIVE TISSUES AND MAKES THE PERFECT INNER-OUTER ADDITION TO BUMP UP YOUR SKINCARE REGIME. I LOVE THESE SUPER SKIN DRINKS, AND ALWAYS NOTICE PLUMPER, SMOOTHER SKIN WITHIN ABOUT

FOUR DAYS WHEN I MAKE THE EFFORT. TRY Rejuvenated Collagen Shots, £39.95 for 30 days, AS A BEDTIME SECRET THAT’S ALSO RICH IN B-VITS, HYALURONIC ACID, VITAMIN C AND COPPER; Equi London Beautiful, £55 for 30 days, A MARINE COLLAGEN POWDER SUPPLEMENT; OR THE HANDY, READY-MIXED Gold Collagen, £35.99 for 10 x 50ml bottles, FORMULATED WITH HYDROLYSED MARINE COLLAGEN, WHICH IS EASILY ABSORBED TO HELP OUR BODY FORM NEW COLLAGEN.

SMOOTH IT

SEAWEED IN SKINCARE HELPS TO NATURALLY BOOST CELL REPAIR AND TURNOVER THAT’S SADLY SWIFTLY SLOWING WITH AGE, AND IS DEEMED TO HELP IMPROVE INTERCELLULARCOMMUNICATION FOR BETTER OVERALL AGEING IN THE PROCESS. TOP OF MY LIST IS Zelens Marine Complex Deep Restorative Cream, £125, GREAT FOR OVER-FIFTIES AS IT’S RICH YET LIGHTWEIGHT THANKS TO A BOLD BUNCH OF REGENERATIVE, PROTECTIVE AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ALGAE, INCLUDING SPIRULINA, SEA LETTUCE, SEA WHIP AND A RED SEAWEED CALLED DULSE. OF COURSE, IF YOU’RE WISELY SEEKING A LITTLE EXTRA UV ANTI-AGEING PROTECTION IN YOUR FAVOURITE FACE CREAM, YOU HAVE TO CHOOSE THE NEW Elemis Pro-Collagen Marine Cream SPF 30, £80, BRIMMING OVER WITH COLLAGEN-BOOSTING CHLORELLA, AND PADINA PAVONICA SEAWEED THAT FEATURE IN THE ORIGINAL BESTSELLING SUPER FACE CREAM, TO DO EVERYTHING YOU’D WANT – AND NOW MORE. NEW NAMES TO DIVE FOR: Ishga Antioxidant Marine Face Cream, £70, FEATURING ORGANIC SCOTTISH SEAWEED EXTRACT, LUSCIOUS SHEA BUTTER AND MACADAMIA NUT OIL; Haeckels Eco Marine Extract Facial Cream, £48, WITH ANTIOXIDANT SEA BUCKTHORN, BROCCOLI SEED AND LAVENDER; AND Inlight

Line Softener Intensive, £72, A SPIRULINA SUPER BALM WITH ARGAN OIL THAT’S GREAT FOR DRY, MATURE SKIN CREATED BY THE GENIUS DR SPIEZIA.

LAYER IT

SENSITIVE SKIN ISSUES? REDNESS, ROSACEA, PSORIASIS AND ACNE OFTEN RESPOND WELL TO ANTI-INFLAMMATORY, HEALING PROPERTIES OF MARINE. TRY LAYERING SERUMS GRADUALLY WITH EACH OTHER, ONE AT A TIME, WITHIN YOUR REGULAR SKINCARE REGIME AND

MAKE A NOTE OF HOW YOUR SKIN RESPONDS. EVERYTHING STARTS WITH THE OUTER SKIN BARRIER, SO I LIKE THE IDEA OF A GOOD, SOLID ENVIRONMENTAL ANTIOXIDANT PROTECTION OFFERED IN 001 Skincare Active Marine Power Concentrate Dual Action Formula, £39 AT JOHNBELLCROYDEN.CO.UK; A SCENTLESS, GENTLE OMEGA-RICH MULTIALGAE SERUM; OR ADDING A LITTLE Voya My Little Hero Face Serum, £53 AT VOYA.IE, EITHER ALONE AT NIGHT AFTER CLEANSING OR BLENDED INTO FOUNDATION FOR A MEGA JUICY SKIN BOOST, AS IT’S CHOCK-FULL OF BEAUTIFUL PLANT OILS AND GREEN ALGAE EXTRACTS. LOOKING TRULY TIRED? TRY REACHING FOR Thalgo Absolute Radiance, £39.50

AT FEELUNIQUE.COM, SEAWATER AMPOULES ENHANCED WITH A LITTLE SKIN BRIGHTENING CITRIC AND MALIC ACIDS; OR REFRESH ANY

TIME WITH Algenist Splash Hydrating Setting Mist, £29, A SERUM SPRAY

WITH MINERAL-ENRICHED CHLORELLA WATER THAT’S LIKE YOUR SKIN’S BEST FRIEND IN SUMMER TO PICK YOU UP. >> JUST LOVE THIS SOAP-FREE, HAND-CRAFTED Estée Lauder Nutritious Micro-Algae Pore Purifying Cleansing Bar, £20 – THE PERFECT ANTI-POLLUTION PORE PERFECTOR, USE MORNING AND NIGHT TO HELP PURIFY AND DETOX THE SKIN.