Au Naturel:

Using an oil-based product to combat skin issues in Hong Kong’s humidity might seem counterintuitive, but there’s method in the madness, according to SONAL, the creator and founder of plantpowered skincare provider, So Good Botanicals.

Two chemical-free products we love

Hong Kong is very humid; won’t oil-based products cause skin congestion?

You can use the humidity in Hong Kong to your advantage! Skin congestion happens when bacteria gets trapped in our pores. The right balance of skincare ingredients helps soften skin, making it strong enough to expel this debris. Our skin needs a healthy dose of fats to help maintain that health. Timeless, an oil-based serum using only non-GMO ingredients, is a great addition to our skincare routine. Black cumin seed (nigella seed), which is great at unclogging pores, combined with organic pomegranate, sea buckthorn seed and broccoli seed make it a nutrient-rich superfood serum.

At what step in my beauty routine should I use an oil-based serum?

For someone who is just venturing into natural skin products, we would recommend a serum at night – this helps ease into the transition. With regular use, you’ll be using it day and night.

The Timeless Serum is used as the final step of your skincare routine. It helps lock in all the goodness of a moisturiser, giving the skin an extra boost. Generally, a good guideline to follow is to start with the thinnest water-based ingredients and end with an oil-based serum.

What about sunscreen?

Sunscreen is very important. At which step you apply sunscreen in your routine would depend largely on the type of sunscreen – physical or chemical – so we recommend following the manufacturer’s directions as they can vary quite a bit.

What makes vegan and organic skincare important; isn’t that just for things we eat?

Plant-based, vegan and organic skincare is very important because skin is our first line of defence against anything entering our body, including infection. Making sure our skin is strong and healthy is a big step towards maintaining our overall health and wellbeing.

Using vegan skincare ensures you’re using a product free from animal testing – this means no animals are being harmed, plus we know the ingredients used in the products are safe. Plantbased and organic ingredients bring us a rainbow of vitamins, minerals, essential amino acids and essential fatty acids like omega-3 that we wouldn’t be able to get from synthetics.

What gave you the idea to launch So Good Botanicals?

I had always suffered with acne in Hong Kong, which is not the best in the humidity. I’d been using traditional skincare that revolved around oil-free washes, oil-free moisturisers and blotting papers, and pretty much everything dried my skin out, leaving it ashy, greasy and tight, with no permanent relief. I realised I needed to totally change my approach to skincare to achieve the results I’d wanted for so long.

Skin is our first line of defence