BECAUSE OF LOCKDOWN…
GIVEN THE CHOICE, MANY OF US WOULD PROBABLY HAVE GIVEN 2020 A MISS ENTIRELY – BUT FOR THESE SIX WOMEN, LOCKDOWN HAD AN UNEXPECTEDLY POSITIVE OUTCOME.
Six women on how lockdown changed their lives – for the better!
lerato Lefafa is probably best known for the travel and foodie adventures she shares online with her fan base (leratolefafa.com). When she’s not inspiring her followers to explore the country (and beyond), she works in marketing for an energy company. One of the few whose job wasn’t affected by lockdown, Lerato was, however, unable to visit her dermatologist – which might seem like a luxury for some, but for those with skin problems, it means everything. ‘I suffer from eczema and I have hormonal acne, so I would often go for chemical peels and get skin treatments,’ Lerato says. ‘The stress of lockdown caused my skin to break out badly, but I wasn’t able to treat it.’
From the age of 13, Lerato had made her own skincare concoctions using organic ingredients, but they were nowhere near strong enough to treat the problems she had. But with lockdown, she had to get back into the kitchen and whip up something to help clear her skin, using knowledge from her previous experiments and what she could find online. And it worked brilliantly!
Delighted, she gave some to a friend. But her friend ended up suffering from nasal congestion because of the product. ‘I wanted to share my skincare products with others, and I realised the only way to avoid these types of issues was to go to school,’ says Lerato.
It started with one online aromatherapy course, but to date, Lerato has completed nine courses on remote-learning platform Udemy. Today her skincare range, Mokgantso Organics, features three products that target hyperpigmentation and acne.
‘The feedback has been great so far, but the process has been daunting: it felt like I was giving people a piece of my heart to critique,’ says Lerato.
‘Your skin is so attached to your confidence and your identity. It’s been fantastic to get positive feedback.’
What she really wants is for her clients to feel like they don’t need to wear makeup to hide imperfections, and would rather work with them to treat concerns so they don’t feel insecure about their skin. Her goal is to instil confidence in people.
Lerato says she’s always wanted to launch an organic skincare range, but that lockdown forced her to do it sooner rather than later. ‘I like to mull things over, but lockdown gave me the drive to get it done,’ she says. ‘It meant I could help others who have the same skin troubles as me.’ Next up, Lerato will be working on phase two of Mokgantso Organics. ‘It’s not just about putting products out there; it’s about helping others grow from the experience.’ She also hopes to establish a skill-sharing platform, where she can teach people how to make soaps and formulate skin products.
...started my own skincare range’ ‘Lockdown gave me the drive to launch my range. It meant I could help others who have the same skin troubles as me.’