Green, wild-crafted and cold-pressed — oils in their purest form are becoming so popular, they make serums seem like something your grandma used. After years of medicated face washes, extra-strength peel pads, and prescription strength retinoids, we are soothing our skins with face oils. The reason? When formulated well, they are pure, contain antioxidants and help build the barrier of our skin. But in a market that has oils available for less than ₹200 and some (like the iconic Vintner’s Daughter) for more than ₹10,000, how do we separate the wheat from the chaff?
Indian experts
RAS Luxury Oils was founded by Shubhika Jain who comes from a family of oil traders who were the first to export mango butter. “We cultivate our own aromatic herbs and also partner with farmers,” says Jain, adding that all their products are free of pesticides and synthetic fertilisers and this year they’ll get the final organic certification. RAS also has a biogas unit that runs the entire centre which includes a cold-pressing section. Their sandalwood comes from Karnataka where they don’t cut down the entire tree but use only branches, and cedar wood is cultivated instead of coming from forests.
No conversation about sustainability, however, can be complete without mentioning Kavita Khosa and her original clean beauty brand, Purearth. Founded in 2014, it was the first Indian brand to talk about fair trade, sustainability, small batch and wild-crafted products. She is also the first Indian brand to be part of Birch Box’s beauty boxes for France, and is also now available online and in store at Anthroplogie, in Palo Alto. Ethics are then the first sign of an effective product.
Shubhika Jain, RAS Luxury Oils
Packaging matters
The process and packaging of cold-pressed oils are accepted as being the purest, but this label can be questionable. “I’ve seen people say cold pressed and then press the seed till 80-90%, but cold pressing beyond 50% starts degrading the oil.” Unfortunately, she adds, for the lay user it is not easy to determine, unless you ask for the certificate of analysis. Even if it is cold pressed, how is it stored and how fresh is it? “If it is in transparent, plastic bottles (especially PET), the plastic leaches into the oil and our skin absorbs more than 60% of the product, so it is essential to look at the process and packaging. You wouldn’t drink water that has been stored in a plastic bottle for a week, then why would you use oil from plastic bottles?” she asks.
Purity and price
CO2 extraction is one of the most efficient methods because it is instant and done without any sort of heat. “The important factor is that it has to be continuous, fast, in a vacuum environment (protected from air) and with low temperature to avoid degradation of the oil,” says Dr Pedro Catala, green beauty pioneer and founder, Twelve Beauty. Catala’s Intelligent Frontier Facial Oil (₹16,200 approx), so light that it sinks in immediately, is made of unsaponifiable oils. “The unsaponifiable fraction of the oil is the most precious part, where the active ingredients lie — they cannot be converted into soap when they are blended with strong alkaline molecules, unlike other parts of the plant-based oil.” He says that while they are nothing new to the beauty industry, they have been studied for decades and shown extraordinary results. “If you are eager for results, make unsaponifiable oils a priority.”
- With such a variety of face oils in the market, how do we know which one is the best? I asked two experts who I trust. “When I started using green products I used to buy individual oils to test. My skin really liked camellia, hazelnut and organ oils straight up, with richer oils like pomegranate seed oil,” says Lavanya Krishnan, founder of green beauty box service The Boxwalla. Another simple method is to check how your face looks in the morning. “One must keep in mind that oil is no replacement for a moisturiser, so always use a hydrating mist or serum before its application.”
- Australia-based ecoluxe blogger Arjun Sudhir of Justaskarjun.com says that a good face oil sinks in, hydrating deeper layers of the skin, without leaving an oily residue. “The oils I love go beyond just moisture and have brightening and acne-fighting properties,” he adds. Sudhir gravitates towards carrier oils that are high in linoleic acid. “For acne-prone skin types with low levels of linoleic acid in their sebum, using a product rich in this fatty acid can actually reduce acne.” Some of his favourite linoleic acid-rich oil bases include grapeseed, prickly pear, organ, black cumin, and hemp seed. And his top favourite? “La Bella Figure Aria Nightime Cell Recovery Treatment (₹11,350), In Fiore Comfrey Solution Botanique (₹10,700), African Botanics Fleurs d’Afrique (₹16,200 approx), and Twelve Beauty Intelligent Frontier Facial Oil.”
As far as packaging is concerned Twelve Beauty — like Purearth — uses dark violet glass to protect and preserve the active ingredients. “I wouldn’t trust oils in a transparent bottle because they’re vulnerable to air, light and temperature.” To test the purity of your current face oil try Catala’s test: leave your oil overnight in the fridge, if the following day it has a residue at the bottom, it is not pure. Also if it smells rancid, the oil is oxidised. “An oxidised oil has not only lost its benefits, it can also pose a threat to the skin.”
Another way to tell if your product is effective is to look at the price. If there are expensive ingredients such as rose and sandalwood and it’s inexpensive you can be sure that oil is not pure. “Take the case of kumkumadi for instance, it’s a beautiful formulation with such expensive ingredients — how can it be available for ₹180?” asks Khosa who firmly believes that pricing is a dead giveaway.
Of course, there is no guarantee that an expensive product will be effective, and it is up to us as customers to thoroughly research before investing in a brand.
weekend@thehindu.co.in
