Laurel Skin Care was founded by a skin specific herbalist named Laurel Shaffer. She has experience in farm, spa, and mindful wellness, and is a slow beauty advocate. Slow beauty describes a fast growing subculture of beauty therapists who have lost faith in the ‘quick-fix’, often invasive products and procedures that are pervasive in the beauty industry. Laurel was drawn to natural beauty and holistic health practices, and she made it her life’s mission to create products that harnessed the efficacy of authentic vibrant plant medicine, that were made handmade by real farmed ingredients, and that only elevated the sacred ritual spa experience of each unique destination.
Key products
Laurel Skin Care offers a wide variety of products, such as cleansers, elixirs, serums, masks, balms, lip treatments, and body care products. A few key products from the Laurel Skin Care line include Recovery Balm, Oil Cleanser, and Detox Mask.
Laurel Recovery Balm (formerly Healing Balm) is said to be a remedy for virtually any ailment, from extreme cases of eczema, dermatitis, and cystic acne, to sensitive allergy-prone skin, to the occasional cut or scrape. This multi-functional balm reduces the appearance of redness, swelling, and irritation while offering up a therapeutic dose of whole plant extracts to jump-start and support the skin’s own healing process. The Recovery Balm can be used on both the face and body as needed.
Laurel Oil Cleanser is the first step in an authentic slow beauty facial ritual. It is said to root out pore congestion, pull debris to the surface and help eliminate puffiness, stagnation and inflammation, immediately revitalizing a dull complexion. The Oil Cleanser can be used daily on some skin types, but for most the brand suggests it be used as a weekly or bi-weekly deep cleansing ritual. It is also said that this product may be too stimulating for those with a compromised or damaged skin barrier.
Laurel Detox Mask is said to effectively draw out impurities with clarifying clays, hydrate and nourish with roots, and soothe with anti-inflammatory herbs and flowers. The end result is skin that looks more clear with visibly smaller pores and a reduction in the appearance of redness and breakouts. This mask is recommended to be left on for 10 to 30 minutes, then rinsed off.
Key formulation
Ingredients used in Laurel Skin Care products are sourced from several organic and Biodynamic farms within 100 miles of Laurel’s Lab in Sausalito, California. In the practice and discipline of slow beauty, Laurel relies on her own manufacturing and production capabilities. One practice that sets Laurel Skin Care apart from other cosmetic suppliers and product manufacturers is their strict quality control with plant materials. As plant materials are exposed to light, heat, and oxygen, the antioxidants within them begin to turn into free radicals, thus losing potency. This degradation process is inevitable for all plant ingredients, but Laurel’s in-house manufacturing guarantees the most stringent oversight to ensure the freshest, most efficacious products for your skin.
Next we’ll discuss some of the key ingredients in each of the aforementioned key products in the Laurel Skin Care line.
Laurel Recovery Balm helps to heal the skin with key ingredients like helichrysum, tamanu oil, pomegranate oil, and calendula. Helichrysum is a flowering plant that strengthens tissues and supports cellular healing activity. It reduces the appearance of scars and broken capillaries, as well as minimizes redness and swelling. A sacred ancient plant medicine of the tropics, tamanu oil is anti-inflammatory, wound healing, antibacterial, stimulates skin immunity, and has a unique phytonutrient profile specific to skin healing. Pomegranate oil penetrates deeply into the skin and helps to repair the skin’s barrier function. Lastly, calendula is deeply restorative and healing on a cellular level. It is excellent for scarring and all forms of skin damage.
Laurel Oil Cleanser contains cleansing oils like sunflower and safflower seed oils, which dissolve hardened oxidized sebum deposits and help to clear pores. Another raw, unrefined oil pressed freshly and locally for Laurel is sesame seed oil. The choice to use sesame seed oil stems from the ancient cleansing rituals of Abhyanga in Ayurveda, which eliminates impurities and unburdens the skin, as well as providing prebiotics for our microbiome. Laurel Oil cleanser also contains black cumin seed oil, which is pressed using patented technology to protect its full range of phytonutrients. It is balancing to the microbiome by neutralizing harmful bacteria strains and supporting anti-inflammatory pathways. Laurel uses the whole turmeric plant extract in the Oil Cleanser for its anti-inflammatory and redness-reducing properties.
Laurel Detox Mask helps to draw impurities from the pores due to French Green Clay. This clay also happens to be rich in nutrients and helps to encourage cell turnover. However, it can be too drying for some skin types, which is why the brand recommends always keeping your mask hydrated for the best possible results. The Detox Mask also features burdock root and dandelion root extract, which both act as prebiotics for our skin’s microbiome. They are rich in B vitamins and saccharides and are very hydrating. They also assist in detoxing by carrying away impurities and cellular waste. A final key ingredient in the Laurel Detox Mask is marshmallow root extract, which deeply hydrates, soothes, and visibly plumps the skin. It contains standout constituents like betaine, B vitamins, quercetin, ferulic acid, and polysaccharides.
We’d like to point out that while all essential oils in Laurel Skin Care products are natural and organic, they still contain volatile fragrance components that have the potential to cause skin sensitization and irritation for some people. For example, lavender essential oil is used in many Laurel Skin Care products because it has anti-inflammatory properties. However, lavender oil is also a potential sensitizer due to its fragrance components, such as linalool and linalyl acetate. When exposed to air, these components oxidize, meaning their potential for causing a reaction increases.
