You might be surprised to hear that not all natural ingredients are great for your skin. Some, however, are skincare gold and fundamental for helping your skin look and feel its absolute best.
But which ingredients really do pull their weight when it comes to brightening, moisturising, protecting and nourishing your skin?
Read on for the complete lowdown on five of our favourite ingredients gifted to us by Mother Nature herself…
You might be surprised to hear that not all natural ingredients are great for your skin. Some, however, are skincare gold and fundamental for helping your skin look and feel its absolute best.
But which ingredients really do pull their weight when it comes to brightening, moisturising, protecting and nourishing your skin?
Read on for the complete lowdown on five of our favourite ingredients gifted to us by Mother Nature herself…
Why It’s So Good: Some skincare ingredients deserve all the praise they get and this is never truer than in the case of aloe vera. It’s made up of around 99.5 percent water, but don’t let that fool you because a) your skin needs water to stay healthy and hydrated, and b) that tiny 0.5 percent is jam-packed with good stuff. We’re talking a potent cocktail of around 75 active compounds including vitamins C and E, plus minerals, amino acids and antioxidants.
Use It For: Thanks to its rich water content, aloe is primarily used for its hydrating and moisturising prowess. It also contains phytosterols which are cholesterol-like molecules that help boost the skin’s production of collagen and hyaluronic acid while strengthening the barrier function and preventing moisture loss.
But that's not all! Aloe also contains antioxidants to reduce environmental damage (aka wrinkles!), and has anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties so is incredible for aiding healing, soothing sunburn, calming acne and minimising redness.
Find It In: Aloe is packed into many of your favourite HIGHBORNs including Pre-Eminent Beauty Serum, Organic Hydration Gel and Diamond Toner.
Why It’s So Good: Like many botanical oils, coconut oil is known as an occlusive, which means, when applied to your skin, it forms a protective barrier over the surface to lock in moisture and help soothe dryness, itching and irritation. But coconut oil is not a one-trick pony because it contains a number of other skin-rejuvenating properties that are not to be sniffed at.
Let’s start with lauric acid which coconut oil contains in abundance. Lauric acid has incredible antimicrobial properties so is fabulous for balancing the skin’s microbiome, killing bad bacteria and helping to reduce inflammation.
Coconut oil also contains linoleic acid, an essential fatty acid that helps stimulate cell turnover while plumping and moisturising the skin, plus phytonutrients which provide antioxidant protection.
Use It For: Acne-prone skin doesn’t always get on with coconut oil because of its occlusive properties, but for any other skin type it can work wonders in a number of ways. It can be used to reduce redness, protect the skin’s barrier function, fortify weak or ageing skin and may even help minimise the look of fine lines and wrinkles by helping to plump and smooth the skin.
Find It In: Coconut oil’s main M.O. is to moisturise the skin which is why you’ll find it in three of our favourites – Imperial Moisturiser, Night Elixir and Natural Luminosity Body Butter. However, it also helps remove oil and exfoliate the skin, hence its inclusion in Natural Element Clay Mask, Crystal Cleanser and Natural Luminosity Scrub. Guilty as charged, we love this stuff!
Why It’s So Good: Great for protecting and correcting the skin (which doesn’t happen that often in skincare), green tea extract contains active components called polyphenols which have phenomenal antioxidant properties. As a refresher, antioxidants are vital for healthy skin because they help reduce free radicals which form when your skin is exposed to things like pollution, UV radiation and other inevitable environmental stressors.
Green tea also contains caffeine and tannins which, when used topically rather than ingested, are known to help decrease puffiness. Its anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties are also super helpful for balancing oily, troublesome skin. Plus it's great for all skin types!
Use It For: As you know, we’re huge fans of antioxidants and encourage you all to include them in your skincare routines to help ward off the signs of premature ageing like dark spots, wrinkles, enlarged pores and sagging skin. And if you’re looking for one of the best (and most natural) antioxidants, then green tea is everything.
Find It In: The sun is one of the biggest offenders for damaging your skin and is responsible for over 80 percent of all visible signs of ageing. This is why we add green tea to our Organic Tinted Moisturiser with SPF 25, offering double the protection for your precious complexion. As it’s so well tolerated by sensitive skin we also include it in our Imperial Eye Gel to help look after the delicate skin around your eyes. You’re welcome!
Why It’s So Good: Jojoba is an absolute joy for one very important reason – it’s just like sebum. In fact its make-up is so close to that of your skin’s natural sebum, that it kind of mimics it, sealing moisture into your skin without clogging up your pores like some plant oils often do. Clever stuff, don’t you think?
It's also packed with flavonoids, vitamin E, B-complex vitamins and iodine which combine to aid healing, protect the skin and accelerate cell regeneration.
Use It For: Thanks to its high tolerance with your skin, everything from your face and body to your hair and cuticles can benefit from a daily boost of jojoba oil.
Not only is it helpful for moisturising and softening, but it’s one of the best oils for dealing with breakouts, too. How so? Well, it has calming, anti-inflammatory effects for one thing, and thanks to its sebum-like composition, it also works hard to balance sebum production. Win win!
Find It In: A major player in Organic Tinted Moisturiser with SPF 25, we also use jojoba oil in our Highborn Organic Mascara and Superior Lip Butter. Because your lips and lashes need as much love as the rest of your face and body.
Why It’s So Good: Extremely versatile for all skin types – unless you have an allergy, of course – shea butter has been a secret weapon in skincare for decades. As well as being a powerhouse of a moisturiser, shea butter contains skin-loving goodies like vitamins A, D and E, plus antioxidant-rich phytosterols (see-ya free radicals!) and allantoin which helps reduce irritation and sensitivities.
Use It For: Shea butter is a great choice for sealing in water and moisturising all skin types as it glides on really well and doesn’t leave your skin feeling heavy or sticky. It’s highly effective all year round for nourishing, soothing, plumping and healing. Oh, and it’s even thought to help soothe skin allergies and improve existing conditions like eczema. ‘Everything but the kitchen sink,’ springs to mind, right?
Find It In: Shea Butter is, understandably, formulated into Imperial Moisturiser, Night Elixir and Natural Luminosity Body Butter because, well, moisturisation! We also pack it into our Organic Lip Gloss Collection to keep your lips soft and supple all day long.