Everyone is looking for the fountain of youth, and while there’s nothing wrong with getting older, it’s much more pleasant to age graciously. It always surprises my clients to know that much of the signs of skin ageing occur inside the skin first and the end result is what we see on the outer exterior.
If you think about the very busy and stressful lifestyles we lead nowadays together with the daily exposure to dozens of harsh conditions, free radicals and toxins all of which build up inside the skin cells it is no wonder skin appears frazzled. These pollutants not only accelerate skin ageing, they trigger inflammatory skin conditions, and impair the skin’s barrier function meaning toxins use skin as an inlet to enter and cause mass destruction!
Science of Skin
And the chief destructor of accelerated skin ageing and inflammatory skin conditions is actually the hormone our skin cells produce on a daily basis - ‘Cortisol’ otherwise known as the ‘stress hormone’. Yes that’s right - being stressed really does mess with the skin. When the body gets stressed we produce high levels of cortisol, which immediately releases sugars intended to provide the body with energy. The effects of elevated levels of Cortisol not only allow these sugars to create inflammation, but it also damages the skin’s supportive network of collagen and elastin. And it doesn’t end there - Cortisol also slows down skin cell renewal, meaning the cells take longer to reach the surface and of course when they finally reach the top their condition leaves a lot to be desired revealing a dull and lifeless complexion.
History
It’s a fact that face serums make your skin look better and Gatineau scientists have been developing them for decades (and very successfully so)! Their philosophy has always been to develop highly concentrated and lightweight serums with a smaller molecular composition meaning they can penetrate deeply into the skin, giving an intense concentration of carefully chosen highly active ingredients to really target the problem at the source.
New Product
So when I heard about the launch of Perfection Ultime™ Skin Perfecting Cream-Serum I was incredibly intrigued as it sounded like my dream product. It’s is a new breed of serum; a ‘pressed serum’ and can be used alone or underneath a moisturiser. It has the potency of a serum and the comfort of a feather-light cream and it effortlessly melts into the skin delivering highly effective and rare ingredients to the skin’s core making it a real game changer.
Ingredients
And there really are a whole lot of ‘skin loving’ ingredients in this multi-tasking product. Drawing on Neurophroline™ from the precious Wild Indigo Extract, native to Central America it is renowned for its soothing benefits on the skin. This exclusive extract is like a ‘de-stress express’ for skin cells as it has demonstrated its unique ability to break down the cortisol production by skin cells. I love the idea that this cream-serum can ease tension in the skin and improve skin tone!
Couple this with the anti-oxidant rich flowering herb Centella Asiatica, also known as Gotu Kola or ‘Cica’ as it’s fondly nicknamed. Famed for its multiple anti-ageing benefits it is considered a magic wand for inflamed and stressed skin. Although it has been used for centuries it is becoming the new savvy ingredient on the block due to its many values. The high levels of anti-oxidants in ‘Centella Asiatica’ are definitely noteworthy and it also really revs up the micro-circulation allowing the skin to benefit from a surge in nutrients, vitamins and minerals. A dose of this will really get your skin on a ‘Cica-loving’ level.
And the formula doesn’t stop there with the addition of Patch H20, a rich combination of plant sugars and brown algae that delivers a flood of skin replenishing phyto-nutrients; together with Pichia Heedii Yeast Extract. I can assure you there’s more to yeast than meets the eye with this ‘potent yeast’ as interestingly it was developed into skincare in the seventies. This was after it was observed that workers in a Japanese sake brewery had remarkably smooth hands due to years of submerging them into fermented yeast - and it’s no wonder they did when you look at the nutritional content of yeast. Enriched in amino acids, proteins, minerals, anti-oxidants and vitamin B – these key ingredients work like a topical beauty superfood to really help the skin regain that healthy, fresh outdoor glow.
And the all-embracing list of ingredients continues with extract of White Tea (and no I don’t mean the green kind this time!). According to recent research both green and white teas have very similarly high levels of anti-oxidants in them (via their polyphenol and flavonoid content). However White Tea may just have a slight advantage over its green cousin as it has been found to be the least processed type of tea due to the fact it is made of young tea leaves. As a result White Tea has richer concentrations of catechins which means it slightly surpasses Green Tea in the anti-oxidant department!
And of course no Gatineau serum would be complete without the all-important Hyaluronic Acid which holds the key to smooth, flawless and hydrated skin. Because our skin naturally produces Hyaluronic Acid in a bid to maintain moisture levels it is a critical ingredient as these levels dip immensely as we age. It works like a magnet for moisture helping cells retain plumpness and collagen and elastin fibres to maintain suppleness. Just a single gram of Hyaluronic Acid has the impressive ability to hold up to six litres of water!
So I think this is a definite must-have in your day to day skincare regime. Perfection Ultime™ Skin Perfecting Cream-Serum is innovative, easy to use and designed to intensively treat the skin whilst delivering a soft, smooth and dewy glow.
How to use
Applied daily after cleansing I suggest either applying alone or for more comfort follow with your usual moisturiser. Day after day watch your skin radiate with a ‘10 hours of sleep’ complexion!
Enjoy!
Lucy x