Tag: Kantic

Our Kantic® Brightening Moisture Mask: Better than Ever!

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One of the things that I love about the skin care industry is the constantly evolving body of knowledge and the ingredient innovation that keep things exciting, and keep me forever working on our product formulations.

When we created our first Alchimie Forever products, back in the late 1980s, we used parabens (we also loved big hair and worked out to Jane Fonda). We no longer use parabens anymore of course, and the process of removing them from our formulations was not easy (imagine making your grandmother’s tomato sauce with cherry tomatoes instead of heirloom tomatoes and wanting it to taste exactly the same). That was Alchimie 2.0.

The improvements continue, as we move from Alchimie 2.0 to Alchimie 3.0.

Recently, we updated our Purifying gel cleanser formulation, removing sulfates, and replacing them with more natural, gentler alternatives – while preserving the beautiful foaming texture of this product.

We also just improved our hero SKU, the Kantic® Brightening moisture mask. For all of you out there who have used and loved this product for decades, and who do not like change (I am in this group), here is more information on exactly what we changed (starting with Lot Numbers 10151J21 and 11041K21).

We removed the following ingredients, in our continued effort to make our formulations as clean (yet still effective) as possible:

  • Phenoxyethanol (preservative, slightly controversial)
  • Dimethicone (silicone derivative, texture ingredient, can clogg pores)
  • Trimethylsiloxysilicate (silicone derivative, texture ingredient, can clogg pores)
  • PPG-15 Stearyl Ether (ethoxylated ingredient, slightly controversial)
  • PPG-20 Methyl Glucose Ether (ethoxylated ingredient, slightly controversial)

We replaced these ingredients with the following cleaner alternatives:

  • Coco-Caprylate/Caprate (non-controversial alternative to silicone)
  • Dimer Dilinoleyl Dimer Dilinoleate (non-controversial texture ingredient)
  • Caprylyl Glycol (non-controversial texture ingredient)

Rest assured: while we have made the formula “cleaner,” we have not changed any of the active ingredients that give the mask all of its wonderful properties and benefits. You will still get the same glow, hydration, calming and anti-redness effect, as you have for years.

And remember, as our products do not contain artificial dyes, the color may vary slightly with each production batch. Similarly, the viscosity (how thick the product is) is a range, as it cannot be replicated 100% batch to batch without a purely synthetic formulation. This means that sometimes the mask will be a little thicker, and sometimes it will be a little more watery.

But the Kantic® Brightening moisture mask, in all of its iterations, remains our best-selling, first ever product, and hero of our brand. And your favorite!

 

Spring Rituals

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Today is my first day of Spring. Finally, the sky is blue, the sun is shining, the birds are singing, and the flowers are blooming. After our Polar Vortex Winter, it feels like life is finally beginning anew.

I wrote earlier this year about the rhythm of the seasons, and once again I was reminded this morning, walking to and from SoulCycle, of how this natural cycle impacts my focus, and my activities.

Here are some of the ways I have begun to celebrate Spring, and how I will continue to.

  • I opened the windows in my house and let in fresh air. Simple, and glorious.
  • I cut 4 inches off my hair and I have never felt lighter. Thank you, Jason Snyder!
  • I cleaned out my closet, thanks to the inspiration of my dear friend Jennifer Mapp Bressan, who is constantly reminding the world that we need less clothing than we think we do.
  • I took a good look at my to-do list and got rid of two items that had been sitting on there since January; one task I (finally) completed, and one task I decided I was never going to complete and just deleted.
  • I switched my evening cream to the lighter Kantic Calming cream from what I use during the winter, our Kantic+ Intensely nourishing cream.
  • I had coffee in my yard, listening to the sounds of Spring, watching the sun rise over Georgetown, watching the world wake up.  
  • I incorporated abs in my exercise regimen, per the inspiration of my friend Anne who does 200 of them five times per week. This should be a year-round ritual (because summer bodies are made in the winter!), but for now, it will start as a Spring / Summer ritual.
  • I went to yoga. I don’t do yoga, but when my friend Kelly DiNardo, owner of Past Tense in DC, invited me. I figured at the very least it would help me get rid of the winter cobwebs in my body.
  • I finalized a new partnership for Alchimie Forever, which will yield its fruit a little bit later this season.
  • I still need to get my first Spring pedicure… I am hoping to make time this weekend to go to Mia Bella, my favorite nail place in New Orleans. 

How do you celebrate the first few days (weeks) of Spring?

ada polla shows redness on her face

Skincare Tips For Stressful Situations

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I feel fortunate that most of the time, my skin is not a cause for stress or concern. I am nice to it, and in return it is nice to me. We happily coexist. Sometimes, however, my skin likes to remind me that it is the boss of me, and that I need to be extra gentle with it. It can’t use words, so it “speaks” to me with zits, redness, dry patches, and dark circles. Here are my go-to tips and products for stressful skin scenarios.

Reaction from another product.

  • Case in point, the very unflattering photo of me here, trying out a mask (that shall remain un-named) on half my face to compare the effect with our Kantic brightening moisture mask. Instant redness and irritation.
  • The best thing to do is nothing, or apply a very calming, trusted moisturizer. I used our Kantic calming cream and was fine the next morning.

Travelling.

 Stressed.

  • Stress will come out on your skin in various ways. For me, I get dry red patches in symmetrical areas, often in my wrist area. This may sound bad, but Neosporin is then my go-to – the kind with pain relief properties.
  • Our Dry skin balm also helps calm the inflammation of stressed skin and is ideal if your stress comes out as dry flaky patches (body, not face).

 Hungover.

  • The eye area is key on such mornings, and our Tightening eye contour gel works miracles in lifting and opening my tired eyes.
  • A tiny bit of Kantic Brightening moisture mask mixed in my favorite moisturizer will help give my skin an all-day glow to counteract the “morning after dullness.”

 Sunburnt.

  • Think healing, gentle, anti-inflammatory, and anti-redness. Our Kantic Calming cream helps reduce redness and calm the heat in your skin, and you can even use it on your body.
  • If you peel, do not “pick” at your skin. Once the redness is gone, our Gentle refining scrub will help accelerate the skin’s recovery.

 Breakout before a hot date.

  • Never, ever, ever pick. It only makes it worse.
  • The Mario Badescu Drying Lotion is a miracle worker. Ideally overnight, but even if it is for an hour or so before said “hot date,” it will help.
  • Dab a tiny amount of concealer to hide the redness, but don’t overdo it as that will only attract attention to that area.

What Does Kantic Mean, and Why Do We Use That Word?

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If you have been using our products for more than five or six years, you probably remember words such as Nd:YAG, Superpulse, Alexandrite, Q-switch, and one of the most complicated to spell and pronounce, Yttrium. These words are all related to the field of lasers. We loved the idea of highlighting my father’s pioneering role in the field of laser technology (remember, he was the first to introduce lasers for use in dermatology in Europe back in the mid-1980s) by having laser-related words on the packaging.

Feedback from the field suggested that while our idea might have been brilliant and made complete sense to us, our customers were confused. They could not pronounce many of the names. They asked if the Alexandrite product was named such because it was meant to be used after an Alexandrite laser treatment (that would have made sense… but was not the case). So, after many family dinners, internal debates, and a couple of arguments, we made the decision to remove these product names from our packaging and brand verbiage.

We made an exception for the word “Kantic” however. My father was attached to the laser names, and to the idea behind using them, and loved Kantic the most. So, we compromised, and three products still have this laser name – forming the Kantic collection of products:

So what does Kantic mean? Kantic is a “misspelling” of the French word Quantique (we liked the K and the C), which translates as quantum. It comes from quantum physics, which studies how atoms and particles behave, including in the field of lasers. It is true to our heritage and to the pioneering role my father played in the field of laser technology. You can find out more here.

Luckily, Kantic is one of the laser terms that is most easily pronounced (in both French and English).

Luckily, the three products that form the Kantic collection share benefits and appeal to a similar skin type:

  • Anti-aging and antioxidant
  • Nourishing and hydrating
  • Calming and soothing
  • Anti-redness and anti-irritation

And luckily, every year, my father and I get better at debating and compromising.

Moisturizing Tips

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Most of us use a moisturizer – but do we use the right one, in the right way? I speak to women every day about their moisturizer choices and habits, here are some of my favorite tips.

  1. Yes, well all should use a moisturizer daily. Choose it based on your skin type – refer to my father’s advice above, I could not put it in better words (to his delight!).
  2. Take seasonality into account when choosing the right moisturizer. This means that you may have to different ones, a light one for the humid summer and a more hydrating one for the dry winter. Also remember climate, in particular if you have recently moved or travel a lot. As I write this, sitting at my hotel desk in Las Vegas, I feel the dryness in my skin all the more than I did two days ago in Washington DC…
  3. The moisturizer that was right for you in your 20s is probably no longer right for you in your 40s. The number of women I speak to who have not changed their cream in 20+ years is staggering. Our skin is a living, breathing organism that evolves and changes with time. As you adapt your wardrobe from your 20s to your 40s, so should you adapt your skin care products.
  4. The perfect morning cream offers hydration, anti-aging benefits, and broad spectrum SPF protection. Look for an SPF of 20 or above for daily use, to protect your skin from 90+% of UV, such as our Protective Day Cream SPF 23.
  5. Do not use a moisturizer with SPF in the evening.
  6. Apply your moisturizer from the clavicle or collarbone to forehead, always moving against gravity. Always remember your face does not end at your chin, but rather mid-chest.
  7. Don’t forget to exfoliate once to three times per week to help slough off dead skin cells – and help your moisturizer really absorb.
  8. If you are looking for the perfect Alchimie Forever facial moisturizer to incorporate in your routine, here are your three choices:
Vanity Fair's favorite masks

Why our Kantic brightening moisture mask is a Vanity Fair Favorite

Categories Alchimie Forever, All, Beauty1 Comment on Why our Kantic brightening moisture mask is a Vanity Fair Favorite

Last week our best-selling Kantic brightening moisture mask was included in a roundup of best masks on VanityFair.com. Here is what the beauty experts at my favorite magazine said about our product:

Get the ultimate glow with this cult-classic product. Extremely creamy in texture, it contains natural botanicals and oats to soothe and brighten dull skin. Plus, your skin will feel extra-soft.

This product has received many accolades and is an editor favorite – it was written in In Style as the “best pre-party mask,” in Redbook, in Organic Spa, and it even made it in Travel & Leisure Magazine as one of the best things to come out of DC!

While you can read here all about the amazing ingredients, I thought this was the perfect opportunity to share a few lesser known secrets about this product:

  • Actress Necar Zadegan maintains her glowing complexion with this mask, applying it between taping episodes of Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce.
  • Before “sleep masks” and “nighttime masks” and “overnight masks” were a thing, I was getting calls from our fans telling me they loved applying this product in the evening and leaving it on overnight, waking up to flawless skin and the perfect glow.
  • My Mom’s favorite trick with this mask is to add a little to her Alchimie Forever moisturizer every morning. She thinks of the mask as a “booster” for her favorite cream.
  • As In Style figured out early on, it is the best “pre-party” mask because it evens out the skin, fills in fine lines, and gives the complexion a gorgeous glow – making makeup application easier and your makeup look better. Before a big event, apply a thin coat of the mask, almost like a primer, to your skin, then proceed with your makeup routine, and be amazed!
  • One of my favorite uses of this mask is on airplanes. I travel with samples of this product and apply it right when we takeoff. No “I just got off the airplane and my skin is blah and dehydrated” look for me when I land!
  • The color of this mask makes the above doable without seeming freakish: it is a soft shade of purplish (this is from the whole red grapes we use) which almost blends in to your skin, so you can wear it around the house when your other half is present, or like I do on airplanes…

If you have not yet tried it, add the Kantic Brightening Moisture Mask to your skin care routine today!

And if you already love and know it, you can start looking forward to it arriving this late fall in travel size…