Here at JMC, we can’t get enough of beauty blogger N.K.’s oil-centric blog, Beauty Huile. Focused on beauty products that contain large amounts of beneficial oils, Beauty Huile features smart and spunky reviews on everything from luxurious body elixirs to lightweight face serums. As fans of the blog, we were beyond thrilled when N.K. agreed to do a guest post for Chicological on one of her all time favorite oils: Argan! Check out what she has to say about Argan’s place in the beauty world, and don’t miss her fabulous blog.
Argan’s Triumph As a Serum
Every beauty consumer secretly wants to know the same thing – what’s the next cure-it-all ingredient? What she wants to know is what’s really going take away my lines, soften up the texture, and help my make-up look flawless when applied.
Argan. And, now she’ll ask – that’s it? Yes, lady, it is. Trends in beauty come & go faster than neons on the runway. Anyone remember when the alpha-hydroxys hit the market in the mid-90s & how the beauty cognoscenti jumped in glee over caviar creams? Probably not, but I do. I am one of those former counter girls, who kept a wait list for mega-hyped treatments.
One legacy from the 90s was the reign of the all-mighty serum: the linchpin of your skincare regime. It was touted as the fix-it-all-wrinkle-preventer, but upon closer inspection was nothing more than a sundry of unpronounceable chemicals that may have worked for some. Or not. In my case: not.
In recent years, beauty trends have been driving consumers down marketing’s erratic path. But, if one trend has emerged among cynical consumers, it’s that less is more. And, this philosophy of using less has undoubtedly detoured people of various skin types to adopt face oils in lieu of chemically filled serums for organic safety, for simplicity of use, or for tried n’ true results that really show. And, the consensus – beauty fans & derms - have spoken – Argan oil is the granddaddy of them all.
Looked at from one angle – science - Dr. Leslie Baumann reports, “Unlike other exotic resources such as caviar and marine algae, Argan oil offers the best of both worlds…It’s an anti-ager and it’s eco-friendly.” Rich in linoleic acid, Argan has been shown in several research studies (cited here) to increase moisture levels and reduce inflammatory bouts of acne.
Even though clever marketing can certainly draw consumer’s attention, ultimately a product has to deliver. And, this is what helps Argan steal the spotlight away from department store serums. “Oils are hugely misunderstood,” says Patricia Tortolani, beauty director at Allure magazine. “But a lot of the oils that women abroad have been using for years — in Europe, India and Japan — are plant-based oils. The good thing about plant-based oils is that, unlike mineral oils, they’re very easily absorbed by the skin and the hair, so you don’t have to worry about them clogging your pores or weighing down your hair,” says Tortolani.
Consumers have never been so well informed and had such easy access to information, which means they can cut through the crap in nanoseconds online & off. While I do see women appreciating the cornucopia of splendid serums, I also see the same lot of them tsk-ing at the roster of ingredients and opting for face oils—dispensing with any irrational fear of clogging pores. The best of the oils lack the usual offenders (sulfates, parabens, mineral oil), and some may even be scented, but will tempt you to extend the contagious aromatic experience all over. I like Josie’s Moroccan Rose Argan Body Oil, which conveys a sensual slip of sweetness on skin and makes for an easy to use hair mask once a week as it washes out with one shampoo rinse.
Whatever your Argan fix – be it a balm, gloss, or even an illuminizer – you can’t deny that it’s an authentic artifact of natural beauty.
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