New Product Alert - Bakuchiol Hydrating Serum

In looking back at previous posts, I'm not sure I've ever posted about some of our newer products. One that I'm very proud of is our Hyaluronic Acid Serum, made with Vitamins B3 and B5. Our newest version is made with a new to us ingredient, Bakuchiol extract.

Bakuchiol Extracted is extracted from the seeds of a plant native to India and Sri Lanka. Although it is a relatively new ingredient for the skin care industry, Bakuchiol has been a staple in the Chinese and Indian Ayurvedic medicine for centuries.

It is considered a natural alternative to retinol because it functions similarly in a skin care regimen. However, it is not considered a retinoid or a part of the retinol family because it has a different chemical structure than that of retinol.

Therefore, Bakuchiol offeres many of the same skin care benefits as retinol without causing irritation or dryness. Bakuchiol is also believed to be gentle enough for daytime and nighttie wear and is suitable for use on all skin types.

Update on the Vitamin C Serum

I've been using the Vitamin C serum pretty much daily since I made it in April (is it really that long ago??) and I'm impressed.

The colour of the serum really hasn't changed much, perhaps it has a bit more of a yellow tinge than when I first made it but after six months it really hasn't changed as much as I thought it would. I suppose the fact that it's in a black treatment pump bottle helps. 

I'm almost at the end of the first bottle and will need to make more soon. Christmas markets, however, are on the horizon and that will require my time and attention before I can make anything for myself. 

Vitamin Sea Serum - testing

 Over on my main blog, Strings 'n Things, I wrote about a Vitamin C serum that I'm experimenting with. (I had planned on posting that post here but Blogger wasn't cooperating.) It's made with all sorts of wonderful ingredients, including some that are meant to help keep the Vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid) from oxidizing. It also includes an ingredient called Sea Kelp Bioferment, which is, basically, lacto-fermented seaweed, which is why the working name for this serum is Vitamin Sea Serum. (Clever huh?)

Vitamin C, or L-ascorbic acid, is quite stable when it's in a solid (powder) form but when it's in a solution, it oxidizes rather quickly. If you make a very simple Vitamin C serum, you'd have to remake it every 7-10 days. Eventually, the solution will discolour to orange and then brown. That's how you'll know that it has oxidized. It can also discolour your hair if you manage to get it in your hair. As I did. I couldn't figure out at first why the hair around my face was turning orange. Yup, oxidizing Vitamin C serum. 

To that end, I eventually came across the recipe I now use. And, because I know that L-ascorbic acid eventually oxidizes, I decided to put this serum to the test. 

It isn't the easiest to see in this picture but in that pipette is a bit of the Vitamin Sea Serum. I've put in on my kitchen window sill, where it gets full sun in the mornings. I'm going to leave it there until it starts to change colour. I want to know how long that takes. So far, it's been 24 hours with no visible change. 

I'll keep you updated.