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What’s New in Clarins?
MAYBE it was the masks, maybe the ‘what next?’ uncertainty of the past 16 months, but my skin’s been having tantrums.
And I’m not alone. Reports among my peer group of rashes, ‘maskne’ and even teen-style breakouts are as common as ‘how was your holiday?’ chat used to be.
One friend has had to resort to pharmaceuticals in an ongoing quest to beat a facial rash and another developed rosacea so rampant she could barely see.
Extreme examples, perhaps, but when your skin unexpectedly lets you down in the middle of a lockdown, what do you do?
‘Try these,’ yelled Racheal, gesturing from behind the wheel of her car (and a rather sassy mask) at the bag of Clarins products she’d just flung onto my drive.
That’s like Father Christmas dropping in unexpectedly, right? In the middle of February.
Actually, Racheal and The Day Salon were a lot of people’s saviours around then, when their Clarins micro-site went live and customers could shop the iconic products locally, online, for the first time.
Ripping gleefully into the bag, I discovered there’s a lot for troubled skin to love in the new range - not least that it harnesses the power of plants grown on Clarins’ own 200,000-acre Alpine farm.
A bit of research later I learned that the brand uses more than 250 natural plant extracts in its formulas, all grown on that farm, 4,500ft up in the Alps in a peak-sheltered microclimate.
So far, so Raindrops on Roses, though like many others, I do applaud the idea of using natural products on my skin. But do they deliver? After a few months’ use - no skimping on this blog - I can report that my skin is reaping the benefits.
Here’s a selection of some of my favourites, packed with those natural products. The ‘Domaine Clarins’ anti-pollution branding is the one to look out for. Stressed or unstressed, your skin will lap up these peak products.
Clarins Soothing Gentle Foaming Cleanser, £18.30
I’m a foundation addict so it’s balm all the way for my night-time cleansing routine. In the morning, though, faces need a proper encounter with wake-up water. Don’t you think?
It’s an unbreakable rule in my book and this creamy, rinse-off cleanser foams up a treat and - equally important - splashes off with minimum faff.
Purifying Alpine herbs add a distinct touch of the Heidis and a mere dab of this soap- and SLS-free cream, mixed with water, transforms into a rich foam that leaves even very dry and sensitive skin soft, smooth and with natural, healthy bacteria intact. Nothing is worse than stripping the skin and ending up with that shiny, tight feeling.
There are detoxifying ingredients in here courtesy of moringa extract, and hydration magician vegetal squalene cancels any drying effects and keeps skin comfy.
I won’t go into the entire list of loveliness that combines to make the winning formula but let’s give the nod to organic chamomile, gentian and lemon balm plus a side order of honeysuckle, ylang ylang and cocoa blossom on the scent side.
Gorgeous stuff. As is…
Clarins Gentle Renewing Cleansing Mousse, £18.30
Just when I thought I couldn’t love an early-doors cleanser any more than the above, along came this little beauty which makes the morning routine just a micro-second more streamlined. If time is of the essence, this is your saviour.
Mirroring lots of the pure ingredients featured in the foaming cleanser, the big advantage here for me is sheer ease of use: press the plunger and you’re in business.
Super-lightweight and packed with soothing plant products - notably, tamarind pulp extract, which delivers natural AHAs to whisk away pore-clogging dead cells - this one is suitable for all skin types and leaves skin refreshed and radiant.
But actually, ‘gentle’ is the important word here and despite the banishment of all those skin-sapping undesirables there’s no shiny-tight feeling after use.
I’m old enough to remember when AHAs were first touted as a wonder ingredient. Trouble was that while delivering the promised de-clog, they pretty much destroyed everything else in their wake. None of that nonsense here. Just pure goodness.
Clarins Total Cleansing Oil, £18.30
At the end of the day most of us need to bring on the heavy-lifters. As a fan of long-wearing foundation, I certainly do. And here’s a new one: a lightweight cleansing oil that water-activates into a silky milk which dissolves even heavy and waterproof make-up, plus the grime of the day.
Again, the skin’s natural microbiota is left intact - it’s squeaky clean but there’s none of that freshly-sandblasted feeling (or look) that does no one, young or mature, any favours.
Two organic Alpine plant extracts are the main players: golden gentian and lemon balm. Moringa extract does the detoxifying and the clincher for me is the refreshing combo of melon, green mandarin and rose tempered with violet leaves, musk and amber. In a nutshell, smells like a wild meadow.
This one’s fine to use on eyes, face and lips - a one-stop shop. Pump a measure into the palm, lather up with water, then rinse. Job done.
And after the cleansing…
Clarins Moisture-Rich Body Lotion, £27.50
Swimming, cycling, sun-catching… life in Guernsey is full of laidback little joys but they all take their toll on our skin. I have a (formerly) secret horror of ending up with cow-hide for covering so body cream is a must every morning - evening, too, if I’m feeling reckless.
But not just any old lotion. I can’t bear the sticky, never-sink-in feeling some of them leave you with so it has to be not just deeply hydrating but well-behaved, too.
This relaunch of an iconic Clarins product does the job in jig time and smells wonderful. Rich and silky-smooth, a generous slathering gets right to the heart of the problem in no time and leaves you feeling moisturised, not moisture-laden. You can almost feel your skin drinking it in.
Shea butter is the worker bee and there’s a higher concentration in this new formulation than ever before, plus a blend of organic plant extracts. In short, it’s greener, made from a satisfying 88% of natural ingredients and you can responsibly fling the tube in the recycling bin when you’re done… while reaching for the Day Salon click button to order more.
Clarins Extra-Firming Energy, £49.20
Honestly, is there a more demanding decade than a woman’s 40s? Even reflecting on mine from the earned and blissful status of no-kids/demanding career/parents to care for exhausts me.
As an occasional beauty writer I was lucky that new treatments and products regularly came my way, because if they hadn’t I’d probably have worn a whole world of exhaustion on my face.
Today’s 40-somethings, however pushed they are for time, need not fret - at least about their skin. This is the day cream that (also) has it all, formulated especially for busy, active women in that demanding decade.
It’s a two-in-one treatment that promotes and protects firmness while delivering a mighty shot of radiance.
When our skin is subjected to a fast-paced lifestyle it reacts by turning dull and fatigued-looking. It also grows wrinkles, or deepens those we’ve already earned.
This cream is designed to help restore the firmness and revitalise the complexion. I can confidently report that it’s a joy to use - the texture is creamy, the scent fresh and energising. Even the bright-orange pot is a little beacon of light.
Puts the spring back into your skin - and your step.
Clarins Nutri-Lumiere Jour, £75.00
Weird stuff, skin. After a lifetime of teenage antics - make-up that slid off after an hour, maximum shine (rather than glow), pores the size of moon craters - one day mine turned dry. Overnight. Not just dry but a whiny kind of needy, never-happy dry. I could slather an entire palmful of moisturiser on my face in the morning, and often did, and within half an hour it would be demanding ‘more, please’.
My gorgeous mum, a Nivea woman all her life, had beautiful skin without spending so much as a moment actually bothering with it. She failed to pass it on. Mine’s quite Guern (paternal legacy) and would definitely be leathery if I’d let it see so much as an atom of sunshine over the years. And that despite decades of oil-fighting.
Anyway, only the proper heavyweight-fighters will do these days, and Clarins and Elemis are the champions in that league.
This magic-in-a-pot from Clarins is a melting, oil-infused day cream and delivers a mighty whack of nourishment designed to restore skin’s radiance.
The problem with third-agers is that our skin nutrients decline over the years and the barrier function weakens, causing the aforementioned dryness.
The twin heroes of this formula are organic horse chestnut flower extract and horse chestnut escin (the active molecule in the fruit), which combine to maximise penetration and deliver key ingredients as efficiently as possible.
There’s a lifting/replenishing action too and a boost to the barrier function.
Its partner, Nutri-Lumiere Nuit, £ , completes the circle with the same key ingredients in a formula that revitalises, nourishes and illuminates the skin by morning.
Yes, they’re at the top-ish end of the treat spectrum, but what price glowing, hydrated skin that doesn’t talk back?
Clarins Extra-Firming Neck & Décolleté, £41.70
Never expose your décolleté to the sun. That’s my best and finest advice - absolutely no charge - to those who’d rather not end up with a chest like a crumpled bag.
For many of us - ahem - it’s a bit late. One friend who spent a scorching, sunscreen-free day in the wreckage of Pompeii 20 years ago wears the legacy like a permanent postcard.
It doesn’t have to be that way, of course. You might be young and lovely and wise enough to avoid such horror, and this is the stuff to help you do so.
I love the fact that Kangaroo Flower is an ingredient - wouldn’t anyone? It’s there to promote younger-looking skin and help smooth lines, to firm and to lift. Organic Desert Date plant extract targets dark spots, oat sugars provide an instant lift-effect by tightening and smoothing, and ‘leaf of life’ and Shea oil hydrate, nourish and comfort.
It’s a magical-sounding list crowned by sunflower extracts that improve the elasticity and firmness of an area that, let’s face it, works its socks off in terms of flexibility.
In short, if you’re still short on wrinkles in the neck area and below, this will help keep you that way. It is never too early to start and however lovely you look from the chin up, a neglected neck will give the age game away in later life.
If you need a bit of a boost in that area, damage already done, this is a busy little worker in terms of minimising and mending.
Smells gorgeous, goes on like silk. Wear it over your heavy-duty sunscreen by day and solo by night and don’t skimp. Or visit Pompeii in a heatwave.
UV Plus [5P] Ecran Multi-Protection Hydratant, SPF 50, £27.50
I wouldn’t entertain a facial sunscreen that delivered less than SPF50 and there’s a rock-solid, scientific reason for that: I’ve seen the damage the sun can wreak with my own eyes.
As a beauty journalist I was lucky enough to experience innovations when they were just that, and one of the more horrific moments of my career was seeing an ‘under the skin’ photographic image of my face, with sun damage writ large. Shocking.
Even more shocking was news that the therapist had recently seen the same kind of damage on a child of only eight years old. Slather-up your children, people. And don’t forget yourselves. Because no matter how much you spend on products and cosmetics, exposing your skin to the sun is going to cancel those out, practically guaranteeing early wrinkles and an entire mob of them by the time you hit later years.
I evangelise about this to anyone who’ll listen, but especially my beautiful, porcelain-skinned niece who is not only a stressed 40-something but one who loves nothing more than a burnished brown face. She will pay. I’ll be sending her a tube of this shortly with no guarantee that she’ll use it. But you should.
Make it a rule to pop some of this on your face every day, rain or shine, because it’s effective against a range of pollutants you’ll come up against constantly: atmospheric, indoor, pollen, blue light and photo-pollution. It’s light, easily absorbed and delivers an instant glow.
Special power? In this case it’s organic mango leaf extract which improves skin’s self defence by 64% and cares for it at the same time.
Goes without saying that it protects against UV rays, too: a best-buddy for the face. Never too late (or early) to acquire one…
ELEMIS Targeted Toning Body Moisturiser 200ml £55.20
My wobbly bits aren’t quite so free-spirited now I’ve discovered Elemis’ new body moisturiser, but I wish I’d done my homework a little sooner. Anyone need an unwanted granny swimsuit…?
I BOUGHT a skirted swimsuit. What possessed me? I’m not 19, with the body of a nymph. On holiday I looked like one of those plump Italian grannies you see wallowing in the shallows for hours on end with their chums, all chattering at once. Except without the chums, of course. I had to make do with a husband who could barely suppress his mirth.
Even wriggling into the thing was a monumental challenge - two layers of cripplingly hot stretchy stuff - and drying it after swims took aeons. I binned the thing on day three and spent 60 euros on the only other one-piece I could find on our tiny Greek island - equally unsuitable (frills!) but less bulky. Needs must.
My legs have gone, you see. Not the bottom halves, they’re passable on a good day, with a slathering of fake tan. But the thighs, oh, the thighs. What are they like?
I’ll tell you: concertinas. My mum’s when she hit her 80s. I’ve no idea what happened.
Hence the swim-skirt, for a modicum of coverage. But what I should have been relying on was a tube of Elemis Targeted Toning Body Moisturiser. That's the tragedy of hindsight.
Even more distressingly, I had some on the bathroom shelf back home. Racheal had given me some to try and I’d failed to read the leaflet, which explained that this isn’t just really excellent body moisturiser (although it is) but has clinically-proven credentials on the cellulite-busting front.
Used in combination with a daily massage routine, it’s designed to improve the appearance of those hated dimply bits - and it does, according to the 30 women who trialled it, who all said it visibly reduced the appearance of cellulite after eight weeks of use.
Nigari Salt and Jania Rubens are the magic ingredients here - no, me neither, but ask Racheal and her girls, they’ll know - and they help to tighten, tone and firm up the wobbly bits, but the massage is key to success.
I’d just been slathering it on and thinking, ‘wow, amazing’, because it’s gorgeous, transforming from rich cream to hyper-nourishing oil when you apply it. It’s worked wonders for my sun-exposed limbs, sinks in almost instantly and feels like silk.
Then Amelia mentioned the price, which isn’t insubstantial, and gave me a gentle ticking-off for not using it properly, looking at me as if to say, ‘what are we going to do with you?’
No longer. My homework is done, and the Targeted Toning Body Moisturiser and I are firm friends. I’m treating that tube (a gorgeous deep aquamarine, by the way) with due reverence.
If you’re off on holiday and want to tone up beforehand, give it a try. Take some with you - it’s a beautiful body cream in its own right (try some from the tester tube when you’re next in the salon).
I might never have needed that frilly number if I’d only read up on it as I should.
Conclusion? It’s well worth the suitcase space. And your limbs will love you for it.
Clarins Extra Firming Skincare Range
Giant leap for Clarins
There’s a powerful new botanical ingredient in Clarins’ brand-new Extra-firming Day and Night Creams. And it’s got Di's skin bouncing…
KANGAROO FLOWER. Who knew that was a thing? Not me. But I liked the sound of them. Actually the full name is kangaroo paw flower, they come from (brace yourselves for the big reveal) Australia, and they can’t get enough of them in California. Or Japan. Or at Clarins, as it turns out, because the exotic, deep-red blooms are a key ingredient in their new, Extra-Firming Day and Night Creams.
‘Extra’ and ‘firming’ - that’s a magic word-combo for anyone of my (mature) vintage. Anything that promises to ‘put the spring back into your skin’ is worth checking out. If natural ingredients are involved all the better, and there are plenty of them in these two new beauties - plus a reassuring dollop of science. I won’t blind you with it, because during initial research my eyes glazed over somewhere between the words ethnobotanists and fibroconectin. What perked me up was the promise of smooth, even, visibly firmer skin, and overnight regeneration.
The botanical extract is key - kangaroo flowers are highly successful regenerators thanks to their irresistibility to birds, and that natural ability is harnessed here. ‘I’ll have a bit of that,’ the birds think, and now, so can we.
What more can I tell you? The creams are gorgeous. My skin lapped them up, especially the night cream, which has a reassuringly dense texture (shades of Creme de la Mer) that sinks in almost instantly. I set great store by night creams: that’s when the most intense regeneration happens and you need something with welly.
The day cream is a delight: I loved the way it prepared and smoothed my face for the day’s base. That they smell good and come in beautiful, heavy-glass pots goes without saying: Clarins always gets that right. It takes a powerful beast to prise me from my beloved Elemis Pro-Collagen creams but this pair is pushing all the buttons. My (newly peeled) face isn’t just lapping them up. It’s loving them.
* I say: In short, this new combination of organic plant extracts works on the bits we want to preserve, encourage and increase - collagen, elastin and worryingly-named but important fibroblasts.
* They say: Expert firming wrinkle control day cream with a fresh and silky texture that puts the spring back into your skin. Key ingredient, extract of kangaroo flower, helps plump and firm the skin for a smoother, radiant and visibly younger-looking complexion, wrinkles visibly reduced, facial contours appear sculpted, instant smoothing effect,radiance, skin protected from the harmful effects of pollution
Extra Firming Day Cream All Skin Types, £48.30 
Extra Firming Day Cream for Dry Skin, £48.30
Extra Firming Day Cream SPF15 All Skin Types, £48.30
Extra Firming Night Cream All Skin Types, £51.70
Extra Firming Night Cream for Dry Skin, £51.70
