I’ve been asked, by several customers, if I have a product that can help this condition for them. Although I’m fortunate not to suffer this condition myself, I have friends and family that do, and I can see this one of those conditions that can diminish self confidence and prevent enjoyment of just day to day activities when it strikes.

What Exactly is Rosacea?

(pronounced “roh-ZAY-sha”) is a chronic and potentially life-disruptive disorder primarily of the facial skin, often characterized by flare-ups and remissions. Many have observed that it typically begins any time after age 30 as a redness on the cheeks, nose, chin or forehead that may come and go. (National Rosacea Society)

As part of my skincare solutions range – I’ve created a serum called ‘Thread Vein Serum’ that is perfect for helping out. Although, as always, you need to seek medical advice for conditions that are on going or severe, I’ve done my research and I’ve produced a serum designed to help.

What can be done to help ease the condition?

According to  Rosacea.org,  the most popular triggers for a bout of Rosacea are sun exposure, hot weather and stress. Other triggers can be anything from hot baths, spicy food to skincare products. In general anything that puts a stress on your skin can cause a flare-up.

You mentioned Thread Veins…..

Yes. This is what I suffer from – mainly around my nostrils and on my cheeks – Thread veins or ‘spider veins’ are little red wiggly lines that appear on the skin. Although they can be covered up by make- up, they’re unsightly and to be honest, I was very aware of them. Mine were triggered by cold weather and I could literally feel them popping when I was outdoors in the winter.

In the end I went to a clinic and for £70 (2014) had a one-off treatment to laser them. The result was immediate and extremely effective. I went to the Norwich Cosmetic Clinic and I can  recommend them. It wasn’t painful (hmm…maybe like and elastic band snapping on the skin) but it was worth it.

The serum I’ve designed won’t get rid of thread veins once they appear – but it will help to prevent and reduce further damage.

Active ingredients

There are 3 active ingredients I’ve added to this serum that are known to have properties to help keep the skin cool, calm and collected. They are:

• Witch hazel hydrosol (not to be confused with the ordinary witch hazel you get from the chemists that is preserved in alcohol.
• Sea Buckthorn C02 Extract
• Rose Otto Essential Oil

Witch Hazel Hydrosol – Witch Hazel has been around in medicine cabinets for years and years. It’s got quite a distinctive fragrance and has astringent qualities so it’s used for cooling and cleaning the skin. It contains tannins (I’ve only ever heard of this in red wine before now!)  – The astringent qualities of Witch Hazel helps to tighten the skin and therefore helps to reduce and sooth inflammation of veins. See here for more information

Sea Buckthorn Co2 Extract – Sea Buckthorn is relatively new on the scene and while some parties feel it does have visible benefits in helping Rosacea and Thread Veins, it’s difficult to pin point what exactly the chemical composition is in the Sea Buckthorn that is responsible. However, the qualities of the extract are

• Anti-inflammatory
• Auto immune moderator
• Vascular healer (helps strengthen blood vessels and cell walls)
• Anti-Microbial
• Protects the skin against sun damage
• Contains Quercetin, an ingredient in Sea Buckthorn berries, which is an antihistamine  – see here for more information

Just as an aside….

“Why a CO2 Extract instead of essential oil?” I hear you cry – well quite simply because this method of extraction helps with keeping all the active ingredients ‘active’ due to the cooler extraction process – typically only reaching temperatures of 38c as opposed to steam distillation reaching temperatures up to 100c (boiling point). There’s more information about this extraction process at Eden Botanicals 

Rose Otto Essential Oil – Okay, this is the expensive ingredient but it’s the best and quite frankly when it comes to essential oils, you get what you pay for. Rose Otto is slightly different to Rose Absolute in the extraction process. This Essential Oil doesn’t run the risk of containing alcohol remnants left over from the extraction process.  And Rose Otto is just balancing, calming it’s also an astringent and anti-inflammatory to help calm and sooth that skin down. I get this oil from a local distillery Norfolk Essential Oils which I have personally visited. Yep…I do my homework for you.

So look out for this serum coming soon and in the meantime – keep it cool and calm.

See here for more information about the serums coming available in the range soon.