Face-grade ingredients in bodycare
Odacite's founder Valerie Grandury thinks our bodies deserve the same love we lavish on our faces
If you are already one of my regular readers - and if you are not, maybe this is the prompt you needed ? - you will know that I made a solemn vow in the beginning of this year to take better care to my body, as well as bring more conversations and bodycare products to your attention. And it seems that I am not alone in my intention to focus more on my body going forward - Odacite founder Valerie Grandbury has been taking good care of her body and skin for years, after breast cancer diagnosis turned her life upside down many years ago. Luckily, not only did Valerie beat the disease, it spurred her on to create skin (and later bodycare) products that nourish and nurture the skin, but also give her customers the confidence in their efficacy and diligence of formulation. People who faced and battled cancer certainly won’t apply anything to their skin that will potentially compromise it’s healthy balance or negatively impact their health again.
Odacite was launched in 2009 and since then many women of different ages have had a chance to put the products to the test and see visible results in their skin. In my recent conversation with Valerie I couldn’t help but chuckle and nod when she talked about skin being our biggest organ, yet many people remaining oblivious to this fact and insulting and disrespecting it, jeopardising their well-being in the process.
In February Valerie and her team engaged with international press and influencers to talk with them ahead of Odacite’s two bodycare launches that were a long-time coming in their formulation and making. Science-backed and developed in brand’s own LA laboratory with the carefully sourced, “face-grade'“ ingredients, both products have unique formulations that will put a smile on user’s face. They certainly elicit a smile on my face when I use both of them in and out of the shower.
Valerie wants to encourage her customers to invest themselves more deeply in their bodies, in the same way they “invest in their faces”. Weaving the concept of ‘galenique” into this product duo - meaning a combination of touch, feel and smell in French, uniting various aspects of application. It encourages you to have a real and meaningful self care experience, which can bring tangible result in how you and your body feel afterwards, physically and sensorially. Not only will you get a proprietary blend of skin loving vitamins C and E, wild carrot and native Australian Kakadu plum, you will also be delighted by the combination of sensorial “yin and yang” via sweet orange and basil scent.
ODACITE C-Smooth Hydra-firm Body Polish
Many people still believe that for the scrub - whether for face or body - to be effective you need “to feel the burn” and Valerie draws attention that skin’s barrier is something we should have utmost respect for, rather than take liberties with. So naturally C-Smooth is not than just the average body scrub – it actually combines the resurfacing power of a scrub with the firming benefits of advanced oil-soluble Vitamin C. Dig the tips of your fingers into scrub’s surface and apply the scrub to wet skin - white sugar will effectively remove dead skin & erase rough or bumpy texture on your elbows and knees, making the skin soft and smooth. Alongside it, Shea & Mango Butters will act as a lipid barrier moisturizer, leaving skin soft and smooth to the touch. In fact, it does such a good job, you might not even feel the need to apply a body oil or balm afterwards .) This is not all the benefits of this scrub. As you massage the scrub into your skin, leaving no area unattended, the skin will also be infused with a double dose of Vitamin C – Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate (because it is oil-soluble, it won’t oxidise and will allow for deeper penetration into the epidermis, unlike some vitamin C products which oxidise, which does impact the performance of the product) a highly stable form of Vitamin C, and Kakadu Plum (a ingredient that in the last few years has become ‘trendy’ and is even used in traditional medicine, as our bodies recognises and absorbs it), which is known as one of the richest natural sources of Vitamin C.
Go into a shower a tired woman with a skin that lacks lustre and emerge if not a Venus exactly, but at least a glowing femme fatale with more toned and radiant skin. It won’t make you look like you have spent a week on a sunny beach holiday, but it will certainly visibly improve your skin for the better and make you feel more relaxed and uplifted than when you stepped into the shower. As Valerie elegantly put it during the product presentation “skin care is a rendez-vous with yourself”.
You can use body polish on all skin types (but not on irritated or broken skin) and can apply it in the morning or evening - it really comes down to when you have a little bit more time for TLC (again, Valerie’s words, not mine .) Please don’t forget to turn off the shower tap as you apply the polish all over - water is a precious resource after all and we can all do better when it comes to our own ‘sustainable’ lifestyle. Then when you are ready to wash off, focus on enjoying the scent.
Odacite C-Glow Hydra-Firm Body Oil
C-Glow is a very impressive body oil, combining age-proofing formula ( we can’t negate the effect of gravity, but we can help slow down the effect of the passage of time on our bodies ) with hydrating and firming benefits of oil-soluble double dose of Vitamin C. Synergy of Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, a highly stable form of Vitamin C and Kakadu Plum - please remember that in order to see results, like improvement of skin’s natural firmness and luminosity, you need to use the product daily, rather than sporadically - will allow you to achieve softer and more supple skin all over your body. This oil is very quickly absorbed by the skin, so you don’t have to wait longer than a few minutes before putting your clothes on - and according to Valerie you can use it on your face too. I sometimes run my hands over my hair, mid-length, down towards the tips, after applying the oil to my body, still slightly damp after the shower, which adds a touch of scent to my hair as well.
One of Odacite’s ingredient ‘secrets’, which helps to ensure faster absorption of Hydra-Firm Body Complex, is the truly magnificent face-grade Safflower Oil ( which can also be found in one of my favourite Odacite products, “Omega Oil Montana harvest cleansing oil” ) which ensures that the skin will maintain softness and suppleness with regular use. Freshly cold-pressed on demand (about four times a year currently) for Odacite by The Oil Barn in Montana (Valerie met the forward-thinking & entrepreneurial cowboy founder with passion for organic farming at one of the conferences that she was attending ) the process preserves all the nutrient benefits, including Omega 3-6-9 Essential Fatty Acids that help prevent transepidermal water loss & Oleic Acid that helps improve skin’s natural barrier function.
Applying this body oil to the skin gives you a spa-like experience at home and leaves you smelling so good, you might be tempted to shower yourself with kisses .) In case you suffer from particularly dry skin or feel that your body needs extra moisture after winter or if you have been flying, you can mix this body oil with your body lotion or apply body lotion or moisturiser first and then top your skin up with the oil.
With notes of sweet orange and basil, as well as the lightest hint of rosemary, your senses will be as uplifted as your skin by the application and experience, and as all Odacite products are clinically tested in order to make sure they won’t irritate the skin, you will be doing your skin an enormous amount of good. Valerie also has a big thing for ‘skin irritation’ and is adamant that if you react to a skin or bodycare product, then it is simply not for you. Other helpful tips in relation to this marvellously indulgent product ( ‘there is no beauty without performance’ according to Valerie) is to apply the C-Glow Oil and then gua sha your body in areas of tension, if you did a particularly strenuous gym workout, run or had a stressful day hunched over the laptop at the desk. The oil will provide a perfect ‘slip’ and help to ease the tension out of your muscles - just remember to direct your gua sha movement towards the heart. And please never combine this product with a retinoid product, nor use them at the same time!
Having used both products for just under a month, as I received them just before they were officially launched, I appreciate not only the synergy and quality of ingredients - one of the reasons I have remained a loyal Odacite customer through the years - but the simple pleasure & appreciation I derive from using them. It’s really the small things in life that matter and uplift us & high quality, efficacious skincare is something I never take for granted. Odacite prides itself on creating the best possible skin and body care products for its customers, as well as helpfully engaging with them, answering the questions and helping to match individuals to the right products for their skin type and needs.
I don’t & won’t discount the enjoyment of a good spa day, but want to highlight the importance of making sure you regularly rendezvous with yourself, caring for your face, head and body in order to live a longer, hopefully healthier and more enjoyable life. My experience with testing this Odacite bodycare proved not only to be very enjoyable, but visibly improved the appearance and feel of my skin after a seemingly very long and cold winter. Laying your hands on yourself, while nourishing your skin gives rise to positive and lasting effect that should not be underestimated. Just remember that you have to use bodycare regularly in order to see the difference, rather than just feel better in your skin.
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