In praise of Rhassoul Clay

We're continuing our series on Autumnal skincare, with this short feature on the benefits of gentle facial exfoliation.

Colder weather means that it’s even more important to exfoliate the skin to reveal healthy, plumper new cells underneath. The summer sun can leave the skin feeling dry and tight, so using a muslin cloth as part of your cleaning approach does help. But we're great believers in the use of facial masks, and when used once or twice each week, these ensure your complexion remains bright and uncongested.

Rhassoul is a spa quality clay which has been evaluated in the USA, to test the effectiveness of including it in facial mask treatments. This research concluded that rhassoul clay gave measurable improvements in skin clarity, elasticity and texture and even reduced dryness even after one treatment! It has a very unusual texture when mixed with water - becoming cooling and almost gel-like when it's applied to the skin. We selected this remarkable clay for our masks since it is very gentle, so can be tolerated by all skin types, and it cleans without stripping sebum from the skin. (Readers may be more familiar with green clay masks, which can be quite harsh and drawing on the skin, cracking as they dry out). Instead our non-drying cream clay masks contain rhassoul with hydrolat flower waters, jojoba and coconut oils, soothing aloe vera, D-panthenol, glycerine and botanical extracts. You can read more about these natural ingredients at: http://www.natroma.co.uk/store/d5-exfoliators-rhassoul-clay-masks/

On a personal note, I find that rhassoul clay can be a life saver when my very sensitive skin decides to have a nasty flare up! I have mild roseaca and it misbehaved just recently, so I quickly reached for my rhassoul clay mask to calm things down again. I’m pleased to say that it cooled the uncomfortable burning sensation, and over the next few days was invaluable for exfoliating away the nasty little dry bumps that formed on the surface of my cheeks. So I definitely love rhassoul clay!

Why your cleanser needs a muslin cloth

We've noticed that muslin cloths are a bit of a mystery to some visitors to the studio. At first this came as a bit of shock since we've been using them for years, and think they should be an essential part of any skincare regime.

So why are they so good? It's because they are great for removing facial cleansers and masks, since they gently exfoliate the skin at the same time. The trick is to apply the cream cleanser or mask product and gently massage across the skin. Then rinse the muslin cloth in hand-hot water, and wring it out so it feels warm and damp when applied to the skin. The cloth will feel really soft, so there's no danger of scratching or irritating the skin - and you will feel cleaner and refreshed after each use since they lightly stimulate the skin.

The nice thing about muslin cloths is that they can easily be laundered and re-used, so they're good for the environment. We'd suggest that you should have at least a couple of muslin cloths, so whilst one is being used the other is in the wash. Ours have a nice weave so they dry quickly and unlike a traditional flannel, they won't be a breeding ground for bacteria. We also took a while sourcing our cloths for Natroma and have them specially made for us by a small English community company, so it's also nice to know that we're supporting training and job creation too.

So the next time you buy a cleanser, why not try a muslin cloth? We're sure that you'll love the way your skin feels, and they'll become an essential part of your daily skincare regime! As a special encouragement to try out muslin cloths during May 2009, we'll send you a FREE muslin cloth when you purchase a full size 100ml Natroma Cleanser. This offer will apply to studio and website orders received before 31 May 2009.