A first look at a brand-new Irish skincare launch …
You know when you see someone with amazing skin and long to know what they’re using? I met Edel Kinane this week, the creative expert behind Tastemaker, a brand and style consultancy. Her own skin is absolutely glowing, and this is the secret behind it: she’s just launched her first beauty product, Tastemaker Moroccan Prickly Pear Seed Oil.
On a trip to Marrakech, Kinane came across a facial oil in a souk, and was intrigued by it. She found it beautiful to use on her skin and was determined to bring it back to Ireland. “I went back to Morocco to source and bottle a 100 per cent organic, cold-pressed oil of uncompromising quality.” After the lengthy process of finding a Moroccan supplier, the next steps were having it certified organic, and carrying out consumer testing.
Prickly Pear is sourced from the seeds of a cactus plant. “It takes over one tonne of prickly pear fruit from the Opuntia Ficus cactus to produce just one litre of this extraordinary oil,” says Kinane. “It’s rich in vitamin E – three times more than in argan oil, in fact.” The key is that it’s rich in linoleic acid, a natural moisturiser that repairs the skin barrier, and antioxidants.
While I’ve seen prickly pear as an ingredient in skincare previously, I haven’t seen it as a single ingredient. It features, for example, in Irene Forte’s bestselling Prickly Pear Face Cream, and Youth to the People’s Superberry Oil. When you learn more about it, it seems clear that it should have its day in the sun, along with better-known oils such as rosehip. It’s a multitasker that you can use on the ends of hair and on nails as well as skin.
The opaque bottle is crucial to protect the quality of the oil inside, otherwise it would oxidise. We love the cobalt blue, inspired by the famous Yves Saint Laurent Majorelle Garden in Marrakech.
It’s early days, but Kinane’s already had very positive feedback from people who’ve tried out the oil, who report that it softens lines and gives skin an elasticity and radiance. It works incredibly well added to your moisturiser, she says – you only need a drop. I’ve just started using it and particularly see its appeal for giving skin an immediate visible boost and glow, particularly older skin that welcomes such a hit of lasting hydration. This tiny bottle (15ml), €49, is a natural luxury that’s set to become an insider’s secret weapon.
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