We had the chance to spend some time with one of the most knowledgeable and inspiring Girl Bosses we know, Michèle Evrard. Michèle is the Founder of M.E. Skinlabs and creator of the cult favorite French skin care line, Cosmetics 27. We often have marathon Skype sessions with Michèle (from Paris) that cover everything from skin care to supplements to sleep patterns and everything in between! She has a singular outlook and wealth of information that we are excited to share with you.

What is Your Background?

I am a pharmacist. I studied Pharmacy in Belgium. I wanted to work in a lab on formulation & product development. I started as an intern at Max Factor in the US, only I was integrated in the marketing department. That’s how I started my career in fragrance and cosmetics. I worked at Max Factor for 2 years on product development. I learned most of the job there and owe it to the incredible women who were at the beginning of what this industry has become! I have been in this industry for over 24 years, working on product development, my passion, and marketing in companies such as L’Oréal, Christian Dior Parfums, Boucheron Parfums and Matis skin care. I decided to create my own products in 2008 and launched Baume 27 in 2009.

What Led You to Create the Cosmetics 27 Line?

My passion for product and innovation, clearly! I had worked on the concept of a unique formula for 3 years after I had discovered the virtues of Centella Asiatica. I have always been fascinated  by cellular regeneration. It was when I left my last position and set up my own consulting firm that I decided to develop that formula for myself. It was the Baume 27. That was the beginning of the Cosmetics 27 line that came out the year after.

What Differentiates Cosmetics 27 From Other Skin Care Lines?

My philosophy is not so much about selling or adding another product to the market. After all, everything, or almost everything, is already out there! I created my line with the idea that it helps taking care of the skin in a primary way. The underlying concept is homeostasis, the principle of equilibrium of any living organism. I want to help women have healthier, better skin. If it is healthy, it will look good. If you look good you feel beautiful. I didn’t want to sell claims, only results. I wanted to be authentic.

My products are all unique, in concept and formulae. It is not a conventional line, I create products that I feel are useful and that will bring something different. All our products are natural and thought to bring results, and we validate the results by extensive testing. The line is among pioneers in the field of natural cosmeceuticals .

What Skin Care Advice Can You Share With Us?

The first advice I give is: get to know your skin! You will know how to treat it and maintain it better. Too many women use and abuse products and treatments. Be good to your skin.

Adopt a simple routine, clean your skin gently, don’t abuse the sun (that’s not to say stay away from it!). Massage skin as often as you can, it is a the first step to prevent skin aging. Drink water, a lot, don’t smoke and laugh a lot!

In terms of skin care, I recommend mixing the different products you use (in your hand) before applying them. It helps achieve the right formula and texture for a specific skin. You dose the products better and will know how much you need to apply by testing and feeling different amounts. If you apply them one on top of the other, you might use too much or not get the best out of each product. This is how I use my products; you can adapt them to your needs. For example, if the Baume 27 is too rich for daytime, you can add a few drops of the Essence 27 and you will have your own preferred texture with the benefits of both products. The formulae are all thought to be complementary and not additional. It is not the skin that adapts to the products, the product can be adapted depending on the skin need and condition.

What Are You Especially Passionate About in the Field of Skin Care?

I am passionate about what will become integrative beauty. I am interested in integrative medicine, which is maybe more popular in the US than it is in our countries (Europe). In essence, integrative medicine focuses on the patient’s wellness and health rather than treating a disease. It means that the patient is at the center, and takes charge of his own health. It takes its roots in oriental medicine and therapies, including allopathy, homeopathy, osteopathy and traditional medicine. It’s medicine that treats the body and soul. Beauty will get there! I like the idea that there is not one treatment solution for all, but that we are all different. It has already started in the US with the concept of integrative spas.

Travel Beauty Tip: For those of us with dry and/or mature skin that can become even more dehydrated over the winter, mix 4 -5 drops of Huile 27 in your hands with Baume 27. It gives that added extra moisture that skin is thirsty for this time of year. Can also be used as a face, hair and cuticle oil.

In anticipation of our Meet the Ingredients event this Sunday, we sat down with Lavido founder, Ido Magal, to discuss the genesis of his skin care line, Lavido.

What spurred your passion for natural skin care?

Ido: My passion for natural skincare began very early and is tied to scents. My first memorable experience with scent was that of jasmine and neroli blossom at my uncle’s citrus farm. These plants can be found all over the Galilee.

How did Lavido come to be?

Ido: Again I have to say scents. One of my first experiences with scents was my father’s after shave lotion. It was a strong smelling lotion, and at a very early age I made the connection between products with scent and my favorite natural scents. Much later, when I started studying aromatherapy and herbal and Chinese medicine in college, all my formative and college experiences coalesced, and eventually became Lavido’s first product, a baby cream for my family.

Do you have a favorite ingredient, or is there a superstar ingredient that you include in many different formulations?

Ido: I think from my line it’s pretty obvious my favorite ingredient is pomegranate – the seeds, skin, juice, everything. I began working with pomegranate 10 years ago when it was a very fresh, new material for skincare here in Israel. In fact, the oil was being studied for its anti-cancer properties at the Technion at the time. Long story short, I received some samples of the oil, enlisted my family as my first test group, read everything I could find, and Lavido’s Pomegranate series was the result.

This is an exciting time for natural and organic skin care. What differentiates Lavido from other natural/organic skin care lines that are coming on the scene?

Ido: When it comes to the natural market, a major value that differentiates Lavido is that we are bringing the best of the conventional cosmetic market to the natural, organic market. So we combine high concentrations of the best raw, organic plant-based ingredients with much needed safety and efficacy standards from the conventional market, including clinical and dermatology testing. Another property unique to Lavido is our use of volcanic thermal springs and purified waters from the Sea of Galilee. Besides providing the livelihood of inhabitants around it for millennia, the Sea of Galilee’s mineral rich thermal springs have been used for just as long to support healing and health.

What anti-aging or other advice would you give about skin care?

Ido: My anti-aging advice sounds simple, but this path is not often enough taken in our modern world. Some basic rules: get the right amount of sleep and water. Use as many natural ingredients as possible for anything that goes in and on your body. Invite aromatherapy into your life – it’s truly effective when it comes to de-stressing the mind and calming the body. Finally, I am a big proponent of all things pomegranate for both internal and external use.

A question that comes up frequently in the beauty industry—whether it’s beauty editors, news publications, blogs, founders of beauty product lines or friends asking for advice—is “What is your top beauty secret?” or “What is the most important thing that I can do to keep my skin looking great?”

There is No Magic Bullet

The truth is that there is no one THING, product, practice or secret that will keep you looking like you are 19 through your 90s. Like everything else in life, looking—and more importantly, feeling—great takes work and consistent care. If your skin is really important to you, take care of it by going for regular facials, even if you only go quarterly. Preventative care is essential. Also, commit to some kind of a regimen. You don’t have to spend endless hours with masks and all types of steps, but commit to cleansing and toning your skin and find a serum and moisturizer that works for you and use it. Establish some type of ritual for morning and evening. If you are lazy like me, your night ritual might be using an Ursa Major Essential Face Wipe and following it with 5 drops of Cosmetics 27 Huile 27. It takes about 60 seconds. The point is, just do something!

Tuning Into What We Need

Whether we are talking about hair, skin or body, the first step to taking proper care of ourselves is tuning into what our bodies need. If you have been to a good nutritionist, (I was lucky enough to find Joy Bauer) she will go over basics of what are and are not good food choices, but she will also tell you to listen to your body. If we take a moment to sit still with ourselves, our bodies will tell us what we need. It is really remarkable. Have you ever been thinking about what you wanted to eat for dinner and felt like a big juicy steak and spinach? Now, I am not a physician or nutritionist (and vegans, please cover your ears), but its possible that at that moment, your body was in need of iron and animal protein. Similarly, ever notice on really hot summer days, we tend to gravitate towards salads and fruits and eat a little lighter? Those foods are mostly water based and our bodies are likely in need of hydration. In the same way that we should be listening to our bodies to know what they need on a given day to perform optimally, we also need to learn to listen to our skin.

Notice Patterns

I hope this does not sound too out there, but think about it: in the winter, our skin tends to dry out from the cool frosty air and wind, so we might mix a face oil with a rich moisturizer, B. Kamins Replenishing Moisturizer Kx, for example, to give our skin the protection that it needs. Whereas on a warmer summer day, when you might find a blemish appearing and you skin is already feeling moist from the humid air, you might mix a few drops of a serum (Right now I am using Cosmetics 27 Essence 27) with a daily anti-aging sunscreen, such as Institut Esthederm Bronz Repair Face Cream SPF 20, or a light BB Cream (B. Kamins makes a great one), and call it a day.

There is No One-Cure-Fits-All

In other words, there is no one best beauty or skin care tip that’s a one-cure-fits-all. Do your reading and research. See what the experts are saying, but then tune into your skin. Take a moment and look at your face in the mirror and examine its landscape. Is there a part of your face where blemishes tend to pop up with seasonal weather changes? For me its on either side of my chin and occurs with seasonal weather changes, mostly at times when temperatures change significantly, so at the beginning of the summer and then again when the temperatures really drop transitioning into winter. Start to notice these patterns and shift your facial care regimen slightly to accommodate your skin’s needs. There are no hard and fast rules for certain seasons, either. You may find during the summer that after a day in the sun, your skin is really dry and needs some TLC…have that rich winter moisturizer on hand! (Think Cosmetics 27 Baume 27 It is perfect for after sun care.)

A Word on Anti-aging and Massage

A tip that I picked up from both from skin care expert Yasmine Djerradine and Michele Evrard, the pharmacist that founded of M.E. SkinLab, the company that manufactures the Cosmetics 27 skin care line, which I love…is massaging the face.

Massaging The Face

When applying product, morning and evening, take an extra 30 seconds or more (if you have the patience), and actually massage the product in. Whether you are using a serum, face oil or moisturizer, literally spread it on from the bridge of your nose in horizontal downward strokes toward your cheeks and press hard, then move your fingers up the bridge of your nose, between your eyebrows and smooth down those annoying lines that start to form in your mid-thirties. I do this at least 8 times. Next, spread your fingers, position them on top of your eyebrows and applying pressure, move them up to your hair line and repeat. Then do the same in your temple area. Just try it, it feels good. It will also release any tension that you may already carry in that area, which will prevent future lines that may appear as a result of scrunching your forehead.

Massaging The Eye Area

While applying under eye cream, apply pressure, and starting from the under eye area closest to your nose, sweep your fingers up the half moon shape of your under eye area all the way through where your crows feet might start. Repeat this 3-4 times. Apply even more pressure there and repeat specifically in that area.

Got Smile Lines?

Make sure to apply pressure in that area, in the opposite direction that the lines tend to flow. If you are uncertain, moving your fingers up your face is usually a safe bet.  You will wake up the dermis and muscles directly under it as well as get the blood flowing. Think of it as exercise for the muscles in your face.

Stay tuned for more holistic beauty tips that actually work from our panel of beauty experts and our regular girls at Travel Beauty.