The Style Page interview with Kirsten Kjaer Weis

Kirsten Kjaer (pronounced Ki-ar) Weis sought to marry organic cosmetics with glam packaging. To this end, she collaborated with designer Marc Atlan to create the packaging for her cosmetics line Kjaer Weis. The Kjaer Weis collection comprises crème blushes, lip tints, and eye shadows. The one of a kind packaging features red lacquered grain-textured boxes that encase refillable metal compacts that swing open and close with a click that sounds like “a classic Mercedes door closing,” as she says it.

Kirsten Kjaer Weis

The Style Page posed a few questions to Kirsten Kjaer Weis:

You grew up on a farm in Denmark, where the nearest “big city” had a population of 1,500. Since then, you’ve lived in Paris and California and now you’re settled in New York City. Did growing up in a relatively isolated location fuel your wanderlust?

Yes, I think it did, I have always known that I wanted to travel and eventually live abroad, it feels like it was in my blood, a desire for seeing the world, different cultures, ways of living, getting as much out of the “smorgasbord” of life as possible.

What brought you to New York City?

A great desire for working as a make-up artist in New York and it also fit my personal/relationship situation.

You wanted to marry organic cosmetics with glam packaging. Your packaging is one of a kind. What was the inspiration for the design? Denmark is famous for its modern design. Was Danish design an inspiration for the packaging?

For the design I give credit to Marc Atlan, hands down. When we first met I showed him my “mood board” of things that have meaning to me, everything from swaps of fabric to a beautiful hand writing I had seen to a painting ect, I explained my vision for a green product with a design/glamorous outside, yet sustainable. I also liked the idea of having a distinct color and left him with free hands and a feeling that we were very much on the same wavelength. He called me 2 month later and said he had come up with a great concept, he was right:)

Vivesana organic sun care

Vivesana Suncare

Vivesana calls itself "the planet's first 100% natural, 70% organic high performance and baby sunscreen." It seeks to blend safe, sustainable ingredients with style.

Vivesana provides:

* the first 70% organic baby and high performance sun care on the market.
* the first 100% natural sun care with strong protection SPF (40 & 42)
* the first sun care - as far as it knows - to use exclusively US-grown organics and domestic, sustainable, BPA-free packaging.

Its products include Solar to Polar Baby and Solar to Polar Ultra sunscreens.

It's no surprise that the active ingredients in Vivesana sun care were titanium dioxide and zinc oxide minerals, both barrier sunscreens. Plant oils and extracts are "carrier" ingredients.

Be prepared: Vivesana sunscreens are as thick as ointment. Its sunscreens are packaged in metal squeeze tubes, which are less common, as companies move to plastic squeeze tubes.

Some might not like the thick consistency and the white cover that Vivesana provides. However, for those people who have sensitive skin and/or who want an organic, natural product that performs and has style, then Vivesana is a very good choice.

Belegenza Extraordinary Hair Care

Belegenza Extraordinary Hair Care advertises its products as silicone-free, paraben-free, phthalate-free, sulfate-free, mineral oil-free, petrolatum-free, and urea-free. Its web site focuses on silicone, particularly its occlusive properties, in conventional hair products. Belegenza argues that silicone “suffocates” the scalp and has published testimonials from customers who claimed that their hair began growing out by using its products. See my article on silicones.

When I try products described as natural and organic, I want to find out if they work as well as conventional products. To compare, I checked the labels of shampoos and conditioners from L’Oreal and Joico. L’Oreal and Joico had some silicones and parabens, and if there were oils, the oils were plant oils.

Styling products, particularly pomades, often contain petrolatum. I don’t use styling products. My hairdresser is obsessive about the hair cut and eschews styling products, which he calls “glue.”

Ingredient lists aside, how well do Belegenza products perform? I tried GrowOut Shampoo and Strengthener, EnCore Leave-in Conditioner, and RoMANce Deep Conditioning Treatment. The shampoo is milder than conventional shampoos, so I do “rinse and repeat.” I apply RoMANce Deep Conditioning Treatment and cover my hair with a shower cap while I’m shaving or soaking in the tub. I use the EnCore Leave-in Conditioner, when I’m pressed for time.

Am I dreaming, or is it real, that my hair is bouncier and looks more voluminous after using Belegenza? Whatever, I like the results and I’ll continue using Belegenza products.

Josie Maran Cosmetics

Former Maybelline model Josie Maran wanted to create an eco-friendly cosmetics line with glamour and sophistication. Josie Maran Cosmetics are formulated from organic ingredients. Even the packaging (pink-gold metal) is recyclable.

Josie Maran Lipstick

I tried Josie Maran Lipstick and Concealer.

The lipstick went on slick, even wet, spread beyond the lips, and dried down to a lip stain finish, complete with a tingling sensation. I used Mysterious, described as a sheer wine, but it is deeper and more matte than shown on Josie Maran Cosmetics' website. On one hand, Mysterious seemed to shrink the size of my lips; on the other, it was so dark, it looked goth.

The stick concealer is dryer than other stick concealers I've tried. I used Butter, which is indeed yellow, for light skin tones. This spring, Josie Maran has added two additional shades of concealer: Creme for very fair skin tones and Espresso for for rich/deep skin tones.

You may shop Josie Maran Cosmetics online at josiemarancosmetics.com, Vert, or Sephora.com.

More on standards and certification of natural and organic products

Recurring themes on The Style Page blog have been the standardization of what constitutes natural and/or organic personal care products and certification of products as "natural" or "organic." I am not a purist, I write on these issues to inform consumers about the myriad standards and certification activities out there.

Standards and certification activities provide no information on how well "natural" and "organic" products perform vis-à-vis conventional products. Recently, I wrote to a woman who generously supplied me with samples from Miessence, a direct sales company from Australia, that I was disappointed with the performance of its foundation. While the Miessence foundation didn't sting like the Organic wear™ 100% Natural Origin Tinted Moisturizer from Physicians Formula, the mixture of water, oils, and powder was not sufficiently blended into an agglomerate-free whole.

Monique of beauty girl musings published an article on standards and certification for natural personal care products announced by the Natural Products Association on May 1.

Separately, Christopher of Christopher Drummond Beauty, republished a letter that threatened to sue manufacturers and the Ecocert (which certified Physicians Formula's Organic wear products) and OASIS certification bodies for their claims of "organic" products. Ecocert was singled out for including water as an organic product(!) The letter was written by David Bronner of Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps and Ronnie Cummins, Executive Director, Organic Consumers Association (OCA). The letter is long and technical and refers to a survey that is apparently about consumers' perceptions of what constitutes organic products.

Dr. Bronner's and OCA has since filed suit against the manufacturers, Ecocert, and OASIS. The hyperlinked article from Cosmeticsdesign-europe.com notes what I have contended: The natural and organics cosmetics industry has long been suffering from the lack of an internationally recognizable, reputable standard

Standards-setting and certification for organic personal care products

In several posts (here, here, and here) on The Style Page blog, I've highlighted various activities to set standards and certification rules for what constitutes "natural" or "organic" personal care products (note that "natural" and "organic" are not necessarily synonyms). Vendor participation in these programs is voluntary.

Mischo Beauty posted an article about the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Organic Program, or NOP. According to the USDA,

The National Organic Program (NOP) develops, implements, and administers national production, handling, and labeling standards for organic agricultural products. The NOP also accredits the certifying agents (foreign and domestic) who inspect organic production and handling operations to certify that they meet USDA standards.

In another article, Mischo Beauty highlights another voluntary program to certify products as "biodynamic."

Bottom line: Given the plethora of standards-setting and certification activities, an international voluntary standard that specifies what constitutes organic personal care products should be established through ISO.

Organic wear™ 100% Natural Origin Tinted Moisturizer

Organic wear™ 100% Natural Origin Tinted Moisturizer

It is such a great concept: a organic cosmetics line certified by Ecocert that you can readily find at Walgreen's, CVS, Rite-Aid, big-box retailers, and supermarkets with a comprehensive beauty department.

However, Organic wear™ 100% Natural Origin Tinted Moisturizer is one of the worst products that I've bought and used recently. While it contains good-for-you plant oils, it also reeks of alcohol and the amount of alcohol is sufficient to dry the skin. My face felt tight after I allowed the product to dry. Why alcohol? This FAQ from Miessence, a direct sales company from Australia which sells organic products certified by Australian Certified Organic, provides some clues:

... alcohol is used to extract plant materials. ... Alcohol carries active plant extracts into the skin. A natural emulsifier and stabilizer, alcohol acts as a preservative.

Still, the product packaging states Shake Well Before Using, no doubt to mix the water and plant oils. I didn't see that the first time I used this tinted moisturizer.

I'm taking Organic wear™ 100% Natural Origin Tinted Moisturizer back to the store!

North American certification for natural and organic cosmetics

From Cosmeticsdesign.com comes this article Natural and organic certification developed specifically for cosmetics. Canadian organization Certech Registration Inc. announces certification of cosmetics products as "organic." The certification rules have the same requirements as those provided by Ecocert, a certification body based in France.

Currently, the only products that Certech Registration Inc. has certified are eaurganic products from Canadian company d'Avicenna. This does not mean other products do not meet Certech's requirements; it might mean that other companies have not submitted their products for certification. It would be interesting to know what certification costs: for example, a CEO of a small independent cosmetics company told me that one pays $10,000 per year for the Skin Cancer Foundation's Seal of Recommendation. Certification or recognition therefore would be prohibitive for small companies such as hers.

NSF International, another product certification body, plans to roll out its own rules for organic products this spring, if these rules are agreed upon.

For other articles on The Style Page blog about organic cosmetics, see Who Needs Soy Lecithin? 'S.T. Lawder,' Naturally - WSJ.com and Work Initiated on American National Standard for Organic Personal Care Products.

In a subsequent article, I'll review Organic wear™ 100% Natural Origin Tinted Moisturizer from Physicians Formula. The Organic wear™ line advertises itself as the first Ecocert certified Organic Line of Makeup in the U.S.

Futurenatural

I received an email from Organic Glamazon alerting me about Futurenatural, which aims to be Sephora for organic and natural beauty products. This online shopping site has been live for less than 2 months.

Brands include Jo Wood Organics (from the wife of Rolling Stones guitarist Ron Wood), Kimberly Sayer, Mod Skin Labs, Marseilles de Savon, Tsi-La, Suki, Farmaesthetics, Hamadi, and Malie.

As for me, I'm coveting these multi-taskers from Sukicolor:


Suki Pure Cream Stain in Clay