Anyone who is regularly on social media (us!), who follows health or beauty blogs (us!), or even who just has friends in the beauty-know (also us!), will have heard more and more in the past year or two about using clay as part of a regular skin care routine.
The benefits of clay have been known for a long time, so why are clay masks all of a sudden ALL over our news feed? Ok, so the answer may be obvious; there was no Instagram news feedback in the pre-historic era when clay was first known as being used in beauty treatments… (duh!) But the other answer is quite simply that we are all turning back to the earth when choosing what we put on our skin, and looking for the best bang for our buck in doing so!
To let you in on a secret, we here at RY also jumped on the clay bandwagon a couple of years ago now, and we like to use them regularly (our top tip – use them every fortnight, alternating with a hydrating mask every other week).
BUT, what is the nitty gritty (ha, get it?!) behind WHY they work for us?
Mineral rich = toxin removal
Minerals are vital in supporting all of our bodily processes, and are found in abundance in clay. We need minerals to grow, to absorb different nutrients, and to convert food into energy.
So what happens when we put clay on our skin? Well due to clay’s negatively charged molecules, it binds to the positively charged molecules such as bacteria & toxins, and draws them out through the surface of the skin.
Or, in summary, it gets out the bad stuff!
Oil absorbing = makes way for the good stuff
Clay is absorbent, so during that time it is on your skin it is mopping up all that excess oil that we don’t need.
You know that feeling as your clay mask dries as you are wearing it? You can almost visualize the clay drawing out the excess oil from your skin and trapping it in it’s dry, crackly shell.
Exfoliating = day ready skin!
When clay dries and is removed from your skin, it takes with it all the dead skin cells that were loitering on the surface. What’s left is skin as smooth as can be, waiting to be smothered in your favourite serums & moisurisers.
But an added bonus! Due to it’s granular qualities, you can also use the clay as a physical exfoliant when you are first applying the mask. We like to exfoliate the skin in little circular motions all over the face when first applying the clay, smother a little more on top, leave it on for 15 minutes, and then wash off. Double whammy!!
So, what are we using right now? A mix of bentonite clay, french green clay, white kaolin clay plus some added coconut shell charcoal, which are all packaged up into Raw Naturel’s Detoxifying Face Mask.
Raw Naturel’s clay masks have been formulated from years of research and trial & error, and all ingredients are (importantly!) natural and ethically produced. You can find Raw Naturel’s Detoxifying Face Mask in our Winter 2018 box, or here: www.rawnaturel.com.au.