The Bite Magazine - Spring Summer 2013

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BEAUTY KITCHEN
This bespoke brand was started
by Jo-Anne Chidley, a qualified
analytical chemist disillusioned
with the wealth of ‘un-natural’ products
available. With a philosophy of 100%
natural, 100% effective, Jo-Anne set out
over an extensive two year research
and development stage to source the
best ingredients and develop the best
products with no compromise: “It
would have been much quicker to bring
products to market that were 95%
natural,” she explains, “but that’s not
what I wanted to do.” This has often
meant a lengthier process of developing
products, but also a great deal more
ingenuity, with the Beauty Kitchen
shower gel using potato starch as its
foaming agent instead of sodium laurel
sulphate!
Initially tried and tested on family,these
now established products are available to
buy online or in the Glasgow store.The
philosophy of complete transparency
when it comes to ingredients really
comes to fruition in store, where you
are able to develop and customise your
own products. With guidance from the
Beauty Kitchen ‘head chef’ you select
the ingredients and are shown how to
blend them in order to create a product.
Many of the ingredients have a British
provenance with the Citrus Lip Balm
containing beeswax from Jo-Anne’s own
beehives! I also tried the Love Me Body
Scrub, a wonderfully rich body scrub that
contains ‘sugar’ sourced from Devon, as
well as cranberries seeds, ginger and
cinnamon.
HomeGrownWITH HOME-GROWN BEAUTY BRANDS INCREASINGLY BECOMING POPULAR,
RACHEL MOORE EXPLORES THE ADVANTAGES OF USING NATURAL PRODUCTS
ON OUR SKINS THANTHOSE OF LARGER GLOBAL COMPANIES.
AEOS
An acronym for Active Energised Organic Skincare, this Lincolnshire-based brand
looks to bring ancient skincare remedies and techniques into the modern age. All
their products contain organic and biodynamic plant extracts, which are grown on their
own 500-acre farmland. It is at this stage of growing the ingredients that the AEOS
philosophy starts.All the plants and herbs used in their products are cultivated in such
a way that they rejuvenate the soil they are grown in and, in turn, provide wonderfully
enhanced natural ingredients. Star products include their Biodynamic Nail and Cuticle
Oil, a rich formula of poppy, sunflower and spelt oil that brings vitality back to tired
un-loved nails and helps
to soften cuticles. The
easy to use pen style
applicator means this
product can be used on-
the-go as a last minute
rescue remedy. Another
handbag favourite
is their Refreshing
Hydrating Mist. A light
as air blend of rosewater
and lavender extract, this
product is the perfect
pick-me-up for tired
or de-hydrated skin.
The AEOS brand really
does take its ingredients
seriously and is perfect
for the natural skincare
advocate.
2012was the year that the spotlight was on the UK, from the Queen’s Jubilee to
the Olympics, the nation was swept with patriotic nostalgia for all things
British. We may not have any such events in 2013 so far, but there is no
need to let the love of all things British fade away.
Now is a very exciting time in the UK beauty industry, with an increasing number of home-
grown beauty brands stealing the spotlight from the larger global companies. So what are the
factors behind this growing trend for ‘local’ beauty brands? “There is so much choice out there,
it can be really confusing,” says Jo-Anne Chidley of Glasgow-based beauty emporium Beauty
Kitchen, “Our philosophy is to keep it simple, and offer the customer complete transparency.”
For many of us choosing new products can be a real minefield and having the opportunity to talk
to the people who are behind both making and selling the products offers a certain re-assurance.
Like with the rapidly growing organic food industry, more and more customers are interested in
where their products come from and how they are made. Many new emerging brands have been
born out of this desire, after becoming disillusioned with the ‘natural’ tag that many of the bigger
corporate beauty brands use without much explanation of what actually goes into their products.
Of course another reason, like with the food industry, is the fantastic ingredients we have
on our doorstep, or in our back garden! From honey to stinging nettles, lavender, rosemary and
rosehip, the English countryside offers a wealth of fantastic natural remedies. With many of us
looking to more natural remedies, these make fantastic ingredients for many of the new products
coming to market. The ‘local’ factor is also what helps these products stay natural, as they go
through a much shorter supply chain, meaning less need for chemical preservatives.
So let’s make 2013 the year to celebrate British beauty! Here are some of my favourite British
born and bred products.
bitebeauty