Why tea?

In many parts of Asia, tea is a longstanding beauty secret.

One of the unique things about the LEAFOLOGY range is that every product (apart from the tooth powder) contains tea, whether it’s in the form of the life-giving leaves we know so well as being the source of the world’s number 1 beverage after water, in extract form (containing 20 times more antioxidant power than Vitamin C) or the cold-pressed oil from the unique seeds themselves.

Read on to learn why our inclusion of tea boosts the condition of your skin & hair…

For the Japanese geisha, the delicate gestures with which they learn to impart each step of the most graceful tea ceremonies parallel the gentle, feminine beauty of the flower itself, while the oil from its seeds shine their hair.

For centuries, these artful women have used tea oil to add lustre to their locks, make their skin glow and remove their iconic make up at night.

The molecular weight of the oil is an almost identical match for skin, allowing it to absorb quickly and thoroughly, without greasiness or blocking pores.

Photos from a trip to Sri Lanka to learn about the proces of tea production.

Healing. Softening. Anti-oxidant rich.

Tea is a nutritional power house packed full of vitamins, fatty acids, omega oils and nourishing micro-nutrients.

Fun fact: green & black tea (which is fermented) come from the same plant: Camellia Sinesis. Almost all Leafology products contain the cold-pressed oil from either the Camellia Sinesis seeds (the plant from which we enjoy tea) or the Camellia Oleifera seeds (a Chinese strain of the plant widely used in cooking & skin/haircare). We also infuse tea into many of our oils & floral waters for a beautiful, life-giving nutrient boost.

Tea’s magical benefits…

Emollient – Tea seed oil moisturises like a dream, partly due to its high oleic acid (omega 9) content.
Antioxidant/anti-ageing – Camellia oil, like the green tea leaves which grow from it, is antioxidant-rich, protecting the skin from free radical damage.
Anti-microbial – Studies have shown that green tea polyphenolic catechins can effectively inhibit the proliferation of microbes.
Immunity boosting – Polyphenols, potent plant antioxidants, are believed to give green tea its immune-boosting effects.
Anti-mutation – The polyphenols in tea are believed to have the possible ability to contribute towards the prevention of certain cancers from developing.
Astringent – Due to its tannins, tea has a mild astringent effect which makes it good for treating injuries and scars as well as tightening pores.
Anti-inflammatory – Thanks to its high flavonoid content, tea helps to reduce inflammation and calm irritation.

My trips to Sri Lanka & India have given me the opportunity to witness the tea production process up close on multiple occasions and to learn what is required of each stage (and, of course, take part in a tasting or two). The tea fields are stunningly beautiful, even if my own tea-picking efforts might not have made much of a dent in the daily work of the incredible women who work in the fields and in the factories…

Tea is deeply central to the Leafology range and gives our eco-friendly, natural formulations a distinctive edge.

‘Everyday ceremony?’ (Leafology’s founder really fancies tea.)

The tea thing:

My love of tea is so renowned that, back when I was modelling full time, a photographer all the way in the southern hemisphere had written a reminder to get ‘EARL GREY TEA’ across the top of his shoot plan because I’d mentioned it in my profile notes; another photographer once brought a thermos tea kettle with us to a bunker location in Holland!

In my house, growing up, tea was a ritual affair (my parents still traverse their daily afternoon tea collection in alphabetical order, for equal rotation – I’m not joking!) and remains an important way in which to punctuate the day. It soothes, comforts, delights and adds slowly-sipped quotidien pleasure to a world which necessitates such moments of time-taking.

Tea should be enjoyed, savoured and (if you are my mother) served ideally in a receptacle that matches the colours of one’s outfit.