As someone who makes a living stringing words together I’m not much with the science and the maths. However, maybe if I’d paid attention in chemistry I would have discovered the secret to better skin sooner – because I would have learned the principle ‘like dissolves like’.
I’ve always had oily skin and would never have dreamed of adding a facial oil to my skincare regime – why would I want my skin to be even oiler? No thanks.
Until this year, when the facial oil trend started to gain traction and I started to do some reading, learnt about ‘like dissolves like’, gave myself an uppercut for being so silly for so long, and went and bought one. And since applying oil to my oily skin it has legit been great! It feels supple and hydrated, without being oily.
Consider my facial oil obsession official. Now I’m on the lookout to add to my collection and I was super impressed when my search led me to an organic, vegan, completely customisable, and even better, totally local brand.
Introducing L’Elu Skincare. Handmade to order in her Dalby home, Naomi Lean has done all the hard stuff for us, researching science-y things like the skin’s acid mantle and getting the low-down on how different kinds of oils work for different skin types. Her online business features five formulations for every skin type and the ability to completely create your own from over 100 different types of oil (don’t worry – there is an online selection process that makes this easy and not overwhelming).
Gorgeously packaged in Miron Violet glass (keeps the light out and preserves the oil for longer, plus looks great on your bathroom shelf), this luxurious, local brand is also cruelty free and comes with a social conscience, donating 10% of profits to different charities every quarter.
Keep reading our chat with Naomi to find out how L’Elu facial oil can help give you enviable skin, no matter your skin type!
Tell us about how L’Elu Skincare got started
I suffered with really bad skin for a long time. It was an oily, congested, red mess. I was super self-conscious about it and spent an absolute fortune on skincare, facials and cosmetics to try to fix and hide my issues.
I found most products targeted at my skin type were more focused on covering the issue – such as moisturisers and primers filled with silicones and mattifying ingredients to soak up the oil and make skin look “smoother”. Little did I know these ingredients were making my skin worse.
One day I thought to myself: “wait, why haven’t I looked into what actually causes these skin problems I’m having?” So I did, and I came across the benefits of facial oils. This seemed absurd to me because why in the world would I put an oil on my already oily and congested skin? But the more I learnt it seemed to make sense, so I gave a few different brands a go.
I just ended up having issues with ingredients such as comedogenic oils, fillers, preservatives, perfumes so I really did some research and started making my own at home in Dalby.
Through many trials and reformulations (I am SO fussy!), I came up with my first product, our Oily Combo Skin Oil. And this absolutely changed things for me. Within a couple weeks my skin was no longer bright red, my pores appeared a lot smaller, I had a beautiful glow, and then about a month later I no longer had oily skin! I couldn’t believe it. I knew a few friends with similar issues to me, I sent the product to them and lo and behold they had similar results!
Oils give nourishment to the skin by providing many fatty acids, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants and enables the acid mantle to stay in balance.
I started making oils for friends. I seriously love researching and formulating so much I thought why not turn this into a business? So I did!
Something that bothered me during my skincare journey was not being able to choose my own ingredients; after all that’s what made me start making them myself in the first place. I was sure there were others out there just as frustrated as I was, wishing they could choose their own ingredients.
Although I have full faith in the pre-formulated combinations I’ve made for different skin types, at L’Elu you can also customise your own formula easily on our website. At this stage there’s just nearly 100 oils to choose from and that will only grow.
After over a year of getting the business set up, making sure I was 100% happy with my formulations (changed countless times! Haha), MANY ups and downs, L’Elu Skincare came to life! To sum up, it came from my own skin issues and fussiness.
Naomi Lean
What’s your background in skincare?
I don’t have any pieces of paper yet and I’m happy to disclose that. It’s all self-taught at this stage.
I have done an absolute world of research into skincare, and into the scientific side of things (pretty overwhelming at times I must say) and there’s not a day that goes by where I am not reading about it and researching #skincarejunkie. However, I will be completing cosmetic chemistry courses this year as I want to further my knowledge as much as I can, and I know there’s so much to learn yet.
How does an oil help the skin?
I’m sure many people, as I did, think it’s ridiculous to use oil on the skin. Especially if you have already greasy and congested skin.
But it’s so important, our skin needs both water and oil (or fats/lipids), oils give nourishment to the skin by providing many fatty acids, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants and enables the acid mantle to stay in balance. The skin naturally produces oils to keep it moisturised and at its healthiest, it’s just about keeping the right oils in balance.
Different skin types have different requirements, for example dry skin is lacking in oleic acid, which deeply penetrates into the skin, while oily skin needs linoleic acid, which is moisturising, but not quite as rich. That’s why we’ve loaded our Oily Combo Skin Facial Oil with oils containing linoleic acid and our Dry Flaky Skin Oil is rich in oleic acid.
I make each one at a time, and by hand as an order comes through. This allows for accuracy of ingredients, potency and freshness in each product. I don’t have anything premade or batched ready to send.
Where do you get your ingredients and what’s your making process?
I source my ingredients from Australian-owned suppliers aligned with my brand values: cruelty free and fair trade, organic and cold pressed.
This is SUPER important to me. We each play a part in creating a better world and I’m a huge believer in the impact each individual has.
I have an office set up at home solely dedicated to formulating and I make each one at a time, and by hand as an order comes through. This allows for accuracy of ingredients, potency and freshness in each product. I don’t have anything pre-made or batched ready to send.
The ability to customise is great – how would someone get started on this process?
On our website when you click on Create Your Own, it takes you to a page where you will be able to select your skin type. I’ve done some crazy work in the back-end that means once you select your skin type, only oils that suit you will be available to choose from. For example, everyone loves Argan oil – and it’s a gorgeous ingredient – but for dry skin. I wouldn’t use it on oily skin.
So, if you select dry skin, Argan Oil will be one of the ingredients available to you. However if you were to select oily skin, it wouldn’t be available! Anyone can use the create your own feature, you can’t go wrong. You’re also able to hover over the ingredients and have a brief read about their benefits before selecting!
How do you choose the charities – who have you given to?
I choose charities that are important to me, and that I am drawn to. I am a massive animal lover, and I personally give to a few different animal rescue places every month – so those I definitely wanted to support those.
And I will always have some sort of charity helping youth in tough positions.
I had a really tough life through my teenage years and actually grew up in a foster home, so this is so, so, close to my heart. I want to do all I can to help these organisations that do such a great job at helping kids who have had a tough time, showing them they can turn their lives around as I did.
The charities will change over time too. I think such an important issue at the moment is equality, females empowering each other, the awareness of domestic violence toward women in Australia – so recently I’ve added two women’s organisation groups to the website. And I often ask on Instagram for our followers to let me know of anyone doing fantastic work that I can add to the list. If you’d like to nominate a charity, please let me know!
What’s your plan for the future for the brand – do you want to have a shop or have the line in stores?
The plan is to really grow my knowledge, and to produce more skincare. I next want to release a facial mist, balm cleanser and moisturiser.
I’m my own biggest critic so this is taking time as I want it to be a formulation that I am 100% happy with. At this point I see myself staying online, I will attend markets but I don’t see us having any stores. This could change in a number of years, it’s just about feeling out what’s right for the business as it grows.
Why a French name?
I LOVE Europe so much, I was born in Germany and spent many winters there as a child. It’s where my family is from and they’re still there. Originally it was going to be a German name, however the German language doesn’t have that “flow” some might say haha, and can come across a bit intense! My brand name would have been “die Auserwählten”, and as much as I adore my German heritage it just didn’t vibe for me haha.
I knew from the start my brand would be called The Chosen, (as you can choose your own ingredients) it was just about figuring out how I wanted it. I wanted people to feel a certain something when they read the name. The French are just so well known for their skincare and beauty, the whole “French Girl Beauty” you know? It’s luxurious, romantic, magical – all the things I love! And I wanted my brand to have that same feel. So when I reached L’Elu, I knew immediately that was it. It just clicked and I never had a second thought!
Check out L’Elu Skincare
Find L’Elu on Facebook, Instagram at @leluskincare and online at https://leluskincare.com/. They offer Afterpay too so you can get started on getting great skin even sooner.
