Ancient times
Skincare has been essential since way back in ancient times. The first documentations of skincare practices can be traced back to ancient China, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. In China, it can be traced back to the Shang dynasty, around 1760 BC, but the very first recorded skincare routine is that of a Qin dynasty empress. With indisputably a basis in Traditional Chinese Medicine, she believed cleanliness, good circulation, herbal medicine, and a healthy, nutritious diet to be essential for beautiful skin. She would eat a lot of black beans, sesame seeds, and Chinese yam, and made natural cleansers from seaweed and jellyfish. Today we know jellyfish contain antimicrobial properties. Holistic beauty with a focus on healthy skin was and still is greatly valued.
Past- & Current trend
However, skincare has also changed a lot over the years (and centuries), and only continues to change more rapidly in this modern day and age. Until not too long ago, powdery matte skin was the norm, whereas today plump, glossy, dewy skin is preferred. Sometimes we also reach back to past trends. In the West in the 20th century, a typical skincare routine consisted simply of cold cream to cleanse the face, incidentally an astringent (which we now call ‘toner’), and another cream to moisturise. For a while, a multi-step skincare routine was all the rage, but now we are moving back to much simpler routines.
Future trend prediction
Although routines are simplifying again, people are becoming more and more aware of the importance of proper skincare and skin health. We are once again exploring natural and holistic beauty.
This is reflected in for example the rising popularity of sunscreens and UV-protection in day-creams, but there are a few other big trends representative of this that we can distinguish:
- Cleaner products that are more gentle, non-irritating, and protect the skin’s microbiome are often preferred over aggressive products with strictly man-made ingredients. Plant-derived ingredients that soothe redness and irritation, such as Centella Asiatica (also known as cica), are much sought after.
- Simplified routines and products: As mentioned before, we are also shying away from complex skincare routines with 10+ steps and looking to simplify our daily regimes.
- Bio-based, sustainable, and cruelty-free products are increasingly in demand. This not only reflects a focus on skin-health but also the growing awareness and importance of environmentally friendly consumerism. People want more transparency regarding what goes into a product, how products are made, and where the ingredients come from.
We can also recognise these trends by the popularity of natural origin-based brands. These brands incorporate a limited amount of ingredients, usually of natural origin, in their products and offer a lot transparency. In short, the main shift happening in skincare trends is the growing demand among consumers for green, clean, bio-based, protective, and gentle skincare products, as well as transparency and simplicity.
EGGXPERT upholds the philosophy of the power of natural ingredients and sustainable society. The first skin care product SCND SKIN was designed with bio-based concept by using protective and nourishing eggshell membrane proteins. The initial idea was coming from Traditional Chinese Medicine record and the ideas were transformed with modern scientific research and realistic state of art partners along the product realization. Please read here for more information on SCND SKIN design concept. EGGXPERT wish to be one of pioneers that will lead cosmetics into an era of green, clean and sustainable.
