It’s been nearly two years since the last forever product that we introduced to our retail line. During this time, we’ve received a lot of feedback from our spa partners and customers alike, with requests for a cream cleanser and a product that can replace exfoliating goat’s milk yogurt, especially if you’re in an area where it’s hard to come by!

Gentle and exfoliating, rich in healthy fats and pH balanced for the integrity of the microbiome. Our newest formula is a multi-use product unlike any other: a cleanser, a mask, and a mixer for powder masks. Meet Essential Enzymes.

Move over goat’s milk yogurt

For years, we’ve been the unofficial spokespeople for using goat’s milk yogurt as a base to mix in with our powdered masks. Its high concentration of lactic acid and its pH level that’s close to our skin makes it great for skincare because it doesn’t disrupt the acid mantle on your face. To learn more about why pH matters for the skin, check out our in-depth post about the pH of skincare here. 

What if… we were able to create a plant-based version of this amazing ingredient without the use of animal products?

This is how Essential Enzymes was born!

No longer needing to go to the grocery store to hunt down goat’s milk yogurt or refrigerating the yogurt only to find it to be unusable. If you’re a long-time supporter of Botnia, you may have heard of our professional back bar product, Essential Digest, and how we created a formula that mimics the chemical constituents of goat’s milk yogurt. From this, we’ve created a sister product for all to use which replaces the need for goat’s milk yogurt when using our powered masks! *Cheers all around!*

Why is it called Essential Enzymes?

Enzymes are how our body naturally proliferates dead skin cells, they are essential to our body’s functioning. We named this product Essential Enzymes because this product aids in the natural functioning of your body’s acid mantle and in turning over unnecessary skin cells while also being gentle enough to use daily.

What’s super unique about this formula is that you can use it as a base mixed in with our powered masks, a cleanser, and a mask on its own! 

Key Ingredients

We use liquid pomegranate enzymes as the star of our newest product. Its small molecular structure makes it easy to penetrate into the skin and is a wonderful organic exfoliator. Enzymes work by digesting extracellular structural proteins and help to loosen and remove dead skin cells. The result is a brightened complexion great for aging skin, acne, and skin pigmentation.

We’ve added our handmade juniper and calendula hydrosols which contain powerful healing constituents for sun damage and acne, supporting the skin barrier. 

We also use a small amount of shea butter which helps to soften skin while fatty acids strengthen the barrier of your skin. Shea butter is also shown to be anti-inflammatory and has healing properties that help heal dry skin. But isn’t shea butter comedogenic? Not if it’s used in the right percentage. We use less than 5% of shea butter in our formulation which keeps it from clogging pores, and we believe including healthy fats in our skincare can help heal skin from the surface down. 

Safflower seed oil is renowned for its ability to moisturize the skin and is rich in protective antioxidants. It also has anti-inflammatory effects and helps promote wound healing. 

How to use Essential Enzymes

This multipurpose product can be used in several ways.

CLEANSER: Apply morning and/or evening, massaging into the skin for 60 seconds. Rinse clean.

WEEKLY MASK: As an exfoliating treatment, use alone as a weekly mask: start with freshly cleansed skin. Apply the mask to the entire face and décolleté. Let sit for 15 minutes, then rinse clean. Follow with your daily skincare routine.

AS A MASK BASE: Combine with a powder mask for a weekly exfoliating treatment.
Start with freshly cleansed skin. Mix Essential Enzymes with equal parts powder mask. Apply diluted mask solution to the entire face and décolleté. Let sit for several minutes, then rinse clean. Follow with your daily skincare routine.

BY SKIN TYPE:
For acne, barrier-compromised, or sensitive skin types, use once daily as a cleanser and once weekly as an exfoliation mask simply by leaving it on the skin for an additional 5 minutes.

For dry skin, wise skin, or those with hyperpigmentation, it can be used twice daily as a facial cleanser. 

For oily or extremely sensitive skin types, it can be used once weekly as the addition to a powder mask or as a standalone mask. Leave on the skin for up to 15 minutes and rinse clean, following with hydrosol and moisturizer and serum. 

The Essential Enzymes mask/cleanser was made with your microbiome in mind. The more we can help our skin support a healthy and functioning microbiome, the better it can do its job to fight off pathogens, bacteria, viruses, and environmental pollution in the world. If you’re not quite sure the best way to use the Essential Enzymes, our master estheticians can help guide you in the right direction: DM or email us at botniaskincare@gmail.com.

We can’t wait for you to use our newest product and we’d love to hear what you think about it!   

Xo,
Botnia