You may have noticed that we’ve been a little quiet lately… and if you’ve been checking out the ‘What’s New?‘ section of the website, you’d realise why!

We’re in the midst of a huge expansion of the Eve Organics range, and we’re so excited about it. To help introduce these impressive lines to our Australian customers, we’re going to be featuring interviews with their beautiful and inspiring skin care creators. This week we’re talking to the gorgeous Alyce Ornella from Aucocisco Naturals – an artisan skin care range from Aucocisco in Maine, U.S. She’s as lovely as her stunning range of products, and she’s talking to us about what it means to be a natural beauty. Read on!

There are some unusual ingredients in the Aucocisco Naturals range,
such as parsley, chickpea flour and black cumin seed oil. Where do you find the inspiration for your skin care recipes?

I think I’ve always been attracted to the unusual, whether it be in
skin care products, music, or art. With black cumin seed oil (also
known as nigella sativa or blackseed oil), I had begun reading about
its amazingly beneficial properties yet I rarely, if ever, saw it
included in beauty products. Coming from other aspects of my life
and interests, I look for opportunities to use highly traditional and
ethnobotanical approaches to formulate products. Chickpea is a great
example of this — it’s been used for thousands of years in
traditional Indian personal care techniques, namely in full body wraps
called Ubtan to purify the skin.

How did your journey into the natural beauty industry begin, and what
influenced your decision to start creating your own products?

Like many people, I got tired of reading ingredient lists with dozens
of words I couldn’t understand. In my own life, I often found that
simple combinations and applications of ingredients — such as apple
cider vinegar rinses, which my grandmother taught me to do — were
effective and pleasant without wading into the world of complex
synthetic chemicals.

I think what was really my gateway into becoming a product creator was
when I started using henna and indigo to color my hair. Dark
synthetic hair dye was just becoming too scary to use because it’s
made from known carcinogens. From this entry point, I began thinking about other aspects of personal care, which lead to my initial skincare formulations. From a young age I have been a maker of things and Aucocisco Naturals is an incarnation of that creative impulse, while attempting to meet a real need for products that are simple, beautiful, and undiluted by unnecessary synthetics.

Alyce after a long-haul flight. Such naturally beautiful skin!

Which is your favourite product in the range, and why?

I really think the Apricot + Blackseed Serum is the most valuable
product in the range. I believe it’s the very most beneficial for
skin quality and health. Blackseed oil is just amazing – incredibly
dense with vitamins and nutrients, and has been used for thousands of
years in North African and Arabic traditions to support overall
health. Pure, undiluted Blackseed oil is quite expensive and rare, so
I pair it with two other very beneficial oils so that it’s accessible
to a wider range of clients.

What makes Aucocisco Naturals different to other skin care lines?

I have a bit of a folklorist streak which imparts an ethnobotanical
influence on the line. I’m interested in featuring natural
ingredients which have been traditionally used for generations for
cosmetic and health benefits. Aucocisco Naturals aims to bring these
ingredients into contemporary life through simple formulations and
modern packaging.

What does ‘natural beauty’ mean to you?

Natural beauty means not covering up who you are, but revealing your
inherent beauty with the support of products that sustain your health
and emotional wellbeing.

You can check out the beautiful Aucocisco Naturals range here, with more exciting products arriving shortly – Alyce never runs out of inspiration!