Reykjavík Grapevine - 01.07.2018, Blaðsíða 40

The Reykjavík Grapevine
Best of Reykjavík 2018
40
Skólavörðustígur 19
tel (+354) 552 1890
Borgartún 31
tel (+354) 552 1980
BUY DIRECTLY
FROM
THE PEOPLE
WHO MAKE THEM
“Icelandic women, without exaggeration,
swear by it.”
SHOPPING GUIDE
Lotions And
Potions
There’s a reason Icelanders are known for
their beauty
Words: Hannah Jane Cohen
With the unpredictable weather
and harsh conditions of Iceland,
it’s no wonder the women here
have had to get creative to save
their skin. With a rich beauty
history of using unusual in-
gredients like barley, lanolin,
seaweed, and silica, Icelandic
skincare brands serve up in-
tensely hydrating products
strong enough to withstand
the harshest wind, rain, or
hail. So if you want to get pretty
while you’re here, these are the
products to add to your arsenal.
Bioeffect EGL
Day Serum
Bioeffect is the crème de la crème
of Icelandic skincare and this day
serum is their holy grail.
Icelandic women—
without exaggera-
tion—swear by it.
Derived from bar-
ley seeds grown in
Icelandic green-
houses, this se-
rum mimics facial
proteins to thicken
skin and target dry
spots, fine lines, sun damage,
and wrinkles. For skincare junk-
ies: Don’t worry, the epidermal
growth factor here is man-made,
not human-derived, so it’s safe
for everyone.
Taramar Purifying
Treatment
Dr. Guðrún Marteinsdóttir, a
professor at the University of
Iceland, started
Taramar to cre-
ate high-quality
skincare prod-
ucts with natural
Icelandic ingre-
dients. While all
her products are
sublime, this pu-
rifying treatment
is a particular god-
send for dehydrated s k i n .
Made with Icelandic kelp, sea-
weed and Vitamin E, the oily
blend will firm your skin and re-
plenish it back to its bright and
radiant true self.
Blue Lagoon
Silica Mud
Mask
Mud: That blissful
non-comedogen-
ic substance put
on Earth by God to
make every skin type
soft and glowy. Take
that, add a touch of
collagen-boosting al-
gae straight from the
depths of geother-
mal silica, and you’ve got Blue
Lagoon’s stellar Silica Mud
Mask. The product is a stan-
dard in the routine of Ice-
landic women and for good
reason. It’s good for all types
of skin, from oily to sensi-
tive to even rosacea prone,
and has that rare quality of
being gentle yet intense. The
mask is undeniably potent, feel-
ing more akin to a chemical peel
versus your average Aztec Secret
or Bioré charcoal, but it leaves
your skin butter soft and blemish
free. Note: While it is good for
all skin types, their Algae Mask
would be a better choice for ma-
ture skin.
Dr Bragi Age
Management
Moisturiser
No parabens. No lipids. No
lanolin. No silicons. Dr Bra-
gi’s products are totally free
of potential hazards, instead,
using active Icelandic marine
enzymes with plumping hyal-
uronic acid to reduce ageing
and prevent the breakdown
of collagen.
Grab one of
these moistur-
isers if you want
to brighten your
complexion and
destroy dark
circles much
faster than your
average Vita-
min C serum.
Take that, time.
ANGAN Bath Salts
ANGAN is all about sustainabil-
ity and bringing old Icelandic
skincare remedies into the mod-
ern age. Their line of bath salts,
which are made from Icelandic
sea salt, is a particular stand-
out. The three prod-
ucts contain blends
with birch, thyme,
and seaweed—all
locally sourced. Add
a handful to a bath
and drift off into
the past. Except, uh,
one where they have
indoor plumbing.
Join us for a fun
introduction to
Icelandic crime
fiction, ghosts
and ghouls.
www.borgarbokasafn.is
Tel. 411 6100
THURSDAYS AT 3 PM in June, July and August.
A Literary Walking Tour in Reykjavík
Tickets available at the library and Tix.is