I love skin care products. Occasionally we allow them in to my nation -- if they meet our high standard of quality, purity and effectiveness. Here is a leak of a recent road test.
Skin Care Product
Love System, by Australian Bush Flower Essences®.
Company Ethos
Their ethos is unique, which is why I chose to review their product line. Take an energetic healing medicine, such as the powerful Bush Flower Essences®, and add them to a skin care range. The products not only cleanse or moisturise your skin, but they balance your energetic systems.
The tagline to their brand is a revolutionary new way to love your body.
Love System does more than dip their toe into new-age-speak in the promotional material. A sample:
Dog Rose of the Wild ForcesThis is a system … to encourage you to connect with, Inspire and Grow your Soul – to Love and Express Who and What you Are – to Love and Respect your Planet – to Express Love and Respect for those who live upon it… This is a Philosophy for Life, and a philosophy for choosing skin and body formulations that add value to you, to the planet and all those who live upon it. (Capital letters their own.)
In one e-mail exchange with creator Paul Loveday, he wrote, “We attempt to be as poetic and beautiful as the formulations in the bottle”. Indeed.
Company History
Australian Bush Flower Essences is a reputable botanical energetic-healing company. It is the flora of Australia’s answer to Bach Flower Remedies. The founder is Ian White, a fifth-generation Australian herbalist. The company director, Paul Loveday, created this skin care line.
Product Promise
They promise:
“These are more than just beauty products for everyday use; these go more than skin deep.”
“What we have done at Australian Bush Flower Essences is to raise the bar in the treatment of skin and body care. We are potentially dealing with a new revolution.”
“We believe we are one of the first skincare systems to use stem cell research and Australian Bush Flower Essences…which make these formulations true skin poetry.”
Product Range
Cleanser: Exfoliating cream, morning and evening face wash serum, purifying cream.
Toner: This is their strength. Australian Bush Flower Remedies are very prevalent in these toners and come to the foreground.
Moisturiser: Morning/night Cream; eye neck face gel, and a series of moisturiser tubes for specific circumstances, called Woman, Travel, Calm, and Emergency.
Hands/Body lotion: Uplifting/soothing body lotion, intensive hand cream.
Eye: Intensive eye serum. It looks like a serum, but it feels more like a light eye gel moisturiser.
Pricing
Love System is very affordable. Each product is priced between AUS$ 24 - $27 (add US$1 for US pricing)
What I used
I tested most of the range of cleansers, moisturisers and body treatments for ten days.
What’s great
The Love System uses a range of Australian Bush Flower Remedies, such as Dog Rose of the Wild Forces (what a name!), Angelsword and Mulla Mulla. It also uses Alpine Rose stem cells, what Mr. Loveday describes as, “a profoundly protective, anti-ageing, and skin-nurturing active ingredient”.
The scents range from refreshing citrus for the morning routine, to rose for the evening program. The evening rose moisturizer in particular inspired childhood memories of timeless beach holidays and frangipani.
Love System use organic ingredients, including essential oils, and are packaged in dark, airless bottles and tubes.
I used their travel kit when I last traveled on two back-to-back long haul flights. They were fun -- and within legal airline limits.
What’s lacking
The scents, presentation and name is marketed towards the female demographic. My husband was turned off by the citrus/rose scents when he thought to try them out. Aloe juice is the first ingredient for all products. It gives that wonderful tightening sensation that people look for in anti-ageing products. But it can set the product up for being too light for some skin types. For example, the Replenishing Night Cream is described as rich and an overnight intensive beauty treatment. My experience could not concur with these descriptions. To me, they were one of the lightest night creams that I have come across. I longed for some products that were missing in the range, such as a serum and face masques. They also do not offer an anti-aging line, corrective eye cream, or moisturisers for a variety of skin types. These products, for example, suit oily to normal skin very well. Dry or mature skin types may be left wanting more substance.
Performance
I looked forwards to the fresh citrus and rose scents of the morning and evening range respectively. After using the Love System for ten days, my skin appeared uneven and less refined. My face felt dehydrated. I craved a decent exfoliation followed by a serum applied underneath a generous layer of moisturiser. Though I give this range high regard in what it does offer, it simply did not suit the needs of my skin, which is categorised as normal-to-dry and early-mature.
Would I use this product again?
It is not for my skin type, though I appreciate the Love System for its philosophy and unique premise. I look forwards to seeing if they issue a Love System 2.0, which expands into anti-ageing, serums, masques, mens line, and treatment range.
Angelsword
“You only have one physical body in this life. This body is your temple. We want you to learn to love it, respect it, nurture it, connect to it”
-– Love System
* Disclosure: Love System products were sent to me free of charge in return for an honest review. The opinion in this article is my personal experience and not influenced by any source. I was not compensated for this article.