One mum who was worried about her son’s eczema went looking for a cure and found a business
Stephanie Maffia doesn’t pretend to work miracles with her skin creams and oils but she has built up a formidable squad of customers who swear by them.
For instance, there was the man of 78 who suffered from terrible dry skin and nothing his doctors prescribed worked. ‘Then, he tried one of my creams and the problem was solved,’ says the 31-year-old mother-of-two from the tiny Lancashire coastal resort of Flookburgh. ‘He said he was as good as new!’
Stephanie and her husband, Dave, started to investigate alternatives to conventional skincare products three years ago.
‘We all had very sensitive and very dry skin,’ says Stephanie. ‘Choosing laundry detergent became hard work and certain washing up liquids caused contact dermatitis and no matter what cleanser and moisturiser we used we still had blotchy skin.’
When her second son, Joseph, was born he suffered from severe eczema, and after trying every emollient the doctor could prescribe, he still had cracked and bleeding skin.
‘It was in my desperation to help my son that I began to research the implications of synthetic chemicals in skincare products,’ she says. ‘I discovered that using natural products can really benefit the skin. Three days into using a natural moisturiser, my son’s severe eczema had healed leaving me convinced that this was the way forward.’
Aftert this they started to strip their house of chemicals. ‘We were amazed at how many there were. Household cleaners were changed to natural cleaners and parabens and SLS (sodium lauryl sulphate) in shower gels and shampoos were banned.
‘Dry skin was no longer an issue and any residual eczema was well and truly under control. I then decided to start making my own skincare products to cater for our family’s needs. We had a great time making our skin balms and body oils and they became very popular among friends and family.’
In 2013 Stephanie decided to blend herself a facial oil cleanser and a facial oil moisturiser. ‘After one week of use, I was astounded by the results and I had mixed up bottles for my family to try.
‘Again, the results were amazing. The facial oils were not only natural and nourishing but were fantastically anti-ageing. I began to formulate new products to complement the facial oils and the skincare range developed from there.
‘The benefits of using our blend of cleansing oil are easy to see, the formula works to balance the skins natural moisturising ability and leaves skin looking refreshed and youthful.’
They use a few powerful key ingredients some of which include coconut oil, beeswax, apricot kernel oil, argan oil and avocado oil. ‘Essential oils feature in our products as active ingredients, to provide a fragrance and for their aroma-therapeutic properties. For example we use Frankincense in our anti-ageing moisturising oil to help firm skin and reduce fine lines, to complement the rose oil in the blend with its woody aroma, and to help calm and reduce tension when inhaled.
‘We believe that skin care should be simple and natural, and that nature provides us with all we need to take care of our bodies. We believe that skincare doesn’t’t need to be complicated; we have stripped the skincare routine down to a pure, natural and nourishing range of essential products.’
Stephanie has been selling Naked Skincare products on line, at markets and during parties at people’s homes. ‘We are building up slowly but the feedback has been so excellent we feel confident we can interest a retailer next year,’ she says.
For more information go online to www.thenakedskincarecompany.com.
