This was the situation: sitting in the Mayfair Restaurant and Bar having a cocktail with a girlfriend while talking rather intensively about exfoliation. Facial exfoliation to be exact. Our conversation was so involved that the woman sitting next to us at the bar while on a first date, interrupted us just to probe further what we were talking about. Clearly love at first sight, was not on her agenda. Good skin was.
My girlfriend (who has beautiful skin) was swearing black and blue about the benefits of ExfoliKate Intensive Exfoliating Treatment. It sounded like magic. I was entranced listening to her and was about to launch off my bar stool and into the nearest MECCA Cosmetica had only it been open.
My counter to her claims of the smoothest skin post shower was the presciptive range from Australian brand Hop & Cotton. I’ve been using their three part regime for about six months now and can absolutely swear by the exfoliator. Actually I can swear by the entire range. Why? Because this is skincare where you don’t compromise, you customise.
You see, Hop & Cotton is founded on the principal that everybody is unique, and therefore no two skincare formulations should be alike. Sure there are common products that everyone will respond to well, and which generally will work across the board. But what if your skin doesn’t fit into a regular category? What if you’re looking for something other than what you see at a department store but don’t know where to look?
I got to sit down with Ee Ting, the founder and creator of Hop & Cotton to see just why and how she came to create the amazing skincare brand she has. Firstly, she is a cosmetic chemist and molecular biologist. Now if you ask me, that’s exactly who you want looking after your skin, yes?!
After struggling with her own skin, she turned her science background towards formulating her own products. And thus, Hop & Cotton was born. You see, they don’t sell ready made products. They first establish a thorough understanding of your skin and preferences. Then Ee Ting literally MAKES your formulation for you. I can’t think better hands in which you skin could land.
They keep your prescription on file should you wish to refill, but if your skin, life or circumstances change you can contact them and change your preferences. Pregnant? No problem. Suddenly exposed to UV? Got you covered.
This is the living, breathing equivalent of what your skin actually needs.
So what’s it like?
Well, the ‘Foam Party’ cleanser is exactly that in that in will remove all makeup and impurites in one.
The ‘Smooth Operator’ exfoliator is basically a liquid exfoliator. You wipe it onto clean skin with a cotton wool pad and the ingredients work their magic, rather than you scrubbing and scratching at the surface of your skin with microbeads, sugar scrubs or other such exfoliators.
The moisturiser is a day/night cream, eye cream and moisturiser in one. The only thing missing for me is an SPF component. As it has active ingredients however, I understand that it’s probably safer to apply it, and then your sunscreen on top for day time wear. You can opt for the type of consistency you like in your products, so mine is quite lush and creamy. If you prefer a gel consistency, you can select that when you’re doing your consultation.
Overall what’s exciting about Hop & Cotton is that they’re Australian owned and made and there really isn’t another brand doing prescription skincare on the market that is purely Australian made. I’m so glad I’ve discovered them!
