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About Earth Alkemie
Earth Alkemie is a small, all natural cosmetic company located in northern VA (the D.C. metropolitan area).
In many ancient and present day cultures, indigenous societies, and religious systems, and in the studies of herbalism, aromatherapy, and alchemy, cosmetics are not only used to beautify the skin, but are also used to affect the emotions and transform the spirit.
Earth Alkemie products are crafted with this philosophy in mind. We combine scientific botanical knowledge with the beliefs and traditional knowledge of different cultures, aromatherapy, alchemy, and herbalism.
We strive to provide our customers with the best in truly natural, eco-friendly skin, hair, & body care, and mineral makeup. All of our products are vegetarian, and our skin, hair, and body care are herbal and aromatherapy based. Most of our products are also vegan. We are a cruelty free and green company. We do not test on animals. All of our ingredients are natural or naturally derived, and many of our ingredients are also certified organic, organic (the plants are grown without synthetic chemicals, in a sustainable manner; however, they are currently not certified), ethically wild-harvested, or fair-traded. We handcraft all of our products in small batches to ensure freshness.
None of our products contain fillers or randomly used hyped herbs or ingredients. Every skin and hair care product we offer contains high amounts of actives that are found naturally in plant ingredients, crafted with a specific skin type in mind. Earth Alkemie skin, hair, and body care products are all natural or nearly all natural (as natural as possible), biodegradable, and also non-toxic.
Our mineral makeup does not contain any fillers or animal derived ingredients (like carmine, silk, or pearl powder) and is as pure and as natural as possible.
About Our Name
Earth is the name of our beautiful blue planet and our home, and is also one of the four or five elements (depends on the elemental system) used in astrology, alchemy, chinese traditonal medicine, ayurveda, pagan and other Earth based religions, and many other alternative and traditional practices.
Alkemie is the old French spelling of alchemy, which is the art of transformation. Though most commonly associated with turning base metals into gold or the pursuit of creating the philosopher's stone, the main goal of many alchemists is the transformation of the soul. Alchemists from many cultures throughout the ages have worked with plant ingredients (such as essential oils and distillates, which are now commonly called hydrosols) and minerals. Some of the creations of ancient alchemists include cosmetics, most notably perfumes and herbal extracts. Some of the first alchemists were the perfumers of ancient Egypt. Famous alchemists include Avicenna, Mary the Prophetess, Isaac Newton, Nicolas Flamel, Nostradamus, and Carl Jung.
About Earth Alkemie's Owner and Formulator
Environmental and research background:
Li Wong has a B.A. in Environmental studies/biology and a M.S. in Environmental Science and Policy. She has studied a wide range of ecological and plant related topics including biology/botany, ethnobotany (the cosmetic and medicinal uses of plants in indigenous cultures), conservation, and organic standards in cosmetics. Other environmental interests include mammals, urban wildlife, public perception, human-wildlife conflicts, and local environmental issues. She has been formulating her own skin care products, and researching and learning about cosmetic and natural ingredients, aromatherapy, and herbalism since 2001. She is currently a student of Jeanne Rose’s Aromatherapy Studies Course. In the last few years she has been giving natural skin care and green advice on forums (including moderating Garden of Wisdom's forum, which is a diy skin care ingredient and natural based skin care line) and on her environmental blog (Solarkat's Eco Blog). She is also the Eco Living writer on anb mall's (all natural beauty mall) website. Other interests include alchemy, ayurveda, Chinese astrology, Tai chi, and learning about many different spiritual philosophies and religions.
Li's story:
I have been learning about environmental issues since I was a teenager (about 1992). Back then, I had flawless skin, and regularly used conventional and commercial products, including many popular lines that I thought were 'natural' (but were really mostly synthetic with only a small percentage of natural ingredients). Though I knew a lot about environmental issues, like most people I gave little thought to the majority of the ingredients used in cosmetics. I just assumed that every ingredient I didn't recognize and couldn't pronounce was completely safe, non-irritating, non-toxic, and also benefited the skin, because why else would they be used if they weren't safe or good for the skin?
My viewpoint about cosmetic ingredients soon changed sometime during and after college. I was prescribed birth control pills for menstrual problems, and my once flawless skin soon became very oily but dry, and I began to get acne. Around this time (2001), I also worked at a perfume counter in a major department store. After only a few months of working there, I became very sensitive and allergic to many fragrances and conventional cosmetics, and developed hives from many products that I had been using for years. I began to pay more attention to labels and research cosmetic ingredients. After learning about the amount of fillers (ingredients that are in the formulation mainly for texture or to make the product feel or smell good but do little for the skin), many irritating, and some potentially toxic synthetic ingredients used in most conventional cosmetic lines, I decided to make the switch to completely natural or as natural as possible products. But as I learned more about ingredients, though I found several more natural skin and hair care lines, I initially didn't find that many products in stores that were truly 'all natural' or 'nearly all natural' (though in later years I found many lines that were). While these products contained a lot of wonderful natural ingredients, most of them were only 'natural based' and still contained many synthetic ingredients (many of these synthetics were relatively benign and safe to use in skin care, but many others were either known irritants or potentially toxic). While some of these products helped improved my skin and hair, many of them didn't work that well for me: I was still plagued with acne, and my skin and hair were still very oily but dry. Though thankfully they got rid of the hives!
Frustrated, I began to craft my own cosmetics, and research even more about natural and synthetic ingredients, natural cosmetics, formulation, aromatherapy, and herbalism. To my own disappointment, many of the recommendations and recipes in books didn't seem to work for my skin, which didn't seem to match any skin type described. My whole face (and not parts of it) was dry and flakey but also very oily and blemished at the same time. The recommended natural recipes and ingredients for dry skin were often too rich, which clogged my pores and made my acne worse, and tips for oily skin seemed to dry my skin out more (and then ironically my skin would produce even more oil, leading to more breakouts). After much trial and error (and finally stumbling literally upon a sentence or two in a couple books describing my skin type at the time, which was dehydrated), and after more research and experimentation (by 2003), I figured out which ingredients worked for my skin type, what ingredients worked better for other skin types and conditions, and application methods (since there are no fillers, natural products generally should be applied sparingly on the facial area; for some people, applying too much can clog pores. I was applying way too much which broke me out, and my skin was also purging/detoxifying). Nowadays, my skin is balanced, clear, and healthy again.
About four or so years ago (around 2005) I begin blogging and posting on forums to help people select and craft 'all natural' (100% natural), 'nearly all natural' (all natural except for maybe one or two ingredients like a synthetic preservative and no fillers), or 'natural based' products (mostly natural, with maybe a few synthetics. Though many natural based lines contain certain synthetics that I personally do not recommend using, there are many other lines out there that contain mostly benign, non-toxic synthetics) to improve their skin and to use more ecologically-minded products. Through blogging and posting on forums (and even moderating one for three years for a diy ingredient, natural based cosmetics vendor) I realized how much I enjoyed helping people find and use exceptional skin care and eco-friendly alternatives. I also realized how much crafting, herbalism, and aromatherapy (once only hobbies) had become my passions.
I have been crafting my own skin care for over nine years, and love sharing my products with others. It is my hope that my herbal and aromatherapy blends will not only take care of your skin, but will also nurture your emotions and spirit too :)
Cheers!
Li
Feb. 2010
Please note: that just because something is 'synthetic' does not automatically mean it is 'bad', and just because something is 'natural' does not mean it is completely 'safe'. Ingredients from nature should be treated with respect, as many are very potent substances, and when used incorrectly can be irritating or toxic. That said, I prefer, craft, and use all natural and nearly all natural cosmetics because I personally believe natural substances are overall safer, more soothing and gentler for the skin, and in addition plants contain high levels of many actives including antioxidants :)
Copyright 2010 Earth Alkemie/D.L. Wong. All rights reserved.
