About Gaelle Kennedy
During my modeling career, when I was very well paid for representing cosmetic companies, I wondered why women in their forties, fifties and sixties would buy products modeled by a twenty three year old. I told myself, when I’m forty I will never buy anything modeled by a twenty year old. I would be too smart to fall for that gimmick.
In my early thirties, I was over the hill for a model. I worked as a esthetician and make-up artist for an enchantress named Aida Grey who owned a high-end beauty salon in Beverly Hills.
Aida was then in her seventies and had beautiful skin. What made her so special was that she knew beauty could last forever if you learned how to take care of yourself and, above all, if you loved and enjoyed yourself at all ages. She knew how to charm everybody and at every age. Because beauty and charm are ageless, their effects are eternal.
Now that I’m in my sixties, it amuses me that so many women my age think they are going to look like a twenty year old simply by buying products modeled by them. Even so, they can still look great and have beautiful skin. The picture of me here was taken recently. You can have great skin at any age.
Then my daughter, Sabrina, challenged me to start my own organic facial line. “You always used to throw out my cosmetics, lotions and deodorants because they had chemicals in them. You just wanted me to use organic concoctions. If you know so much, why don’t you start your own beauty products business?” A good question.
I’ve always believed that if the ingredients in a beauty product are not good enough to eat, then they are not good enough for my face.
So I began researching every organic ingredient known to nourish and plump up fine lines (as that’s all creams can do.) I tested each one for a week on my face to see what it really did. Once I was satisfied with the results, I formulated a regenerative moisturizer and gave it to 20 of my fussiest friends who were using the most expensive, well-known creams.
My goal was to see if my cream was as good as their expensive, but chemical-ladened ones — or better. If 80% of these women thought my cream was as good as what they had been using, I would begin making organic facial products. When 100% came back and said “this is the best moisturizer I’ve ever had”, I knew I was in business. And my daughter has happily become a customer who now only uses organic products on her skin.
The beauty business is a billion dollar industry. The more companies can convince you that their products produce eternal youth and the more products they can convince you to use, the more money they make. It’s that simple.
Here’s the secret. Most of it is bull…. For instance, some masks, like the French Clays, are beneficial for large pores, but most masks that promise to tighten your skin just pull it for 20 – 30 minutes. This has a rubber band effect on skin – the more you pull it, the looser your skin becomes. And with moisturizers, there is no need for different ones for different areas of your face and neck. A moisturizer should be good for all over your face, neck, and under your eyes.
Beautiful skin is simply healthy, clean, luminous skin that is nourished inside and out. You need to cleanse with a good moisturizing soap, tone it with a botanical toner that contains no harsh chemicals or alcohol, moisturize with an oil-based, natural moisturizer, and gently exfoliate once or twice a week. Drink good water, eat plenty of salad and make sure to eat plenty of cabbage and kale. And wear a hat or visor if you’re going to be in the sun. That’s it!
The rest comes from what makes you happy. So be happy, healthy and loving, foremost to yourself.
Wishing you good health and fabulous skin,
Gaelle