Learn how Julie, the founder of Raw Element, started her skin care line after being fed up with products that didn't make the healthy cut
Julie was plaqued with very dry skin from birth. Growing up in the era of the synthetically fragrant body butters and colored lotions laced with mineral oils and other irritants but with total lack of knowledge of how bad these items actually were, her skin grew more aggravated and dehydrated as the years went on. She tried body butter from every beauty store possible: all the new lotions, from the reasonably affordable to the outrageously expensive. Wrinkle creams, eye creams, and the list goes on. Yet, nothing seemed to help.
She needed a solution and was determined to develop it herself. As a result, at the ripe age of 30, with a little business sense and an ever growing passion to find a solution to her dry skin, she brought Raw Element to life. It began with hours, days, and even entire weekends devoted outside of her 45+ hour a week job to research natural skin care ingredients. She began learning about and experimenting with such things as carrier and essential oils, herbs, natural preservatives, recipes, packaging – all with quite a bit of trial and error to find the perfect skin care recipe.
It finally paid off when friends and family began trying the products she made and kept coming back for more. She began selling locally in and around St. Louis, MO from her home town and current location in Maryville, IL. As the business quickly spread via word of mouth (oh, you know how those small towners gossip!), she began selling on Etsy to better serve her local customer base as well as reach consumers across the United States.
All products are handmade and fresh upon order. Ingredients that will NEVER be found in Raw Element’s products are synthetic fragrances and dyes, parabens, sulfates, propylene glycol, and petrochemicals (mineral oil). Since the products are made of natural ingredients with natural preservatives, they do expire much quicker than those found in stores, which by the way can last several years on the shelf. But that’s a good thing! With Raw Element’s all-natural ingredients, the products provide superior benefits for the skin without the toxic effect of other products.
Although still in the very early stages, Raw Element continues to grow and expand. The business currently offers face and body butters, scrubs, and oils for normal to dry skin. However, stay tuned because product development is underway daily to offer a wider variety of items including those targeted towards acne and oily skin. The containers and labeling used are not intended to be flashy but all are recyclable and thus, Raw Element remains conscious of its effect on the environment as well.
The overriding focus of the line and brand is to provide simple and pure products. As Julie had found from years of trying a myriad of products that failed to work, and then learning how to craft better solutions by hand, she realized that the less ingredients coupled with the higher quality of those ingredients, the better off her skin would be for both the short, and long term. As all good skin care enthusiasts know, a simple but high quality product, in sync with a healthy diet and reduction of stress, are the keys to healthy skin. As such, Julie presses on with Raw Element and its mission to help educate consumers about the benefits of natural ingredients. And of course, she continues to produce superior quality products at affordable prices!
This wonderful article was written by Julie, the owner of Raw Element Skin Care Products.
