Sponsor feature: BESQUE is supporting ELEVATE at Benham Park.
We give a great deal of attention to the skin on our faces. We cleanse, moisturise, research ingredients and sometimes spend considerable amounts on a small pot of something promising. Yet the skin on the rest of our bodies often receives rather less thought, despite being with us through every season, every change and every stage of life.
I have been thinking about this recently because I have been enjoying BESQUE’s Magic Body Oil. The oil is absolutely beautiful and the smell is delicious, but it has also made me curious about what goes into a product like this and why plant oils have such an enduring place in skincare.
During our recent social media workshop with Kirsty from Rebuildagram, some of the Collective joined online while others came to Wiltshire. Amongst the learning and conversations, I gathered the girls together to try the oil. It was lovely to share something I had been enjoying and give everybody the opportunity to discover it for themselves.
With skincare, there is only so much a photograph or description can convey. The texture, the fragrance and the way something feels as you massage it into your skin are all part of deciding whether it is for you. Trying it together also opened up a wider conversation about the products we use and how much attention we give ourselves when life is busy.
I wanted to understand more about the science behind that everyday act of caring for our skin, because there is rather more happening beneath the surface than we might realise.
The science beneath the surface
Our skin is much more than a covering. Its outermost layer, the stratum corneum, forms a protective barrier that helps regulate water loss and defend against the outside environment. It is often compared to a brick wall, with skin cells forming the bricks and a mixture of natural fats providing the mortar between them.
Those fats include ceramides, cholesterol and fatty acids. Their organisation matters: an effective barrier helps retain moisture, while a disrupted barrier allows water to escape more easily. Scientists call this transepidermal water loss. We are more likely to notice the result as dryness, roughness or a feeling of tightness.
Body oils can help by softening the skin’s surface and forming a layer that reduces moisture loss. They do not supply water in the way a water-based moisturiser does, but they can help skin retain it. This is one reason an oil and a cream can have complementary roles.
A scientific review of plant oils and the skin barrier explains that oils differ in their composition and effects. The type of oil and the finished formulation both matter.
I find this useful because it brings the conversation back to something practical. We do not need to become cosmetic scientists to choose a product, but understanding its purpose helps us ask better questions. Does our skin need something richer? Do we enjoy the texture? Does it suit us well enough that we will use it regularly?
It also helps us separate an immediate impression from a longer-term result. Enjoying how an oil feels after applying it is something we can judge for ourselves. Claims about changes in firmness or collagen require a different level of evidence, including research on the finished product.
What is inside BESQUE’s Magic Body Oil?
BESQUE lists seven key ingredients: sweet almond oil, evening primrose oil, rosehip oil, vitamin E, geranium, lavender and patchouli. These bring together conditioning oils and aromatic ingredients, each contributing something different to the blend. The brand describes its ingredients as natural, pure and unrefined. You can explore them on the Magic Body Oil page.
Sweet almond oil is an emollient, helping soften and smooth the skin. Evening primrose oil contains fatty acids, including linoleic acid and gamma-linolenic acid, while rosehip oil contributes further fatty acids to the formula. Vitamin E is an antioxidant and also helps protect oils against oxidation.
Geranium, lavender and patchouli contribute floral, herbal and warmer, earthy notes. For me, that fragrance is a considerable part of the pleasure of using it.
Looking at the ingredients this way makes more sense to me than expecting every botanical to perform a long list of miracles. Some contribute to conditioning, others to scent or the stability of the blend. Together, they determine how the finished product feels and behaves.
There is an important distinction here between liking natural ingredients and assuming that everything natural will suit everybody. Fragrant plant oils can cause sensitivity, just as other cosmetic ingredients can. If your skin is reactive, trying a small area first is sensible.
I think taking that individual approach makes skincare more enjoyable. We can be interested in a product, appreciate its ingredients and still pay attention to our own skin rather than somebody else’s expectations.
Why the pleasure matters too
When we talk about skincare, the discussion often moves quickly towards results. We want to know what will change, how soon we will notice it and whether the product is worth buying. Those are reasonable questions, but they can overlook something simpler: do we actually enjoy using it?
For me, the scent and texture matter. A product we look forward to using has a different place in our day from something we apply because we feel we ought to.
There is also something about taking a little time to massage an oil into the skin. You notice what you are doing. Your hands are occupied, your phone is elsewhere and, for a few minutes, your attention is on something other than the next task.
I am very aware of how easy it is to rush through these moments. Running a business and organising events means there is always another email, another decision or somebody who needs an answer. Looking after ourselves can become something we intend to do once everything else is finished, which rarely seems to happen.
Perhaps the more realistic approach is to make a little more of the routines already there. We are going to have a shower and get dressed. Allowing a few extra minutes for something we enjoy can be more achievable than waiting for a completely free afternoon.
That is part of what appeals to me about BESQUE’s story. The brand draws inspiration from Eastern beauty traditions and practices passed down through generations, with plant oils at the heart of its approach. It connects the product with the act of using it, something that can easily disappear when beauty becomes entirely about before-and-after photographs.
From the shower to the skin
I have also been using the BESQUE Shower Oil, which is incredible too. It has a different purpose from the body oil: it is a cleansing formula that turns milky when water is added and is then rinsed away.
Its ingredients include plant oils alongside cleansing agents, allowing it to wash the skin rather than simply coat it. The Magic Body Oil is the separate product applied afterwards and left on.
I like understanding that distinction. The products may share ingredients and belong to the same range, but they have different jobs. It makes the routine easier to understand and gives us a clearer idea of what we are choosing.
It also brings us back to paying attention. We can notice how our skin feels after washing, whether it needs additional moisture and which textures we prefer. There is room to make choices based on what suits us, rather than feeling we must follow every step of somebody else’s routine.
Sharing discoveries and supporting the people behind them
Trying BESQUE together at the workshop reminded me of one of the reasons I love bringing the Collective together. We came to learn from Kirsty, but the day also gave us space to exchange ideas, talk about our businesses and share things we had discovered.
Those conversations are an important part of what we are building through Eat Nourish Love. A recommendation becomes more personal when there is somebody beside you explaining why they enjoy something and giving you the chance to decide for yourself.
BESQUE is one of our sponsors for ELEVATE at Benham Park on 30 September, and I am enormously grateful for their support. Bringing an event together takes a great deal of work, and having businesses get behind what we are creating makes such a difference.
I cannot wait to welcome them to Benham Park and introduce more of you to their products. It is particularly lovely to share a brand I have been using and enjoying myself, and to see it become part of a day built around conversation, discovery and bringing people together.
For me, caring for our skin begins with curiosity and attention. Understanding a little of the science, looking at what goes into a product and noticing what suits us all help us make more considered choices.
The pleasure belongs there too. Sometimes something as ordinary as applying a body oil can remind us that looking after ourselves deserves a place in the day we already have.
