Overview
Decleor has been around for over 20 years. The company has laboratories in Paris, France where they formulate their product line. They claim to use 100% natural ingredients and to be 100% preservative free. Decleor has partnered with Shiseido Group, which is a world wide marketing and development company that also have their hands in cosmetics, perfumes, restaurants, clothing lines, and spas.
Decleor believes in the power of aromatherapy, which they attempt to capitalize on by extracting essential oils from botanical plants and combing them with another product to make both steps work correctly on your skin. This idea has been coined the Aroma-Duo concept by Decleor. The concept is that the essential oil goes on your skin first, then with the second product, the oil and the cream or gel work together to give a combined result.
Product Details
The Aroma Line:
Aromessence is the name of each different essential oil blend. Each product in this line contains at least 3 different essential oils.
There are many different products available through the website. Choosing the right product for you can be a complicated process, involving first assessing your skin type, than determining your goals and/or problem areas. For purposes of this article, we will choose one product from several categories that seems to fit all skin types and that offer a sample typical full treatment cycle of Decleor products.
For cleansing, there is the Cleansing Milk.
The ingredients are: Lavender, Petitgrain Essential Oils : 0.04%, Orange, Kiwi, Mallow Essential Waters : 4.5%, Moisturizing agent.
According to application directions the cleansing milk is intended to remove dirt and make-up, even from the eyes.
For skin treatment, there is Neroli Aromessence.
The ingredients are: Essential Oils of Sandalwood, Neroli, Petit Grain, Sage, Parsley, Juniper Berries : 2.9%.
According to the application directions the Neroli is to be used morning and night. You must use 2 drops at a time and apply according to their specifications. You are then meant to follow up with an appropriate skin cream.
For protection, there is Aroma Morning.
The ingredients are: Fruit Acid Concentrate and AHAs : 6%, Aloe Vera Gel : 5%, Maize Germ Oil : 1%, Moisturising Agents : 4.5%.
This is a phytomoisturizing cream that is intended to protect your skin from the sun as well as mositurize it.
The Good
- Decleor claims their products are preservative free and 100% natural
- The website is easy to navigate. Each product is located by skin type and action it performs.
- Aromatherapy is an effective way to get certain botanicals.
The Bad
- You can't buy Decleor online. In fact, you can only get it in certain city salons.
- The website is listing the ingredients, but we don't know for sure if it's the full list of ingredients
- There are so many products to choose from, it can be a daunting task to pick out what you need.
- Since you can't purchase the items online and you can only get them in specific salons, you have to add travel time and expense to your bill before you have even paid for the products themselves. Application instructions can also be confusing.
The Bottom Line
Decleor is an attractive possibility for those seeking botanical aromatherapy for their skin. The science behind Decleor appears to really be geared towards natural and pure ingredients. However, the problem with not making these products very accessible can really put a lot of consumers off. Many of us don't want to make a long trip to a certain salon to buy products that we aren't sure are going to work. The process of selecting what is best for your skin seems a little overwhelming and if you aren't correct the first time, it's another trip to make another change.
