The Difference Between What We Do and Virtually Everyone Else

We're soon to launch the Sleep Cream and I began to think properly about what it takes for us to launch a new product in comparison to virtually every other beauty business and why those difference are so critical to the quality of the finished product. So I made a list of the steps involved because it really matters and I think it's really interesting.

listen to customers skin concerns - people can and do email with worries or skin issues they need help with. I always deal with these emails or comments and if I can see a pattern forming, I'll begin to think about whether it justifies a product. We never make products for the sake of having something new to shout about.

research plants to solve the issue - the research takes a long time. I'll read a lot about the issue I'm trying to solve, I need to really understand it to make an effective product. I look at research papers, old herbals, new herbals, the European Herbal Pharmacopoeia, the Homeopathic Repertories, remedy guides, Bush, Bach, Findhorn Flower Essence information and all the rest.

source and sow seeds/plants - Usually I'll look for organic seeds but sometimes they are not available so I'll source other seeds or small plants or if it's a shrub, I'll find larger plants. This part is very important and requires some discussion about suitability for growing in Harris and where we can grow - inside in the greenhouse or outside on the croft in a sheltered position. Outside plants have to be salt tolerant and low growing enough to manage the wind.

transplant - once we have the seeds sown, they need watering regularly, tending and potting on into bigger pots before being transplanted into their final home. 

tend plants organically - we don't ever use any pesticides or herbicides on our plants, everything is grown organically so we spend a lot of time patrolling for slugs and snails and squishing greenfly and aphids. In the greenhouse we have plenty of insects and a couple of small birds but pests still need an extra squish. 

We also produce a foul smelling fertiliser by leaving comfrey, seaweed and nettles in water for months to ferment. It is a brilliant mix for strengthening the plants but a little eye watering in the application.

weed, water, improve soil - watering in the greenhouse takes ages and needs doing regularly to keep everything growing well. Weeding is also an almost daily event just to keep the beds free of bindweed and ground elder in particular. Unfortunately our beds were filled with what I was told was screened soil but the meaning was somewhat lost in translation - I meant screened for pernicious weeds and he meant that he had taken the biggest rocks out. 

Every winter we also try to improve the soil by adding a thick layer of seaweed to act as a mulch. It breaks down by spring when we want to start planting.

harvest over several weeks - if all goes to plan, we can start to harvest from April - some plants from the croft and apportionment, some plants from the greenhouse and seaweed at low tide from the beach. Once we're into May, harvesting is a daily event so that we get the flowers in particular when they have just reached perfect blooming. 

distil or dry or freeze or macerate - once picked, everything is taken to the workshop in Leverburgh and sorted. Some plants are dried, others distilled, some frozen and some immediately macerated in oil or alcohol. I love this part, seeing and smelling piles of Roses on the big oak table is one of life's absolute pleasures. Honeysuckle in profusion is an absolute delight, the Nettles have a glorious scent and vibrancy when picked at their prime and even Marestail, the bane of gardeners, is full of life when we pick it. It's hard to describe quite how much joy and energy we get from working with them all through the seasons. Leaves in Spring, flowers in Summer, seeds in Autumn and roots in early Winter - it is so utterly reassuring to follow the seasonal cues, in a world which seems so chaotic, these seasonal securities feel ever more important.

formulate recipe - only when I know what is possible in terms of plants can I start the formulation. It's such an interesting process. At this point I know what I want to achieve, I know which plants and which parts I need, which oils will work best, which flower essences or essential oils I'll be using and so I begin to think about the mode of delivery - balm, cream, hydrosol, tincture. I need to think about how a new product fits into a ritual, how it seamlessly works with other products so it can be mixed and matched. 

I always start with all the ingredients on the table in front of me, on the really big oak table that's 8ft x 6ft. Somehow seeing it spread out is inspirational. I start with one ingredients and then let it flow from there, bringing it together and working out how to make it work.

If it's a cream I'm thinking about how to make the emulsion stable, how to bring the plants into the product - is it the oil phase or the water phase. If it's a distillation I'm thinking about what proportion of each plant, checking that the actives I'm looking for are water soluble, if it's a balm I'm thinking about texture and glide. Eventually I'll make a first iteration, it's never right first time, I can always see room for improvement so it's back to the table for another try. This process can take months. The Sleep Cream that we're soon to launch took 8 months of trying before I was finally satisfied with product and process.

This is the point, when you formulate yourself you can give yourself the time to get it right using the ingredients you know will work. It's not a one size fits all or indeed a small tweak on a product you've already made for someone else. It's from scratch, from first principles and it makes a real difference to the finished product.

submit formulation for assessment to independent chemist - I'm not a cosmetic chemist, I'm a herbalist and homeopath so before I can sell a product I need to have the formulation assessed by an independent cosmetic chemist.The chemist I use is wonderful, he is so supportive of every product I make. I've never had to alter a formulation because I really understand what I'm doing, but having the reassurance that he has checked it both makes it legal to sell but also comforting for me to be sure that I haven't missed something critical.

have stability and challenge testing done - anything with water in it must be challenge tested. This is a legal requirement but more than that, it can give you confidence that what you are applying to your skin is safe and free from harmful bacteria. Products can be badly contaminated and causing harm long before there's anything to see on the product itself. Preservatives have long been a vexed issue but for commercially made products they are essential if there is water present. We use a COSMOS approved really gentle but effective preservative. When I see product making reels where preservatives are demonised or people choose grapefruit seed extract or Rosemary oil, my heart sinks. After a week, these products will be harbouring all manner of nasties, it's just not worth the risk.

Challenge testing is where the product is innoculated with specific bacteria, yeasts and moulds and then contamination levels measured at 7, 14 and 28 days. If the product fails the test after 28 days, it's back to the drawing board to work out whether it's a production issue or a preservative issue.  

grow more plants to ensure adequate supply - once the tests and assessments are in place we work out where and how we can find enough plants for the products and then we grow them. We never sell our products in large volumes and some, like Wild Eve our nonalcoholic drink has a cap on production because a couple of ingredients are wild harvested and we have to protect this fragile island ecology. 

send out to testers - we are blessed with the most wonderful customers. so whenever I make a new product I call out for testers and we are always inundated with volunteers. For the Sleep Ritual, we sent three products to 55 people and over the next few weeks had absolutely brilliant feedback, so thoughtful and extensive in their reviews. I'm particularly grateful for their honesty, it helps me a lot.

tweak recipe - post tester feedback, I tweak the recipe to deal with any issues that have been raised. We all live such different lives, there are often things that I would never have thought of that testers will bring to my attention.

reassess with chemist as needed - then it's back to the chemist for a reassessment if needs be and a follow up challenge test too.

source bottle/jar - for all the Harris Edition we use Miron glass which is horribly expensive but the UV protection it affords the products makes it worth every penny and I love the shapes and the violet glass. For the Classic Range we use amber glass that I source in Scotland (it's not made here I'm afraid). There is a home composting range of jars that I've found and love but the minimum volume is far beyond us just now - I'm hoping in time it reduces enough for us to make the switch.

work with designer to make label - Ianthe is our label designer, she is an artist and graphic designer so she produces watercolour paintings for every label she designs and then digitises it and uses it to create the label. She is brilliant, her works breathes life into the finished product. 

load all product info onto UK and EU portal - then there's the admin- every product we make has to have a PIF (product information file) made with all the information about it and all the relevant legal documents in place then it has to be loaded onto the UK Cosmetic Portal which is a tedious clunky process. The European version is infinitely faster, I always do that second because by the time I've completed the UK version I'm ready to throw my laptop through the window. 

make product by hand in tiny batches - only after all this is completed can we start actually making and selling the product. The cost to this point is several thousand £s. In the first year to 18 months of selling we are effectively recouping the cost of creating the product. 

infuse with love and good intention - because we are deliberately small, we can make our products by hand in tiny batches. We often make only 20-30 products in a batch - all our work is on a human scale so we can infuse every little pot or bottle with good intention. That matters because if you are making, with every stir of the pot you're setting a good intention, I'm certain that it adds to the vitality of the product and that makes a difference to your experience of it and how your body and mind receive it.

By keeping as much as possible 'in house,' by being true to ourselves, by embracing the idea that small is beautiful, we make outstanding, multi award winning, customer-loved products with a clear provenance, wonderful efficacy and excellent environmental credentials. We don't follow trends we respond to needs. We are led by a therapeutic intention which means that every ingredient has to earn its place in our formulations and it means that you only need a very small amount because there are no fillers, no extraneous ingredients, just the good stuff.

We clearly can't grow and wild harvest everything we use - some plants that we need we can't grow here such as Jojoba, which we use because, with its similarity to sebum, it is the right plant for the job and better than any local option in a formulation. So, when that happens, we source it responsibly. 

look at trends - most other brands follow trends, that's why there is currently hyaluronic acid in everything from shampoo to skincare and it's even in some nail varnish. Soon the trend will move on and something else will replace it. This is not skincare led by listening to your customers, it's looking to cash in on a trend. 

buy formulation with assessment - it's infinitely easier to pay someone to formulate for you. Out of interest, I bought a formulation recently to see how easy it was. It was very easy and it even came with a ready made assessment for around £100. The formula was fine, it was uninspired and similar in ingredients to so many others I've seen, but there was no life in it, no originality or creativity, no seasonality, no plants, nothing to locate it to a place. It was simply a commodity.

I thought about how much our formulations cost in comparison both in financial terms but also in time, thinking and energy. So much of all of it over months to get to where I want to be, (Wild Eve took over 4 years!) but for that investment, I get a product that no-one else will have made, that is totally original, full of life and efficacy, drawing on traditions of healers and plants-people over generations.

buy all ingredients or buy pre-made products - this is the easy bit, once you have the formulation and method, you get online and order every part of it or if you have a ready made product, you just buy it ready to go by the huge IBC for bulk storage and transportation, then you tip it from one container into another.

challenge test - everyone has to do this if there is water in the product.

load onto UK portal - this is a requirement for every skincare product irrespective of how large or small you are. Bigger companies have dedicated staff for this job, we do it ourselves.

make on a large scale - then you make it following the pre-prepared method. Usually in these formulations the possibility of scaling production is deemed critical, so the method must be foolproof, repeatable and easy to scrutinise. For us, if a batch doesn't feel right we can ditch it with only a minor loss but making at scale means that a batch going wrong is a really costly issue. Scaling also means that ingredients are added in to suit the machine that makes them, rather than being solely for the benefit of your skin. This is one more of the reasons we don't use machines. 

machine fill and label - I mention this as a separate section because for most skincare companies of any size, this is pretty much all automated or partially automated. The product is made and then filled and labelled. We have a manual hopper for some of our products but the majority are hand poured or piped. I love piping cream into a jar, the action is so mesmerising and then the tapping to ensure there are no bubbles is the final treat. 

Today we were filling bottles of Sugar Kelp Aromatic Water for the Isle of Harris Distillery, there were 4 of us standing round the big table. Angie filled the bottles and did some of the lidding, Alexander started by writing the labels and did a bit of lidding, Cassidy and I applied the labels by hand and Alexander then moved on to packing them into boxes. We all stood for most of the day working and chatting, listening to music, stopping for coffee, popping round to serve customers then starting again. It was a really nice day. One of the benefits of these kinds of repetitive actions is that we can come together, work and chat. Ideas are exchanged, plans hatched, problems solved all whilst filling, lidding, labelling and packing. It isn't as quick as a machine, we can't do massive volumes but we can do enough and feel our connection to the products but also to each other. If you create a space within the workplace for gentle chit chat, where the job needs to be done but not in a rush, where you hands can be working but your mind is free, a mundane set of tasks are rendered interesting.I really value that.

Virtually everyone else has so few steps and so little risk relative to us. If, for example, we have a crop failure we're in real trouble. Our costs are so high because we are small and because we do so much ourselves - ours is a labour intensive business. Our product costs, if you take into consideration all the growing, tending, harvesting, processing, testing etc, are very high. It needs so many more people to get from plant to product, sometimes I look at other brands and think, what is the customer paying for? Not the ingredients that's for sure.

In the end, you make your choice. You decide what matters to you and then you commit to that. For me, I want to go into work via a greenhouse or up a hill, or by the sea, I want the excitement of creating a product that fixes a problem and knowing that it is making someone, somewhere feel better. I want to see my team fulfilled and happy, I want to be able to stop for coffee outside if it's a sunny day and not panic about the time. I want us all to earn enough - sufficiency is important. These seem small work ambitions, but as I get older I've come to realise that small genuinely is beautiful and human connection matters more than anything.