For centuries, wise women have hand-plucked flowers, foraged for herbs, wild-craft ed with plants, and pulverized nuts and seeds to extract fragrant essences and oils for beauty rituals that resulted in glossy hair and soft, smooth skin. The ancient Egyptians mixed animal fat and plant oils to create an early hair conditioner. In 16th century Italy, Catherine de’ Medici relied on a moisturizer made with a mix of peach blossoms and almond oil; at the same time, Italian herbalists boiled rosemary in white wine to create a tonic for the skin. (And they drank it too!) The power of plants is pure magic, which is why the women who knew how to use them were often accused of sorcery. Here are some tried-and-true beauty botanicals for skin, hair, body, and spirit.

ALOE VERA

What Soothes sunburn, moisturizes, and temporarily tightens the skin.
Where The American Southwest. It is thought to have been brought there in the 17th century from Barbados, where it covered the ground so thickly that Spanish sailors named the island for effect it created: Barbados means “bearded.”
Why It feels soothing partly because aloe is 99.5 percent water. But it also contains nourishing ingredients such as polysaccharides, glycoproteins, vitamins, and minerals that are moisturizing and anti-inflammatory.

GINGER

What Stimulates the circulation, tones and softens the skin, helps with stretch marks. Often found in lip plumpers and body scrubs.
Where Southeast Asia and Thailand, where a form of ginger known as prai is commonly used in beauty. The Ancient Romans considered ginger to be an aphrodisiac, and it is mentioned throughout One Thousand and One Nights. Why It promotes blood flow and revs up the circulation.

LAVENDER

What Soothes inflamed skin, heals burns, relaxes tired muscles, and calms the mind.
Where France, where lavender fields are endless, along with other areas of the Mediterranean. In the 1920s, French chemist René-Maurice Gattefossé burned his hand in the lab and mistakenly plunged it into a vat of lavender oil, thinking it was water. It healed so well that he began to research its medicinal properties and eventually coined the term aromatherapy.
Why Lavender is antibacterial, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory, and it calms the nervous system.

ROSE

What Moisturizes sensitive, mature, or dry skin; reduces inflammation; and works as also a gentle astringent. The scent is said to ease anxiety and promote feelings of love.
Where Ancient Greece, where rosewater was used to soften the skin, and throughout Europe, where women would massage hips and legs with
rose oil to ease the pain of childbirth, perhaps by lessening anxiety.
Why Rose oil constricts small blood vessels and broken capillaries.

SAGE

What Controls excess oil secretion, regenerates skin cells, and kills bacteria that cause odor and breakouts. Good for acne-prone skin.
Where All over the Mediterranean and American Southwest. Native Americans use it in purification ceremonies and to cleanse a room, a practice known as sageing. Sage was thought to cure disease by driving out evil spirits when disease was considered a spiritual affliction.
Why Sage is antiseptic, astringent, and detoxifying. It kills bacteria and microbes, which is why it was used to keep meat from spoiling before refrigeration.

CHAMOMILE

What Calms dry, sensitive, itchy skin; conditions and brings out blond highlights in the hair; reduces broken capillaries.
Where Southern and western Europe. The Victorians used it in a tea to calm women who suffered from “hysteria.”
Why Roman and German chamomile contain azulene, a potent anti-inflammatory.

SEAWEED AND ALGAE

What Moisturizes, nourishes, and restores minerals to all skin types.
Where The sea, especially coastal areas of South America and Europe. In France in particular, residents in some areas would “take the cure” from the healing waters and bracing salt air. Beauty treatments involving seaweed are known as thalassotherapy.
Why Seaweed is rich in vitamins A, C, and K; fatty acids; and minerals that replenish what we lose through everyday life. It also has antioxidant properties to protect from free-radical damage.

GOOD FOR YOUR SKIN AND THE ENVIRONMENT

The beauty of botanicals is that they are not only good for our personal health; they are also good for the environment. Think about it: Everything goes somewhere, and when you wash your cleanser, scrub, or bodywash down the drain, it eventually goes into our rivers, lakes, and oceans, where it can have an impact on flora and fauna. That’s one reason it makes sense to rely on natural products. Here are some seductive botanical brands.

AIRØ

Created by master aesthetician Daphne Chapman, Airø is a beauty and travel lifestyle brand designed to restore skin on the go with lightweight but deeply penetrating products. Chapman has two great passions—travel and skin care—and she knows firsthand the toll that high altitudes, environmental stressors, and cabin pressure can take on the skin. The brand features two beautiful collections: the original Airø, formulated with healing desert plants such as aloe vera, prickly pear, and Joshua tree root; and sē, made from richly nourishing marine extracts.
Star products: Airø Jetsetter Recovery Mask, Airø Facial Recovery Oil, sē Apres Sun Serum

BOTNIA

Botnia, an organic skin-care brand from aesthetician Justine Kahn, features products made by herbalists from plants grown on the Botnia microfarm in Sausalito, California. The name comes from bot, for botanicals and botanists, and Nia, for an imaginary land where plants work magically with our bodies. The line of small-batch face and body products is formulated by herbalists to harness the power of plants.
Star products: Chamomile Gentle Cleanser, Rose Geranium Hydrosol, Well Serum

LVNEA

Lvnea sources its fragrant essential oils and extracts from an exotic garden. The Montreal-based company offers a line of heady natural perfumes, featuring exquisite blends such as Moon Moss (lavender, oak moss, patchouli) and Jasmine & Fig (jasmine, fig, pink peppercorn), as well as bath, body, and face care and candles.
Star products: River Bathing Ritual Bath Salts, Larmes
de Rose Facial Serum, Jasmine Cardamom Damiana Floral Body Serum

OSEA

Founder Jenefer Palmer went to the end of the earth—Patagonia, at the southernmost tip of South America—to research the most pristine seaweed she could find. Palmer discovered that the Patagonian Gigartina species was not only known for its high content of vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and trace elements, which are extremely nourishing for the skin; it also comes from some of the most pristine waters on the planet. An award-winning, innovative mother-daughter team, Palmer and her daughter Melissa now run Osea, based on the California coast.
Star products: Ocean Eyes Age-Defying Eye Serum, Vagus Nerve Bath Oil, Atmosphere Protection Cream