If there’s one skincare product that most of us – including the low-maintenance – use on a regular basis, it’s moisturiser. One of the few beauty formulas that most people understand and are familiar with, it’s an easy thing to slap on at the end of the day and benefit from – male, female, young, old, Nivea or La Mer, most of us have used one at some point in our lives. Which is why when a decent formula comes along, and one – I would say – that most skin types will get on with, it’s worth getting acquainted.
Fresh out of the proverbial skincare box this year comes Moussse’s Moisture Rush Cream, a non-comedogenic, fragrance-free wonder that arrives in a chic aluminium tube (great for the planet) and is clinically proven to boost skin barrier function and hydration. A kind of gel-cream consistency, it doesn’t feel too thick (so oily skins will get on with it), but does feel nourishing enough to quench skin’s thirst, soften dry patches and generally make it glow. I don’t say this often when it comes to skincare, but it’s a great all-rounder.
The duo behind the brand, which only launched this year, are Daniel Guttmann (previously CEO of Dr Barbara Sturm) and his wife, Hélène Chammas, who consulted for L’Oréal. They decided to launch the brand after Chammas, who grew up in Switzerland, suffered inflamed, irritated skin while living in various cities, including New York, Berlin and London. “I couldn’t figure out what was causing it,” she says. “I tried a lot of products, even though my approach to skincare before was very basic, very French. When we came back to Switzerland and talked to different dermatologists and people in the skincare industry, I realised the issue was urban environments – so everything that came with living in a city.”
That’s not just the pollution, poor air and water quality, and UV rays (the effects of which have been proven to be more damaging when combined with air pollutants), but also the lifestyle that typically occurs in tandem. When we live in cities, we tend to be more stressed, sleep less well and in some cases eat less healthily. “That’s when we decided to stay in Switzerland and create a formula using biotechnology, which is where we recreate ingredients in the laboratory so they’re compatible with the skin.”
This formula is powered by the brand’s MoussseShield, which marries prebiotics (to nurture the skin microbiome), antioxidants to defend against external aggressors, and soothing ingredients, to reduce sensitisation and inflammation, while balancing the skin. Ingredients span from niacinamide (at 3 per cent) and squalane to ceramides, micro-algae and glycerin – and they all work synergistically to keep your skin barrier robust, and ultimately ward off the effects of big city life.
The formula feels incredibly good – it makes skin feel supple, smooth and hydrated, while also being gentle enough on ultra cold days when it’s feeling a bit prickly too. As someone with relatively reactive skin myself, it hasn’t prompted any breakouts or rashes either, just an excellent level of nourishment. Whether you’re a city dweller or not, it’s a brilliant formula from a brilliant new brand – keep an eye on this one.
