A MOMENT WITH LAUREN WILSON OF LAUREN'S ALL PURPOSE
TEXT: LOGAN VERLAQUE IMAGES: VIA lauren wilson
WORDS OF WISDOM FROM THE WOMAN BEHINd ONE OF OUR FAVORITE NATURAL CREAMS.
Lauren Willson is responsible for creating the savior of balms. Her ‘All Purpose Salve’ is a skin soother, beauty enhancer, and all around fix-all. We couldn’t wait to talk to Wilson about what led her to formulating such a wonder product and how her wholistic, simple approach to beauty applies to her life overall.
On starting lauren’s all purpose
Lauren’s All Purpose started about 6 years ago when I was a line cook in the kitchens of NYC. I kept burning myself and wanted to use an organic cream on the burns on my arms. The burn creams I tried were all made out of harmful chemicals and didn’t work so I set to work creating my own. After I left the kitchen, I apprenticed with an herbalist and went back to grad school for Nutrition- during this time I was able to reformulate the initial cream into what it is today, an all-in-one balm that can be used for burns but also for hundreds of other things. My friends eventually started asking me what this mystery cream that I was always rubbing all over myself was and I started selling it to them. They kept coming back for it and it basically just kept growing from there. Lauren’s All Purpose Salve (aka LAPS) is our first product that everyone knows us by, but this year I’m excited to release a bunch of new products that follow the same ethos of minimalism. Lauren’s All Purpose is the brand name.
On living a simple lifestyle
I definitely keep my makeup routine simple- it’s usually no makeup except for some LAPS on my cheekbones, eyebrows and lips. I’ve always been drawn to very minimal, simple interior design and my dream one day is to live in a Philip Johnson glass house type of home. I’ve taken to carrying a backpack after many years in NYC and it’s honestly so simple and easy- I keep a small Stasher bag in there for my wallet, phone etc. which is so easy to grab when I don’t need my full backpack. (I get so many compliments on it as well! haha) Food is usually not very simple for me- I love cooking. Smoothies for me have about 20 ingredients in them and I love indulging in elaborate meals at a restaurant. Right now I’m doing an elimination diet for dairy and sugar so things are little reigned in at the moment. I’m also gluten-free and very picky about where my meat comes from.
On her “less is more” beauty philosophy in our “more is more” world
I feel beauty is in the soul of the woman, her magic and energy she exudes. "Real" beauty is not the next "entertainment phase" of cosmetics we are lead to believe. That can be both fickle, regretful and alienating. The plumping, contouring, volumizing approach equates to nothing more than an industry "price tag” in my eyes.
On self care
There is something so magical about listening to your body. Recently I was able to completely stop taking SSRIs which I had been on for years and my body kept saying, stop taking this medicine. But it is SO hard to get off of, especially if you’ve been on it for a long time. I’m grateful for the medicine because it got me through a really difficult period of my life but I wanted to stop taking them 3 years ago and was finally able to completely stop! Anyways, self-care for me involves checking in with myself each morning and asking what I need. Some days it involves a lot more self-care than others. Right now I’m dancing the line between saying no and having boundaries and keeping my word when I say yes. Both are so important for feeling empowered but it’s a challenge to navigate.
“Dancing to Rihanna followed by a few dabs of Lauren’s All
Purpose Salve makes my skin glow.”
On her sources of inspiration
Nature definitely inspires my mood- I can be uplifted so quickly from a walk, feet in the ground and touching trees. For work, I’m inspired by books. There’s nothing better than looking at an architecture book or anatomy book and realizing how amazing humans are.
On her sustainable practices
Well, I’ve already mentioned my minimal bag/purse habits… haha. It really makes my life so easy. I reuse jars from pickles, etc to store my food in because I don’t want BPAs in plastic to leak into my food. I rarely buy new clothes and instead have clothing swaps with friends or buy vintage.
On makeup
With makeup I don’t drive myself crazy with looking up every ingredient but I will look at what’s in it from a research standpoint. (Curiosity is both my savior and Achilles heel.) Honestly I don’t think I’ve ever used any makeup til it’s empty ever in my life (usually it gets old and goes bad before I use it up). But right now I’m obsessed with MAKE brow pen that a makeup artist friend gave me. Also with RMS Beauty coverup and VAPOUR beauty concealer which has a little shimmer. Oh and Milk makeup Kush mascara.
On her diy tricks
If I breakout, which happens more in the winter when my already dry skin is parched, I like using a Manuka honey and yogurt face mask. It’s so nourishing and calming and clears breakouts so quickly. Manuka honey kills all the bad bacteria and yogurt replenishes the good bacteria. I find that most acne products completely wipe out the natural ecosystem that your face needs to be healthy and it can take months to get your skin back to normal. This mask is effective but super gentle. Also, if you’re new to clean skincare just stop using any skincare products for 2 months so your face can have some time to adjust- that way you can figure out what your skin naturally needs to thrive. Which usually is not that much :)
