Alexandra Engler is the beauty director at mindbodygreen and host of the beauty podcast Clean Beauty School. Previously, she’s held beauty roles at Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire, SELF, and Cosmopolitan; her byline has appeared in Esquire, Sports Illustrated, and Allure.com.
Image by Delmaine Donson / iStock
July 24, 2023
There’s a lot of ways the beauty community describes skin: Velvety, silky, cloud-like, glossy, and glass-like. They all evoke very specific sensorial experiences and visual cues, no? For glossy and glass-like, you know you’re getting a megawatt sheen. For velvety, there’s a sort of soft-focus finish. For cloud-like, it’s bouncy, cushion-y, and subdued.
And then, there’s skin that’s soft, smooth, and so touchable—or what I’m dubbing, “cashmere skin.” If you’ve ever cradled yourself in a cashmere sweater, you know just how decadent and comfortable the feel is. Once you touch it, it’s all you want to be draped in.
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And that’s exactly how I want my skin to feel. So how do I get my skin to be this undeniably soft? Well, luckily it’s not as high-maintenance as actual cashmere (or even as expensive!). It’s just about choosing the right products.
How this dry body oil gives me cashmere skin instantly.
Cashmere is a very distinct fabric that’s famous for how weightless, smooth, and gentle it feels. It’s soft—but not slippery or overly shiny. And that’s exactly the sort of skin care products you should be looking for.
To get cashmere-like skin, you’ll want hydrating, conditioning products that have a light texture and easy finish. Think about how cozy, but not constricting or heavy, it feels to wrap yourself in a cashmere blanket. That’s exactly how it should feel when you apply products.
The finish is also important: You want something that dries down quickly, and doesn’t leave a sticky, tacky, or noticeable residue. Cashmere looks luminous, but isn’t gleaming.
And just like cashmere itself, the higher quality materials the product is made out of, the better it’ll feel.
To make my skin feel as luxurious as possible, I use mindbodygreen’s dry body oil. The incredibly light texture is an absolute delight. It’s soft and supple. Spreading it over skin feels so light, so effervescent, that it practically disappears upon application. It’s a sensorial experience that feels rich, but never leaves a residue.
That’s all thanks to the formula. It’s an edited down, simple blend using only high-quality oils. It’s a mix of sunflower, organic safflower, squalane, prickly pear, and vitamin E oils. These are full of skin-supporting nutrients to nurture the barrier, provide antioxidant properties, and feed the skin lipids.
The sunflower and safflower oils are to thank for the light texture. These two naturally weightless oils are a good source of essential fatty acids omega-3 (linolenic acid) and -6 (linoleic acid). Together, these are often referred to as Vitamin F. (The title is a touch confusing, as these aren’t actual vitamins.) Linolenic and linoleic acid help repair the barrier, and soothe irritated skin. It also contains prickly pear seed oil, which is full of nutrients like vitamin E, phytosterols, and amino acids to support collagen production.
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The takeaway
No matter whether I’m applying mbg’s dry body oil in the morning to prep for my day or at night as part of my wind-down rituals, it’s made my body care routine feel luxurious but never inconvenient.
It’s a body oil that’s enjoyable to wear, but you don’t have to think too much about it during or after application. It just slips on the skin effortlessly and then feels almost like it was always meant to be there. Just like—yep you guessed it—cashmere.
