Inevitable Entropy with Founders Marie Veronique Nadeau + Kristy Moore-Jeffress

We know that customers enjoy Marie’s direct responses and truly benefit from her wisdom + bold truths surrounding the aging process in her seventh decade,“Entropy is inevitable. Slowing it down is optional…and an opportunity!”  

As a follow-up to our Live Discussion on Inevitable Entropy, here are some interesting questions we received that Marie wanted to take the liberty to answer.

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Marie's intelligent, no-bullsh*t approach that is actually effective is why I trust no one else when it comes to skincare. I know with her products, I can do no better in terms of a topical routine. My question is, I recently read someone describe skincare like a cake: whereas our skin is the frosting, and the deeper layers and muscles are the actual cake. You can smooth the frosting all you want, but eventually the structure underneath (the cake) is going to weaken, and so the frosting on top will inevitably give way to the shifting base below. That really struck me, because if that’s true, I’m doing everything as good as can be for the top layer of my skin (the frosting), with a diligent skincare routine by you (serums, oils, sunscreen). But I’m doing nothing for the deeper layers and not employing more invasive techniques beyond topical skincare. How do you support the deeper layers while maintaining the Marie Veronique ethos? Obviously not injectables. I don’t want to throw away the gentle and healthy approach I’ve adhered to all these years, but it feels like it’s time to utilize some technology that reaches deeper.

 “Skin is like a layer cake” is in fact a very good simile because the skin is composed of distinctive layers. But the analogy between frosting and cake doesn’t hold true in MV’s case, because when you use MV products you are actually making the cake, one skin layer at a time. This is a very different approach from most skin care companies who, like the contestants on the British baking show, are vying with each other to make their cakes look as eye-catching as possible, with swirls of frosting and floret piping. We at MV don’t do cake decoration--we’re all about creating the well-formulated recipes which contain the necessary ingredients, in the correct proportions, that will make the best cake possible, all the way down to the bottom layer, the dermis. 

Nonetheless the analogy of the skin as a cake is worth extending because it allows me to expound on the various layers, but please bear in mind I am over-simplifying as there is a great deal going on that this brief overview can’t begin to cover. 

The skin is composed of three layers, the dermis, epidermis and stratum corneum. The proper functioning of each layer is crucial when it comes to maintaining the skin’s structural integrity. The bottom layer, the dermis, is the home of the fibroblasts that produce new skin cells as well as glucosamine glycans like hyaluronic acid. It is also home to the extracellular matrix (ECM) which is composed of protein strands like collagen and elastin whose grid formation holds up all the layers of skin above it. Your skin gets its basic structure from the ECM, so it’s important to maintain its strength, elasticity, and resilience. This is also where the proteoglycans such as hyaluronic acid that support the ECM live; these gel-like substances surround the supporting grid, and just as a bonus give the skin that plump, dewy look. In addition, the dermis is rich in blood vessels which diffuse oxygen and nutrients to the layer which sits on top of it, the epidermis (epi means on top of, hence epi-dermis=on top of dermis). 

The epidermis is composed of many sublayers, starting with the basal layer at the very bottom, where the newly formed cells begin their life cycle--they transform as they travel to the skin’s surface. This is the cell turnover rate everyone refers to, and it takes about a month before the cells finally arrive at the topmost layer of skin, the stratum corneum (SC). In this stage of their journey they form an important part of your skin’s protective barrier, acting in the role of hardened keratin cells. This outermost layer of the skin is our interface with the outside world, the barrier that prevents unwanted materials from entering, as well as excessive loss of water, called trans epidermal water loss (TEWL), from exiting the body. The cells in this area are rich in NMF (natural moisturizing factors) which keep the skin hydrated.

Now, as you can imagine, all these layers of skin, as well as all the component parts of the different layers, need the correct nutrients to carry out their assigned duties. This is especially important at the dermal layer, home of the ECM, the fibroblasts and the proteoglycans. Just for starters, your skin must have ascorbic acid to start the biosynthesis of collagen that makes up the ECM in the dermis, and must have Vitamin A (aka retinol) to normalize skin cell development in the fibroblasts.

Let’s return to the cake analogy—your skin is the baker, but it needs a constant supply of fresh ingredients (nutrients) to properly make the different layers of the cake. MARIE VERONIQUE products are about providing all the necessary ingredients to the right areas so your skin can build, maintain and repair all the layers. You can think of MARIE VERONIQUE as the supply chain to your hard-working baker.

Bottom line: We at MARIE VERONIQUE are, along with your skin, dedicated to the goal of making the best possible cake, where all the layers are performing their multifarious tasks as they should. Frosting on the top doesn’t make a good cake any more than foundation and related cosmetics make good skin care. The outside might look good, but the underpinnings are everything when it comes to maintaining skin’s health and beauty.  

By the way, I like the frosting/cake analogy because even as a kid I never liked frosting; I’d peel it off to devour the cake underneath. Apply that attitude to skin care and you are good to go.

What do you know now (at 75) that you wish you had known in your twenties?

The importance of sunscreen! It’s so easy, just wear it every day, inside or out. And follow healthy sun practices too, like wearing hats or minding peak hours, especially for your face and chest.

Aside from topicals, what are the 2 - 3 “must haves” for skin health? (e.g. diet, sleep, exercise, facials)

Sardines (omega fats) and finding ways to enjoy your daily life. Find what makes you happy and do it. For me, that’s petting my cat and digging in the dirt.

During the live, Marie mentioned avoiding essential oils because they can accelerate the rate of entropy. I found this interesting because some of her products contain essential oils, can you explain?

To clarify, I meant excess use of essential oils, or formulations that are too harsh for your skin. ​​We use judicious/low amounts of essential oils in many of our products (except for the Kristina Holey x Marie Veronique line which is entirely essential oil-free, as well as both Vitamin C Serums and most of our men’s Louis Pierre line). The essential oils we do formulate with are of high quality, at very low levels, and included for specific beneficial/therapeutic properties.
 

To hear more from Marie on the neverending subject of entropy, watch the replay of the live discussion here. To find out what topicals Marie uses daily and see her full AM+PM regimens, click here.