The Skincare Chapter...

This month we had the pleasure of catching up with beauty entrepreneur Nneka Fleming, creator of award-winning brand, Novel Skincare: A gorgeous range of vegan, organic, cruelty-free products.  

  • What's the concept behind novel skincare?

We want you to feel like your body is the best story you’ve ever read.

  • What inspired you to start novel?

We started at a time when libraries were closing across the country and books were being replaced with screens. We wanted to share the beauty of a book with something also beautiful and personal - the body and Novel Skincare was born.

  • Who are your favourite authors? And any recommendations?

I’m personally attracted to autobiographies and fiction that feels like an autobiography because and I like connection we feel to people once we know their story. I think a good example of this is Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. It describes the life of a black man during civil rights era in American and you really feel his experiences and it’s hard to believe that this is not autobiographical. This novel actually inspired our shower cream Invisible.

  • Any top tips and tricks you can share?

I think it’s important to notice the feeling of things. Perhaps it because we are all in a heightened sense of isolation where we try not to touch anything outside of our homes for fear of falling ill. If you focus on the feeling of your skin, for example the feeling of water on your hands. It’s very soothing.

To moisturize your hands just before you go to bed is a simple tool to take your mind out of the current stress. It forces you to think about looking after yourself in a very small way. We give away a small sample of Irony Body Butter to new subscribers just so they can use this tool. We’ve had emails back saying how much they needed this especially during lockdown. 

In terms of skincare I think using a cleanser that is moisturizing is vial to aging well. We have a Love Letters range which includes a Q10 Cleanser and when you use it you realise your skin isn’t bad you’ve just been doing it wrong.

  • Which are your go-to ingredients?

We only use natural ingredients, as it’s a key part of our ingredients story. Our new Sketches in the Bath with Bergamont is a Bath soak and scrub and is my new favourite. We’re launching it in October. As the nights draw in it is perfect to help you disappear in a hot bath. 

  • Are there any trends you're excited about?

Skincare is becoming more personal. We’ve always seen it as a very intimate part of our day and it’s often the only time we get to focus on ourselves. So it’s thrilling to see so many others taking their skincare personally.

  • Who is the Novel person?

It’s a man or women who wants to take moments of isolation to discover a quietly beautiful part of themselves. 

  • What are your ambitions for the brand?

We’ve just started working with Beauty Therapists on fine tuning the Novel Skincare Experience. We like to say we read you and we want to get this part absolutely right. And we will of course keep sharing skincare stories @novelskincare

We are thrilled to be able to offer you 20% off Novel Skincare, just use this code at their checkout:  ALLUNDONE20