annee de mamiel
In the late Summer of 2020, I sat down (over Zoom) with the curious and formidable formulator behind the eponymous skincare line de Mamiel. Annee de Mamiel has been working on people’s skin, minds and bodies, supporting the parasympathetic nervous system and its release of stress and tension for the last decade and a half. A lifelong student of Eastern and Western wellness traditions, her studies began long before her London-base clinic opened. Down the winding path of her life’s journey, de Mamiel has forged her own unique way. Her brand’s range of products perfectly embody her holistic and painstaking devotion to the next generation of beauty AND wellness.
MM: Your background includes a degree in Anatomy and Physiology. What are the most important things you learned in those studies?
AD: I think for me it just opened up a whole world. How the body works, our physiology. You learned the way that everything is connected and you discovered that what's going on in your hip and your ankle can affect your neck. The way we see it, we're just this kinematic chain, everything impacts everything else at a very cellular level. I'd started studying chiropractic and became interested in how the body has this innate intelligence of how to heal itself, how to repair itself. I think it is fascinating that we just have to listen. It's endless, it's a complete miracle, the human body. So that was the jumping off point...the anatomy, physiology, and the chiropractic studies. I got to understand how things worked at an ionic level and I knew at a very deep cellular level what each cell needed for optimum performance. That is sort of a key driver in everything that I do now.
MM: How did you transition to studying traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture?
AD: My life is a winding path, I’m always open to adventure and opportunities to explore new ideas or places. Growing up in rural Australia, it was a sort of passage for us to come and live in the United Kingdom. When I was young, I traveled through Europe and I think it just opened my eyes to the wider world. For me, Chinese medicine, once again, gives you the opportunity to look at things in a different way and with a different perspective. You leave your Western brain behind when you're studying Chinese medicine. I think that was the most apparent when I did my internship in China, in that, patients would come into the hospital and the doctors would choose whether Eastern or Western medicine was the right approach, or a mix of the two. I thought that was so intriguing because you saw incredible results...For example, people who had suffered strokes, Western medicine wasn't even looked at for the first several months. It was just acupuncture and herbs and the recovery rate with that was just extraordinary. It was looked at as: what's needed most, and what's the best way to treat these people as opposed to: this is the one and only method.
MM: What has the East nailed down that the West needs to embrace?
AD: Looking at everything from the root cause of things, from what's created the problem, as opposed to just treating the symptoms. That's something that I really emphasize and employ when in my practice. It's like, the skin is inflamed, but why is it inflamed? And going back through the metabolic pathways to the understanding of what's creating the inflammation, not just calming the skin down and making it less red.
MM: How did de Mamiel, as a brand, come to light?
AD: The whole line happened as a mistake. I didn't set out to create a brand. I just formulated things for my patient and then they'd want more. That natural supply and demand sort of skyrocketed when Chris [Annee’s husband] helped me with packaging and a website. Three weeks later, Net-a-Porter called in all of our products for a meeting and the rest is history.
MM: Your products are, in my opinion, East meets West, old-world meets modern-technology skincare. Share more about how those modalities and traditions intersect and balance each other.
AD: Thank you. I'm so blessed that in a clinic situation, I get to really understand and observe the skin and how it shifts or transforms. So when I'm actually formulating and when I'm looking at things, everything is about layering.
When I devised the sleep formulas, for example, I went back through 10 years of patient notes of what kept people awake. I pulled out all of the patterns from a Chinese medicine perspective and then I went and looked at physiology and the brain. What does the brain need for sleep? One of the biggest things is melatonin. In order to get melatonin, we need more serotonin and in order to make serotonin, we need tryptophan. And the only way we can get tryptophan is through our diets and the absorption of tryptophan.
So how can I create a base oil that will help support the body to absorb more tryptophan? And in order to absorb the tryptophan, the body needs things like magnesium and B vitamins, and zinc. So creating a sleep formula where the base oils were really rich in zinc and magnesium helped to support the body in a cascading effect.
Layering the Chinese medicine on top of that, for example, I'm looking at things like why people can't get to sleep. In Chinese medicine, insomnia has different sorts of patterns that are involved but it's mainly attributed to the heart, the heart’s energy, and the heart organ. So one of my focuses is the spirit of the heart. The yin can't settle because of heat. So we need to nourish the yin. We need to cool the heart.
We use aromatherapy in order to nourish the heart and cool the fire. Oils like Rose and Jasmine have a sort of deep effect on the kidney and cool the heart. So for me, it's just about taking all of the elements, looking at the systems and making sure that everything overlaps and fits in its unique way. It's stepping back and taking a very holistic perspective. What's going on at every level? And how can I create something to support the body in order for it to tap into its own intelligence, to heal itself? So you see, the sleep formulas, for example, I never said they’re going to work instantaneously because they're not about sedation. My work revolves around rebalancing the imbalances in the body, which have been created over time, and implementing changes so we can establish a new equilibrium.
MM: How much does intuition play into the formulation process for you?
AD: Quite a lot, because you have an instinct as to what's going to work and what you'd like to put together. But then you have to get specific with the chemistry.
In my cupboard of essential oils, for example, I have 12 different lavender's, growing from different locations and altitudes around the world. I’ll first decide, I’m going to use lavender in this formula. And then which is the right lavender specifically for this product to give the best results. I’m selecting the ingredients based on its chemical makeup and constituents to achieve the greatest efficacy.
MM: When do you know a formula is finished?
AD: It's never finished. It's never finished because new technologies keep developing. There are always, always new producers. And so I'm constantly reviewing formulas and you'll see, actually in the next 12 months things are going to be altered and changed, and upgraded because of an explosion of extraction methods for more precise and sustainable ingredients, and new producers dedicated to producing these. People are producing these incredibly efficacious product ingredients that are working well in the clinic. And that's the beauty of the clinic and my patients, they are my biggest learning.
MM: I'm curious how you stumbled upon what I believe you referred to as Oriental Aromatherapy.
AD: I studied with Gabriel Mojay, who has a lovely book, but there's been many masters that have written about it. And in the Chinese texts, essential oils are written about by Jeffery Yuan, who's a Daoist priest. Gabriel runs a school here in London, which focuses on Oriental Aromatherapy.
MM: Talk to me about the sleep series, how and why did you pivot into this arena of wellness?
AD: It's 10 years of work. I have been testing the product in clinics for at least four to five years. Reviewing patient notes and having that finger on the pulse. Sleep is when the body repairs itself and different hormones are released, we repair what we've done to ourselves during the day. Now, we know so much more about sleep, in terms of brain waves and sleep waves. The results were really positive, so I thought it's time to release these to a wider world. Stable Boy [Annee’s affectionate nickname for her husband, Chris] mentions a great quote along the lines of: “Sleep is the greatest weapon in your skincare armory.”
MM: What are the most striking stories you have heard from clients about the success they have had with your services or products?
AD: One of my favorite stories was actually a number of years ago now, and I am so blessed because my patients, for the most part, have been with me for years. This gentleman was Head of Trading at one of the big banks, a very successful man who I’d been working with for about a year at this point. He just felt that something was disconnected and missing. The demands and responsibility of being always connected and on for his job was taking a toll on him and his family. I was trying to get him disconnected through massage, acupuncture, and facial. After about 10 or 12 months, he came to me one day and he said that he'd gone out for a walk with his family on Saturday morning and left his phone at home. This was a major breakthrough. And then about two months after that, he came in and said (which still makes me teary) “thank you for giving me my life and my family back.” Through my work he learned that when you're at work, you're switched on and you're working. And when you're at home, you know, enjoy those moments.
Events like that have driven me forward in terms of helping to create a less stressed world. We've just done a clinical study on the first new product based in the stress range, the cortisol range. One of the comments was “I now know what it's like for a skincare product to change your life.” I literally burst into tears because this is so powerful. I’m touched, I just feel so privileged to be able to help people in this way.
MM: Ingredients arrive, bottles sit empty, what happens next? Tell me about how de Mamiel crafts their treasures? I know you recently built a new lab!
AD: It’s a long process, especially for the oils. When they arrive, I know that all of the research has been done, and I know that these ingredients are the best quality that they possibly can be. So they come into the lab and I perform a general blessing of thanks with frankincense in my hand and I spray the room with Embrace, a bespoke blend of Flower essences.
There is a general blessing of Love, Grace and Gratitude to all who have been a part of bringing these to me, from Mother Nature to source. I meditate over the oils and 3 words which come to me will be written on the label while they mature. Music is played to them 24 hours a day while they sit amongst crystals.
Then we pour and blend them, and we’ve burned frankincense in the room right before to clear the air. Then music is playing into them again until they're ready to go out. It’s pretty singular, our process, because there is some evidence that vibration and sound has an effect on our fascia, on our tendons and our muscles. So we believe it will impact the formula as well. These oils are living things, and we know that when they arrive in your hands, they’re in the most vital state that they can be in. And then I know that I've done everything that I can to, to give them the best product that they could possibly have.
MM: I loved this story of yours regarding your infamous Skin Recovery Blend: "The final formula of the blend took an eternity with as many as ‘100 and something’ iterations, a few sleepless nights and pushed a few (a lot) of deadlines but it did allow me to uncover and explore so much more in the Azules [cham-azulene rich essential oils known for their cooling, pacifying effect on the skin] and what they are capable of. Surely that makes it worth the wait?” So my question is...what was the process of formulating Skin Recovery Blend like and how has the product shown to be transformational and singular?
AD: It started as my eczema oil in the clinic. So I was looking at my patients who had eczema and dry patches and then looking at the underlying patterns with that. I looked at it and wanted the remedy to remain on the skin for longer and be more protective and so we began to add butters to it. We get the most incredible feedback from clients. A week doesn’t go by that we don't get somebody who writes this lovely note to us going, “this changed the way I look at my skin and it has just given me relief.”
It took time though to source some of the precious ingredients. For example, Cape Chamomile is a rare ingredient wild harvested in a small region north of Capetown in South Africa. The efficacy of it is amazing on the skin as well as on the mind. It was difficult to get consistent quality because of the force and impact of Mother Nature. We found an incredible farmer to work with who was willing to grow us a crop for several years. The plants have been grown from cuttings and planted by a lovely group of women, grown in the nursery before growing up and being planted in their field. Once mature the crop is harvested and distilled on the farm before it arrives at our farm.
MM: Talk me through why you launched Seasonal Facial Oils and what the primary differences are between each?
AD: When I was first in the clinic, I would create a bespoke oil and a bespoke tea for each of my patients based on their constitution and what they needed. And we would adjust that quite often. And then I got really busy and my patients were saying, “oh, I want to buy something for a friend. She really loves my oil. She loves the smell of it, and thinks my skin looks amazing.” And so many things were coming together in my mind. Ruminating on how disconnected we were from nature in that we’re running around, and our day and night is falsely stimulated.
We are no longer in tune with what Mother Nature is doing. And so therefore we lose a connection to her. Especially in Chinese medicine, life is about seasons and cycles. As we age, we move through these things in more striking ways.
When I first started the seasonal oils, people didn’t get them. The concept of real self care and the power of scent wasn't a concept linked with skincare. For me, it was about reconnecting us with what's going on with Mother Nature. So for example, when you look at the winter cycle in nature, it's about our kidney and bladder energy and it's about adrenaline energy.
In the winter, we should be resting. We should be replenishing ourselves. So, in the Winter, you look at a tree and it looks like there is nothing happening, but on the inside, the seed is gathering potential, gathering energy. So it can emerge in the spring time and begin to move and to flow, with new shoots, new life to begin again.
The summer is about full blossoming. It's about coming into our own potential, being joyful, yang and happy. And then the autumn is about releasing, and letting go of that stuff that no longer serves us. You know, sometimes you see leaves that are holding on for dear life, but if we the tree doesn’t let go of those leaves, then the newness can't come through in the springtime and we can't grow, we can't evolve.
So for me, the seasonal oils were about delivering what we needed in terms of essential fatty acids, vitamins, moisture, all of those things that your skin needs at that time. Looking at levels of humidity and moisture levels and adjusting those through the season.
The essential oils in them support the skin and help us move through that time. They also offer that deep rest, growth, fullness and promote a release. So that in your ritual and through that intentional breathing, the product is helping you unwind and reconnect with Mother Nature.
These oils are available for a short period of time. They're only made once a year. And, you know, when they’re gone, they’re gone. I just love creating them. I make small adjustments annually because the energy of the world changes and so they remain unique and apropos for the moment.
MM: What is your approach to exfoliation? Are you a fan of acids?
AD: Well, I think there's a time and a place for exfoliation. What’s key is lightness and gentleness and not overexposing the skin because I think there's a tendency to sometimes do too much and place it under additional stress.
But I think acids now are much better than they used to be. Some of the gentler ones now available, the PHAs (Polyhydroxy Acids).
The reality is that we see the effects of cortisol on the skin and how sluggish we become through that. So if every other part of our life was perfect and we ate perfectly and we did yoga and breathing and meditation and all of those other things, then I think a warm face cloth would be enough, but we don't live in a perfect world.
MM: Do you have a few favorite ingredients?
AD: First thing that comes to mind are essential oils, which is admittedly a group of ingredients. They influence our skin at a cellular level. They are so powerful if they're in products formulated correctly and used correctly. I know there's a lot of people who disagree with that. I can only speak from my experience and what I've seen, which has been sheer magnificence. I’m also having a love affair with Tamanu oil right now because it is incredibly repairative, healing.
MM: As a skin care connoisseur, I think one of your most impressive formulas is the Dewy Mist. It is a product I would purchase and that says a lot for someone who works in an industry full of gifting, gratis, and excess. It is a singular product in a category and a league of its own. Without spilling any secrets, enlighten me about this treasure!
AD: Oh, that is hilarious because I seriously have a love-hate relationship with that product. Oh my Goodness! Every month I want to change it and then I'm happy with it again. And then I don't like it. And then I'm happy with it.
And people either love it or they hate it. Which is really fascinating because quite often the oils and the smells we need are the ones that we refuse. I pump it into my hands, about three or four pumps, and then I press it into my skin. It’s a serum-in-a-mist loaded with peptides, hyaluronic acid (two weights), probiotics, and it has the most magical hydrating effect on the skin.
MM: What brands besides your own resonate with you, I know you use a few different brands in clinic?
I absolutely love Josh Rosebrook, and tend to use his mist and masks more frequently, the scents are heavenly (a favorite: Advanced Hydration Mask). I like Osmia Organics and some of her products are really amazing, especially for sensitive skins. I employ some Tata Harper and Aromatherapy Associates. Personally I like to use the Goop Glow Instant Facial.
MM: What ingestibles do you normally recommend to your clients?
AD: After I see every patient, I give them about an eight page document with take home notes and wellbeing advice. I don’t sell them but I often recommend supplements and herbs. Seed’s Probiotics are usually on there along with Vitamin D. Essential Fatty Acids, Turmeric, and Rhodiola. Seed’s probiotics are far and above any other of the many brands of probiotics which I have tested personally and in clinic. You see the results in skin waste and through testing.
MM: Why do you incorporate Flower Essences into your blends? What are your favorite essences to utilize?
AD: Flower Essences are in every product because they are incredibly powerful and work on the subconscious level. I will start and finish a treatment with them. I've worked with some lovely producers and created bespoke blends for each range, because there's so many things which affect us daily that we don’t even realize. This ranges from the environment to our energy fields. And every product that I create has to work on an emotional level, on a physical level and on a cellular level, because that's where we feel the stress. And so I think flower essences are just doing their work in the background. The silent fighters..
MM: We know a lot about the No-No ingredients used in conventional products. But, since you’re a formulator, I am going to ask...what are some ingredients (within the green beauty portfolio) that you think are, for lack of better words, cheap, impractical, or inferior?
AD: Probably Silicones because they don't ever break down, they end up in the ocean, they end up back on the earth. I believe we must respect Mother Nature and everything that she's given us. We must be wise, when we take from her.
I think it's really looking at how each ingredient is made, how it's formulated and how it's broken down, its whole life cycle. That's something I'm really cognizant of: looking at it from the whole. So from how it's produced, how it's harvested and how after we use it on the skin, how it affects our body, but then also, how is it disposed of in the environment?
I was speaking with somebody about this the other day in terms of, you know, preservatives. Once again, you need to make a product that won’t go off. Otherwise, you're disrespecting Mother Nature by allowing all those raw ingredients to go to waste, right? People trust you that it's not going to go moldy in their bathroom. And there's been examples in the last couple years of brands that have allowed mold to grow in their product because they haven't formulated correctly or had it tested correctly. And, you know, people trust them. I feel a great duty to people in that they're buying my product and they trust that it's safe. Anything short of delivering those goods safely is breaking that trust. I feel really solid about that. If that means that in two or three years time, an amazing preservative comes out and there's a synthetic component to it, but it's been approved by EcoCert, I’d be really interested to use that. It's sort of a responsible thing to do because at the end of the day, it's my patients and my clients that are looking to me for that knowledge and to produce something that isn't going to go off in their bathrooms.
MM: Who are the brand makers that inspire you most?
AD: Josh Rosebrook, Tata Harper, May Lindstrom and Sarah Villafranco come to mind among so many out there. Tata, especially because of her commitment to what she believes in and creating a path for many of us. She really helped to put green beauty on the forefront of people's minds, making it a conversation. If you're looking at makeup rather than skincare, I think Gucci Westman has achieved some really great things with her new line. Josh is really committed to his vision, and personally he’s just such an incredible person, really kind and sweet. Dr. Sarah Villafranco of Osmia Organics is one of the most giving and incredibly generous people I've ever met. And I’ve been to her place in Carbondale and she's thrown open her doors to me. She’s always said if I need any help, just let her know, machinery or anything, she’s so generous and giving with her knowledge.
MM: What are the wellness practices that you swear by?
AD: Acupuncture, Breathwork. Bathing. Movement, when we're stressed out living in fight or flight, we build up that tension. We need to get moving. I've always been a runner, I love yoga, there's always movement in my day. I think it’s essential for life.
MM: Bath or Shower? What’s the ritual look like for you?
AD: I dry brush and shower in the morning. Pro-Tip: I always put Altitude Oil on the floor of the shower for inhalation which delights the senses. And usually a shower in the evenings as well, to wash away the day and its energy. But post-exercise or when I'm feeling a bit stressed, I will have a bath.
MM: You have had a long and winding life journey and you've honored each stage of it. I want to know, if you're willing to be vulnerable about your experience with Cancer and share, how being told you had six months to live changed your life.
AD: Do you know, it made me question things. It made me not accept what was being said to me. I guess my initial reaction to being told was: who the [expletive] are you to tell me I have six months to live? To me, it was like, don't give me limitations.
Don't give me boundaries, because you don't know who I am. So it made me find my own path and not just go, “oh, that's what you're supposed to do.” So, you know, from that, I went to a clinic in Mexico. I just did everything that I could, every experimental trial.
It was so different back then. And, you know, this is the interesting thing. Like now it's so much easier to know what's going on and what everybody's doing as information is so readily available on the internet. And so it was a very different space and approach and, you know, everyone thought I was clearly insane, but I couldn’t disregard any of those alternative options.
I disregarded nothing. But trusted and followed my intuition and really dove deep because I believe so much of cancer is an emotional component. And you have to be willing to examine that and peel back the layers and to face what it is that's holding you back that has changed the physiology in that way.
MM: What do you think is the mission that you've been put on this planet to accomplish?
AD: To create a less stressed world. And so, to me, it's about making a difference. With everything that I do, you know? To me, there's no point creating a product that I use that somebody else has already created that works perfectly well.
It's understanding that I can’t be everything for everyone because I simply can't be. Knowing that, allows me to provide a solution for some people, to be an option.
MM: How does de Mamiel create a less stressed world?
AD: By transforming a routine into a ritual. Our little guidebook offers one approach to this. But there are many and what’s important is that we take the time at the beginning and the end of the day. Focused breath engages the parasympathetic nervous system, which slows everything down and reduces levels of cortisol within the body. For me, that is paramount in making us look good and feel better. Efficacious products, time honored rituals, and breath are the keys to this.
MM: What do you know, deep in your bones to be true?
AD: Life's tough, but keep going. You need to lean on the people that are around you and take the support that is there. Just ask and the support is always there.
MM: What gives you hope?
AD: Ah, Stable boy and Willow.
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Thank you, Annee, for your brilliant mind and thoughtful wisdom you’ve shared with me and these readers. For those interested in the de Mamiel line, visit their site here. Online, you can shop for many treasures including her latest launch Skin Fix, along with my personal favorites: Restorative Cleansing Balm, Dewy Facial Mist, and the infamous Skin Recovery Blend.
Photography courtesy of Annee de Mamiel and Cat Garcia.
