Natural cosmetics

Natural care? Made in France? Why not Organic ?

Since 1954, the Bénédictines de Chantelle have been manufacturing monastic and natural skin care products. As the years passed, word of mouth did its job and the making of the sisters evolved until the 80s when an important step was taken. Then manufactured entirely by hand, the sisters decided to equip themselves with a few machines (mainly semi-automatic) to help them in these tasks which became more and more tedious as the products were increasingly successful. . Nevertheless, they made the choice to keep the artisanal production and in the heart of the abbey, a pledge for them of flawless quality. Living in harmony with nature, they have always asked themselves the question of the naturalness of products. In this, the observation is simple, they must be natural and safe because it is in the first place the families and friends who will use them. They must also be at a fair price, reflecting the quality materials of which they are made, the work they require while leaving as many people as possible the opportunity to try them. They are therefore natural but not organic because they do not benefit from an organic certification. Indeed, certifications are expensive (audit, renewal, supplier certification, etc.) and would increase their selling price, especially since they are ISO certified, a guarantee of traceability and quality procedures. It’s an assumed choice.

What is a natural facial treatment? A natural face cream?
At Chantelle, when we talk about natural skincare, it is a product imagined, developed and tested to best respect the nature of the skin. A cosmetic product must have a maximum effect on the skin while being careful that it must not pass the skin barrier, therefore act on the superficial layers of the epidermis. As if this were not complex enough, we must also take into consideration the different types of skin, respect the most fragile skin in particular, keep in mind that the granulometry of the skin (or skin texture) is very changeable depending on the areas of the body. For example, the skin of the hands is thicker than that of the face, so it will not have the same needs or the same affinities with the ingredients. A natural treatment developed specifically for the skin of the face, such as our famous moisturizing Day Cream, is therefore a clever mix of science, the study of your skin and knowledge of the plant world. This cream should be gentle on application, nourish without leaving a greasy sensation, protect the skin after application. With our own formulation laboratory at the abbey, we can then offer it additional qualities: fragrance, anti-aging activity, addition of a plant known to nourish intensely ...

Natural hair care too?
One can imagine that it is simple: a little foam, two drops of perfume, a bottle and presto! That's it. Unfortunately the reality is quite different. Firstly because we must meet all the standards in force, our national regulations as well as European regulations and our internal standards - yes, our laboratory is ISO 9001 certified. It is also essential for us to respond to your requests as well, you , the customers who allow us to live and maintain the abbey. We have been growing together for over 60 years, it must continue and to do so it is important to tell us what you like, what you don't like, your remarks, comments and other questions. For your hair, in the beginning we only had one product. We quickly realized that there was not enough to meet the specific nature of each and everyone's hair (yes, it's not just the ladies who asked for specific shampoos ...). Significant development work has therefore been carried out by the entire team to identify the different needs, hair types, the impact of products on the scalp, and to provide you with solutions from our loyal friends, the plants. The best example is our anti-dandruff shampoo. It incorporates no less than 9 plants, in addition to other active ingredients that help "discipline" the hair, provide a creamy and generous foam, but above all, provide optimal results. It just goes to show that nature, once associated with science, can be very effective - in addition, it is you who say it: Laetitia P. "Effective on dandruff, pleasant smell, rinses easily" Gérard D. "a formidable effectiveness against dandruff."