When you think of honey, what comes to mind? Is it a sweet drizzle atop your favorite treat? Or do images of cute teddy bear containers run across your head? I think of my great-grandmother making me a big cup of warm water with honey and lemon juice, her cure-all for any ailment.

Turns out there is some truth behind my great grandmother’s home remedy. There are so many benefits to not only eating honey, but also using honey on your skin and body! Are you ready to be surprised by all the amazing powers of honey?

Honey has three main super powers:

1. Honey is a natural humectant: What this means is that honey naturally attracts and retains moisture. Having hydrated skin is important for maintaining that youthful, supple and soft appearance. Also, honey is great for preventing the appearance of scaring on the skin because it preserves moisture while also allowing for new skin tissues to grow. Amazing, right?

Did you know that honey is great for all skin types? Dry or dehydrated skin benefits because honey is the queen of sealing and locking moisture into the skin, oily skin benefits since honey yields moisture without added oil, and sensitive skin benefits since honey is known for having non-irritating properties!

2. Honey is naturally antibacterial: Honey contains a naturally occurring enzyme that prohibits the growth of bacteria. This anti-microbial agent is excellent for preventing and treating minor acne because it goes right to work attacking bacteria while also moisturizing and rejuvenating the skin!

3. Honey is full of antioxidants: Antioxidants are important in combating free-radicals in the body and outside damages from environmental agents like the sun. Antioxidants also help supply nutrients for the growth of new skin tissue!

Here at Ole Henriksen, we put honey in quite a few products like our sugar glow face scrub, our african red tea indulgent body mask, and our micro mini peel kit (step one: almond polish)! Even Cleopatra of Egypt took regular baths where she diluted honey and milk into the water to maintain a youthful appearance. Check out this recipe from Ole’s kitchen for a honey nourishing mask.

Have you ever used honey for anything other

than eating? Share your honey tips in the comments below!

I have this dream of having an exquisitely bountiful collection of beauty products. Cabinets upon cabinets full of products that take care of skin concerns A to Z. But, if you’re anything like me you’ve got to prioritize! So, I asked the expert, Ole to define his skin essentials.

“Taking care of your skin every single day is an investment into its future. Remember that skin of yours has to last a lifetime,” says Ole. “So when it comes to skin care, I don’t believe in shortcuts, only the best will do!”

Think of your beauty product collection like a wardrobe – one that is built with the basic essentials first and then developed one specialty piece at a time. The key to successfully maintaining your skin is to keep your routine simple.

Ole holds six skin care products as your beauty essentials:

A great cleanser like our african red tea foaming cleanser which is strong enough to cleanse away the days' make-up, yet gentle enough for even the most sensitive skin.

A skin tonic like our african red tea face mist to maintain a natural, hydrated glow along with many other reasons.

A serum to be applied prior to day crème like our truth serum collagen booster loaded with Vitamin C and antioxidants to ward off daytime environmental damage.

A balancing day crème with sun protection like our herbal day crème with SPF 15 to function as a lightweight and soothing hydrator.

A richly textured and firming eye crème like our visual truth eye crème to protect and strengthen the skin’s elasticity.

An anti-aging night formulation like our invigorating night gel to hydrate and refine the surface of your skin.

Ole believes that you don’t need excessive amounts of product to supply your skin with the very best. Once you have a strong foundation and a routine set-up, you can gradually build your beauty wardrobe with a complexion scrub, firming or hydrating mask, peeling kit, body scrub and body moisturizer.

What are some of your Ole Henriksen beauty essentials? My personal favorite is our sheer transformation renewing crème because it’s oil-free and jammed-packed with antioxidants – so skin discoloration is a thing of the past!