Votary is a luxurious skincare brand powered by plants and natural extracts. Made up from active ingredients and formulated by the founder herself, Votary ensure quality within each bottle. Offering cleansing oils, facial oils, serums, creams, supplements and overnight treatments there isn’t much Votary hasn’t taken care of. We speak with founder Arabella Preston, on where the brand idea came from and which products she couldn’t live without...
How would you describe Votary products and the brand as a whole?Natural. Pure. Beautiful.Where did your inspiration come from to create such products?I was working as a makeup artist and would always use oils to prep the skin. They simply make the best base for make-up as they absorb so beautifully and leave skin healthy and glowing. I was going through a personal journey when it came to my own skincare routine too and was starting to understand that a simple, natural routine suited my skin best. I started mixing oils at my kitchen table and Votary products still begin their life there!Votary seems to place a focus on natural extracts, when did you begin to recognise the importance of natural oils for skincare?The majority of Votary products are 100% pure, natural plant oils, not simply used as a 'base'. A pure oil has no need for irritating preservatives or stabilisers making them perfect for sensitive or reactive skin. They are also ideal for blemish prone skin for that reason, bacteria cannot breed in pure oils. What made you first blend your own oils?I am ingredients obsessed! The first thing I do when given a new product is study the ingredients list. So I was entirely self-taught when I first sat down to blend my first oil. I knew what suited my skin and what oils to use to achieve different outcomes on my skin.
Our original Rose Geranium and Apricot Cleansing Oil is my desert island product. I can't live without it. It is so loved by beauty editors, bloggers and our customers- I am very emotionally attached to it for being the first product I created too.
Describe your morning and evening routine?
I do a light cleanse every morning, using minimal product, maybe 2 pumps of cleansing oil. Then go straight in with a facial oil. At the moment I use our fragrance free Super Seed Facial Oil - my skin can be unbalanced in summer due to increased use of SPF so this settles it beautifully. In the evening I often use Super Seed Cleansing Oil for a deeper more nourishing cleanse, then press our Toning Serum into my skin (the gentle glycolic brightens whilst the hyaluronic plumps and hydrates), then our Intense Night Oil which has a very gentle retinoid.
We love using oils as part of our routine. Would you recommend these products to people with oily skin?Yes! The first thing to ask yourself is do you have genuinely oily skin or is it over producing oil because your skincare routine is drying it out? Secondly, we are meant to have oil in our skin! It is a GOOD THING - our oil levels drop as we age, replacing them helps keep skin moisturised and glowing!Are there any sneaky tips and tricks for Votary products you could recommend to our readers?Use our cleansing oils as lightweight masks! I always apply a layer before stepping in the shower. It protects my skin against the water (which counterintuitively can be very drying) and means I can easily find 5 minutes in my day to treat my skin. What is the best application technique for getting the best from Votary products?
You can check out my YouTube videos on the Votary channel - I post my own routines there but also demo products on friends and models.
For someone new to Votary where do you recommend they start with your range of products?
If in doubt buy our Rose Geranium and Apricot Cleansing Oil. It suits all skin types, melts make-up like nothing else you will have ever used and transforms skin from dry and parched to glowing and plumped instantly.
A minimalist fashion fan with high interests in the odd print or check. Constantly trying to make my home look like a catalogue; you can find me shopping for cute bedding, candles and other Instagrammable interior accessories.
