Ingredient Library
Myrtle
Myrtus communis
Myrtle is a gentle evergreen oil that tones and refreshes while lending a soft herbal scent. Balancing, it suits combination and oily skin.
A natural history
Myrtle is a fragrant evergreen of the Mediterranean, its small glossy leaves and starry white blossoms treasured since antiquity. Sacred to Aphrodite and to Venus, the goddesses of love, it was the bride's own plant, woven into wedding wreaths and twined about doorways at marriage feasts across the ancient world.
That romance has never faded. A sprig of myrtle, grown from a plant in Queen Victoria's seaside garden, has been tucked into British royal wedding bouquets since her eldest daughter's wedding in 1858, a living thread of love carried from bride to bride for well over a century.
What it does for your skin
Myrtle is a gently toning, antioxidant leaf oil. In laboratory study, myrtle leaf oil, rich in cineole and aromatic terpenes, showed antibacterial activity against skin relevant bacteria.[1] A scientific review documents the plant's polyphenols and tannins and its antioxidant and astringent character.[2] In a formula, used in gentle measure, myrtle lends a toning, refreshing, defending touch to oily or combination looking skin. That toning, defending character is documented in laboratory studies of its aromatic terpenes.
References
[1] Caputo L, et al. Chemical composition, antibiofilm, cytotoxic, and anti-acetylcholinesterase activities of Myrtus communis L. leaves essential oil. BMC Complement Med Ther. 2022;22(1):142. doi:10.1186/s12906-022-03583-4
[2] Aleksic V, Knezevic P. Antimicrobial and antioxidative activity of extracts and essential oils of Myrtus communis L. Microbiol Res. 2014;169(4):240-254. doi:10.1016/j.micres.2013.10.003
Questions, answered
It is a gently toning, antioxidant leaf oil, rich in aromatic terpenes and polyphenols, used to refresh and tone oily or combination-looking skin.
Sacred to the goddess Venus, myrtle was the ancient bride's plant, and a sprig has been carried in British royal wedding bouquets since 1858.