Roger & Gallet Aura Mirabilis

This skincare collection has such a wonderful story behind it. Its inspiration, Aqua Mirabilis, was created over 300 years ago by monks as a multi-tasking remedy which could be applied to the skin to heal all manner of ills. The ingredients were harvested from a ‘Garden of Simples’: an apothecary garden where plants like geranium, neroli, lavender and thyme flourished. (Aqua Mirabilis was also drunk as a kind of cure-all, too.)

French beauty and fragrance name Roger & Gallet own the formula for Aqua Mirabilis, and have reincarnated it in Aura Mirabilis skincare, showcasing 18 natural essences. (So it smells, as you can imagine, just beautiful.)

There are four products in the range: an Extra Fine Cleansing Mask, Legendary Cream (a rich moisturiser), Double Extract (an anti-ageing essence) and – most interestingly to us from a historical beauty perspective – something known as a ‘beauty vinegar’, inspired by the flower-powered cleansing waters which date back to the 18th Century. All the great beauties of the time swore by these, despite the fact they were somewhat more primitive than this effective dual-phase cleanser and make-up remover.

A little bit of history, bottled for the 21st Century in the form of a regime that happens to be perfect for the modern, time-poor beauty. This is time travel, just the way we like it.

Roger & Gallet Aura Mirabilis/from £15 for 200 ml Beauty Vinegar to £40 for Double Extract buy now