1 posts tagged "Yael Alkalay"
The 411: Yael Alkalay
Yael Alkalay is inspired by beauty that’s not easily bottled. As founder of the luxury personal-care line Red Flower, she mines the natural, therapeutic, and “spiritual potential” of plant extracts and oils when creating her products. It’s a unique approach informed by a patchwork of cultural experiences. As a child, Alkalay traveled extensively to visit her family, which included a famed dermatologist grandfather in Bulgaria and farmers in the rural Pampas of Argentina, who taught her how violet liqueurs, rose jams, and other tinctures can be used to brighten the complexion and soften lips. After graduating with a degree in economic anthropology, Alkalay worked as the creative director for Shiseido in Tokyo, where she lived for three years, and later helped develop cosmetics for Calvin Klein. Eventually, she focused her energies and expertise on launching her own line, which bowed at Barneys in 1999 with just six of her signature petal-top candles and two organic flower teas. Today, the Red Flower range includes hundreds of unique formulas for hair, skin, and body, including her latest assortment of Isla Das Rocas Revitalizing Sea Salt Scrubs, scented with Moroccan rose, Japanese peony, and Spanish gardenia, among other flower essences. Here, the beauty spiritualist points us in the direction of the best onsens, the perfect plum lipstick, and a few skin detoxes she can’t live without.
The Pro: Yael Alkalay
Founder of Red Flower.
The Fragrance: Red Flower Guaiac Organic Perfume Oil
“I think every country has a distinct, special smell. I grew up mostly in Argentina, where the air has this blend of tobacco, leather, cashmere, and fresh herbs. I wanted to create a scent that would pull out parts of that place but not replicate it exactly. Guaiac contains the essence of the guaiac tree, which is called the tree of life and grows throughout South America. It’s combined with smoky essential oils, lighter hits of pink grapefruit, and closes with rich notes like frankincense. When I smell it, it’s like opening a suitcase. I wear it every day.”
Red Flower Guaiac Organic Perfume Oil Roll-On, $48, www.redflower.com.
The Hair: Mane Stays
“Derek at Tommy Guns is a wonderful, robust Scottish man. He’s a great sculptor, a real wizard of scissors, and he’s not afraid to keep long hair long, as you can tell by my length! To maintain things, I just apply conditioner, since my hair tends to be dry; I love anything from Philip B. with truffle oil or our Red Flower Spanish Gardenia Softening Hair Conditioner, which smells like a rainforest.”
Tommy Guns, 138 Ludlow St., NYC, (212) 477-1151, www.tommygunsny.com; Philip B. White Truffle Nourishing & Conditioning Crème, $28, www.philipb.com; Red Flower Spanish Gardenia Softening Hair Conditioner, $32, www.redflower.com.