Bee With Anti-age Effect

Seeing Ouessant on Google Maps isn't easy. Pin persistently flops into the Atlantic and only at maximum magnification shows at least some signs of life. The island, which is located at the westernmost point of the Breton water area, is 7 by 4 kilometers in size and has a population of less than 900 people. Apart from five magnificent lighthouses and an apiary with black bees. It is the latter that so persistently beckon Guerlain scientists, who have not been stopped on this fascinating journey since 2010 by a turbulent flight from sunny Paris to gloomy French Brest, or a swaying bus ride to the port, or 18 kilometers by boat in the deep and cold darkness of the Atlantic Ocean.

View of the island of Ouessant, Breton water area, France

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The bee has always been a special inspiration for the Guerlain brand - back in 1853, the perfumers of the House presented the wife of Napoleon III, Empress Eugenia, a cologne in a bottle, which was decorated with 69 golden bees, and a little later, the first skin care product in the history of the brand was created in the form of almond honey paste. After so many years, the emergence of the modern anti-aging line Abeille Royale became a logical continuation of history - firstly, Guerlain already had its landing in Ouessant, just in case, and secondly, the scientific research department was seriously interested in medical data from the University of Limoges, where for 25 years effectively saved patients from non-healing wounds with honey bandages.

The black Breton bee did not disappoint. The species of honey bees Apis mellifera, which live exclusively on this island, turned out to be a reference. The reason is that insects live at a tangible distance from the mainland on an island blown by all the winds. Ideal ecology, absence of vehicles, any industry, pesticides and other pollution, plant biodiversity and, as a result, exemplary genetics. And since the bees are not able to leave the island, the integrity of their unique heredity is preserved - the probability of a genetic hybrid is zero.

By carefully studying the products of their happy life, Guerlain scientists have got hold of perhaps the best honey and royal jelly in the world. Due to their high content of fructose, trace elements and amino acids, they have expectedly shown incredible results. This is how the triumphant history of the anti-aging line Abeille Royale began.

Since 2010, support for bees and further scientific research have continued. The line now has 17 products. The most recent is the Double R Renew & Repair double serum. Its peculiarity is the "double" bottle, which carefully keeps separately two completely different and valuable formulas. They are mixed directly with one click before use. The first texture, gel peeling, continuously renews the skin due to the optimally selected proportions of lactic, citric and glycolic acids. Thanks to the high-tech structure of the lamellar gel (conventionally, like a child's pocket game with a ball in a maze), acids work in a gentle mode without the risk of redness. The second texture is a fluid based on branded beekeeping products, working with the TIEGI gene,which - leaving out scientific details - is responsible for the production of its own collagen and hyaluronic acid.

If the gene is kept in a "good mood" (which, in fact, is what the black bee honey does), then in the near future an even complexion, shrinking pores and a noticeable lifting effect can be noted.

Photo: Getty Images, Press Services Archive