News, Offers and Articles

Press and Blog Reviews, Articles

Press Reviews

The magazines and newspapers below were kind enough to put Mir to the test rather than simply churning out press releases.

Mir is a sought-after collection of botanical skincare offering rival delights to the latest organic beauty trends.  Wonderfully cooling on the skin, these water-based goodies are a real treat.  The Gentle Exfoliating Cleanser has a gentle baby-soft fragrance and contains jojoba beads that purify and cleanse.  Soothing extracts of rosewater and chamomile refresh even the most delicate of skins. Cosmopolitan

Tried and tested facial cleansers: here's our pick of the best!  Mir Cleansing Gel for face and eyes: a nice, unfussy product with no perfumes or fancy packaging, thick creamy and easy to apply. It didn't aggravate sensitive areas or make my skin feel taut or dry.  Definitely one for those prone to flare-ups 9/10.  Natural Health

Mir Argan Beauty Oil - one of the 10 best beauty oils. Independent

Luxuriously simple sensitive skin care.  Beauty & the Dirt

For younger skin all over try Mir Argan Beauty Oil..high in vitamin E, skin-nourishing Omega 6 and anti-inflammatory plant sterols to calm redness.  Bella

Mir Gentle Exfoliating Cleanser - one of the 5 best cleansers and the best cleanser for sensitive skin. Natural Health & Beauty

Look Better By Morning - an article featuring Mir Argan Beauty Oil - appeared in Red Magazine

Blog Reviews

Many thanks to these wonderful beauty bloggers   who took the time and trouble to give Mir a thorough testing and lengthy, detailed write up. 

Mir was reviewed on Mizz Worthy's Stuff on 17 February 2010, it's too long to post so here's a direct link to it.

The following is from British Beauty Blogger:

In an absolute first for me, I was sent some product from a Twitter friend...@MirSkinCare. Mir focuses on using botanicals to create a gentle, kind to skin range that is effective and non irritating. Given that almost nobody's skin is playing nicely thanks to Christmas followed by Polar snap, I felt I could do with a perk up. The range is completely fuss free, and impressively the formulas are all quite loose, so no thick smears of heavy cream. I always like 'trial packs' where you can get a really good idea of the products and whether they suits your skin well before making a heavy outlay - I think it's fair play, really. The Trial Pack costs £14 and products contain ingredients such as Marshmallow Extract and White Tea. I gave myself a little facial using Cleansing Gel followed by Cleansing Exfoliator - the second of which make my skin feel very soft and super-clean. I took it off with Skin Refresher (although you are supposed to wash it off with luke warm water), and then followed on with Argan Oil - light, easy to massage in and finished with moisturising Skin Silk Lotion. Everything was lovely - I have to say my skin felt gorgeous afterwards (and still does today), and it's substantially cheaper to treat yourself to a home facial this way than to step out to a salon. All in all, I was impressed - especially with the cleansers which are so easy to take off - no scrubbing or rubbing required - just a couple of splashes of water. Mir definitely gets the BBB seal of approval. (British Beauty Blogger Blog 14.1.10)

Mir in the News

Come September, the world's pre-eminent folk in anti-ageing will gather at the Royal Society of Medicine for the third International Anti-Ageing Conference. 

Britons' annual spend on anti-ageing products is approaching £1bn. But cosmetic scientist Gisèle Mir has put a spanner in the works by claiming that 'many anti-ageing creams accelerate ageing rather than prevent it.'

John Hinds
Observer

"Gisèle Mir, a cosmetic scientist and maker of holistic skin-care products, says: 'There is no miracle ingredient that will take years off your appearance. The only miracle is that the cosmetics industry has managed to persuade us otherwise for so long."

Scotsman Living

"According to Gisèle Mir, a cosmetic scientist and the founder of the Mir holistic skincare range "There is no miracle ingredient that will take years off your appearance. The only miracle is that the cosmetic industry has managed to persuade us otherwise or so long."

Mir is also of the opinion that these anti ageing products cause more harm than benefits and they actually be responsible for hastening the ageing process rather than restricting it!

It is upon the readers to decide whether or not to follow Mir's advice but one thing is for certain. A well balanced diet, healthy life style and avoiding the sun is equally important along with using anti ageing creams and lotions."

Genuine Answers "What are anti ageing products?"

The Truth About Anti-Ageing Products

Extract from "Age Concern" Women's Health Magazine

Every year British women spend millions of pounds on anti-ageing creams, lotions and potions. Many experts believe we are wasting our money.

Which? Magazine decided to put (anti-ageing creams containing Vitamin A or C or AHAs) to the test. It selected 12 ordinary moisturisers and 12 anti-ageing creams and had four women test each product for four weeks, according to the manufacturer's instructions. None of the 96 women knew which product they were using.

At the end of the trial when asked to guess whether they'd been using a moisturiser or an anti-ageing cream, three-quarters of the women thought they'd been using the former. Most had not noticed any difference in the look or feel of their skin and of the 48 women who had been using an anti-ageing cream, only 10 reported any improvement.

Which? Concluded that "some of the claims made for the ingredients of anti-ageing creams can be substantiated but, in the low concentrations used in the creams, they are unlikely to do more than moisturise your skin."

More Harm than Good?

"There is no miracle ingredient that will take years off your appearance.  The only miracle is that the cosmetics industry has managed to persuade us otherwise for so long," says Gisèle Mir, a cosmetic scientist and founder of the holistic skincare range Mir.

"Let me put it this way.  Who will look younger in 10 years time: the person who continuously bombards their skin with anti-ageing products, stripping away the top layer and making the skin more vulnerable to sun damage, then slapping on high-SPF lotions with levels of chemicals to compensate, or the person who treats their skin with respect and has a holistic, intelligent and positive attitude towards natural skin health?"
Mir would go as far as to say anti-ageing cosmetics have the opposite effect on our skin.  "In my opinion you can harm your skin by using anti-ageing products," she says.  "I believe many of these products accelerate ageing rather than prevent it and I advise my customers to avoid them.”
"Retinoids irritate the skin, so there may be dry and flaky skin, and sometimes itching, soreness, redness and a tight feeling.  Some specialists think retinoids work simply because they irritate the skin, aggravating normal skin repair that will smooth wrinkles. “
"AHAs cause irritation, which may make the skin swell slightly, padding out fine lines.  AHAs also induce a peel, giving a smoother surface but making the skin susceptible to UV damage."

Extract from "Age Concern" Women's Health Magazine,

Anti-Wrinkle Ingredients that Work

British scientists this week say they have identified two anti-wrinkle ingredients that really do work.  Sadly though, you can't buy them - and another study indicates that even the costliest creams available over the counter have virtually no effect. Experts at the British Medical Journal who have reviewed the latest research say the evidence shows that two substances related to vitamin A can help to reduce fine wrinkles.

They report that in good-quality dermatological studies, tazarotine and tretinoin (both types of vitamin A called retinoids) effectively reduced wrinkles, especially those caused by sunburn. In beauty, there's no such thing as a free ride, though, and the two substances are currently available only on prescription as they have side-effects such as skin irritation, increased sensitivity to sunshine and possible harm in pregnancy. Many commercial creams contain a form of vitamin A, which is often called retinol, but it's not the same, the report cautions. 

Meanwhile, a study of costly creams by America's Consumer Union says that even the best reduce lines by an average of 10 per cent, barely visible to the naked eye. 

"Always a wrinkle"  Body & Soul
The Times, John Naish

March news and Offers

Skin care tips and special offers, other than those shown below, are sent out to Twitter followers, Facebook fans and Mir mailing list subscribers.

Liquid Silk Foaming Wash: A softly foaming, honey-textured gel with soothing marshmallow extract, organic Persian rosewater, Vitamin E and glucose based cleansers.  Free from fragrance, essential oils, soap, sulphates, parabens. For body and face and gentle enough to be used on a baby's face, special introductory offers on trial bottles.

Mir Mask:  Make a deeply cleansing, intensely soothing mask with Pure Rhassoul Powder and Gentle Exfoliating Cleanser. £9.50 for 100 grams.

Argan Beauty Oil  This is the finest quality, pure, organic, cosmetic grade argan oil available, sourced direct from our Moroccan supplier.  Mir Argan Beauty Oil is also a wonderful treat for hair, leaving it soft, silky and bouncy. Purchase two bottles and save £5.50.

Customers in 31 countries!

UK, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Guam, Holland, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Latvia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Ukraine, USA.

This is mainly through word of mouth, beauty board reviews etc, so a huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed or recommended us.  Mir is also beneficial to non-sensitive complexions, so keep shouting from those rooftops. It's quite a thrill to think of all those Mir bottles all over the globe.

VAT rate reduction

Our products have been subject to VAT since January 2008 but we decided to absorb the cost rather than increase our prices.  In fact, after registering for VAT we dropped our prices by approximately 25%.

Mir rebranding completed

In June 2008, six years after our original launch, Mir rebranding was completed with stunning new packaging and website designs featuring the yin yang symbol, representative of our focus on balancing the skin. Cleansing Gel, Skin Refresher and Gentle Exfoliating Cleanser, previously packaged in 160ml bottles are now available in long lasting 200ml sizes. See the Mir Product page for details, order a few bottles and then redecorate your bathroom to match. Didn't you know? Purple is the new black.

Professional Beauty

We made our first appearance at the Excel trade exhibition in Feb/March 2008.  It was great fun and we talked to many salon owners about their requirements for a Mir salon range. Came across some very odd items including steam machines which supposedly hydrate the skin.  As our fellow dermatologist-exhibitor said "if that were the case, we'd all swell up to double the size each time we have a shower".  And of course there were the usual offenders, micro dermabrasion machines and other peeling monstrosities. The beauty industry never ceases to amaze and appal.

Skin Silk Lotion for face and eyes

The launch in February 2008 of our brand new moisturiser for normal to dry skin - which doubles up as an eye cream for all skin types  - was received with great enthusiasm (and relief by our dry-skin customers).  With the addition of this superlative lotion, the holistic and minimalist Mir range, originally formulated to fill a gap in the market for sensitive combination skins and those prone to blemishes and rosacea can now provide a skin care system that benefits all skin types. Skin Silk Lotion features organic Moroccan argan oil, marshmallow extract, Chinese white tea, Persian organic rosewater and rosehip oil together with a Soil Association approved preservative. It was tested on a panel of volunteers with sensitive, problematic skin and rosacea for 18 months prior to launch. How could anyone resist?

Skin Refresher reformulated

In October 2007 we took a brilliant thing and made it even better, we replaced the rosewater with organic Persian rosewater and the parabens with a Soil Association approved preservative.  When we first developed the Mir range we decided not to include a toner because we agree with you:   it's just another step in the skin care routine so why bother?  Instead of that, we invented a totally new concept: a liquid that could be used as a face and eye cleanser, on the neck and for freshening up "wherever, whatever and whenever" (as one of our celebrity customers - who used it as a "shower substitute" between film sequences - recently said).  Oh yes, almost forgot, you can also use it as a toner.