La Vie En Rose And More: Organic European Spa Products Come Home

Lavinia Borcau - her name invokes luxurious European spa treatments while snow falls on the Alps. As if that isn’t enough, Borcau’s background in natural skin care is combined with new scientific insights into increasing skin’s resilience and packaged in beautiful bottles. While you can get the full experience of her expertise by visiting the salon in Boston, you can save the trip and have some of her best products, sold as LaVie Organique, shipped directly to your door. When using the skin creams and body lotions, imagine yourself with a life as interesting as Lavinia’s: studying economics in Romania, becoming a national rock climbing champion, and receiving a CIDESCO certificate in skin care from the Swiss institute. Now Borcau’s salon incorporates isometric exercises, a European exercise style called barre, vinyasa yoga, and of course, these wonderful organic products for a lifetime regime of skin health. Massages, pedicures, and manicures are all available on site. LaVie Organique is serious about science as well as nature: the spa and product website contains an A to Z encyclopedia of cosmetics, herbs, minerals, and all the terminology, products, and ingredients used in the full Borcau skin regimen. Balance is the key to good health, sustainable living, and excellent skin care. Borcau’s approach encourages that skin care be a practice, just like yoga or other healthful approaches to wellness. She has created a line of seven revitalizing formulas that work together to extend skin’s suppleness at every layer. The products are based both on Borcau’s Swiss scientific training and generational knowledge passed down from her grandmother. Recently Borcau has expanded her knowledge to include Asian tea therapies. The teas and herbs are made from certified organic plants grown in Siberia, Japan, and of course, Romania. They are certified by the Natural Product Association as cruelty-free, organic, and sustainable (in fact, they exceed the guidelines). The daily regimen includes cleanser, toner, eye cream, and day cream, while evening adds a protective serum.   The Face Mask sounds as delicious as it does rejuvenating: Borcau designed it to restore elasticity and lessen the appearance of fine wrinkles and other signs of aging. Made with organic apples and organic quince, Hungarian chili peppers, white willow bark, and ground walnuts, it exfoliates and firms the skin.  Just imagine the penetrating heat, the cool willow and apple, with the spark of quince and pumice of walnut. Your skin will look good enough to eat. Available at Lavinia Borcau Skin Care, 29 Harvard Street, Brookline (617-734-5523); online at lavie-organique.com.