Different from Scots pine, Siberian pine or umbrella pine (from which pine nuts are extracted), maritime pine from the Landes (INCI : Pinus pinaster), an emblematic tree of the French Atlantic coast, is known for its ability to grow quickly and withstand certain extreme conditions. In Aquitaine, it occupies an area of one million hectares and represents the largest homogeneous forest massif in Europe. Its seed mainly interests the cosmetics industry. It contains a golden oil with unique regenerating and anti-aging power that is characterized by its exceptional content of essential fatty acids delta 5 olefinic. These long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, rare in the plant world, bring maritime pine seed oil closer to the composition of certain fish oils (is it the marine environment?), with particularly"anti-inflammaging" benefits very much in vogue at the moment (anti-inflammaging is the contraction of two words: anti-inflammatory and anti-aging, silent inflammation being at the heart of the acceleration of skin aging). Several research studies show that delta 5 fatty acids may reduce the formation of inflammation mediators. In addition to this particularity, maritime pine seed oil contains over 70% essential fatty acids (omega 3 and 6), major players in cell renewal, maintaining elasticity and the skin's barrier function. Naturally full of vitamin E and phytosterols, it is still distinguished by its high concentration of OPC (oligo-proanthocyanidins), a class of polyphenols with antioxidant power well identified. This means that this anti-ageing active ingredient is complete, both preventive and repairing! Restructuring, nourishing and plumping, it increases the resistance of the cutaneous support fibres, fights against oxidative stress, protects the epidermis from external aggressions and protects it from phototoxicity induced by UVB (it could thus enrich a solar range).

A natural sensoriality

Its touch like its perfume owe nothing to chemical devices. Not only does maritime pine seed oil have a rare affinity with the skin, but without having been esterified, it naturally offers a dry finish that resembles a dry oil. Endowed with a delicate natural, woody and balsamic perfume, it embalms!

A single producer

To date, Océopin is the only company harvesting and manufacturing maritime pine seed oil harvested along the Aquitaine Atlantic coast, between Bordeaux and Cap Ferret. It is it which highlighted all its properties and carried out the tests. This luxurious oil (the seed, tiny, requires a laborious and manual harvest), certified organic, is obtained by first cold pressing, without solvent (the extraction process is patented). Being naturally rich in vitamin E, it offers good oxidative stability. It takes 150,000 seeds to get a litre of oil! From 1 December, the brand will be offering two Christmas gift boxes that will allow you to taste the many benefits of this oil. The first combines a 15 ml bottle of maritime pine seed oil and 100 g of maritime pine seed powder (Océopin Petit Rituel, 50 €) which allows a 100% vegetable exfoliation of the body. You can apply this powder on wet or slightly oily skin, or mix it in the palm of your hand with your shower gel. It can also be used as a hair scrub. Resulting from the grinding of maritime pine seed cakes, this powder with a studied granulometry reinvents the exfoliating gesture, while offering a soft and natural exfoliation. The second box offers the same thing but with an oil of 30 ml (Grand Rituel, 80 €). The oil can also be bought alone (15 ml : 36 € ; 30 ml : 68 €), just like the powder (100 g, 17 €). Both products are suitable for women as well as men and can be used on both skin and hair.

Other benefits in its bark…

Launched in 2012, Ixxi is another Gascon company spearheaded by OPC pin, a global anti-aging asset made from the bark of maritime pine in the Landes (1,000 kilos of pine bark = 1 kilo of OPC pin). Certified Ecocert, this antioxidant is, according to the brand, 30 times more effective than vitamin C and 4 times more effective than vitamin E (test in vitro ), with dermo-protective benefits (it protects the skin from enzymes that degrade collagen fibers in particular) and repairing. Purified, stabilized and patented, its OPC pin is present in each of its face care products. It comes only from pines from the Landes forest managed and renewed with respect for natural resources. Partner of the Association "Un enfant peut sauver un arbre", Ixxi is committed to the reforestation of the Landes pines (1 € for 1 planted pine). OPC pine, accompanied by maritime pine water and mattifying pine bark powder, can be found in the last three new products launched by the brand this autumn in the Inixial Perfection range, designed for adult skin imperfections (Biphase Purity Lotion, 200 ml, €18.90 ; Mat Balancing Care, 40 ml, €24.90 ; Stop Imperfection, 10 ml, €18.90).

… and in its needles

Ixxi also uses pine needle extract to awaken the complexion's radiance, in Sublixime Absolu Anti-âge, 30 ml, 45 €. The latter stimulates skin microcirculation and reduces hyperpigmentation. Its lightening properties have also seduced Lancôme, which has enriched its latest"cushion" foundation (Miracle Cushion Fluid foundation cushion, 14 g, 45 €, refill 35 €, 6 shades, from 19 January 2015).

A French history

You don't have to go halfway around the world to find"treasure oils"! We have one in Aquitaine. Our country is full of plant nuggets: it's up to us to find them! Océopin like Ixxi open a new horizon on ingredients that convey all the current rising values: Made in France, naturality, performance. With a small scent of dunes, sea spray and large open sea in addition…

Ariane Le Febvre