Page Report #1

Emotional tinctures, Korean body scrubs, human milk-equivalent

Well, thank you all for the warm welcome. I like to live free but I’m also famously Type-A, so creating a little structure around this will help us both.

In between more topic-specific posts, you can expect a weekly Page Report - what I’m into at the moment, what I notice, reading between a multitude of lines in the current beauty and health space and translating that. Sometimes it will include personal recommendations, which I will maybe give, if we can all honor system agree to not turn my favorite places into TikTok nightmares. I’m asking for your word here.

• If overwhelm and procrastination are problems for you, I’ve been carrying around a little bottle of sublingual Tansy essence. This is something I learned about from Amanda Fortini, who I do not know personally but trust implicitly because it’s so clear she knows what she’s talking about when it comes to flower essences and what laymen would consider “hippie shit”. I deeply respect expertise, personal passion research and straight shooters. Whether this is a placebo or not, while using Tansy I considered starting a Substack and then I did it so…you do the math.

• My NYC Korean body scrub of choice can be found at Tribeca Spa of Tranquility. I book Julie. Prior to discovering this, I went to Juvenex but I prefer the atmosphere (and the lighting) of Tribeca. To be clear, it’s not fancy. I don’t believe in extravagant spas for utilitarian services (another post for another time). Your skin will feel like a dolphin when you leave and then it turns into a fun game of taking care to moisturize your body more than usual because you want that feeling to last forever. Great in winter, just went yesterday. I’m back to using Weleda Body Oil lately because I love the smell. The texture is better and has more cushion than Osea and it’s a fraction of the price, even though the pump is terrible. Fragrance-free Necessaire Body Lotion on top. Full dolphin.

• “Human milk-equivalent” brand Kepos has served me ads for months and I’ve noticed they’ve shifted from their original marketing - basically saying it was bio-identical to breastmilk - to a more pedestrian explanation of a classic prebiotic. I wonder if normal people weren’t as captivated with the breastmilk concept as I was and if they needed to pivot so as to stop freaking people out. Maybe it’s the legal department or maybe messaging just got too complicated. The story behind the brand actually makes sense to me but I have my gut health dialed in through various other methods so I haven’t bothered to purchase. It’s a little VC guy coded for my taste but I’m nonetheless intrigued. Let me know if you’ve tried?

• Insulin syringe availability and pricing is personally affecting me and I’m irked. I’ve been ordering the same syringes (for you know what) for a year from Amazon and now they’re consistently unavailable and the random brands in stock are more expensive for smaller quantities. The situation is changing daily. It’s impossible not to notice this if you’re a peptide user. I now purchase directly from the company website and just deal with them not arriving within 24 hours.

• I’m so impressed with the naming of some new Dermalogica products, a brand I hadn’t thought about in years. Magnetic [+] Afterglow Cleanser is something I couldn’t have done better myself. I bought it and liked it. It’s more of what I would call a “morning cleanser”, not a heavy lifter. It’s creamy and elastic. I apply it on a dry face and then leave it on until the end of my shower, so it kind of soaks in and creates a moisturizing barrier against the steam. Neurotouch Symmetry Serum has me practically in tears that I didn’t think of this name first.

• The old Amoeba in LA is being taken over by Bathhouse. 25 year lease. Not my first choice, but sure why not.