At Church, we believe skin health is tied to overall, holistic health of the body, mind, and spirit. Focusing solely on 'skin' and treating skin conditions with various skin products minimizes the fact that healthy, balanced skin is the result of a healthy body and mind. 

Skin is our largest organ and acts as an exteriorization of what's happening on the inside. With its pores, it acts to detoxify our body through secreting, sweating, and expunging. An imbalance or condition of the skin can indicate an internal imbalance, hormonal change, condition, or toxin that our body is trying to rebalance. 

With that in mind, let’s look holistically at aspects of our external environment to make choices that support a healthy, balanced body and thus improve our skin health in a way that is sustainable and that works with the body.

The following are a prioritized list of where to focus, on your path to achieving naturally radiant skin. 

In general, we emphasize the power of diet, hydration, and lifestyle improvements over supplementation. Supplements are an expensive, heavily marketed swamp of smoke and mirrors that can become obsessive. We always find that a simple, consistent approach to health wins in the long term and supplements often overwhelm and overcomplicate the health conversation. Like skincare, the supplement space relies on fear to drive people to invest in products that work against their bodies natural ability to balance and manifest health on its own. That said, we occasionally use supplements to fill in gaps that have arisen due to the reality of living in our modern world, including vitamin d, vitamin c, omega oils, collagen, trace minerals, chlorophyl, magnesium, psyllium husk, green juice, and lemon water. 

Now we move from the internal to the external, with lifestyle shifts that impact our health and help us optimize skin health. Daily movement is essential, as our bodies are designed to move frequently and in diverse ways—walking, running, lifting, stretching, and resting. Emphasize variety over specialization; the more movement and variation you incorporate, the better. Walking and zone 2 running are among the most consistently supportive activities, while yoga or pilates enhance flexibility and core strength, and weightlifting is beneficial in moderation. Activities like gardening, cleaning, hiking, swimming, hot/cold therapy, dancing, lovemaking, chopping wood, etc., add valuable variety. Despite modern sedentary lifestyles, movement and diversity in activity remain fundamental to health.

In our overstimulated, over-scheduled lives, burnout and illness are common results of neglecting rest. Rest is essential medicine for the body and a cornerstone of health; sleep allows the body to repair, detoxify, fight inflammation, and renew itself while the brain rewires. Following a circadian rhythm, especially on weekdays, helps regulate the body and supports deep rest. Aim for 8 hours of sleep in a cool, dark room, with fresh air if possible. Use natural bedding materials and limit blue light exposure an hour before bed to optimize sleep quality.

Stress greatly impacts health and deserves attention. While humans evolved to handle short-term stress (like encountering a tiger in the woods), chronic stress from modern life overwhelms our systems, leading to a constant release of cortisol. To combat this, we need tools and strategies to manage stress effectively. Practices like meditation, somatic therapy, breathwork, hot/cold therapy, time in nature, and deep connections with loved ones are vital. Philosophical approaches like stoicism help reframe how we experience external events. Joyful activities—play, hobbies, learning, and embracing discomfort—also counteract stress. These practices enhance physical health, boost energy, increase our energy (chi) and show in our overall radiance and external glow.

Sun exposure is a hot topic, often linked to skin aging and appearance. While we acknowledge its impact, the sun is also a vital source of health, and moderate exposure can benefit your skin. We recommend gradually increasing sun exposure, avoiding burns, and exposing as much skin as possible while staying out of peak UV hours. Build resilience over time.

For tropical vacations or intense sun, opt for a hat or mineral/zinc sunscreen. Our rosehip oil offers some UV protection, but for extra defense, use a thicker oil like macadamia, olive, or coconut oil. Additionally, a balanced diet, spring water, and avoiding processed foods and seed oils can help your skin better handle sun exposure.

Hormones play a crucial role in skin health, especially for women. Unlike men, who experience a 24-hour hormone cycle, women’s hormones fluctuate over a 28-day cycle through four phases: follicular, ovulation, luteal, and menstrual. These shifts prepare the body for various functions and can impact overall health and skin as they occur. Aligning your nutrition, movement, and rest habits with each phase—known as cycle syncing—helps support your internal system, reducing burnout and physical strain. By nurturing your internal health, you can also minimize external issues like acne and breakouts.

Developing a personal spiritual practice can transform your relationship with your body and the world. While people once followed communal spiritual traditions, many now create their own paths, drawing on various beliefs and practices to suit their unique needs and experiences. Breaking free from rigid dogma allows for a more flexible and evolving worldview. Spirituality is simply about connecting to the deeper, sacred aspects of life—feeling part of something larger and embracing life’s mysteries. Inviting awe into your life shifts focus beyond daily worries, offering perspective and fostering healthier relationships with yourself, others, and the bigger picture. Even small stresses, like a pimple before a big event, will feel less significant when viewed through this lens.

Aging skin is a top concern for many, with wrinkles, age spots, and sagging often driving a relentless pursuit of trends and marketing gimmicks to resist the inevitable. However, aging and change are natural parts of life, and living in harmony with nature means embracing impermanence. We encourage our clients to celebrate their natural look at every stage of life.

For example, if you're losing your hair, consider embracing a shaved look. If you have beautiful curls, enhance them with a hydrating creme instead of hiding them. Similarly, embrace your skin—wrinkles tell a story and can look beautiful when you’re healthy, radiant, and vibrant. Prioritize your overall health and happiness, and your skin’s appearance will naturally reflect that. That said, there are some small rituals you can try if you want to up the ante, naturally, including: gua sha/facial roller, plumping facial self-massage, and red light therapy.

Skin type, as a topic, comes last for a reason—it should be an afterthought once you've improved your diet, physical health, spirituality, and rest. Skin reflects your overall health, so addressing internal issues first frees you from chasing miracle creams to fix symptoms. Chronic skin conditions signal internal imbalances worth investigating, while passing issues often relate to hormones, stress, seasons, or illness. Healthy skin is balanced, though occasional inflammation or breakouts are normal. Instead of striving for perfection, aim for balance and less reactivity. Skin type—dry, oily, combination, or sensitive—is influenced by genetics, environment, and age, and it’s best to work with, not against, your natural state. Identify your unique skin type and use a tailored yet simple skincare routine, supplemented as needed to support your skin's health.

Dry skin: cleanse, hydrate, lock in moisture plusadd in a moisturizing cream or tallow balm, particularly with mature skin and in colder/dryer months. 

Oily skin: cleanse, hydrate, lock in with an oil that is naturally antiseptic and won't clog pores, like hazelnut or foraha. 

Combo/balanced skin: cleanse, hydrate, lock in - most pure plant oils will work well. 

Sensitive/skin conditions: cleanse, hydrate, lock in with soothing oil like borage or sea buckthorn. 

We recommendrosehip oil in our skincare routine because it’s a versatile, powerhouse ingredient. Packed with vitamins C and E, it suits all skin types—oily, dry, or sensitive—making it a universally effective option for nourishing and supporting skin health.

Like diet, movement, and rest, skincare should be simple, natural, and pure—nature provides all we need for healthy skin. Lab-made skincare, like processed foods, disrupts the body’s innate ability to heal and thrive, with synthetic ingredients often causing harm to our porous skin and overall health. At Church, we believe natural products can be both high-performance and biologically aligned, supporting your skin’s natural health without trying to alter it.

Our 3-step face ritual begins with a gentle clay cleanser that removes impurities without stripping natural oils, featuring targeted botanical extracts to heal and tone. The second and third step are applied together, a floral water for hydration and vitamin-rich super-nutrient oil to lock in moisture and protect against sun and environmental damage. Used morning and night, this routine promotes glowing, healthy skin. We also recommend minimizing additional products like SPF sunscreen, makeup, and anti-aging formulas, which can clog pores, damage skin, and introduce unnecessary synthetic chemicals into the body.

Our recommendations always return to simplicity and nature—embracing your unique look and aligning with natural living wherever possible. We understand that these suggestions often contradict modern life, urging you to slow down, simplify, and pare back. Not everyone has access to local farmers' markets, pure spring water, or abundant time for spiritual practices. On the other hand, buying into fear-based never-ending consumerism and questioning your nature has its own costs. Skin health is just one part of your overall well-being, and because everything is interconnected, it can’t be isolated. A holistic approach to health—nurturing your body, mind, and spirit—will naturally lead to glowing skin as a reflection of inner vitality.