Beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. It’s not bound or tied to the conventional standards of straight lines and 90-degree angles; it comes in curves and colors and liquids and solids; it’s fluid, not static. The newest movement in beauty is nutricosmetics, i.e., ingestible beauty; it, too, doesn’t play by the conventional rules, but bends them by suggesting anti-aging doesn’t have to be rubbed on, it can be swallowed; and yet another fluid cosmetic/skin care medium is being introduced—cosmetotextiles.

Americans are excited to apply their new shade of lipstick, or powder on their mineral makeup and blush-up their cheeks, why shouldn’t they be excited to slip into a new pair of jeans that reduce cellulite, or a shirt that ameliorates aging lines? It may sound farfetched but this is the “New Approach to Cosmetics."

Philippe Lahmani, founder and CEO of CCV Inc., the U.S. distributor of Lytess, defines cosmetotextile as: “An embedded fabric with active cosmetics microencapsulated to be released on skin. Microencapsulation isolates an active substance from the outside environment and envelops in a polymer sphere named microcapsule." Imagine buying your Burberry trench with Shea butter in it. Interesting, right? Well, it’s not that mainstream or advanced yet, but here’s a realistic look at the hybrid of textiles and cosmetics.           

So what ingredients can be embedded in these fabrics? Philippe Lahmani names eight active ingredients: mango butter, luffa, tamanu, Shea butter, red algae, caffeine, pagoda and andiroba. How are these ingredients executed on the skin? “The fabric rubs against the skin: microcapsules break down and release their active agents progressively, throughout the day," according to Philippe Lahmani.

Microencapsulation has quite a history, dating back to the 1960s. A 1998-Hermes scarf was the first scented textile. First cosmetotextile was a1998-French hosiery by Dim. In 2003, Lytess created some slimming tights and bike shorts. These textiles have benefits over traditional applications, such as no mess; no waiting for a cream to dry, as the slimming creams in dermatextiles work while you wear them; and easy maintenance … throw them in the washing machine. 

Cosmetotextiles are a "New Approach to Cosmetics," and an exciting one, too. The possibilities for our industry to meet consumers' anti-aging needs seem endless, and new inventions and avenues are being introduced every day. These are indeed exciting times.