Do you know the benefits of black tea in skin care? Since it’s really easy to become overwhelmed when searching for a new product, Ingredient Spotlight is here to break down the basics. Here we’ll teach you how an ingredient works and leave you with product recommendations to help you with your search.
You know what ingredient gets a lot of attention in the skin care community? Green tea. The attention is rightly deserved considering its ability to ward of environmental pollutants, fight UV damage, and soothe the skin. Here’s the thing, though, green tea’s tannin-doused cousin, black tea, deserves just as many accolades!
Today we’re dishing on the notable skin care benefits of black tea, featuring top-notch products, and even sharing an at-home DIY treatment that’ll brighten your eyes.
Black Tea Skin Care Benefits
Black tea has been used in skin care for hundreds of years, dating all the way back to China’s Ming Dynasty. Like green tea, black tea is loaded with antioxidants that help protect skin from UV damage and environmental pollutants. Further, its higher content of caffeine means it’s an excellent ingredient for tightening and toning the skin.
“You can find black tea in moisturizers, toners, essences, face masks, and cleansers,” says Michelle Schlekewey, a certified esthetician and the director of Golden Door’s spa services. She said that in addition to the aforementioned benefits, black tea can also help “clear acne and inflammation, make the skin brighter, and of course assist in anti-aging.”
The ATRUE Black Tea Line
The ATRUE line puts black tea in the limelight in each and every one of its products, including the four outlined below:
The ATRUE Honey Lemon Black Tea Mist is the perfect product for anyone who loves a good pick-me-up throughout the day. (And who doesn’t love that?) This mist is formulated with black tea water to help tighten pores, reduce puffiness, and calm skin, and it also contains antibacterial honey extract and brightening blueberry and raspberry fruit extracts.
The ATRUE’s Real Black Tea True Active Essence is the recipient of the 2015 Allure Korea Best of Beauty award and has received accolades across the board. We love that the primary ingredient is double-fermented black tea extract, which is absorbed quickly by skin to soothe and de-puff. It’s also made with green tea extract and wrinkle-fighting adenosine.
The ATRUE Real Black Tea True Active Mask is a pack of four bio-cellulose masks infused with the brand’s Real Black Tea True Active Essence. Throw it on first thing in the morning before applying makeup for the perfect face-firming, toning primer, or apply it before bed to soothe yourself (and your skin) to sleep.
Last but not least, let’s talk about ATRUE’s Spring Green Tea Watery Calming Cream. True to the brand, it’s formulated with 70% black tea-infused water and goes into overtime to tighten pores, smooth skin, and reduce inflammation and puffiness. It also contains green tea to further soothe, niacinamide to firm, shea butter to hydrate, and a handful of fruit extracts to brighten and nourish the skin.
Try This At Home: DIY Eye Treatment
Want to give black tea a quick try at home? Angela Kim, an esthetician and the founder of Savor Beauty, has a recipe she swears by that she’s dubbed “Good Morning, Bright Eyes.”
“This is a ritual that I do after a fun night out, or if I need a morning refresher. It’s an easy way to minimize puffiness around the eyes,” she tells us. “Brew organic black tea and then chill it in the fridge. Take cotton rounds, dip into tea, wring out, and place onto eyes for up to 10 minutes. The antioxidants and tannins from the tea will help tighten the skin and brighten the eye area.”
After the tea treatment, she recommends applying a serum underneath your eyes to help further revive and rejuvenate.