An online skin care shop helps women uncover their true skin
Wash, moisturize, repeat. Skin care routines can be monotonous and ineffective. After using the entire skin care store that is on your bathroom counter, your skin is often still left dry, rough, and stripped of its natural oils. The process then repeats itself. But Myscha Gaines is breaking that cycle.
In 2014, Gaines took a trip to Disney World, where she discovered the wide world of sugar scrubs. She realized they were so expensive, and the price didn’t match the quality of ingredients. So, she returned to Lynchburg with an idea—to create an affordable body scrub that was good for the skin.
“I literally just came home and said, ‘Let me see if I can recreate what I had experienced.’ I came up with a couple of different formulations solely based on the things that I already had in my house,” Gaines explained.
Her business, EmGe Naturals, began as an oil-based sugar scrub in a glass jar. It was her mother-in-law’s idea to decorate the jars, and they began to hand out Gaines’ homemade sugar scrub to family and friends.
Gaines and her husband then saw how these homemade sugar scrubs could be used for good. Profits made from the scrubs went to their nonprofit that provided first night backpacks to children entering foster care. From there, Gaines began to attend vendor events and distribute her products in local stores.
EmGe Naturals was growing, but it paused in 2015 when Gaines’ grandchildren came to live with her. Four years later, Gaines knew she needed to start making scrubs again.
“I was like, ‘Okay, what can I do to help around here? To help our household?’ We relaunched EmGe in the latter part of 2019 as an online business,” she said.
Since then, EmGe Naturals has gained a steady online clientele. For Gaines, the business is still a one-woman show. She makes local deliveries with the help of her son and mails orders as far as Alaska and Canada. Her business and products have evolved throughout the entire process.
“The product itself has been an evolution,” Gaines detailed. “The product is now more shea butter–based than oil-based. The skin benefits are phenomenal when using shea butter.”
Shea butter is full of antioxidants, such as vitamin E and A. It protects the skin from damage and improves its natural barrier. This ingredient, along with other all-natural ingredients, makes EmGe products different from other skin care products on the market.
Body scrubs are not the only products EmGe offers. Body wash, butters, lotions, and salts are also available on the online store. Gaines perfected the production of the body butters and lotions after receiving a diploma in skin care formulation in August. To achieve the best result, a routine is required, but it is a simple one.
“Anytime you’re using a scrub, you want to protect this new skin that you have revealed. A body butter or body lotion is the way to do that. Because you have exfoliated, it improves the effectiveness of your lotion. The dead skin that was there would be blocking the moisturizer from being able to impact your skin,” Gaines pointed out.
She added, “The most important thing is consistency.”
With a simple line up of a scrub followed by a butter or lotion, consistency is much easier to achieve when compared to other multi-step beauty regimens out there.
“We focus a lot on our face. We tend to neglect the rest of our body. Especially if you’re a busy mom running around, you get your face straight but forget the rest,” Gaines added.
Having an entire body skin care routine is important because having soft skin feels good on the outside, but it can feel even better on the inside. One of EmGe Naturals main goals is for the customer to “love the skin they’re in at any age.”
“If we can alleviate your dry skin for you, then that helps with your confidence. It helps you feel more carefree,” Gaines assured. “The fact is, we all feel better and carry ourselves differently when we’re feeling good and looking good.”
Select EmGe Naturals products are now available exclusively at Something Else Boutique in River Ridge Mall, or you can shop online at emgenaturals.com.
