The Beauty Routine Holistic Esthetician Lesley Thornton Is Using As Of Late

After looking down at thousands of faces over the last 13 years, holistic esthetician Lesley Thornton knew there was something missing in the vast industry of at-home skin care. 

"I realized there was a lack of understanding around ethnic skin and a lack of consumer education around skin care routines," she tells me in a virtual chat.

She adds, "After working on thousands of clients, you come to realize that you can get all of the facials you want but it's your home care that does the heavy lifting." 

All of this combined inspired her to create Klur, a modern skin care line that's independent, self-funded, and woman-owned and operated. The brand has a unique emphasis on minimal but well-considered products to help you build a routine that's low maintenance yet highly rewarding. 

"I use oil cleansers from different brands, but there is no other gel cleanser that I have used or loved more than Gentle Matter. The cleanser starts in a gel format but performs more like a cream once it touches the skin.

"Something that I ended up adoring but wasn't totally expecting is ashwagandha. I take it at night at about six o'clock because it helps me wind down. It puts me in a place where I feel like stress doesn't affect me.

"I practice grounding as a form of skin health. I scrub my feet; I go to the park and walk in the dirt for 10 to 15 minutes and practice grounding for inflammation.

"When I was a kid, I loved being in the dirt. I realized whenever I would go to the park I have the desire to take my shoes off. Rubber soles and insulated shoes disconnect us from electrons in the Earth anyway, and when I take my shoes off I feel like a whole new person, so I started making it part of a weekly routine. 

"My grandfather died at 97, and my grandmother just turned 90. They were a butcher and a gardener, so they always told me: 'Eat your protein and eat your vegetables.' 

"There are other compounds that are released when you chew foods. For example, broccoli releases sulforaphane when you chew it, and the saliva works on an enzyme that converts it to that nutrient.

"I love warming spices. I drink a combination of cayenne, cinnamon, and ginger in winter, and I love it. It's a warming drink that I have either pre- or post-meal, but it's my winter drink, and I just have to have it. In the summer, I put strawberries in it. 

"It's spicy, it's warming, it feels Ayurvedic, it has medicinal properties to it as well."