The Case for Using the Whole Plant
Most skincare relies on isolated extracts, a single molecule pulled from a plant and concentrated in a lab. We take a different route. Whole plant infusions use the entire plant, its leaves, stems, flowers, and roots, to create extracts that carry the full range of what the plant naturally offers. Instead of isolating one compound, they capture the plant's full spectrum of phytonutrients, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, together as nature paired them.
This is the thinking behind our own Icelandic Botanical Complex, made from wildcrafted Icelandic botanicals and prepared in small batches at our studio in Kópavogur.
In This Article, You'll Learn
- Why whole plant infusions differ from single isolated extracts
- Which five Icelandic botanicals make up the Icelandic Botanical Complex
- Which ANGAN products carry the complex
- Why wildcrafting whole plants is a slower way to formulate
Why Whole Plant Infusions Work
There is a reason we build our formulas this way rather than reaching for a single isolated ingredient:
- Synergistic effects. Keeping a plant's natural balance intact means its compounds can work together, rather than in isolation.
- A fuller range of nutrients. Whole plant infusions carry a rich array of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and fatty acids to help nourish skin.
- Antioxidant support. Many of these botanicals are rich in antioxidants that help protect skin from everyday environmental stress.
- A gentle feel. Whole plant infusions tend to be well tolerated, including on sensitive or easily reactive skin.
- Less waste. Using the entire plant, rather than isolating a single compound, is simply a more sustainable way to formulate.
Keeping a plant's natural balance intact, rather than isolating a single compound, is what lets it do more for the skin.
What Grows in the Icelandic Botanical Complex
We wildcraft some of Iceland's most familiar native herbs and flowers to build our signature Icelandic Botanical Complex, or IBC. It is a carefully considered blend of plants chosen for how they feel on skin, formulated to help it feel calm, cared for, and comfortable.
The IBC brings together calming Wild Nettle, refining Dandelion, revitalizing Red Clover, soothing Yarrow, and calming Arctic Thyme. Each grows in Iceland's short, intense summer, and together they form a nutrient-dense blend rich in minerals and vitamins, the same complex that runs through several of our formulas.
Where You Will Find It
The IBC is not a single product, it is the quiet thread running through our line. It is one of the reasons our Arctic Youth Face Oil feels so settling on dry, sensitive, or redness-prone skin, blended there with sea buckthorn, jojoba, and avocado oils. It is also part of what makes our Wildflower Oil Cleanser gentle enough for daily use, paired with sea buckthorn and castor oil to lift away makeup without stripping skin.
If you are curious where to start, either one is a simple way to feel the difference a whole plant complex makes, an oil cleanser to begin the day gently, or a face oil to close it. Both carry the same Icelandic botanicals, grown and gathered with the whole plant in mind rather than a single isolated part of it.
A Slower Way to Formulate
Working with whole plants takes patience. It means wildcrafting by season, keeping batches small, and trusting that a plant's full complexity has more to offer than any single extract taken from it. It is a slower way to formulate, but it is the one we believe in, rooted in Iceland's landscape and made with the same care we would want for our own skin.
Leave a comment