Back in the late 90's, Mom frequented Rustan's a lot for this brand called Origins. It was located near the Glorietta 1 entrance where the now defunct Bon Appetit was, where she'd leave me with my yaya and a plate of my favorite house spaghetti while she shopped from this brand. I remember tagging along with her one time, tried out some random Origins stuff on the tester counter, and I thought that their products smelled and felt really nice. I asked mom to buy me a tub of what seemed like a face moisturizer or body cream, but she told me that it's grown- up stuff and when I'm finally all grown- up, she'll buy it for me.

Years after, Bon Appetit folded up along with my favorite house spaghetti.

And so did Origins.

Goodbye, nice- smelling, nice- feeling, grown- up stuff.
Last week, I got an invite to the launch of Origins. My heart thumped a little and I thought: "Is this the Origins at Rustan's before?" My heart beat faster. I clicked the email and when the invite loaded, I realized that indeed, it was good ol' Origins that's bound to return to the Philippines! A shriek was called for that moment!

You're probably wondering why I'm hell bent on trying out this brand. Excuse me for bragging, but if you will see my mother now, she still has damn good skin at the age of 54 and virtually has no wrinkle. It is because she's always had really good skin care choices and only went for the best brands-Origins is one of them. Momma truly knows best and her skin care choices are something that I'd like to pick up from her.



Hear ye! Hear ye! Origins is now back in the Philippines! Origins has been around for the last 25 years, breaking barriers in science, creating good skin care, and doing good for the planet; it is globally recognized for its winning products and formulations that are made using the most potent botanical extracts and advanced skin care methodologies.

For Origins, Skin Care is not just finding a fancy plant, bottling it up, and selling it--it is a rigorous process, one that involves discovery and curation of the best plant ingredients, genuine understanding of the relationship of botanicals with the skin, and employment of meticulous creation methods. Take a look at the Journey From Plant To Formula, the guiding principle of Origins when it comes to formulating their skin care products:

Step 1: There are 10 million species of plants on Earth. Origins journeys around the world to discover the ones that have the most potent effects on skin.

Step 2: We unleash each ingredient's unique power using our advanced and earth- friendly practices.

Step 3: Our products are purified and tested multiple times for safety and performance. This guarantees every Origins product is worthy of your trust

Step 4: Our plant ingredients come from renewable sources that ensure we help protect our earth and the environment.

Origins is also all about giving back to nature. In 2009, Origins launched the Plant-A-Tree campaign, a reforestation project done in partnership with American Forests Global ReLeaf and the goal was to revive forests that were damaged by wildfire by planting trees. Since the launch of the campaign, Origins has successfully aided global reforestation efforts by helping to plant more than 500,000 trees. Recently, Origins has aided reforestation projects to restore the Mexican habitat of the Monarch Butterfly and rehabilitation projects of exhausted Mangroves in the Philippines. Now that's a brand with a purpose!

Get a preview of their best- sellers after the jump! ;)
Oil-lala! Origins is known for their face and body oils that usually come in blends so you can experience more benefits in one go. Say hello to best- sellers Calm Your Senses Bath Oil and High-Potency Night-A-Mins Skin Refining Oil.
Plantscription is an award- winning anti- aging skin care line that Origins founded after discovering the rare Anogeissus Tree in West Africa where it is traditionally used to heal wounds. Made with the bark from Anogeissus Tree, Plantscription encourages the production of Fibrillin to keep skin young and line- free.
Dr. Andrew Weil is a renowned Harvard- trained Doctor and founder of Integrative Medicine, and Origins partnered with him to create the Mega- Mushroom line made with select mushroom ingredients. In traditional Chinese medicine, mushroom is treasured for its multiple medicinal uses and its powers were harnessed in this skin care collection that promotes skin resilience, and targets inflammation and stress. It is best recommended for reddened, sensitized, and stressed skin.


GinZing is an energizing, revitalizing range for dull and fatigued skin. It combines Panax Ginseng and Caffeine, two botanicals that are known to give skin a shot of energy and radiance.
Make A Difference quenches dry and even oily skin types! This skin care range features extracts from tumble weeds from the Judean Dessert and Rose of Jericho, a plant that lives in the driest desserts of North Africa--it can withstand without water for decades and then come back to life with just drops of it!
Welcome back, Origins. I hope you'll be here for a long, long, long time! :D
Origins will open their first concept store at SM Makati this coming August 2015 and I heard that prices have gotten more affordable. Hurrah! I can't wait! :D