“Sometimes I feel somewhat complicit in the fact that this industry really preys on people’s insecurities,” says Kathyrn Sawers, skin therapist and owner of boutique spa Collective Skincare. Outside, the Yaletown stretch of Pacific Boulevard is choked with traffic, but we’re tucked into a sage green treatment room as serene as Sawers’ calm, even manner. “There’s a lot of things that are being made for the sake of being made, because there’s money in it.”
We’re talking about her skincare line Eventide, a take-home option for clients—or anyone who wants natural, small-batch products developed by a skin care expert. The product line-up is small—a face mask powder and a restorative face oil. “I’m not looking to take over the world of retail,” she says.
Her hesitation mirrors the reluctance with which she joined the indie beauty craze that has swept the industry for the past decade. These days, indie beauty brands are a David-turned-Goliath story, capturing nearly a third of the segment’s market share, with growth outpacing that of the beauty market in its entirety. As with Eventide, these small brands often fill a niche overlooked by big brands that market to wider audiences.
It also explains the brand’s origin. Eventide wasn’t really Sawers’ idea—but rather, her publicist’s. Already working with a formulator on products for use during treatments, she decided she wanted a face mask. “I really wanted to be able to offer my clients an alternative. Filling a missing gap that I didn’t have.” But even she was pleasantly surprised at how well it worked: “It would leave the client’s skin looking so calm and so radiant.” So when her publicist suggested a retail line, Sawers took the plunge. “Things were really starting to kick off in terms of indie beauty… And I ended up formulating the face oil as well.”
Her client base, Sawers explains, don’t necessarily “focus on achieving a perfect look.” And while chemical formulations are potent and effective—and often used in her treatment rooms—she says her plant-based tinctures fall under “general skin health.”
“Those can be simpler formulations, and you can see really wonderful outcomes,” she says. “I don’t necessarily think it’s that Eastern versus Western medicine approach. They complement each other.”
For skin health, masks are a kind of maintenance. Sawers’ version is waterless—a powder that can be rehydrated differently to suit the user. If skin is congested, add water. Dry? Add honey. And for resurfacing, add yogurt into the mix. “It’s a fun mask in the sense that you can really customize it based on how you’re feeling and what you feel your skin needs at the time.” Rose petals and oatmeal balance out the drying effects of the white clay, she explains. “So you get the benefit of the decongestion without those other side effects.”
The face oil combines a mix of jojoba to nourish skin, rosehip-seed oil for a dose of vitamin C, tea tree oil for its antiseptic properties, and lavender, an anti-inflammatory. “I think that this particular blend is really beautifully blended. There’s a mix of oils there, so it’s quite balanced. It’s not too heavy, and not too light. And then having an aromatic experience really takes me into that place of self-care.” she says. “I’m a Taurus. We’re all about enjoying life’s luxuries.”
If her appreciation for the finer things is written in the stars, perhaps her holistic approach to skincare is, too. Starting with the name, Eventide, which evokes the ebb and flow of nature and its effect on our skin. “We’re so influenced by the moon and the way that nature shifts. Even our skin responds to different weather patterns and changes. So what you need for your skin in the winter is going to be different than what you need in the summer.”
Sawers may have been hesitant to add a new line to a saturated market—“there’s a part of me that feels a bit conflicted”—but she stands behind what she’s created. “I really love the products,” she says. “Eventide reflects the values that I have within my treatment practice, where I want to work with brands that are really focussed on high-quality ingredients. Not having artificial fragrances and dyes; unnecessary irritants that could potentially cause harm. And also not being just fluff or really trend-driven.”
Launching a spa and a skincare line in quick succession means that her attention was spread thin. “I feel that there is room for it now,” she says of Eventide. But, true to form, when she considers the future of the brand, she’s not drawn to add more skincare products to an oversaturated market. “I’m actually interested in more of a facial tool approach. I think something to complement the face oil. So cupping and gua sha,” she says.
Skin can be a expressive, remarkable, radiant, flawed. But in Sawers’ mind, it should never be something to hide. “With every single client I’m focussed on having them leave here feeling fantastic,” she says. “Not like they have a to-do list of things they need to change about themselves.”
