Skincare Guru Ole Henriksen on Staying Young

Cleaning up my desktop the other day, I came across a piece that I wrote for ITEM Magazine a few years back. It was a quick one-on-one with skincare innovator Ole Henricksen and with the recent surge in cosmetic surgery and aesthetics, his words really struck a cord with me. A native of Denmark, Ole (that’s oo-la) Henriksen spent his youth living and working with an intense fervor that eventually took a toll on his skin. He became drawn to skincare and after studying cosmetology in London, eventually landed in Los Angeles where he set up his first business in 1975 on a shoestring budget. His holistic approach to skincare was revolutionary at the time and a glowing review in the Los Angeles Times broke the news of his amazing touch. At 53 (at the time of this interview), Henriksen is warm, gracious and extremely modest about his success. Here, he shares his own thoughts on staying young: “It’s not difficult to maintain a youthful energy if you take good care of yourself as far as your diet, as far as fitness, as far as topical good care and having — very importantly — a love affair with life. Really embracing everyday and celebrating the great honor it is to be here on this planet and being in a paradise like the United States including of course California. I am actually very anti-plastic surgery. Again, though, if someone embraces that — and lots of clients do — I would never ever scold them. I would never ever speak out against their desires as long as people are happy. It’s an individual choice. I think one of the sadder things is that young people today get carried away. They age themselves by creating faces that are expressionless. That disappoints me.” Find Ole Henriksen face and body products at www.olehenriksen.com. Photo: Ole Henriksen’s bestselling Ultimate Lift Eye Gel, which also scored high marks with in Face Parlour’s Treat category, $38.