Ole Henriksen opened his first skin care centre in 1975, and the brand that carries his name is still best known for its Banana Bright vitamin C line. Here is the Banana Bright range, the cleansers, toners and moisturizers around it, and the lip treatments I keep within reach.
OLEHENRIKSEN: Ole Henriksen Left Denmark for LA and Brought Banana Bright
The story behind OLEHENRIKSEN starts with Ole Henriksen himself, who was born in Nibe, Denmark. He moved to London to study skin care and cosmetic chemistry, then settled in Los Angeles and opened his first spa in 1975. It was called Ole Henriksen of Denmark Skin Care Centre, and depending on whom you ask it sat in Beverly Hills or West Hollywood. In 2011 Kendo, the brand incubator at LVMH, acquired the product line, and Henriksen stayed on as Creative Director. Search for olehenriksen as one word and you will land in the right place, because the brand is written as OLEHENRIKSEN on the label.
What I like is that the point of view never got gloomy. This is skincare that wants you to feel like it is a good morning, and nothing says that more clearly than Banana Bright. The Banana Bright+ Eye Crème, which is not in this edit, was inspired by the banana powder that makeup artists use, and it uses light-reflecting pigments to echo that. It tells you how the line was thought out: a makeup artist's trick, translated into skin care.
Start with the OLEHENRIKSEN Banana Bright Face Primer if you want the makeup version of that idea. The Dark Spot Serum is the vitamin C step, and the Firm and Glow Moisturizer with vitamin C and niacinamide comes after it. The Barrier Booster Milky Toner Essence sits before both, softer than a classic toner. The Mineral Face Sunscreen SPF 30 finishes the morning.
Use the serum in the morning, follow with sunscreen, and give it a few weeks before you decide anything. Primer goes on last under makeup, once the moisturizer has had a few minutes to settle into the skin.
Banana Bright and the vitamin C line
Banana Bright Face Primer
OLEHENRIKSEN
$40
Barrier Booster Vitamin C Milky Toner Essence with Niacinamide
OLEHENRIKSEN
$48
Banana Bright 15% Vitamin C Dark Spot Serum
OLEHENRIKSEN
$70
Banana Bright+ Firm and Glow Moisturizer with Vitamin C and Niacinamide
OLEHENRIKSEN
$54
Banana Bright Mineral Face Sunscreen SPF 30
OLEHENRIKSEN
$35
Cleansers, toners and barrier moisturizers
Brightening is only half of what this brand does. The other half is quiet and a little more practical: the cleansers, toners and moisturizers that keep skin comfortable while everything else gets done.
Peach Glaze is a niacinamide cleanser made for dull and uneven skin, and I like it when my complexion looks tired after a long week. B5 Boost is a solid foaming cleanser, which is the format I take on trips because there is nothing to leak. It is made to be gentle and hydrating. Detox Drops is a 2% salicylic acid toner, so I use it a couple of nights a week rather than daily. Violet Ice Cold Plunge is a pore clay mask, and it belongs on a Sunday.
Then come the moisturizers. Strength Peptide Barrier Boost combines peptides, hyaluronic acid and niacinamide, and it is the one I would put under sunscreen on a dry day. Après Skin is the overnight moisturizer and mask with ceramides and hyaluronic acid, made to go on thicker at the end of the day and stay put on the pillow.
Try a new cleanser for two weeks before you decide what it does. If a toner stings or your skin gets tight, cut back to once or twice a week, then add nights slowly. Cleansing should leave skin feeling clean, never squeaky.
OLEHENRIKSEN cleansers, toners and moisturizers
Strength Peptide Barrier Boost Moisturizer with Hyaluronic Acid and Niacinamide
OLEHENRIKSEN
$54
Après Skin Overnight Moisturizer + Mask with Ceramides and Hyaluronic Acid
OLEHENRIKSEN
$48
Detox Drops 2% Salicylic Acid Toner
OLEHENRIKSEN
$34
Peach Glaze 2% Niacinamide Cleanser for dull and uneven skin
OLEHENRIKSEN
$32
B5 Boost Hydrating Solid Foaming Gentle Cleanser
OLEHENRIKSEN
$36
Violet Ice Cold Plunge Pore Clay Mask
OLEHENRIKSEN
$42
Lips get the same attention
Lips are where this brand shows its playful side, and honestly the range I reach for most. Pout Preserve is the family name, and the three do different jobs.
The Hydrating Peptide Lip Treatment is the everyday one. I put it on before bed and again after brushing my teeth, and it stays comfortable rather than sticky. Chillers is the peptide treatment in the family, and I like it on a hot afternoon or first thing in the morning. The Sugar Melt Exfoliating Lip Scrub is the scrub of the three, and the one I use gently.
Order matters here. Scrub first, wipe the lips clean with a damp cloth, then apply a treatment. Do it that way and the treatment sits on smoother lips, which is what you want before a lipstick as well.
What I would skip: scrubbing on lips that are already cracked or sore, and scrubbing more than once a week even when they are not. Soft lips do not need daily friction, and a gentle hand always does more than a hard one. If lips stay chapped no matter what you use, mention it to a doctor, because something else may be going on. Otherwise, a treatment at night and another in the morning is plenty.
How I would put it together
If you are starting from nothing, I would keep this simple. Pick one cleanser, one moisturizer and the sunscreen, then add the vitamin C serum once those feel settled. Lip treatments can start on day one.
A tidy morning looks like this: rinse or cleanse, toner essence, serum, moisturizer, sunscreen. At night, cleanse, use the toner only on the nights it suits you, and go for Après Skin or the barrier moisturizer. Clay mask on the weekend. That is about seven products across a week, and none of them are shouting at each other.
Try anything active on a small patch near your jaw first. And if your skin becomes red or irritated, stop and ask a doctor or dermatologist. Skincare from a brand with a Los Angeles sense of sunshine is meant to be pleasant to use, and if it is not, it is the wrong fit.
