Lessons Learnt with Josie Barrett

A cosmetic chemist’s take on skincare, ingredients and cutting through the noise.

The idea behind our Lessons Learnt series is pretty simple; we get to meet some really knowledgeable experts across various industries through Lanolab, and we get to learn from them. Lessons Learnt is our way of sharing their insights with you, our community. 

For Episode 2, we spoke to Josie Barrett, a cosmetic chemist and someone we’ve known for years.

Josie is incredibly knowledgeable about skincare, but what we appreciate most is that she is also incredibly honest about it. She doesn't approach skincare with a “this ingredient is good, that ingredient is bad” mentality. Instead, she looks at the science, the formulation and what a product is actually designed to do.

As people who are pretty passionate about skincare ourselves, it was genuinely fascinating to have some of the things we’ve learnt over the years looked at through the lens of a cosmetic chemist. Josie gave us a wealth of information, challenged some of the conversations happening in the beauty space and, in some cases, put the science behind things we’ve come to believe into perspective.

So, we asked her everything from why some lip balms actually work, to what makes a good skincare formulation, to how we can all cut through the noise.

First things first: not everything you read about ingredients online is true. Skincare conversations online can be incredibly black and white. An ingredient is either “good” or “bad”. This ingredient is a must-have. That one should be avoided at all costs. But Josie looks at ingredients differently. Rather than judging an ingredient based on where it comes from or what the internet says about it, she considers what the ingredient actually does, how it is being used, how it interacts with the rest of the formulation and, ultimately, what the finished product is designed to achieve. And that was probably one of our biggest takeaways from the conversation: context matters.

So, why does your lip balm disappear after 20 minutes?

This was one of those questions we were particularly excited to ask because, honestly, who hasn't wondered this? You apply your lip balm and, twenty minutes later, your lips are somehow dry again. According to Josie, there is a lot more happening inside a lip balm than most of us realise.

Our lips have a very thin outer layer and don't contain oil or sweat glands, which means they rely heavily on external products to help maintain their protective barrier.

A good lip balm therefore needs the right balance of humectants, emollients and occlusives, alongside ingredients that are able to stay anchored to the lips. As Josie explained, some formulations disappear quickly because they rely heavily on ingredients that are easily absorbed or evaporate, without enough ingredients to help keep moisture in.

It was a good reminder that what makes a product feel good when you first apply it isn't necessarily what makes it perform well over time. And this is where formulation gets really interesting.

When simple is actually quite sophisticated

When Josie tried the Lanolab range, one of the things that stood out to her was the simplicity of the formulations.

She told us:

“I really appreciated the simplicity of the formulations. There is a clear and functional purpose to the ingredient choices and not feeding into trending or marketing ingredients.”

We’ve always believed that skincare doesn't need to be complicated for the sake of being complicated. There is something quite reassuring about knowing what a product is there to do and why the ingredients in it have been chosen. And, as Josie reminded us, more ingredients don't automatically mean a more efficacious product.

And then, of course, we had to talk about lanolin

As a cosmetic chemist, Josie gave us a really interesting perspective on one of Lanolab's two hero ingredients: lanolin. What stood out to her was its role as both an emollient and occlusive, helping to soften the skin while reducing moisture loss. She also highlighted the similarities between the composition of lanolin and the lipids naturally found in the skin, which makes it particularly interesting from a formulation perspective when you're looking to support the skin barrier.

Skincare doesn't need to be so complicated

The skincare industry can feel incredibly overwhelming. Every week there's a new ingredient, a new trend and another routine telling you what you apparently need for perfect skin.

Josie’s advice?

“Stop chasing ingredients and trends and focus on what your skin needs.”

She encouraged people to go back to the basics, keep things simple and remember that someone else's routine isn't necessarily going to give you the same results.

And if your skin is compromised, her advice is to focus on supporting your skin barrier before piling on more active ingredients.

“Take it back to the basics and keep it simple.”

A few more things we learnt from Josie

We asked Josie a few quickfire questions too

An ingredient that deserves more credit?
Glycerin

An ingredient she thinks is overhyped?
Niacinamide.

Something most people don't worry enough about?
Daily sun protection and UV exposure.

An ingredient people are unfairly afraid of?
Chemical UV filters.

Do you need a different moisturiser for day and night?
No. That's personal preference, not a necessity.

Can your skin become “immune” to a skincare product?
No. Your skin doesn't become immune to products. Sometimes you've simply reached the result you were trying to achieve.

We love that none of these answers were about finding the perfect ingredient or building the perfect routine. They all came back to the same thing: understand what you're using, understand what your skin needs and don't let the noise make your decisions for you.

Our biggest lesson from Josie

If there's one thing we took away from this conversation, it's that good skincare isn't about having the most complicated routine or the longest ingredient list. It's about formulation, purpose and consistency. And sometimes, the best thing you can do for your skin is take a step back from everything you're being told you need and go back to the basics.

That, to us, is exactly what Lessons Learnt is about. Real conversations with people who know their stuff. Honest questions. A wealth of knowledge. And taking what we learn and passing it on to you.

If you’re particularly interested in sensitive skin, eczema-prone skin or caring for a compromised skin barrier, we’ve taken that part of our conversation and put it together in a separate, practical guide:

How to Care for a Compromised Skin Barrier →