Beauty Chat: Juice Beauty Founder Karen Behnke on CC Creams and Winter Skincare

In a seemingly Sesame Street move, there’s been a progression through the alphabet from the BB creams of yore to the newest iteration, CC creams. Like BBs, CCs first rose to popularity in Asia and there are just a few on the market stateside at the moment. One of those is Juice Beauty's Stem Cellular Repair CC Cream, a veritable wealth of the natural and the effective. The organic line of makeup and skincare products was founded by wellness entrepreneur Karen Behnke. After she became pregnant with her first child at the age of 40, Behnke was shocked to learn that there were few healthy personal products that worked well. Her concern that skin absorbs over 60 percent of what is placed on it, and a frustration with the lack of options available on the market led Behnke to launch her own range of products. Juice


Beauty combines organic ingredients (the total organic content is up to 98 percent in every product) with clinical results. ELLE.com caught up with Behnke about the differences between her CC Cream and BB Creams and how to transition your skincare for the winter months.

ELLE: How is Stem Cellular Repair CC Cream distinguished from others on the market?

Karen Behnke: Juice Beauty products are inherently different from all skincare on the market in that we specialize in clinically validated, authentically organic items. Instead of starting with a water base—which dilutes good ingredients—or a petroleum base—which suffocates skin—Juice Beauty builds upon an antioxidant-rich base. Our CC Cream is a color-correcting 12-in-1 multi-tasker that repairs damage, evens skin tone, moisturizes and reduces fine lines and wrinkles, while firming and yielding a radiant, glowing complexion. It’s also designed for all skin types and combines Juice Beauty’s proprietary blend of fruit stem cells, Vitamin C and a resveratrol-rich grapeseed base.

ELLE: What are the main differences between BB creams and CC creams?

KB: CC stands for complete correction, while BB stands for beauty balm or blemish balm, depending on the brand. CC creams boast increased efficacy and multi-tasking qualities and feature better color-correcting action. A CC cream will provide a bit more coverage than its BB counterpart.

ELLE: Spill: What's your skincare pet peeve?

KB: Some of the incredibly, ridiculously expensive skincare products are really only vats of petroleum byproducts with a few drops of nice ingredients like algae or something. It amazes me that smart people fall for the marketing of these products.

ELLE: Are there any "off-label" uses for your products that you incorporate at home?

KB: Sometimes I treat not just my face, but my hair and elbows with our Organic Treatment Oil for extra hydration.

ELLE: What are some easy skincare tips you can impart based on your tenure in the industry?

KB: I love to see our estheticians take their ring finger and apply our eye creams around the sensitive, wrinkle-prone lip area. Also, our makeup artists use our Alicia Silverstone for Juice Beauty pink Facial Highlighter (using our eye brush) to create an amazing eyeshadow.

ELLE: What ingredients do you like to work with most?

KB: My favorites are antioxidant-rich juices, aloe, and oils. Some of my favorites are grape, lemon and apple juices. As for oils, I’m partial to jojoba and shea.

ELLE: To prepare our New Year’s Eve makeup strategies, we need a smooth canvas on which to work. What are some tips for exfoliation?

KB: Juice Beauty’s Green Apple Peel is fantastic because it comes in three different strengths for every skin type. Full Strength is spa-grade and perfect for all skin types except sensitive or rosacea. Sensitive works for all skin types except rosacea. And Blemish Clearing is our recommendation for pregnant women, as we don't include Vitamin A in this version. This product put us on the map with skincare gurus and celebrities.

ELLE: The winter months are rough on skin. How can we best transition our skin care for winter?

KB: During the colder months, it’s time to moisturize more and get the holiday glow on! Sometimes we all get busy and forget to use our Green Apple Peel to exfoliate, but don't forget the important regimen: 1. Cleanse. 2. Treat daily with a serum and treat weekly with a peel. 3. Moisturize in the morning with SPF and in the evening with a non-SPF hydrator. Turn over those skin cells. In the winter, it's okay to drop down to an SPF 15, if your skin needs a break from the heavier mineral sunscreens, but never forget the SPF 15!

ELLE: How about a tip for dry patches of skin that plague those who live in cooler climates?

KB: Juice Beauty's USDA Organic Lip Moisturizer is amazing for healing dry skin quickly. Our customers have given up petroleum jelly—Really, gasoline on your face?—forever! Rich emollient organic butters and oils will moisturize any dry spots. It's perfect for a baby’s dry spots, also. Use it as a nighttime treatment for extra hydration.