Behind the Scene

Tan Organic – Turning the Grey Area Green

I got to work on a really interesting project recently for Tan Organic. They wanted to come up with some unique images for a new PR Campaign around the fact that they are the worlds first and only Eco Certified organic tan.

I bodypainted the girls using Kryolan Aquacolours and then used some tinted clay over this to get some texture. On top of this I threw MAC Pigments and Glitters. I made the garlands and headpieces out of burlap, moss and fake trees for a model railway, fresh flowers and leaves.

Bodypainting Assistant: Caoimhe Arrigan
Photographer: Miss Aniela
Models: Annie Kirwan and Aoife McCamley

Here is the press release: 

TanOrganic the Worlds First and Only Eco Certified Aloe Vera Based Sunless Tan

TanOrganic is officially the first and only aloe vera based sunless tan in the world to be Eco Certified, having just been awarded with the highest eco standard. After months of paperwork and audits TanOrganic has proven to the Ecocert group that all aspects of the tan from seed to bottle is organic. Produced in Ireland, TanOrganic the most successful ever Irish Dragons’ Den investment is now set to be the biggest worldwide Dragons’ success story, with distribution in Kuwait, Chile, Australia, USA, New Zealand, South Africa and across Europe.

Beauty guru and co-author of the Green Beauty Bible, Sarah Stacey was in Dublin last week to congratulate TanOrganic on becoming a world first. Sarah comments at the TanOrganic Eco launch; “Huge congratulations to Noelle and all her TanOrganic team not least Gavin Duffy, her Irish ‘Dragon’ for gaining much converted Ecocert accreditation. Not only is TanOrganic sunless tan a great product; who doesn’t want a gorgeous healthy golden glow as we go into autumn? But now consumers can be certain that it is truly pure and natural”.

So who are EcoCert? Since 1991, the EcoCert Group have become one of the worlds most recognizable eco certification body. Consistent with its commitment to organic farming, Ecocert has opted to put its technical expertise to use in supporting the environment, developing its own specifications for the inspection and certification of products, systems and services including those in the cosmetics industry.

Currently there are only around 1,000 companies being supported by Ecocert. When taken into consideration the size of the international cosmetic industry it is only then that you realize how tiny the natural and organic sector really is.

Noelle O’Connor, owner of TanOrganic, insisted, “This has been the aim since day one”. TanOrganic prides itself on being a 100% natural and organic sunless tanning solution. Noelle envisioned the Ecocert accreditation, as a way of proving to people TanOrganic is the real deal. As they say, “it does exactly what it says on the tin” but in this case bottle.

So why make your product eco certified? On cosmetics labels, unlike food labels, words such as ‘herbal,’ ‘natural,’ even ‘organic’, have no legal definition. That means that anybody can put anything in a bottle and call it ‘natural or Organic’ as long as there is just one ingredient that is natural or organic, at times as low as .001% of the product. And they do!” The consumer needs to be educated on distinguishing the difference between the certified natural and organic products and the natural and organic labels. Now with the Ecocert seal of approval sunless tan  consumers can feel confident using TanOrganic that it is natural and it is not just making the organic claim.

So how does one become eco certified? Noelle O’Connor remarked that there was 18 months of hard work put into the application. A lifetime in a dynamic business industry but it was always her goal for the company. After contacting the Ecocert group Noelle embarked on an extensive journey of ticking boxes, filing out forms and serious internal audits.

After becoming the very first certification body to develop standards for “natural and organic cosmetics” in 2003, the Ecocert specification was drawn up in conjunction with all stakeholders in the value chain, i.e. experts, suppliers, manufactures, distributors, consumers and development organisations.

“There was an audit on everything, the ingredients farm, the raw materials, the manufacturing plant, the filling plant and it didn’t stop there. Our office and financial department had a full audit so that every invoice and purchase could be related back to an organic and reliable source. It was tiresome but 100% worth it in the end” responds Noelle O’Connor when asked about the Ecocert process.

After 18 months of internal and external audits, ten small novels of forms to be filled out and an enormous amount of time and money, TanOrganic became a world’s first. The only aloe vera based sunless tan in the world tan that can truly call itself natural and organic by EcoCert standards.

Since its appearance on ‘The Dragon’s Den’, TanOrganic has prided itself on being 100% natural and organic, with no preservatives, parabens, perfumes, synthetic colours or alcohol. This proclamation was beginning to get lost in a sea of cosmetics that were all trying to say the same thing. Noelle was determined to get her product recognized by the consumer as “the genuine article”.

Now the first and only eco certified aloe vera based sunless tan in the world, TanOrganic users can be confident that what they are putting on their skin is natural, is organic and is the only sunless tan in the world that is.

To learn more about the Ecocert group visit www.ecocert.com. TanOrganic can be found in all good pharmacies and beauty salons nationwide or at www.tanorganic.com.

Hope you like the images, let me know what you think.

Lots of love,