Your Stories: Discovering the World's Beauty Secrets

Reasons why people travel vary from getaways to family visits. For Rochelle Truxal, hitting the road became a quest.

As a sufferer of psorasis, Rochelle wanted to help not only herself, but others dealing with skincare issues through nautral, organic means.  "Combining my passion of skincare and traveling is what I had to do!"

Rochelle's mission led her to launch Pearlesque Box, a monthly service delivering face and body products discovered around the globe. Read on to learn more about her journey.

Rochelle in Santorini, Greece -- Photo courtesy of Rochelle Truxal

Pearlesque Box has been a lifetime in the making. At an early age I was diagnosed with psoriasis. Great measures were required to treat my condition, including exposure to sunlight, ointments, creams, laser treatments, coal tar (gross), steroid injections... you name it. Since there's no cure for psoriasis, I knew I was facing a lifelong struggle.

Many skincare products on the market severely affected my skin, causing increased red patches on my body. At that time, natural products weren't prevelant in the United States. So, I started creating my own products, using natural ingredients like coconut oil, olive oil and avocado, which helped my psoriasis.

Rochelle in Lisbon, Portugal -- Photo courtesy of Rochelle Truxal

In my 20’s, I started traveling to various countries that I'd discovered had been using natural ingredients for skin since the beginning of time.

Many countries/cultures -- Greece, Mexico, Hawaii, Spain, Portugal -- use natural ingredients in their products, often with people making skincare products at home. It’s quite liberating to see how other cultures approach beauty and how they define it.In Greece and Spain, for instance, the women are more focused on natural beauty and don't wear heavy makeup, embracing who they are, as well as aging.

The United States, however, is extremely exposed to large marketing campaigns in the beauty industry leading consumers to think that they have to use these products to obtain a certain beauty. I became determined to make a change in both the industry and mindset of the American consumer.

That’s when it struck me -- ”I want to start a subscription box where consumers can discover natural skincare products from around the world!” Combining my passion of skincare and traveling is what I had to do!

Pearesque Box lavender products curated from Maui, HI -- Photo courtesy of Rochelle Truxal

My fiancé and I traveled to Hawaii (Maui and Kauai) over the summer where we discovered a ton of natural skincare brands that were made on farms on the islands. On one particular day we drove up a mountain in Maui where we stopped at a Lavender farm where they source the lavender on the farm to produce natural soaps, lotions and lip balms, it was incredible!

Photo courtesy of Rochelle Truxal

 We were able to discover about five natural skincare brands just on these two islands alone. From this trip I was able to partner with Honey Girl Organics which was the first brand to be featured in the September box, our launch box.

Image from http://www.pearlesquebox.com/

So what does she pack in her carry-on, we wondered?...

 
I always have sunscreen, hyaluronic acid, moisturizer and an eye and night cream. Each trip varies on the brand as I am always testing out new brands and products for Pearlesque Box.

Ready to experience some of Rochelle's discoveries? Visit Pearlesque Box and immerse in global beauty. Thanks, Rochelle, for sharing the bounty of your mission with us!