Sausage trees? Placenta? Snail slime? Just a few of the wonderfully weird ingredients in your skincare products

There are some wild nail and beauty products on the market that host a wonder of unusual ingredients. So sit back, embrace the weirdness, and ask yourself: how far would you go for beauty?

The Nimue Anti-Aging Hand Cream contains 20% Kigelia Africana. Never heard of it? Us neither – until we Googled and were delighted to find it is a sausage tree. Yes, a sausage tree.

Before you get excited that sausages have started to grow on trees, the name refers to the sausage shaped fruit (sadly poisonous) that grows on the tree. Grown throughout Africa, it is a quintessential African herbal medicinal plant that is traditionally used in skincare, and also helps to heal wounds.

The Heaven Nettle Venom Polish is a hard-working product that exfoliates the skin to clear pores, improve skin texture and leave skin looking glowing and healthy. Founder Deborah Mitchell explains: “We may find that we’ve lost our natural glow and are showing the effects of sun damage, and this leaves our skin looking dull. By exfoliating regularly, you speed up the natural healing process; skip this vital step and you risk breakouts, blackheads and dryness.”

The star ingredients are nettle leaves, echinacea and maple sap, which all work to alleviate fine lines and lighten pigmentation too. Who knew? (PSA: Don’t try rubbing nettles on your face at home).

Squeamish? Biologique Recherche offer a Crème Iso-Placenta which is an intensive and regenerating treatment that supports the growth and development of healthy skin cells. But it’s not what you think – this clever product uses Biomimetic Placenta made from plants instead of actual placenta extract.

Crème Iso-Placenta specifically helps acne prone skin, as it activates cell regeneration to help rebuild the epidermis damaged by acne. It provides the skin with all the nutrients it needs by simulating human placenta properties, thereby acting via biomimicry (the emulation of nature). It also helps to heal acne scarring, and smooths, soothes and brightens the skin.

There’s been quite the buzz about the Heaven Black Bee Venom Mask as it contains a full quarter of rare bee venom that works to tighten, firm and lift the face. A spokesperson for Heaven reveals, “It penetrates fine lines, frown lines and wrinkles. Plus ABEETOXIN® has healing properties, making it a great option for those with blemished, dry or mature skin.” Founder Deborah Mitchell adds: “You can use it in a variety of different ways: simply apply after your cleansing routine morning and evening; layer on top of your daily moisturiser or combine with a serum; leave on for ten minutes and wash off with warm water; or leave on overnight for accelerated results.” Unbee-lievable.

Bingo Spa have really snailed it with its Face Regeneration Snail Slime. Designed to be added in to cosmetics and skincare, Bingo Spa reveals that snail slime contains vitamins A, C and E, which stimulate skin renewal, exfoliating Alpha Hydroxy Acids, collagen and elastin, so you can say hello to radiant, glowy skin with the help of our slimy friends. Who would have thought?