If only we had the fountain of youth that we could drink from so we could look younger as we age. Unfortunately that is not an option for us so we continue to try to have healthy, young looking skin throughout our lives. Most people will try some type of skin care regimen and others may try a quick fix product. Either way the goal is the same, to look as young as we can as long as we can.

For the people in the Central Valley, there is a resident skincare specialist right in their own backyard.

Vena’s Secrets Wellness and Skincare Studio in Riverbank is owned by Clinical Esthetician Vena Pearson Hudgins. She has been in the business for over 18 years and after five years of planning, has developed Vena’s skincare line.

To celebrate the new product, Hudgins hosted a launch party a few weeks ago which included appetizers, wine, champagne and prizes.

“I am very passionate about it (new skincare line),” said Hudgins. “I was always looking at the products out there and looking for the most cutting edge thing. I would have a little of this and combine a little of that specific for my client’s skin care needs.

“It has never been about a facial to me; it is about a skin care treatment. A facial is a luxury and a skin care treatment is a necessity.”

Over the past 18 years, Hudgins would take notes on what products or the combination of ingredients and products would work for certain skin types and skin situations. She wanted all her products to be organic and natural.

Hudgins explained that in the United States a skin care product can have one organic ingredient and that would deem it organic. Since Hudgins wanted her entire product to be organic she decided to go with a lab in Canada that would source the ingredients using plants that are certified organic. The products are formulated in the US but they are made in the Montreal area of Canada.

“Over there in order to call a product organic it has to have 90 percent organic ingredients,” expressed Hudgins. “There was that big difference. Plus anytime you bring something from out of the country it has to be approved by the FDA. You have to have documentation and you have to be on your toes.”

Hudgins loves the US and has no intention of moving, however, she was very particular on the ingredients for her skincare line, the labels, the colors, bottling and all the little details that it took to make the final product.

“Maintaining your face is pretty new and I have seen it evolve,” stated Hudgins. “I wanted to come up with a formula that is very empowering.

“What I mean by that is if you look at some of the names, we are repairing, taking charge, we are protecting, we are discovering the new skin; they are all very empowering words.”

Knowing that most women are completely aware that they are aging, Hudgins does not want to remind clients of the necessity of anti-aging products but she wants women to “Take Charge” of their skin and “Defy” gravity so that women look at their skin in a positive light.

With the many details that come with launching a new product, Hudgins was very particular on all the details of her skincare line including the bottles, which are in blue and white so that a man or woman could feel good on displaying it on their counter.

The products are also for men so it was important for her to have her products appeal to them as well and as explained by Hudgins, “It is like a whisper of elegance.”

The eye serum is called Awake and it is created by a plant that has the same properties as a Botox shot but is natural, according to Hudgins.

The containers have a pump that locks so that they are convenient to travel with.

She has created a neck treatment, eye treatment, treatment for sensitive skin, and she can customize 20 different regimens for 20 different skin types. The products have no toxins in them and are clean with natural ingredients.

Hudgins worked for a company out of Switzerland and has lectured all over the world on advanced skincare.

“This is a passion, not a job, for me,” expressed Hudgins. “We are getting so many love letters it is insane. People are using it and literally seeing the difference right away.”

The products are for professionals to administer to clients to create a customized skincare program.

After four weeks of use of her eye serum, Hudgins said clients have seen results that have been posted on her Facebook page: venaswellness.

Transform, which is similar to a moisturizer that helps hydrate and balance skin, has ingredients like almond oil, honey, chronic acid, and collagen.

With several spas wanting to carry her products and selling out of products three times, Hudgins is very humbled by the success of her newly launched skincare line.

“We see over 800 clients on a monthly basis,” added Hudgins. “After being here for two years we have tripled our size. We just keep growing.”