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The Healf Source
How One Woman Harnessed The Ancient Power Of Silk For A Cutting-Edge Skincare Line
THIS IS SILK founder Sonal Keay is on a mission to integrate science and skincare. This is her story.
Written by: the Healf Editors
Written on: April 10, 2026
When Sonal Keay was 18 years old, her world flipped upside down. No matter the weather, any time she was exposed to daylight, her skin would start to burn. She burned through windows, in cars, practically anywhere the light touched.
Eventually, Keay, founder of THIS IS SILK, was diagnosed with chronic actinic dermatitis, a rare skin condition which causes severe rashes when skin is exposed to the sun's UV light. Keay calls it an “existential disease.” How am I allergic to the source of all life? she often found herself thinking. Her condition sometimes felt more psychologically burdensome than physically — the knowledge that it could get worse at any moment, and her skin might start burning, was anxiety-inducing. In fact, Keay's doctor told her that the second biggest health risk associated with the disease was serious depression.
At first, nothing really seemed to help. And then, she came across a rather surprising tool that eased her symptoms: a simple silk scarf. “I used to wear a silk scarf, and I knew it was helping my skin. Instinctively, I put my scarf on my pillow,” she says. Whether she was out and about or settling in to bed at night, the silk scarves seemed to calm her skin. That memory stayed with her long after her first major flare as a teen.
Keay learned to live with and manage her condition, and went on to become a successful criminal barrister. But her condition flared up again around 2014, when she became pregnant for the first time. “I was really terrified,” she says.
Once again, Keay found herself relying on her silk scarves, which inexplicably seemed to ease her symptoms. Instead of letting fear consume her, she went straight to the British Library to try to understand why the silk seemed to help so much. And there, among the stacks and weathered tomes, she found a wealth of information.
When people think of silk, they think of a luxurious fabric — but it’s actually a highly sophisticated natural protein fiber, primarily composed of fibroin. It's produced by silkworms and has a high affinity to our skin. “I found loads of scientific journals saying that silk’s been used as a wound healer for millennia, which I just found incredible,” Keay says. Long before she was born, people from all different cultures had been drawn to this fabric. “There’s this huge body of ancient human wisdom and knowledge, and it’s only millennia later that people figure out the science. We have such an innate connection.”
In nature, silk acts like a barrier, much the same as our skin does for our body, with the ability to renew and repair. The two are structurally and chemically similar, Keay says, pointing out that they share 90% of the same amino acids. Her research uncovered the fact that silk has been used in really complex eye and heart tissue repair surgeries as well as helping regenerate nerves following paralysis. “To have something that is so powerful — but safe — inside the human body, I just think is incredible,” she says.
It was only natural that Keay decided to harness the might of that little peptide, and find ways to bring its healing powers into the modern world.
Silk in skincare
Once Keay started down her silk road, there was no looking back. She knew she’d landed on something monumental. But it wasn’t until 2017 that she started to seriously consider using that knowledge to create something that could help other people, too.
While she initially started creating and selling silk pillowcases (reminiscent of her own makeshift silk pillowcase from her teen years), Keay soon started asking herself what else she could do with silk technology. Her interest, she realised, lay in the science of silk — not the pretty fabrics. So, after reaching out to a scientist with a pharmaceutical background and a professor who knew a lot about wound healing, she applied for funding to develop a first-of-its-kind silk peptide that could be used in skincare: SF-VII. “It was a huge risk — it was a lot of money.”
As a barrister, Keay was focused on the cold, hard evidence, so the team quickly began testing two products, the Power Up Silk Peptide Concentrate for Hydration and Fine Lines (which Keay notes is their current bestseller) and the Rich Silk Cream, with backing from Innovate UK. “I’m not interested in pretty ingredients. They’ve got to have really solid evidence stacked behind them,” she says. “I’m a real sceptic. It’s virtually impossible to impress me, and I have very high expectations.”
Those ancient healers had been on to something — and the test results spoke for themselves: the SF-VII silk peptide technology they had created outperformed the market-leading peptide for collagen synthesis, accelerating the skin’s healing and cellular longevity along with it. The testing clinic director told Keay he'd never seen anything like it before.
With the Power Up, skin hydration was boosted 22.1%, elasticity by 17.6%, and fine line reduction by 20%. The cream similarly saw a 32.8% increase in hydration alongside a 22.7% boost in elasticity, and 31.7% in fine line reduction. The products truly worked at the cellular level, and Keay knew she’d found something special.
By January 2025, THIS IS SILK relaunched, with a new focus on their cutting-edge skincare line. “It’s got everything that people are looking for at the moment. It’s multi-active, it’s natural, it’s ancient, but it’s also at the cutting edge of science,” Keay says. “I love that when you’re applying silk skincare, you’re not just applying a peptide, but something that was so powerful it shaped the world as we know it today.”
Keay isn’t like other skincare founders. She’s focused on the science and history, and approaches skincare from a more utilitarian point of view. Skincare isn't just about smooth, radiant, wrinkle-free skin. It’s about caring for and nurturing this essential organ, and finding natural ways to heal and support it. And with her products, she hopes to share that gift with others. “When they’re using Silk, I don’t want them to just think, right, it’s improving my skin. I want them to think, right, I’m tapping into 8,000 years of ancient civilisation here. That’s the power that I’m surrounding myself [with],” she says. “Skincare is our armour. And silk is a really beautiful, soft, protective armour. I think, especially as women, we’re wearing armour inside and out, and I want people to start thinking of their skin from a health maintenance barrier approach.”
She brings the same energy and focus to her formulations as she did to the cases she argued in court. Recently, THIS IS SILK launched a moisturiser, the Rich Silk Cream, that took three years and 55 iterations to get right, Keay says.
“It will strengthen every barrier function; hydration, soreness, redness,” she says. Of course, people also like it because it can boost skin health and improve fine lines and texture.
Life beyond the bench
The pivot from barrister to brand founder was more seamless than you might think, and Keay made the move very gradually. Along the way, she’s used many of the lessons she learned in the courts to power her new career. “Performance is absolutely critical,” says Keay. “No matter what you’re feeling, you just show up, you turn up, you develop that inner muscle, and you keep going. You have to respond to things quite quickly. I’m always learning, in both professions, relationships are absolutely critical.”
She also carries the same sense of duty and innate drive with her, even if the stakes are different. “I do something to the best of my ability, and I bring evidence and rigour to it,” she explains.
The one difference is that, unlike reaching a verdict in a criminal case and shutting the door, there is no downtime for founders. “It’s tough in different ways,” Keay says.
If there’s one thing she wants other female founders to know about starting their own business, it’s to avoid comparing oneself to others. “Focus on what is within your control, what you can bring under your control, and then just focus on being the best you can be,” she says.
Other bits of advice that have bolstered her through a high-powered career and into a successful, groundbreaking second act? “Have faith and trust your own instinct,” Keay says. Indeed, if she hadn't followed that ancient instinct she felt about silk's healing properties, none of this would be here today. And there's something beautiful and timeless in that.
“I think instinct, like silk, we don’t fully understand. It’s an inherent part of being a human, which is an inherent part of being an animal. I don’t think science can explain this, so I personally trust my instincts about people, decisions, processes. They may not always work out," she says with a smile, "[but] they usually do.”
Founder’s Stack
Keay is clear that she does not have sensitive skin — she has a serious skin condition. The two are not the same thing. And her experience with that skin condition has shaped much of her views on skincare. She doesn’t believe in a 20-step routine and obsessing about the ritual itself. “I want to know that I’m doing the absolute best for my skin and then getting on and enjoying the rest of my day," she says.
So, what does Keay believe in? Science-backed ingredients that work quickly, don’t have any downtime, and help maintain a healthy skin barrier. “The way a product feels on my skin is so important,” she adds.
To that end, Keay uses THIS IS SILK's highly-awarded Silk Cream Cleanser each night. Once she’s cleansed her skin and washed off her SPF, it marks “the end of my public life and the beginning of my private life,” she says. “It smells gorgeous, and it feels good.”
Next up is the Power Up Silk Peptide Concentrate and then the Rich Silk Cream. “I’ve been using our moisturiser for years, even though it’s only launched, because it’s had so many iterations,” she says. “It is a cream that looks and feels very different, and that’s quite rare to achieve.” (We can attest that the moisturiser and cleanser look, smell, and feel absolutely luxurious. It has quickly become our editor's morning and nighttime favourite.)
In the mornings, she skips the cleanse and goes straight to the Power Up, which literally “powers up” your other skincare, followed by the Rich Silk Cream, and Silk Face Oil, which she massages in. Right now, Keay is also trialling a silk and copper peptide serum (“The firming is insane, you feel it the next morning!”) and loves using the LaRoche Posay SPF for daily sun protection. She keeps things simple, and reaps the benefits — for skin, body, and mind.
This article is for informational purposes only, even if and regardless of whether it features the advice of physicians and medical practitioners. This article is not, nor is it intended to be, a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment and should never be relied upon for specific medical advice. The views expressed in this article are the views of the expert and do not necessarily represent the views of Healf
Healf's editorial team works hard to produce science-backed, expert-vetted stories to break down trends and cut through the noise in the wellbeing ecosystem. Our team of writers and editors specialise in everything from nutrition, to exercise science, women's health, skincare, sleep, and more.
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