Beauty & skincare companies have been marketing to women for decades, but the use of beauty & skincare products dates as far back as ancient Egypt all the way through the Middle Ages & now to the present day. I think we can all agree that women have gone through some extremely dangerous practices in order to achieve the beauty “standard” of the time: from lead & arsenic laced-powders to deadly nightshade eyedrops & mercury concoctions to rid yourself of blemishes, beauty has been harsh. Even now, in the 21st century, there are still harmful products in cosmetics & skincare that most people who use them don’t even know about. Not only do harmful chemicals still exist in products that we use daily, but with the abundance of beauty & skincare companies we have to choose from, it is hard to differentiate which ones produce quality merchandise & which ones are deceiving consumers by continuing to use dangerous substances in their products.
About a year ago (exactly 1 year after I started my sustainable living/low waste journey), I began to seriously investigate not only sustainable beauty products but also clean beauty products. I researched a few companies & tried some products from companies such as ILIA Beauty & Zao Organic Cosmetics, and to be honest, I very satisfied with these products overall. I was impressed that the products functioned amazingly while still being safe & gentle on my skin.
But recently, I was lucky enough to be contacted by Luna Roots Botanicals – a small, local business based out of Putney, Vermont where all-natural, organic skincare & beauty products are crafted with fresh, locally harvested ingredients. I was elated when Brooke contacted me because just like the name Luna Roots infers, I was going back to MY own roots & back to the very reason why I started this blog in the first place – a journey through navigating a magical approach to sustainable living & clean products.
THE BEAUTY OF SELF-CARE
When I think of self-care, words like bubble baths, face masks, hair & nail treatments, & exfoliating peels come to mind, and for many others, I think the same can be said. I believe there is a reason why these types of activities, which aim to enhance our outward appearance, also nourish us on the inside as well. For me, there is nothing better than coming home after a long day at work & grabbing a good book, a glass of red wine, a scented candle, & some bath salts/bath bombs & running a toasty bubble bath. Combine that with a calming face mask, an exfoliating peel, & a nourishing serum, and I am feeling refreshing & ready for a good night’s sleep. I think that treating our body & skin with nourishing ingredients helps us feel not only cared for but also refreshed.
MAGICAL PLANT POTIONS: A QUEST IN RITUAL BEAUTY
Luna Roots Botanicals has made it their mission statement to craft plant potions steeped in magic as a form of creative expression. And to show how deeply they value the power contained within plants, they to pay homage to their magical qualities by crafting nourishing potions, cosmetics, & skin/body care with the hopes that those who use them will do so with deliberate intention as an act of love & a desire to communicate with your body.
Luna Roots is driven to craft these products sustainably & in small batches with homegrown/local, organic, & ethically wild-harvested ingredients to ensure their quality & freshness. And through these creative plant potions, the ambition is after using them you will feel like a goddess both inside & out.
I was sent some incredible products to try & photograph. As soon as I tried them, I instantly fell in love & when brainstorming how to showcase their amazing autumnal collection, a story of a witch who lived deep in the forest & harnessed her magic from the power of an ancient gnarled tree to craft potions, tonics, & tinctures from plants, bark, mushrooms, & berries scattered about the forest floor, came to life.
THE PRODUCTS I RECEIVED
Chasing Fireflies Transformative Glow Herbal Oil Serum
Fairytale Face Food Mask with Wild Mushroom & Pumpkin Enzyme
Ghost Serpent Exfoliating Night Elixir with Reishi, Ghost Pipe, & Willow
Secret Garden Clarifying Toning Potion
Labyrinth Earthen Body Oil with Balsam Fir & Oakmoss
Wild Unveil Makeup Melting Balm
Shrouded in Flowers Translucent Finishing Powder
Earthen Veil Adaptogen Skin Tint
Color Magic Pigmented Lip, Cheek, & Eye Tint
Forest Path Invocation Beeswax Scented Candle (scented with Evergreen, Wild Mushroom, + Warm Spice)
Ingredients: Raspberry Seed Oil, Jojoba Oil, Goji Berry Oil, Rosehip Seed Oil, Apricot Oil, Milk Thistle Seed Oil, Meadowfoam Seed Oil, Black Currant Seed Oil, Sea Buckthorn Fruit Oil, Whole Plant Oil Infusion of Cottonwood Buds + Calendula + Chamomile, Frankincense Resin, Reishi Mushrooms, Shisandra Berry Fruit Extract, Elderberry Extract, Vitamin E
How to Use: Put 3-4 drops in your palm & rub your hands together. Lightly pat the serum onto your face until it’s fully absorbed
Why It’s Amazing: It is incredibly moisturizing & gives you a radiant glow while not feeling greasy or heavy. And as an added bonus, it smells like a meadow full of wildflowers after a fresh summer rain
Ingredients: Maple Sap Extract, Medicinal Shitaki Mushroom Extract, Reishi, Chaga, Turkey Tail & Maitake (localy sourced + wildly cultivated), Xylitol Extract, Raw Pumpkin Extract, Burdock Root Extract, Organic Oat Extract, Marshmallow Root Extract
How to Use: Mix 1/8 to ¼ tsp with warm water (just enough to moisten the powder extract). You can also add in any skin soothing ingredients such as yogurt, coconut milk, or even a few drops of facial oil serum. Apply mixture to the face & leave on for 15-20 min. Rinse face with warm water & follow up with your normal skincare routine
Why It’s Amazing: It’s suitable for ALL skin types, especially sensitive, reactive, and/or dry skin types. A little goes a long way so it will last you for quite some time. And when you mix it with water it smells faintly like pumpkin pie!
Ingredients: Reishi Mushroom Hydrosol, Lactic Acid, Willow Bark Extract, Vegetable Glycerin, Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Birch Derived Xylitol, Quaking Aspen Bark Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Xanthan Gum, Lecithin, Sclerotium Gum, Pullalan, Sodium Benzoate, Gluconolactone, Sodium Phytate, Potassium Sorbate, Ghost Pipe Essence
How to Use: Use once weekly as a night treatment. Massage 3-4 drops onto freshly cleansed and toned skin. Allow to dry completely & then seal it all in with a half pump of Herbal Oil Serum.
Why It’s Amazing: You only need to use it once per week & a little goes a long way! It’s not harsh on your skin like a traditional physical scrub, but it does offer exfoliating properties in the form of healthy acids (such as hyaluronic & lactic acid) which penetrate deep into your pores to clear congestion, improve your skin’s natural moisture, & stimulates collagen for a more firm, even-toned, & radiant complexion
Ingredients: Artisan co-distillation of fresh Yarrow flowering tops, Black Currant Fruit, Wild Lettuce Leaf, Black Berry Leaf, Clary Sage Hydrosol, Willow Bark Extract, Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
How to Use: Lightly spritz the toning potion onto freshly cleansed skin & let it dry completely. Then I like to spritz a generous amount on a reusable cotton pad and dab your skin lightly. Then press 2-3 drops of herbal oil serum into your skin to seal in the hydration
Why It’s Amazing: My skin is very oily but I also have a lot of sensitivity & redness, so this helps calm any inflammation, balances oil production, & reduces the appearance of large pores to tone & firm my skin
Ingredients: Fresh Balsam Fir infused Jojoba Oil, Camellia Oil, Sunflower Oil, Artisan Distilled Balsam Fir Essential Oil, Blend of Vanilla Co2, Vetiver, and Oakmoss essential oils, Vitamin E
How to Use: Use the dropper to generously drop oil onto arms & legs, then massage the oil into the skin. For a spa-like ritual, immerse the bottle containing the oil in warm water & then apply to skin for a warmed oil massage
Why It’s Amazing: This oil is so moisturizing & leaves my skin feeling so soft! It also smells as if you stepped into the maze of snow-covered pine forests in Narnia. It’s the perfect pick-me-up for dry winter skin & a perfect scent for the season
Ingredients: Cold-pressed + Organic Pumpkin Seed, Macadamia Nut & Milk Thistle Seed, Jojoba Oil infused with Chamomile Flowers, Reishi Mushrooms, & Shilajit Resin Extract, Murumuru Butter, Shea Butter, Kokum Butter, Cetearyl Olivate, Sorbitan Olivate, Castor Seed Oil, Sunflower Lecithin, Non-GMO Vitamin E oil, Copaiba Essential Oil, Extracts of Linden, Vanilla Bean, & Coconut
How to Use: Take a dime-size amount of balm & melt between your fingers. Once melted, massage the balm into your skin working in a circular, outwards motion to break down dirt & makeup. Use a warm, steamy cloth as a compress to lift the buildup & gently wipe it away. Then follow up with your regular skincare routine.
Why It’s Amazing: I have extremely sensitive & temperamental skin. Some cleansers leave me feeling like an oil slick & others leave me feeling as dry as a bone. But this melting balm cleanser easily lifts away my makeup while gently cleansing my skin, leaving it moisturized & hydrated without leaving it feeling heavy or greasy.
Ingredients: Sericite Mica, Carnauba Wax, L-Lysine, Silica Spheres, Silk Powder, Magnesium Stearate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Blend of White Yarrow, Rose, and Golden Rod Flower Essences
How to Use: Dust over a bare face to control oil & shine or use over makeup (skin tint, foundation, and/or concealer) to set & mattify your makeup.
Why It’s Amazing: For oily skin, it is a life-saver! It sets my skin tint & concealer to balance & mattifies my oily skin. Plus it’s blended with wildflower essence & hyaluronic acid to help your makeup last the entire day without feeling overly dry. And one of the best parts is that it is Talc free!
EARTHEN VEIL ADAPTOGEN SKIN TINT
Ingredients: Whole Plant Extracts of Holy Basil Leaf/Flower, Ashwagandha Root + Reishi Mushroom infused Jojoba Oil, Broccoli Seed Oil, Tamanu Nut Oil, Olive Oil Unsaponifiables, Jojoba Esters, Jojoba Alcohol, Olive Wax, Polyglyceryl -3 Beeswax, Hemp Flower Extract, Copaiba Oleoresin, Rosemary Antioxidant, Pigment blend that may contain Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxide, & Ultramarines
How to Use: Prepare your face by misting with the clarifying toning potion then with your fingers or a foundation brush (I use the foundation brush) blend out until you have reached the desired coverage. I allow the tint to settle for a few minutes & then set it with the finishing powder (but this is optional!)
Why It’s Amazing: I have recently swapped heavy foundation that consistently causes my skin to break out, for lighter options that are also nourishing for my skin such as skin tints serum combos (I was using the ILIA Beauty Super Serum Skin Tint with SPF 40 & that made my skin very greasy) but let me tell you, the Earthen Veil Skin Tint is THE BEST skin tint that I have ever used. It’s light, non-cakey, matches my skin shade PERFECTLY, and cancels & calms my redness while addressing any discoloration. It’s buildable coverage while still feeling weightless & moisturizing. Since my skin is oily, I like to set this with the Shrouded in Flowers Finishing Powder for a more matte finish.
The shade I use is Sycamore Lore which is for fair skin with cool to neutral undertones. But Luna Roots has a variety of shades to choose from to suit every skin tone. Below are the shades available:
Poplar Premonition – very fair ivory with neutral undertones
Sycamore Lore – fair with cool to neutral undertones
Wistful Willow – fair to light with subtle warm yellow undertones
Elm Enchantment – light to medium with cool to neutral beige undertones
Oracles of Oak – light to medium with warm yellow honey undertones
Cedar Sorceress – medium tan with warm to neutral undertones
Hemlock High Priestess – medium to deep with neutral undertones
Maple Mystic – deep with rich red undertones
Ingredients: Dragon’s Blood Resin, Bee Balm + Rose Infused Jojoba Oil, Rosehip Oil, Shea Butter, Mango Butter, Beeswax, Cera Bellina Wax, Apricot Oil, Castor Oil, Iron Oxide, Rosemary Antioxidant, Ginger Root Essential Oil, Rose Absolute
How to Use: Use your finger or a makeup brush to gently dab the pigment on your lips, cheeks, and/or eyelids & blend to disperse the color. Only a little bit is required as the color is very pigmented.
Why It’s Amazing: It is an intensely pigmented tint/paint for cheeks, lips, & eyes. A little goes a long way & because it can be used on your cheeks, lips, & eyes, it is extremely versatile & can be used to create one cohesive look.
I have it in the shade “Inner Embers” which is a brick red color. The other shades it is offered in are “Daydreaming in the Meadow” which is a dusty lilac shade & “Bare in the Moonlight” which is a soft pink color with peachy undertones.
This amazing scented candle is infused with evergreen, wild mushroom, & warm spice. I love to light it while I’m taking a bath or reading because the scent is so relaxing. It makes you feel as though it’s a rainy day & you are spending time in your little cottage in the forest made from tree branches & a moss thatched roof complete with a cozy fire in the hearth & dried herbs hanging from the rafters.
SELF-CARE WITH INTENTION
There are so many things to love about Luna Roots but I think the biggest takeaways for me are the quality & freshness of their products, but also the intention behind them. Not only do they show devotion to the quality ingredients & their sustainable packaging but their plant products & potions are infused with magic, intention, & adoration for the earth around us, while also creating a sense of consciousness around the experience of beauty as a ritual so that you always feel like your most radiant self.
Click here to browse their entire selection!
Until next time…
