Naturopathica caught my eye in the last year or so with their Instagram ads and I’ve been following them quietly ever since! Something about their clean, holistic approach to formulating their products really appealed to me –especially when I discovered they had manuka honey-based products which I believe are so good for the skin.
About Naturopathica
If you aren’t familiar with Naturopathica, they are a skincare brand that focuses on herbalism, naturopathic medicine, and holistic wellness. The founder, Barbara Close believed that there is a connection of inner wellness to outer beauty and she’s not wrong. Think about people who deal with psoriasis? The skin issues that arise with that come from an overly active immune system that creates inflammation in the skin.
Barbara believes in the healing powers of nature and formulated her products to protect and heal the skin using clean, sustainable, and effective ingredients to keep our skin (and bodies) in harmony.
Ingredients
Naturopathica is vegan and avoids the use of animal-derived ingredients, synthetic fragrances, parabens, petroleum-derived products, and silicones. They also have spa locations that are unfortunately only located in NY (bummer)!
There are several products from Naturopathica that I want to try, but I managed to narrow down my first trial with the brand to three products that I thought would be a good starting point. A cleanser, a facial mist, and a mask.
The Aloe Cleansing Gel
What appealed to me about Naturopathica Aloe Cleansing Gel was that it sounded super gentle and hydrating foaming wash. Aloe is one of those ingredients my skin really benefits from. It’s hydrating and soothing all in one. The cleansing gel is actually reminiscent of pure aloe gel in my eyes, probably because it’s made with over 50% aloe vera! There is a coconut oil-based surfactant to help emulsify oils on the skin and has a delicate scent of lavender to calm the senses as you wash the day way.
I tend to use a cleansing balm on days I wear makeup (why is tightlining so hard to remove?), but have followed with this aloe-packed gel and feel my skin clean and fresh after using. I like that it actually foams because a lot of “natural” skincare cleansers I’ve tried don’t. The foaming helps get those leftover traces of makeup or sunscreen to break down leaving clean skin behind. You also don’t need a whole lot to get it to work, so I can treasure this cleanser for longer! If you prefer a gentle non-foaming cleanser then their Chamomile Cleansing Milk may be a good choice for you.
The Oat and Calendula Soothing Jelly Mist
I see it recommended time and time again that you should leave your face damp after cleansing to properly absorb other products — and I try! But honestly, it’s a lot easier for me to just dry my face off FIRST, and then use a facial mist like Naturopathica’s Oat and Calendula Soothing Jelly Mist. I hate my face and arms dripping all over my counter, it’s a weird pet peeve of mine to feel that water go everywhere so dry, then mist! The Oat and Calendula mist has no detectible scent to me and has a fairly fine mister that feels good on the skin.
I discovered that this mist contains probiotics that can help reinforce the skin barrier, and balance pH levels. I didn’t know this when ordering but makes it that much better in my book. What I did know was that oat extract is included to help the skin lock in moisture while Calendula offers its soothing abilities. It also contains one of my favorite skincare ingredients — hyaluronic acid to further help the skin grab onto moisture and hold it tight. I do love how this mist feels, and hope I don’t use it up too quickly. I like spraying all over my face and chest and the bottle is smaller so we will see.
The Manuka Honey Hydrating Gel mask
I’ll more than likely try one of their facial moisturizers in the next couple of months, but I’ll have to ask the brand for a recommendation since they have several different types. In the meantime, I will gladly take my time enjoying their Manuka Honey Hydrating Gel mask. If you’ve followed my blog, you know I have a soft spot for manuka honey-based products. Truly, I believe it is one of nature’s wonders. Manuka honey has a special ability to heal the skin with its antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory abilities — more so than other versions of honey out there due to it containing higher levels of methylglyoxal (MGO). I could dive deep into manuka honey talk, but I’ve explained it on my blog before so I won’t elaborate on it much more, other than it can really make a difference for those with acne, and deeply hydrates the skin.
I wouldn’t say my skin is acneic, but I do deal with breakouts from time to time, and my skin wave3rs between normal and dry. So hydrating masks are my jam! Naturopathica’s Manuka Honey Hydrating Gel Mask smells a bit like honey, and a bit like…something else. I really have no idea! Ha! I do like to spritz my face with the mist and then slather this on thick and let it sit while I brush my teeth, put body lotion on, and do the rest of my normal evening routine. You can use it overnight, but I’d only try that if I saw I had severely dry or irritated skin.
The mask is cool and refreshing and absorbs slowly into the skin so there is still something to rinse off at the end of 15 minutes. And my skin? Feels. Like. BUTTAH. Cool, fresh, buttah. I love this mask! And I love it, even more, knowing it has prickly pear extract for its protective antioxidant abilities.
Final Thoughts
Naturopathica is on the higher end of products I use. The products are made in the USA, the packaging is quite beautiful and all done in heavy glass as far as I can tell, and made with carefully selected ingredients for effective, natural skincare. That doesn’t come cheap. I don’t want to say it’s expensive, but it can e an investment when each product in its larger size is $35 and up. That said, I don’t care, and will be getting more when I can. I know the Manuka mask is going to go quick and I really want to get my hands on some of their other products.
If you’re interested in trying Naturopathica, I have partnered with Skinstore to provide you guys with a 25% discount that can be used almost store-wide. (select brands are not covered — but MOST are!). Just be sure to use code; CLAUDIA25 when shopping! And then tell me what you guys bought because I want to hear about it!
Have you heard of Naturopathica before? I’d love to hear what you think of this brand!
