From NYC-based Soft Services (founded by Annie Kreighbaum and Rebecca Zhou), Comfort Cleanse is a super-light water gel that’s ideal for sensitive or dry skin, and is even gentle enough for babies. The smooth, unscented formula creates a light lather. It’s housed in a subtle green-hued aluminum bottle that can be recycled.
Created by multidisciplinary design brand FRAMA in collaboration with South Korean creative studio Be My Guest, the Herbarium Body Lotion is a fast-absorbing and long-lasting moisturizer that promotes cell renewal. Its bevy of natural ingredients (including shea butter, vitamin E and rapeseed oil) protects the skin, leaving behind a soothing feeling with a sophisticated citrusy and woodsy aroma. It comes in a 90ml travel size or as 375ml.
There are plenty of tinted SPF moisturizers on the market, but this one from True Botanicals comes in 24 hues. Formulated to leave the skin feeling nourished and looking smooth, it provides light coverage to help even skin tone, but won’t clog pores. While the non-nano zinc oxide protects against harmful rays, the natural-biocompatible milk thistle and squalene create a silky, dewy finish.
This battery-powered rose quartz wand from Solvasa combines the benefits of vibrational massage and gua sha to de-puff and de-stress facial muscles and skin. The wand comes with a lightly scented serum to help the quartz glide smoothly across the face, and a three-minute massage helps to flush out toxins, decrease tension (especially for those who have TMJ) and wrinkles and improve micro-circulation.
Packed with micro-crystals (evenly ground magnesium oxide particles), Soft Services’ bright blue Buffing Bar exfoliates the body and provides immediate results. This utilitarian creation (which comes in simple recycled packaging) feels like a hybrid of the humble bar of soap and pumice stone. The tiny crystals are ideal for keratosis pilaris, rough and dry skin, as well as areas that are prone to ingrown hairs. Use once a week for soft, smooth and fresh-feeling skin. Price is for a set of two.
Epara (which means “to cocoon oneself” in the Nigerian dialect Ebira) crafts high-quality skincare products using natural ingredients ethically sourced from co-ops and small farms in Africa. Their Balancing Face Oil combines moringa, marula and ylang ylang III oils. Gentle yet potent, this formula helps to brighten and soften skin, while also reducing hyperpigmentation. Price is in Pounds.
The Spirulina Botanical Bar is a thoughtfully fragrant and nourishing product from scent and skincare line Redoux NYC. Weaving lavender, ylang ylang, palmarosa and eucalyptus essential oils, the aroma evokes bathhouses and their cleansing properties. Meanwhile, spirulina helps diminish acne and support collagen production, and rice milk, a centuries-old Chinese and Korean ingredient for skincare, fights inflammation.
These pleasing pink cones from Canna Style make lighting up a joint easy as well as stylish. Available in a pack of eight, they can be filled with herbs and then simply twisted off at the end. With a hot-pink metallic tip and slow-burning paper, they make for a smooth, laidback session.
Cumberland, Maine-based homewares brand Wary Meyers’ collection of limited edition art soaps includes this cheerful ’70s Bedspread Apple iteration—a 100% vegetable-based soap in a retro color scheme. Scented with a tinge of apple, the small-batch soap pays homage to the myriad designs these hues have been incorporated into over time.
From recently launched Ourself—a skincare brand underpinned by a patent-pending delivery system of effective ingredients—this mineral sunscreen provides broad spectrum, reef-friendly protection from UVA and UVB rays. The formula also incorporates Firming Intides™ (peptides that smooth the skin), as well as vitamin E, sunflower extract and bisabolol (antioxidants that nourish and soothe) and rice bran extract and jojoba esters, which increase the skin’s suppleness. This formula is ideal for warmer months, replacing the thick, heavy texture of many sunscreens with a super-light feel and finish.
This rich potion from STEVIE has been formulated with 500mg of highly refined CBD distillate—the purest form of cannabidiol. The brand (named after Stevie Nicks) was founded by LA-based Courtney Trop, and this balm—like their other products—aims to alleviate stress and pain. Along with CBD, it’s made from beeswax, shea butter, squalene oil, evening primrose oil, rosehip oil and camphor. The CBD and camphor offer a warming feeling on the skin, while the other ingredients nourish. It’s perfect for relieving aching muscles, menstruation cramps and more.
Developed by the acclaimed NYC-based stylist Takamichi Saeki, founder of the Lower East Side salon Takamichi Hair, this “ultimate hair kit” includes a luscious, nourishing shampoo and a strengthening conditioner (both in large 12 fl oz bottles). Saeki spent four years perfecting his Takamichi product line of everyday essentials—invoking his more than 20 years of hands-on experience with clients. Each is produced in Italy from potent components born of a unique ultrasound extraction. From camellia seed oil to sage, these well-crafted haircare solutions provide luster and accommodate sensitive scalps.
Made with tinctures of mugwort, Pacific dogwood, peppermint, holy basil and California poppy, Dream Spray promotes sleep, relaxation and (as its name implies) dreams. Each ingredient comes from ethically gathered and organically cultivated plants, and the formula also includes essential oils, grain alcohol and water. Simply spritz onto pillows before bed to encourage restful slumber or even on clothing to support meditation and creativity.
Made in the US and 100% vegan, this highlighter enhances complexion, making skin look dewy and luminous. It doesn’t just operate at the surface-level, however, it also supports healthy skin to ensure nourishment long after application. Chamomile, green tea extract, jojoba esters and more deliver calming benefits that make SuperDew applicable for all skin types, including flaky, sensitive or eczema-prone skin.
Founded by mother and daughter duo, Sade Baron and Rachel Lambo, skincare brand Sade Baron relies on 100% natural ingredients to encourage the skin to heal and correct itself. Their Tai Body Oil—powered by cold-pressed prickly pear oil, broccoli seed oil, olive squalane, calendula oil and sea buckthorn oil—does so by forming an occlusive film that covers the epidermis, preventing water loss, dehydration and skin flakiness, sun damage and more. Suitable for all skin types and all ages, this oil provides vitamin-rich treatment to the face, body and hair.
Between chronic asthma, a car accident that fractured her back and neck and sexual trauma, Vanessa Chakour has endured a lot, and tenaciously pursued several paths to recovery. In her book Awakening Artemis, Chakour shares the way plants helped her heal, deepened her understanding of self, connected her to the natural world and elevated her confidence and relationships. Interspersed with experiences from the author, each chapter focuses on a single plant and how its characteristics connect to specific issues related to healing—like neural pathways in the brain, feelings of alienation due to racism and much more. Both a moving tale of Chakour’s journey and a useful resource on plants and nature, this book inspires self-growth in multiple ways.
