Aveda has been a leader in skincare, haircare, bodycare, makeup and more. Additionally, Aveda was one of the first skincare brands to create products that we’re based in natural ingredients and improved by scientific research. But which products are worth picking up? We’re looking at their entire skincare range to highlight some of the best and most effective products from the line, so you can decide which ones are right for you. So without further adieu, let’s get started!
Behind The Brand
Founded by Horst Rechelbacher, Aveda Skincare was inspired by traditional Ayurvedic Medicine. Rechelbacher sought out to use these principles to guide his range of products towards wellness and beauty from the inside out. Today, the brand still holds true to these ideals and offers an extensive collection of personal care products, with everything from haircare to body and skincare, while also continuing their commitment to personal wellness and the environment.
Aveda
More and more, we’re seeing skincare brands that aim to ‘do no harm’, and cultivate results using gentle, consistent application of product. But brands like Aveda have been using this approach in skincare for decades, well before it was a trend. Like their Ayurvedic roots, the Aveda Skincare ranges use traditional roots, herbs and botanical extracts to deliver consistent results. Because of this, you won’t see some of the big buzz words and active ingredients that promise overnight results. Instead, the focus is hydration, nourishment and consistent care, and their bestselling products reflect that approach.
At the moment, their top three best sellers include the Botanical Kinetics Hydrating Lotion, the Botanical Kinetics Purifying Gel Cleanser and the Tulasara Wedding Masque Overnight Treatment. Each of these product do something different, but can actually be used in conjunction as well to amplify the results of each product. Starting off with the Purifying Gel Cleanser, this is a gentle gel cleanser that thoroughly cleanses and removes impurities without stripping. All too often, people gravitate towards harsh and abrasive cleansers when they’re dealing with troubled skin, which often does more harm than good. Using a lightly detoxifying, gentle gel instead allows your skin ample time to recover and recuperate, while still effectively cleansing the skin of dirt and debri.
From this same range, the Botanical Kinetics Hydrating Lotion was designed to serve as a light layer of moisture that nourishes the skin without clogging the pores. This product can also be used multiple ways depending on your skin type or season. For example, if you typically have oily skin and find that typically moisturizers are just too heavy in the summer, this product could serve as an excellent lightweight moisturizer. On the other hand if you have extra dry skin that becomes tight and uncomfortable during the drier winter months, you can use the Aveda Hydrating Lotion as a precursor to your moisturizer, creating layers of nourishing moisture.
While both of these two products can be used as part of your everyday skincare routine, Aveda also has a range of treatment products including some unique masks. Their Tulasara Wedding Masque Overnight is an overnight mask that aims to give you that wedding day glow. It contains ingredients including turmeric to brighten the skin and plant biotechnology to help with skin regeneration.
Formula Focus
Aveda skincare as a whole has been committed using naturally occurring ingredients in their products since the brand first began, and that committed in evident in their formulations today. For example, many of the skincare products across Aveda’s collections include Aveda’s own ‘pure-fume’. Artificial fragrance can be a huge problem for some, especially those with sensitive skin, as it’s almost impossible to know exactly what’s in this blend. But the ‘pure-fume’ formula within Aveda’s products is readily available on the brand’s website for customers to read over and learn more about before purchasing anything. The ‘pure-fume’ consists of organic grapefruit, geranium, mandarin and a few other flower and plant essences, and are free from artificial or synthetic fragrances.
Looking at some of the formulations with more detail, the Botanical Kinetics range is an excellent example of how Aveda formulates their products. Starting off with the Purifying Gel Cleanser, this product starts off with a base of water, sodium methyl cocoyl taurate, which is a much gentler surfactant, glycerin, babassuamidopropyl betaine, another foaming agent, sodium chloride and caffeine. Most of these ingredients are fairly common in skincare, and the brand has been careful to avoid more harmful and harsh surfactants like sodium lauryl sulfate. The only thing to keep in mind with this formulation though is that foaming as a whole can be irritating to the skin if you are prone to dryness and dehydration.
Some of the key ingredients in this formula include caffeine, sunflower seed oil, and vitamin E, but as a whole, this is more of a basic cleanser, which can be preferable for some. Since the ingredients list is relatively short and there aren’t many additional ingredients, there is less chance for a contact allergy to develop.
Moving on to their second bestseller from the Botanical Kinetics range, the Hydrating Lotion is an excellent multi-tasking product to ward off against dehydration. It contains olive and jojoba oils to nourish the skin as well as humectants like aloe leaf, glycerin and hyaluronic acid. Again the formula behind this product is relatively simple, making it a great option for those with sensitive or reactive skin. The base of this product contains water, glycerin, C14-12 alcohols caprylic triglycerides and isopropyl palmitate. Unfortunately, alcohol is relatively high on the ingredients list, which may cause problems for those with especially dry skin. Additionally, alcohol doesn’t offer much in the way of skin care benefits, so it’s widely considered to be more of a filler ingredient as well as a slight penetration enhancer.
Looking at the rest of the formula though, there are a number of beneficial botanical extracts that have been added to give this product more beneficial to the skin. The Hydrating Lotion contains caffeine, oat kernel extract, algae extract, chlorella vulgaris extract and panthenol. These ingredients can act as skin plumping agents, as well as skin soothers.
