InstaNatural: Product Review

Brand background

InstaNatural is a personal care brand with a simple mission to create natural and effective skin care products. They’ve created a line of clean beauty products specifically for the modern consumer who is equipped with the knowledge and resources to make better choices in their everyday life. InstaNatural believes that everyone deserves access to natural and safe personal care.

What are the Best Skin Care Products of 2021?

Key products

InstaNatural offers a variety of personal care products, including skin, hair, and body care products. InstaNatural skin care products include cleansers, toners, serums, moisturizers, eye care, exfoliants, and masks. Below we’ll discuss three of the most popular InstaNatural skin care products: Rose Cleansing Balm, Niacinamide Serum, and Eye Serum. 

InstaNatural Rose Cleansing Balm is a gentle balm designed to be used as the first step of your cleansing routine. It is formulated to quickly dissolve makeup (including waterproof mascara), hydrate and replenish dry skin, soothe the appearance of irritation and redness, and deeply moisturize to improve radiance, tone, and texture. 

InstaNatural Niacinamide Serum is formulated for those with dry skin, dehydrated skin, sensitive skin, discoloration, acne, and acne scars. This serum is said to reduce sensitivity and redness caused by breakouts, reduce hyperpigmentation by brightening discoloration over time, diminish post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation left behind by acne, minimize the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines, and strengthen the skin’s natural barrier for healthy, defended skin. 

InstaNatural Eye Serum is a highly concentrated blend of vitamins and other ingredients designed to brighten and refine the eye area. It is also said to enhance an even tone and decrease under eye bags, sagging skin, puffiness, and more.

Key formulation

Every InstaNatural product is free from parabens, sls/sles, mineral oil, formaldehyde releasers, synthetic dyes, petroleum, polyethylene glycol (PEGs), DEA/MEA/TEA, and unsafe preservatives. They formulate their products to contain as many natural, organic and naturally-derived ingredients as possible. InstaNatural includes a proprietary blend of rosemary, centella, hibiscus, hesperidin and meadowfoam seed oil in all of their skin care products, which they call C Botanical Blend. Next we’ll discuss the formulation details behind each of the key InstaNatural products mentioned above. 

InstaNatural Rose Cleansing Balm includes key ingredients such as coconut oil, hydrogenated castor oil, and honey. Both coconut oil and hydrogenated castor oil help to dissolve makeup, dirt, excess oil, and other impurities on the skin’s surface, while also helping the skin to feel soft and smooth. The formula contains a special type of honey called manuka honey. Manuka honey is produced by bees that feed on the manuka shrub of New Zealand’s remote North Island. It is raw honey that has not been processed, which means it is full of live enzymes and vitamins. Manuka honey provides anti-inflammatory effects and helps to reduce redness. It also promotes skin regeneration, repairs cellular damage, and inhibits MMP (a group of enzymes that destroy collagen).

As the name implies, one of the key ingredients in the InstaNatural Niacinamide Serum is niacinamide. Niacinamide is a form of vitamin B3 that provides numerous benefits to the skin. For instance, it is well-known as a potent antioxidant. According to the Journal of Clinical Aesthetic Dermatology, it “increases the antioxidant capacity of skin after topical application by increasing the reduced forms (NADPH), which have potent antioxidant properties.” In addition, studies have shown that niacinamide can repair the skin barrier and improve skin moisture, as well as reduce inflammation, blotchiness, hyperpigmentation, acne, and wrinkling. Other beneficial ingredients in the InstaNatural Niacinamide Serum include Aloe vera leaf juice, olive oil, avocado oil, hesperidin, and sodium hyaluronate. 

InstaNatural Eye Serum contains many ingredients that can help improve the appearance of the eye area, including sodium ascorbyl phosphate, caffeine, and ubiquinone. Sodium ascorbyl phosphate is a stable derivative of vitamin C, a potent antioxidant that provides the skin with protection against free radicals, the unstable molecules that contribute to the formation of premature wrinkles and fine lines on the skin. Vitamin C also has the ability to brighten skin tone and reduce the appearance of dark spots. Caffeine is a natural stimulant that can cause vasoconstriction (constriction of the blood vessels) when applied to the skin. This function aids in reducing the amount of blood that accumulates under the eyes (a major factor that contributes to dark circles). Additionally, vasoconstriction can firm the skin and reduce puffiness due to the removal of excess fluids and possible stimulation of the lymphatic drainage system.Ubiquinone, also known as coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), is naturally found within the mitochondria of cells and is essential for cellular energy production. When applied to the skin, CoQ10 functions as an antioxidant that can counteract both short‐term environmental oxidative stress as well as age‐related CoQ10 deficits. 

Reviews

InstaNatural reviews on the brand’s website are overall positive, with all three of the key products that we discussed above receiving mostly 4 and 5 star reviews.

Reviews for InstaNatural Rose Cleansing Balm confirm that this product effectively removes makeup and leaves the skin feeling soft but not greasy. One review says, “LOVE it! Takes off eyeliner and mascara. Before I used wipes that left my eye area dry and I didn’t like all the tugging on my skin either. This balm leaves my eye area super soft and moisturized without a trace of makeup. Highly recommend!” One negative review for InstaNatural Rose Cleansing Balm says that this balm can leave the skin feeling oily and not clean. 

Reviews for InstaNatural Niacinamide Serum state that this serum helps with hyperpigmentation, skin texture, and crepey skin. Another review shares these positive results, “Great for rosacea prone and sensitive skin. I swear my redness has diminished significantly after using this for a week and the overall texture and health has improved so much!” Negative reviews for InstaNatural Niacinamide Serum simply say that the product hasn’t provided them with a noticeable difference. 

Reviews for InstaNatural Eye Serum are a mix of positive and negative. It seems as though many customers do not like that this eye serum has an orange color, and one review even mentioned that the serum stains things orange. But there are many positive reviews for the InstaNatural Eye Serum that confirm this product works well. For example, one review says, “I’ve always had dark under eye circles, but within a few weeks of using this serum, my eyes have brightened up. It’s incredible and at such a great price!”

What are some alternatives to InstaNatural?

It’s clear that InstaNatural formulates their skin care products to contain mostly naturally-derived ingredients to treat a variety of skin concerns. While there is a growing consumer demand for natural products, it’s important to keep in mind that there are numerous synthetic skin care ingredients that are not only safe to use but also provide many benefits to the skin. That’s why we recommend Formulyst products. Formulyst believes in long-term skin care treatments rather than short-term cover-ups. That’s why they use ground-breaking research and cutting-edge technology to formulate advanced skin care treatments that combine both natural and synthetic ingredients that are proven to be safe and effective. 

An excellent example of a product that combines powerful natural ingredients with safe synthetic ingredients is Formulyst’s Age Defying Daily Moisturizer. This anti-aging formula contains humectants like glycerin, gluconolactone, sodium lactate, and Aloe vera leaf juice to draw moisture into the skin. It also contains several emollients, like squalane and caprylic/capric triglyceride from coconut, as well as a couple occlusives like dimethicone to lock in moisture. In addition to these moisturizing ingredients, this formula is rich in antioxidants and a blend of natural complexes – including rosemary extract, sunflower extract,and nourishing watermelon rind. Formulyst Age Defying Daily Moisturizer also contains peptides to help stimulate collagen production for firmer, more youthful skin. 

Another Formulyst product you may want to consider is the Anti-Aging Eye Cream, which is specifically developed to target the delicate skin around your eyes. It helps to blur away dark circles, puffiness, and even stubborn crow’s feet; imperfections that are all caused by sun, stress, and environmental pollutants. Some of the key ingredients in the Anti-Aging Eye Cream include hyaluronic acid, squalane, shea butter, and snow mushroom extract. Hyaluronic acid improves skin hydration while also providing a temporary plumping effect to fill in lines and wrinkles. Squalane and shea butter are both emollients that lock in moisture and help the delicate skin around the eyes to feel soft. Formulyst Anti-Aging Eye Cream also features a unique ingredient known as Tremella Fuciformis Sporocarp (snow mushroom) extract. Due to its gelatinous structure and rich composition of polysaccharides, snow mushroom extract has excellent water-binding properties and provides hydration to the skin. It acts similarly to hyaluronic acid by drawing moisture into the skin. Research has also demonstrated Tremella fuciformis sporocarp extract to have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

There’s no need to compromise when it comes to finding skincare that is effective and safe. Carrot & Stick takes a tough love approach to skincare, perfectly balancing the power of plants with cutting edge science. Not only is Carrot & Stick good for your skin, it is also good for the environment as the formulas skip harmful chemicals as well as the preservatives, emulsifiers and thickeners commonly found in skincare products.