If you’re into learning skincare and beauty tips on YouTube, we know you’re familiar with Liah Yoo. But if not, Liah Yoo is a beauty influencer with nearly 1.2 million subscribers on YouTube. She also has experience in the skincare industry from working at AmorePacific, Korea’s largest beauty company. Basically, Liah knows her stuff.
What are the Best Skin Care Products of 2023?
By sharing her unconventional acne-fighting tips based on her own skin care journey, she has built her credibility by helping hundreds of other women achieve clearer and healthier skin. Liah created Krave Beauty to fight the ineffective yet conventional skincare routine that has trained you to apply more than what your skin actually needs.
To keep things as simple as possible, the Krave Beauty line consists of only four products. In this review, we’ll give you all the details on these products, including the key ingredients and the research that supports (or doesn’t support) their use in skincare. Lastly, we’ll share some Krave Beauty reviews so that you can get an idea of what customers really think of these products.
What Are The Best Krave Beauty Products?
At the time of writing this review, there are a total of four products in the Krave Beauty line: a cleanser, moisturizer, exfoliant, and skin-soothing serum. Let’s take a closer look at each of these products and how they may benefit your skin.
Krave Beauty Matcha Hemp Hydrating Cleanser
Start out your routine with the Krave Beauty Matcha Hemp Hydrating Cleanser, which is formulated to lift away impurities from skin while leaving everything the skin needs: healthy pH, hydration, antioxidants, and no irritation. A whopping 40% matcha powder is the star ingredient in this cleanser. Derived from specially grown and processed green tea leaves, matcha contains catechins, a class of plant compounds in tea that act as natural antioxidants.
This cleanser also contains mild surfactants, like coco-betaine, coco-glucoside, and decyl glucoside, to remove excess oil, dirt, and impurities. Lastly, Krave Beauty Matcha Hemp Hydrating Cleanser is formulated with a mildly acidic pH of 5.0 to 6.0, which is about the same as the skin’s normal pH. What does this mean for you? Clean skin without the dryness and tightness typically caused by cleansers that don’t take pH into consideration.
Krave Beauty Oat So Simple Water Cream
Described as “a cool drink of water for thirsty skin”, this water-based facial cream is great for all skin types, especially those who aren’t into rich moisturizers. The cream is very lightweight and absorbs into the skin quickly without feeling heavy or greasy whatsoever. We love that the formula is so simple; there are less than 10 ingredients in this cream! Emollients like caprylic/capric triglyceride (derived from coconut) and squalane are blended with humectants like butylene glycol and trehalose in order to lock in moisture.
Plus, this cream includes oat extract, which helps to soothe and hydrate the skin. The skin-soothing effects are due to the presence of avenanthramides in oats. Avenanthramides are a group of active polyphenol antioxidants that provide anti-inflammatory, anti-redness, anti-itch, and antihistamine effects when applied to the skin. You’ll also find beta glucans in oat extract, which improve skin hydration and also have the ability to stimulate collagen production. This can have an anti-wrinkle effect and also help to speed wound healing.
Krave Beauty Kale-Lalu-YAHA
Skin looking a little dull? If so, adding in a product that exfoliates (aka removes dead skin cells) can help to revive dull, tired skin. Krave Beauty Kale-Lalu-YAHA is formulated to do exactly that. It’s powered by 5.25% glycolic acid, a type of alpha hydroxy acid (AHA). AHAs exfoliate the skin by enhancing the breakdown of dead skin cells, leading to smoother, more radiant skin.
And just as its name suggests, Kale-Lalu-YAHA includes a decent amount of kale extract. Kale is rich in skin-loving phytonutrients and vitamins C, E, and K. Other botanical extracts in the formula include spinach, green apple, and parsley, just to name a few. Oh and did we mention all of these ingredients are formulated into a base of super-hydrating aloe vera leaf water? What’s not to love?!
Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief
Last, but certainly not least, is Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief, which is actually the brand’s most popular product. It’s a creamy, nourishing serum that promises to calm signs of sensitivity and even out skin without the greasy after feeling. Basically, it offers irritated skin a “reset button” by using ingredients that mimic a healthy barrier to replenish what your skin lacks.
One of the key ingredients in Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief is 10% Calophyllum Inophyllum (tamanu) seed oil. Like many natural oils, tamanu oil is a good source of fatty acids, including oleic, palmitic, linoleic, linolenic, and stearic acid.
What sets tamanu oil apart from other oils is calophyllolide, a unique lipid that isn’t found in any other oil. Calophyllolide has anti-inflammatory properties to aid in calming and soothing skin conditions such as eczema, acne, and irritation. And the xanthones and coumarins found in tamanu oil are potent antioxidants that inhibit the breakdown of cell membranes from free radicals.
We also love that Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief includes a pretty high concentration of niacinamide. Niacinamide is one of our favorite skincare ingredients due to all of the benefits it provides. And research confirms this. For instance, a publication in the Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology, states that niacinamide can repair the skin barrier and improve skin moisture, as well as reduce inflammation, blotchiness, hyperpigmentation, acne, and wrinkling.
Is Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief Right For You?
Now that you know Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief is the brand’s most popular product, you may be ready to try this skin-soothing out for yourself. But before hitting “Add to Cart”, take a second to review the most important factors to consider:
- Key ingredients? Tamanu oil and niacinamide
- Skin type? Ideal for sensitive and irritated skin
- Texture? Creamy serum
- Fragrance? No
- Cruelty free? Yes
- Cost? $28
What Are The Key Ingredients in Krave Beauty Products?
All Krave Beauty products are formulated without fragrance, essential oil, colorant, and potential allergic sensitizers. All products are based on non-irritating, non-sensitizing, and fragrance-free formulas blended with “skin Krave-able” antioxidants and nutrients. We like that the brand combines natural ingredients (like kale, spinach, oat, tamanu oil, etc.) with safe synthetics (like niacinamide and glycolic acid).
Where to Buy Krave Beauty Products?
Krave Beauty Products are sold on the brand’s website, as well as a few third party online retailers, such as Amazon and Soko Glam.
How Much Do Krave Beauty Products Cost?
Krave Beauty products are very affordable. The Krave Beauty Matcha Hemp Hydrating Cleanser is $16, the Oat So Simple Water Cream is $28, Kale-Lalu-YAHA is $25, and Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief is $28.
What is The Krave Beauty Return Policy?
The Krave Beauty return policy states, “We will accept returns on unused and unopened products within 7 business days from their delivery date.”
Is Krave Beauty Cruelty Free?
Yes, Krave Beauty is cruelty free.
Krave Beauty Reviews
Krave Beauty reviews on the brand’s website are overall very positive. The product with the most reviews is the Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief.
The positive reviews for Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief mention how well it works to calm and soothe even the most sensitive skin.
For example, one review says, “I have sensitive skin and had a horrible reaction that left my face splotchy red and painful for weeks. Within a week of using Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief my face was clear and smooth again! On my third bottle, use it night and day now!”
And another very positive review for Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief says, “I’ve never found a product that has made my skin so glowing, alive, and un-inflamed.”
However, there are a handful of negative reviews for Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief from customers who experienced reactions like redness, itchiness, and breakouts. The opposite of what this product is intended to do!
For example, one review says, “I love Krave’s cleanser, but my skin hates something in the Great Barrier Relief. It takes forever to absorb. It stays sticky and tacky on my skin for at least two to three hours and broke me out last week. Also, I discovered today it makes my skin itch. I immediately washed it off. My face felt fine when I didn’t use this product yesterday. My skin just does not like this product and now I have a nearly full bottle that is never going to be touched again. Disappointing.”
And a similar review for Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief says, “I wanted to like this product so badly, on paper it seems perfect! However the first time I used it my face became red, irritated and hot and it never dried down, just stayed sticky. I’m surprised because I have pretty dry skin and it usually loves oils, maybe there’s something in here I’m allergic to.”
Our Verdict
Overall, we think that Krave Beauty products are formulated well, with formulas that include evidenced-based ingredients and leave out potentially harmful ingredients (fragrance, parabens, etc.)
Pros
- Affordable
- Krave Beauty products are formulated with evidence-based ingredients (niacinamide, squalane, oat extract, glycolic acid, etc)
- Many positive Krave Beauty reviews
- Krave Beauty is cruelty free
Cons
- Several reviews mention allergic reactions to Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief
What Are Some Alternatives to Krave Beauty Products?
If you’re looking for skincare products to address the signs of aging, one brand we recommend is Formulyst. Formulyst maximizes the use of powerful ingredients and minimizes the use of superficial ones, resulting in clinically advanced skin care solutions that help promote healthy, more youthful-looking skin.
For example, Formulyst’s Anti-Aging Concentrate includes natural ingredients like squalane, green tea, vitamin C, and vitamin E. All of these ingredients provide powerful antioxidant activity, protecting the skin against environmental free radicals. In addition, this serum contains Matrixyl 3000, a peptide complex that helps to restore and maintain the skin’s youthful appearance by signaling to cells to produce more collagen.
Another brand that balances the power of plants with cutting edge science is Carrot & Stick. Not only is Carrot & Stick good for your skin, it is also good for the environment as the formulas skip harmful chemicals commonly found in skin care products.
Angela Original review: Aug 11, 2021.
How much good is an antioxidant going to do in the 30 seconds a cleanser is on your face? And if the vitamins in kale, etc are good for the skin, why not include those vitamins instead? This seems like gimmicky greenwahing; the same kind of misleading marketing tactics the brand claims to be against. I’m glad they don’t have essential oils, but they’re still perpetuating the naturalistic fallacy, likely at the cost of more affordable products that are accessible to more people.