We have all been bombarded with the "natural" products craze the last five years and it shows no signs of slowing down. Honestly, I love the beauty of plant-based products interwoven with synthetic ingredients so I will always be a fan of combining the two, but I have grown wary of jumping on board too quickly when a new "organic" or plant-centric brand emerges let alone one created by a celebrity or influencer. I've just become a bit jaded with all of these fast-growing Instagram brands with people blindly buying into the "natural" marketing jargon. Initially, this is how I felt about KORA Organics.
Founded by Australian model Miranda Kerr, this eco-certified, COSMOS certified skincare line grabbed my attention only recently after watching a YouTube video of Miranda's Kerr's skincare routine. Maybe I had been in lockdown for too long, but I found her whole routine so relaxing, chill and satisfying to watch. She seemed to really be enjoying each and every product and even included a gua sha massage with her Noni Face Oil. Granted, I would HOPE she would enjoy her own products, but it made me investigate. There are two interesting ingredients which all KORA products contain: Noni fruit (Morinda citrifolia) and rose quartz powder.
While the Noni fruit has a reputation for being one of the most pungent fruits in the world, it is a nice one for the skin as it is a rich source of antioxidants and vitamins C and A as well as having anti-inflammatory properties.
The rose quartz powder is what I call the "romantic part" of the formula because it is there for providing soothing energy and "infusing the vibration of love" into us as we use each product. I'm not a crystal healing person, but I like stones in general both from an aesthetic and science standpoint and to me I see the addition of rose quartz as a little touch that sets KORA apart from others. If you believe in the healing power of crystals, then you would really appreciate this extra touch, but even a pragmatist like myself likes the idea of something pink and pretty in my skincare.
There is also something to be said about having expiration dates on your skincare products. Almost all Korean skincare and makeup products do this which I find SO helpful especially if you are a skincare collector like myself who is always trying new things and needs frame of reference as time FLIES. All of the KORA products have easy to read expiration dates on BOTH the boxes and bottles themselves. There is nothing worse than throwing out the box and realizing that's where the date was!
Turmeric Brightening and Exfoliating Mask
I did not expect to like this mask as much as I did! This is both a chemical (AHA and BHA) and physical exfoliator which acts to brighten the skin and promote skin cell turnover using turmeric, papaya enzymes, aspen bark and rosehip seed powder (physical exfoliant). Not only did this mask smell wonderfully herbal, the texture of my skin upon removal was so silky smooth! My skin looked brighter right away and had a fresh tingle to it thanks to the inclusion of peppermint oil. I know peppermint oil might sound scary to some with sensitive skin so a spot test might be advisable if you think you might react. I LOVED the feeling and the tingle just added to the overall sense of refreshment!
This is a short mask too so anywhere from 5-15 minutes will allow you to see results! You can see from the texture below that this mask is chockful of bits so I try to be gentle on my cheeks which are most prone to redness and then give a few seconds more of a massage around my nose, jawline and forehead. I do this mask in the mornings sometimes and it is a GREAT way to wake up!
Ingredients: Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf Juice*, Quartz, Rosa Canina (Rose Hip) Seed Powder*, Maranta Arundinacea (Arrowroot) Root Powder*, Lactobacillus Ferment, Bambusa Arundinacea Stem Powder, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Powder*, Glycerin^, Cetearyl Alcohol, Benzyl Alcohol, Rosa Canina (Rose Hip) Fruit Oil*, Carica Papaya (Papaya) Fruit Extract*, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Populus Tremuloides Bark Extract, Lactobacillus, Morinda Citrifolia (Noni) Fruit Powder*, Sclerotium Gum, Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Powder*, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Cetearyl Glucoside, Juniperus Virginiana (Cedarwood) Oil, Cananga Odorata Flower Oil, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil, Citrus Limon (Lemon) Peel Oil, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil*, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Fruit Extract, Salicylic Acid, Water/Aqua/Eau, Sodium Phytate, Tocopherol, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Potassium Sorbate, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Glucose, Alcohol, Sorbic Acid, Limonene**, Linalool**. *Ingredient from Organic Farming. ** From essential oils. ^Made using organic ingredients. 99.8% natural origin of total. 75.8% organic of total. COSMOS ORGANIC certified by ECOCERT Greenlife according to COSMOS Standard available at http://COSMOS.ecocert.com
Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum
This is a 12% vitamin C serum with the vitamin C coming from ascorbyl glucoside which is a very stable form of vitamin C as it is combined with glucose and then broken down into pure ascorbic acid once absorbed into the skin! This vitamin C is part of a "Superfruit Complex" composed of kakadu plum, acerola cherry, noni and orange and lemon peel. I have tried at least 10 vitamin C serums over the last couple of years and one thing that has been consistent is that most of these serums have a tacky finish. Skincare can be dirty business, I know, but there is something nice about a product that doesn't have a sticky finish like this one. This is probably one of two vitamin C serums that is not sticky at all and leaves my skin with a smooth finish!
While my skin can tolerate quite a bit, it has been more sensitive with the constant-irritation from the mask-wearing so while I am not sure if this was directly the reason, I found this serum best worked with my skin every other morning as opposed to every morning. My cheeks were getting a bit red, which has happened to me in the past specifically with vitamin C, so after switching to alternating days, I could see that my skin looked brighter. It is also possible that the pH of 3.8 and the high percentage of vitamin C was contributing to the redness as I feel like most of the vitamin C serums I have used previously have had lower concentrations of vitamin C.
Ingredients: Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf Juice*, Ascorbyl Glucoside, Glycerin^, Water/Aqua/Eau, Lactobacillus Ferment, Lactobacillus/Acerola Cherry Ferment, Potassium Hydroxide, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Capsicum Annuum (Capsicum) Fruit Extract, Lactobacillus, Citrus Limon (Lemon) Peel Extract, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Fruit Extract, Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract, Morinda Citrifolia (Noni) Fruit Extract*, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate, Olea Europaea (Olive) Leaf Extract, Zinc PCA, Lysolecithin, Sclerotium Gum, Xanthan Gum, Pullulan, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Ascorbic Acid, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Salvia Sclarea (Clary Sage) Extract, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Extract, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Phytate, Sodium Benzoate, Citric Acid, Sodium Salicylate, Euterpe Oleracea (Acai) Juice*, Tocopherol, Silica, Maltodextrin, Alcohol, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Quartz, Citral**, Limonene**, Linalool**. *Ingredient from Organic Farming. **From essential oils. ^Made using organic ingredients. 99% natural origin of total. 70% of the total ingredients are from Organic Farming. COSMOS ORGANIC certified by ECOCERT Greenlife according to COSMOS Standard available at http://COSMOS.ecocert.com
Noni Night AHA Resurfacing Serum
I am all about the exfoliation and if anything, I have to keep track of when I do it because I love the rush of fresh skin so much! This is a gentle night time lactic acid and BHA treatment which I was easily able to use everything single night right after cleansing. There is no stinging sensation whatsoever and is a good "upkeep" product. I always try to see if I can get away with no additional exfoliation when using a lactic acid serum, but after 2 weeks, I really felt like I needed a boost which is when the Turmeric Exfoliating Mask came in handy!
This serum may be a cream texture, but it is very lightweight and I have been able to use it easily with my sheet mask routine since September without feeling like I am piling on layers of skincare.
Ingredients: Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice*, Lactic Acid, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil*, Water/Aqua/Eau, Lactobacillus Ferment, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Juice Extract, Glycerin, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Potassium Hydroxide, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil*, Brassica Alcohol, Lactobacillus/Dipteryx Odorata Seed Ferment Filtrate, Polyglyceryl-3 Stearate, Lactobacillus, Lysolecithin, Sclerotium Gum, Xylityl Sesquicaprylate, Jojoba Esters, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Pullulan, Xanthan Gum, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Fruit Extract, Potassium Sorbate, Citrus Aurantium (Neroli) Flower Oil*, Willow Bark Extract, Anhydroxylitol, Microcitrus Australasica Fruit Extract, Tocopherol, Lactobacillus/Lemon Peel Ferment Extract, Morinda Citrifolia Fruit Extract*, Silica, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate, Pelargonium Graveolens (Chinese Geranium) Flower Oil, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Amethyst Powder, Citronellol**, Farnesol**, Geraniol**, Linalool**, Limonene**. *Ingredients from Organic Farming **From essential oils. 99.8% natural origin of total. 70.9% of the total ingredients are from Organic Farming. COSMOS ORGANIC certified by ECOCERT Greenlife according to COSMOS Standard available at http://COSMOS.ecocert.com
Final verdict: For a line that focuses on the natural, the "actives" side was actually something that impressed me. When it comes to the natural skincare world, there are a lot of oils and ways to hydrate, but not many products with high percentages of vitamin C (that are face friendly) or go into chemical exfoliation so I am glad that KORA has a bit of both worlds. I am at an age where I need results and ingredients that are a bit more aggressive! My favourite products out of the three have to be the Turmeric Mask and the Vitamin C Serum for sure. The mask is out of this world fantastic for my skin and I cannot wait to use it every time and I just love the no tacky texture of the vitamin C especially in the mornings!
You can find KORA Organics at www.sephora.com
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