Live Botanical

As the Ritual Cleansing Balm becomes available today, we are offering 20% off select goods to help offer clarity to the skin as the season shifts.

This includes the Illuminating Exfoliating Serum, and Awaken Clearing Oil. Plus there will be extra savings on the Fresh Complexion Clarifying Elixir & Skin Repair Balm (full sizes only).

We are also saying farewell to the Fresh Complexion Clarifying Elixir. This is the final batch so once this is gone, there will be no more.

This became an award winning product from Glamour’s Beauty Awards: The 23 Best Natural Beauty Products in 2019.
It was a complete surprise as we’ve never used a PR firm or really market ourselves in that way. It truly was from word or mouth.
This grass roots way of being is truly how Live Botanical has been able to flourish and sustain over the years. I am forever grateful for all of our incredible customers and community!!

I created this particular blend with my husband and it is well loved in our home. So the decision was not made lightly but I also understand that not everything is meant to last forever. 💗

While the scent of Moonlit Jasmine is reminiscent of summer gardens, the way it makes the skin feel is like walking through a cooling, lush forest.

It was formulated as a cocooning and restorative hydration treatment designed to support stressed, parched, or barrier-imbalanced skin states.

As an Elixir, I wanted to explore how I could amplify the botanicals with modern cosmetic techniques.

For example, gotu kola and colloidal oatmeal bring their own soothing and skin-supportive properties, which are complemented by panthenol’s (vitamin b5) role in barrier function.

Butterfly pea flower contributes a rich array of plant polyphenols, while ectoine offers another layer of protection by helping the skin better cope with environmental stress.

Hydration is approached in much the same way. I combined several humectants that interact with moisture at different cellular layers, from polyglutamic acid at the skin’s surface to sodium PCA, panthenol, and saccharide isomerate, which help maintain hydration over time.

On application you’ll notice a delicate film that disappears on the skin as you follow up with your favorite oil or balm, sealing in all the goodness 🌿✨💗

Live Botanical formulas are often inspired by a sense of place.
An awareness that our skin, too, is a living ecosystem that’s shaped by its own unique terrain, its relationship with the environment, and everything that moves through it.

Herbalism has taught me that there is no single approach to supporting the body. The same plant, preparation/protocol may be appropriate for one person and not another.
The care we provide is about paying attention to the individual, the conditions at hand, and what the body is communicating.

I carry this philosophy to the skin.
My approach to formulation begins with the utmost respect for the skin barrier and microbiome, while drawing on almost 30 years of working with plants and understanding how extraction can influence the availability, stability, and activity of their constituents.

This can be seen in the wide variety of hydrating and nourishing, oil-based layers designed to mix and match, allowing you to create a custom ritual that can easily be adjusted for the seasons or whenever your skin needs a change.

But knowing plants is only part of the work. The other is knowing how to translate them into formulas that are biocompatible at the skin level. This includes unique emulsification systems that do not rely on traditional emulsifiers, incorporating liposomal encapsulated botanical actives to protect delicate compounds and support their delivery, all while working with vibrant plant materials.

I’ve come to think of this as adaptive formulation: creating skincare that respects the individuality of skin, the magic of plants, and the complexity of the relationship between the two.

You’re always welcome to email us for specific advice on what to use or how to incorporate a product from our line into your existing rituals. I personally answer the vast majority of questions that come our way. 💗

The Greenhouse Glow Mask is back! 🌿✨

We’ve moved to making this blend just a few times a year given the labor intensive process.

It’s one of my favorites and is quick to calm redness for an even canvas. We refer to it as a smoothie for the skin, infusing all the nutrients the barrier needs to flourish.

This potent powder mask & creamy balm comes to life when water is added.
A unique self emulsification system using lecithin and polysaccharide rich colloidal oatmeal create a lush cream that melts into the skin - delivering both the water & oil soluble compounds in a bio-available way.

It doubles as a very soft and gentle exfoliating cleanser too! ☺️

While it’s one of our slower moving offerings - it is well loved by so many to give the complexion much needed nutritional boost.

We have our other very well loved creamy balm coming soon! Be on the lookout mid to late October for the Ritual Cleansing Balm 💗✨

✨We recently added this beautiful Frankincense Essential Oil ($22 value) as one of your mini gift options for retail orders over $75.

Ethically harvested by the incredible women of the Beeyo Maal collective. Their resin has become such a special part of some of our formulas, I wanted to share another facet of the work they do through their distillations.

☀️🪾The aroma is incredibly bright and warm.
It has a mesmerizing fusion of resinous, balsamic notes with zesty citrus, a crisp green lift and woody undertones, creating a sense of calm clarity.

Since this is a pure essential oil you will want to work with it carefully:

🏡For at Home Use:
Add 3 drops in a standard aromatherapy diffuser.

💆🏻‍♀️For Topical Use:
Dilute well in a carrier oil. You can use the following ratios as examples.

💛Start with 1 ounce (or 2 TBSP) of carrier oil of choice. Jojoba is a popular option.

▪️0.17% - 1 drop (Sensitive Skin - similar to Live Botanical facial formulas)
-or-
▪️0.5% - 3 drops (Max % for Sensitive Skin)
-or-
▪️1% - 6 drops (Less Sensitive Skin - Max % for facial use)
-or-
▪️2% - 12 drops (Body /Massage Oil)

I first learned about the collective through ongoing research and review of ingredient sustainability - both human and environmental impact. Reading investigative articles from the Fuller Report and The Guardian, that shed light on the human and environmental harms in exploitative corporatization of essential oils.
You can read the articles and so much more on the Beeyo Maal website along with articles from the women who are rebuilding a new path forward.

The last item included in our seasonal offerings…
✨Frankincense Essential Oil✨

Sustainably distilled from wild-harvested resin, this frankincense essential oil is sourced through our long-standing partnership with the women-led co-op Beeyo Maal.

Each harvest supports not only the preservation of traditional practices, but the wellbeing of entire communities - where proceeds are reinvested into education, resources, and economic independence for women and their families.

💛Aroma Profile: Warm · resinous · bright citrus

Mesmerizing fusion of resinous, balsamic notes with zesty citrus, a crisp green lift and woody undertones, creating an aromatic symphony that evokes a sense of calming clarity.

We use the whole resin extract in many of our formulas but am so excited to share this gorgeous essential option to be used in your at home rituals. As an essential oil, it is best used in a diffuser to ground your space or can be diluted in a carrier oil (like Jojoba) to be used as a calming massage oil.

This will be in stock for awhile and hope to keep it around as long as possible.

Coming June 5th!

💚Greenhouse Glow Mask
This spring favorite is finally back in stock after a few months of being out!!

This is a blend that when it finds the right person at the right time - it’s absolutely magic. 🌬️Helping to not only calm but breathe life back into the skin.

A creamy, water activated balm that I refer to as a smoothie for the skin.
The soft grains dissolve in water, releasing their nutrients maintaining their vibrancy just as it’s being applied.

A highlight of its botanical profile:

✨Cupuaçu butter is renowned for deep moisture due to its ability to hold 400% of its weight in water and provides an occlusive emollient to prevent water loss.

❤️Nutrient-dense, cold-pressed seed oils of cranberry, raspberry, and pumpkin create a range of skin-loving vitamins of A & E, carotenoids, and high linoleic fatty acids to help modulate inflammation and encourage rejuvenation.

💜Plantain, bee balm, and self-heal work collectively to stimulate skin cell generation to firm the skin and lessen scars or dark marks. Also rich in UV and pollution-protectant antioxidants to strengthen the skin's response to environmental factors to skin barrier degradation.

🧡Carefully processed for maximum potency Pumpkin seed powder is rich in a wide range of antioxidants, amino acids, omega-6, and omega-3 fatty acids, and rich minerals like zinc for soothing and vitamin K for discoloration.

🌾🍄‍🟫Oatmeal and snow mushroom contain powerful polysaccharides to help impart humectants to hydrate the deeper layers of the skin. Blended with the oils and added water during the masking process it creates a complete moisturizer for the skin to help deliver all the powerful compounds present in the formula.

🌋Locally sourced mineral rich clay to help lift dead skin cells, remove debris pores, improve circulation and bring about a smooth complexion.