Meet Munemi Imai of MUN…plus, a discount code!

Mun Skin Care

A few months ago, I had the pleasure of not only getting to try the gorgeous, amazing and truly magical No.1 Aknari Brightening Youth Serum from MUN, a luxurious organic skin care line. I treated it as if were gold in a bottle because it was just. That. Glorious. Containing the age-busting prickly pear seed oil (also called “Aknari”) paired with rose and argan oils, this is not your run of the mill serum. It’s luxurious, and perfect for a nighttime beauty routine. Paired with MUN’s No.11 Anarose Rejuvenating Rose Toner… this combination hits it out of the park. One of my favorite finds of last year, hands down!

Instead of a long love letter that is 800 words long (I could do it, I tell ya!), I am going to share a Q&A that I had the pleasure of conducting with MUN’s founder, Munemi Imai. Not only is she a badass high profile makeup artist, but she has a wealth of knowledge on powerful organic skincare ingredients. And…she’s kind. And awesome. READ!

No.1 Aknari Brightening Youth Serum has truly glowing reviews across the board. What makes your formula stand out among other natural serums? How did you develop it?

What makes it special would be the main ingredient, prickly pear seed oil. When I first came across this oil on my first research trip to Morocco in 2010, I was amazed by the fast results I saw on my then-developing under-eye dark circles and fine lines…and also how it made my skin baby soft.

Prickly pear seed oil is loaded with high contents of essential fatty acids and antioxidants; it is the king of the oils for anti-aging.

It’s also rich in amino acids, which stimulate collagen production to promote faster cell turn over. It has vitamin K, which is beneficial to brighten under-eye dark circles and also promote skin elasticity. However, there was a challenge to this amazing oil…

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Are you a skin care herbivore?

Herbivore-Botanicals-Sea-Mist-and-Toner

Herbivore Botanicals. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

All of Herbivore Botanicals’ skin care products are 100% natural. Their ingredient lists are short and simple. Their products are beautifully branded and packaged in glass, so you can repurpose the bottles or recycle them. Did I mention how attractive their labels are?! (I did. I did.) It’s products like these that will win over even more natural skin care users, because whether or not you have an appreciation for…say…witch hazel, who doesn’t covet a beautiful glass bottle for their bathroom countertop?!

I seriously cannot get enough of this brand, if my past posts weren’t indication…(this one, and this one, and this one…) GUILTY.

Here are my latest Herbivore acquisitions from earlier this year. Thank you to Herbviore’s creators, Julia and Alex, for letting me go nuts and pick out a batch of products for review!

Balance Facial Toner

Toner has become my favorite skin care product. For years, I skipped the toning step. But now, I find it’s a critical way to prime my face for application of moisturizer (better absorption and slippery skin surface) and a refreshing/nourishing way to pack in extra natural ingredients that serve my skin’s needs.

Balance ($24 for 4 oz.) has been my go-to toner for the past several months, and I’m not planning on switching any time soon. If you have oily/combination skin like me (aren’t you lucky?), ch-check this one out.

Let me walk you through the ingredients. #1 = witch hazel (yes, there’s more witch hazel than water in this bad boy). Witch hazel is a natural astringent and helps with acne-prone, oily skin. Who needs an irritating chemical ingredient when you can get the same benefits from nature? Next: Aloe vera and vegetable glycerine are both super gentle and smooth moisturizers. And lastly, essential oils for an added punch: neroli and hyssop decumbens. All I knew about neroli oil before bringing Balance into my life (#hallelujah) was that it has a pleasant citrus-y scent. Turns out, it does more than that: Herbivore included it in their toner for its nourishing and regenerative properties. The hyssop decumbens oil is detoxifying.

Despite the high witch hazel content, I’ve found this toner to be gentle enough to apply both morning and night, and super refreshing.

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Our New Friend from Overseas: Yours Truly Organics

Yours-Truly-line-above

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again…those Brits know a thing or two about green beauty. (Read: all the things.) There are so many London and UK-based skincare, bath, body and beauty lines that we covet. So, we were pretty pysched when newcomer Yours Truly Organics reached out to us about trying their products. This should tide us over (for a few months, anyway) while we continue to save our pretty pennies for an overseas green beauty JAMBOREE. Or maybe our UK-based bloggers pals can just Skype us in. We can dream.

Founded by Kelita Bignall, the line was developed based on her own acne struggles (to which we can of course relate). We found that the four-step Yours Truly Organics line works well with acne prone skin, AND skin with fine lines. (Who doesn’t have fine lines here and there? Really, who are you? We want to meet you and you can tell us about your deal with the devil. And where we can sign up.)

The line consists of the Take It Away! Gel Cleanser (£22 or $37 for 150 ml), Balancing Toner (£19 or $32 for 150 ml), Fix Me! Repairing Serum (£28 or $47 for 30 ml) and Face Base Face Balm (£25 or $42 for 100 ml). Overall, the line feels fresh and is very moisturizing. And the products aren’t skimpy – meaning that the gel cleanser is a thicker consistency than other natural cleansers we’ve used; the serum isn’t just a light oil – it’s a nearly opaque, gooey serum that dries matte; and the moisturizer is a thick lotion that also sets matte and makes a great, non-oily make-up base. Though the products themselves are substantial and feel heavier than we’re used to, we both agreed that the line doesn’t weigh our skin down. And the moisturized yet matte finish you’re left with is a huge plus. Did we mention these products smell GREAT? Citrus-y, so fresh and so clean clean.

Yours Truly organic skincare

The products are cruelty-free and bear the Ecocert label, which covers a lot of ground – Ecocert cosmetics must use sustainable packaging, can’t utilize GMOs, parabens or a bunch of other undesirable and non-natural ingredients, and more.

Here are our favorite parts of this new line:

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Best of Acure Organics: Jennifer’s Favorites

Acure Organics Brightening Facial Scrub

I’m bringing up the kaboose here in our Acure Organics blog series. Hope you’re not sick of us…or Acure…yet. Oh, you’re not, you say? Well then, by all means, click on over to our Q&A with Acure’s President & Formulator Amy Halman, and take a gander at some of Kathryne’s favorite Acure products!

Back? Great. The truth is, we both had a go at a bevy of products by Acure (my favorite affordable, natural, easy-to-find brand!) and we couldn’t cram all of those reviews into one post. As you may have noticed…we’re a little verbose over here at Unsullied!

Acure sent me some products to help out with my problem-child skin and super dry hair (*tumbleweed blows by*). My can’t-live-without-’em favorites are Acure’s Brightening Facial Scrub and their Leave-In Conditioner. Pure magic, and so reasonably priced. But there’s more to love…

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Best of Acure Organics: Kathryne’s Favorites

Acure Radical Wrinkle Complex and Line Eraser

We’re in the midst of an Acure Organics streak over here. Haven’t ya heard? (Make sure you check out our interview with Acure’s President and Formulator, Amy Halman.)

For the past few months, I’ve been testing out a big haul of their lovely products, kindly sent to us by the knowledgable team at Acure. I’ve featured all my favorites below!

Acure was kind enough to include a lot of really targeted products for my combination/dry skin and color treated hair. I wanted to highlight the products that really moved me, so no better place to start then the product that is pretty much the best thing I’ve ever tried since switching to an all-natural beauty regime. Get ready for your newest, soon-to-be obsession…

Line Eraser

The Line Eraser (19.99 for .5 oz) is my absolute, hands down, FAVORITE Acure product. The Line Eraser is not only a product I have ALREADY bought for myself, (and will again, and again…) but this little pot of heaven is your answer to most skin care problems. I started with putting it on my “lines” – forehead, laugh lines, etc. Then I started putting it on old acne scars, new acne scars, my eyebrows…you name it! (I started deliberately putting this on my eyebrows at night because I realized that it has helped them grow in thicker. Who doesn’t want THAT?) It’s like a healing salve, and so much more. You can put it on burns, cuts, scrapes, eczema, psoriasis, etc. It’s 100% organic. The Line Eraser’s rich, almost Vaseline-like texture lend itself to really, really working wonders on your skin. It lightens and brightens scars, and has worked literal miracles on my brow/frown lines, the things I am most self-conscious about. Even if you COVER yourself in it, as I have everyday, it will last you a solid 6-8 weeks. Not everyone will marinate in this like I do, so it will probably last you longer: I work from home mostly, so I am generally inclined to slather myself in anti-aging products and answer the door in a terry cloth robe looking like I belong in a wax museum. Thanks, delivery guy! Don’t be afraid of me! Come back soon!

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A Box Full of Green Goodness: Ecopique

When my Ecopique Blogger Box arrived, I was so excited to tear it open and see what goodness awaited me inside! This truly was like Christmas morning…except with less egg nog and more natural, good-for-you beauty products.

Ecopique-wrapping

The idea of Ecopique is simple: make natural beauty and personal care products accessible for everyone. Through their Blogger Boxes, Ecopique sends curated natural products to bloggers, so we can be your guinea pigs and help you choose what you want to try out.  Sharing the wonder of clean products by word of mouth is the main goal of Ecopique. And I was so thrilled to try these products. I have to say, the staff at Ecopique has really chose some stellar picks!

The loot:

  1. Angel Face Botanicals Lavender and Aloe Vera Balancing Organic Toner
  2. AEOS Cleansing Oil Dé-Maq
  3. Benedetta Control Creme
  4. Greenbody Greenplanet Revitalizing Shampoo & Conditioner
  5. Primal Pit Paste Natural Deodorant in Thyme and Lemongrass
  6. Arbonne FC5 Skincare System

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Make It: Calming Facial Toner

Homemade Toner Recipe

Toner: you crafty bastard. You sneaky snake! For the past decade, I’ve associated “clean skin” with a stinging and dehydrated face because of you. You leave my mug feeling drier than a piece of beef jerky. You’re the bully in my bathroom cabinet.

That all changed when I tried S.W. Basics’ all-natural toner earlier this year in their Bestsellers Mini Kit (which I highly recommend to anyone who’s interested in jumping on the all-natch skincare bandwagon. You’ll undoubtedly be HOOKED. I love S.W. Basics!). For the first time, I realized that a toner could actually be nourishing and gentle while still being effective. To my old toners: I’ll never wade into your fluorescent-tinted waters again.

S.W. Basics Toner
S.W. Basics Toner

After I ran out, I decided to make a homemade batch inspired by the ingredients in the S.W. Basics toner. This one’s a real winner for me – hope you try it out, or grab the good stuff from S.W. Basics!

Here’s the recipe:

  • 1 tablespoon of organic witch hazel
  • 1 tablespoon of organic raw apple cider vinegar (with the “mother” – I used Bragg brand, which you can get at most grocery stores)
  • ½ cup of water
  • 5 drops of clary sage essential oil

Guys, I definitely advise you to clear out your whole afternoon if you’re going to try your hand at making this toner. Though worthwhile in the end, it’s extremely time-consuming and requires constant attention.

JUST KIDDIN’. All you have to do is mix well. Add the drops of clary sage in last.

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