From the Farm to Your Skin

With the majority of its ingredients sourced from local organic farms in the Bay Area, Sequoia Beauty’s organic line offers a green, holistic approach to skin care—and has the science and research to back it up. Every product is specially formulated for each skin type with plants that are packed with antioxidants that address aging, and cellular damage. Owner and formulator Laurel Shaffer says using the line “is making a statement that you support your own health, your own beautiful skin and a local community that is committed to a greener, healthier future.” These 100 percent organic products have an earthy scent and leave your skin feeling fresh and fabulous. 

Revolving around a “single ingredient concept,” Napa Organics sources all of their resources from local farms in (you guessed it) the Napa Valley and northern California. “Napa Organics is committed to sourcing ingredients locally because not only are we assured of the product’s freshness, we know how the crop was grown and harvested,” says owner and founder Hilary Glass. “As people return to simple, natural formulations, they will realize an incredible change in the health of their skin.” And just so you know exactly what you’re buying and what you’re putting on your body, the company prints the ingredients on the front label, making it impossible to miss. The line includes hand soap, nourishing lotion, certified organic hydrosols, vegan lip balm and California Plum Kernel Oil. 

San Diego–based luxury organic sunscreen company COOLA sources all of their ingredients through a Farm to Face approach by promoting local organic farming. Their unique cruelty-free formulas contain more than 70 percent certified organic ingredients and are free of parabens, paba, petroleum and phthalates. Made in Southern California in a solar power facility, COOLA’s products each work to protect and nourish the skin with vitamins, natural phyto-protectors and age-defying antioxidants. “COOLA believes in the importance of sourcing local farm fresh ingredients to ensure our products contain the freshest and most potent antioxidants and we are huge advocates of choosing organic every chance we can,” says COOLA’s Marketing and International Sales Director Tyler Porteous.

With the belief that organic, fair-trade and family farms can save us, S.W. Basics started life as Sprout Wellness, a holistic health organization. “We take the sourcing of our ingredients really seriously. We want our products to be as healthy for our communities and our planet as they are for our customers. That’s why we support sustainable agriculture by buying only from organic, fair-trade or small-farm sources,” explains founder Adina Grigore. Made by hand, fresh each week in small batches with five or less organic ingredients like demerara sugar, shredded coconut and marine sea salt, S.W. Basics is able to provide more potent skincare while proving less isn’t just more, less is everything. 

Artisanally crafted by hand in Brooklyn, Metropolis Soap Company lives by these words: No parabens, no sulfates, no problems. “All of our products have ingredients that stand by our ethos: Fair trade and sustainable sources, all from natural plant material, and free of synthetics, parabens and sulfates. Our products are gentle enough for all skin types because we avoid synthetic ingredients, which can be irritating to the skin, as well as maintaining a vegan philosophy; to ensure our products are non-comodegenic,” says owner and head formulator Megan Brame-Finkelstein. This unique product line ranges from artisan soaps, soaks, scrubs, soy candles and body washes that leave your skin soft and smooth.

Uptown Soap Co. makes products that promise to be handmade in small batches, vegan and dye and cruelty free. The product line includes one-of-a-kind body creams, candles, bubble baths, bar soaps, perfumes and body scrubs all with their own distinct scents and packaging. Owner Silvia Dontcheva tells us, “As the only bath and body manufacturer in Manhattan, we wanted to make sure that we stay local and 98 percent of our materials are purchased directly from New York companies that create their products right here in our own state.” Dontcheva originally used her iPhone to take black and white photographs of New York City, which ultimately became the packaging of her most popular line, the Vintage Collection.            

After searching for the most potent and effective ingredients to formulate her line of skin care, Tata Harper ended up finding the most worthy ingredients on her family’s farm. With the desire to create products that were suitable for all skin types, Harper knew synthetic ingredients and potentially toxic chemicals would have no place in the products she wanted to formulate. Each product is developed with the most advanced skin-care technology available on the globe so every ingredient has a specific purpose and delivers targeted results. Every single product is handmade on Harper’s Julius Kingdom Farm in Vermont to ensure maximum quality, freshness and efficacy. This deluxe brand has garnered a devout fan base with celebrity fans such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Julianne Moore and has been fast-tracked as a must-have for those seeking effective, luxurious products. 

Enjoying a reputation as a “plant-powered luxury skin care collection,” Amala Beauty (in Sanskrit, its name means “most pure”) produces five results-oriented collections for the face and body. Committed to sourcing its powerful plant active ingredients, the line maintains longstanding fair-trade partnerships with its 14 farm partners around the world. Each collection features a core ingredient to address a specific skin concern from anti-aging to sensitivity to breakouts. Hydrate (jasmine), Rejuvenate (cocoa bean), Purify (blue lotus), Soothe (desert fig seed) and Detoxify (myrtle) are all sourced exclusively from one of Amala’s sustainable farm partners. “When it comes to skin care, one shouldn’t have to sacrifice results for responsibility,” says founder Ute Leube. “We source from hand-picked farm communities across the world, which we have helped to cultivate and which have flourished as a result.” 

Originally created for her family, Body Be Silk‘s luxurious body and bath line includes body scrubs, foot scrubs, body treatments, lip kits, honey treatments and face scrubs. After realizing there was a void in the beauty industry for luxurious organic products, owner and formulator Greta ­­­­McCrary made it her life’s work to develop products that avoided the use of any harsh chemicals. “I wanted a luxe product brand that had all natural ingredients, which meant ingredients that I could pronounce.” Among their many products, the fabulous Kopi Jawa Body Treatment is made with Indonesian coffee beans and helps to temporarily diminish cellulite ripples and deeply moisturizes the skin.