Save Face with These Rhode Island Skin Care Products

It’s rough out here this time of year thanks to the dry air and cold temps — especially for our skin. But don’t throw the towel in just yet! Here’s a list of local companies that can breathe new life into your winter skincare routine.

Farmaesthetics Hydrating Hand Wash. Photography courtesy of profiled Rhode Island businesses.

Farmaesthetics

Founded by green beauty trailblazer Brenda Brock at a rural Tiverton farmstand in 1999, Farmaesthetics and its fine herbal skincare make it easy to glow at home. Brock’s kitchen chemistry has become sustainable beauty with nourishing lavender milk, aloe, calendula and honey providing targeted tonics for your troubled skin. Find relief in the Hydrating Hand Wash, made with organic essential oils and natural cleansers that are strong yet gentle enough to use throughout the day. Follow with the Nourishing Herbal Cream or Hand to Heel Softening Salve for hours of home hydration. Before bed, apply the Calendula Remedy Oil and you’ll wake up feeling like you had a facial. Available online. 800-711-9194. farmaesthetics.com

Herbalicious Skincare 

Owner and formulator, Carolyn Balint, began creating her products when store-bought products were not helping her family’s allergies, eczema conditions and other chronic illnesses. After studying herbalism for nearly ten years, Balint launched Herbalicious in 2015 and now continues to grow her business with help of her friend Robin Plaziak. The skincare products are designed to nourish and maintain all skin types and are created from high quality flora, herbs, oils and clay and grains. Plus, the line is organic and safe, and is free from synthetics, preservatives, fragrances and chemicals. available online and at various local boutiques. facebook.com/herbaliciousskincare

Thiam with a shipment of Sunu Body net sponges. Photo courtesy of Sunu Body

Sunu Body 

Zainabou Thiam was a sophomore at Cumberland High School when she founded Sunu Body, an online company carrying authentic West African skincare products. Thiam says a majority of her customers are members of the African diaspora who use her products as a way to connect with their heritage. Her own parents emigrated from Senegal in the 1980s and ’90s. “Sunu” means “our” in her family’s native Wolof, a phrase Thiam says speaks to the inclusivity of her business.  The African net sponge — a traditional netted bath sponge known as a sapo in Senegal — is a top-selling product, closely followed by the African black soap (you can get both as when you order the Body Cleansing Duo). Attend Sunu Body’s launch party in collaboration with Flora Sauna on January 24 at 1 p.m. Your ticket will include access to a matcha bar by Cafe Ava, flower bouquets by Buttercup, complimentary beauty goodie bags and networking opportunities. Learn more about the event here. sunubody.com

Photography courtesy of profiled Rhode Island businesses.

Raw Elements USA

Being in the sun has its benefits, and its price. Protect your skin naturally — even in the winter, when the rays can sneak up on us —  with Raw Elements USA’s line of organic sunblocks for face and body. It was launched by former Narragansett lifeguard Brian Guadagno after he turned his kitchen into a lab to formulate a natural sunscreen that could keep up with active lifestyles and wouldn’t harm the environment. Made of 23 percent nano zinc oxide, the broad-spectrum sunscreen is good for your skin and is reef-friendly, with hypo-allergenic performance that won’t run in your eyes or wash off when you’re underwater. A Zero Waste Pack for baby and kids even protects our littlest outdoor adventurers, while the Lip Rescue balm saves your parched pucker. Available online. 888-442-6676, rawelementsusa.com

Lagom Body Co.

Not too much, not too little. In Swedish, that’s what the word lagom translates to, and it’s also the perfect description for Kristen Runvik’s skin and bodycare company, Lagom Body Co. The brand contains elements that are earth-based and safe for the skin, steering clear of questionable ingredients you might find in drug stores. Its inception came in 2016 when Runvik was working for a tech startup based in Sydney, Australia, working about sixty hours a week and often feeling burnt out. Feeling disconnected from herself and her home, she began dabbling with essential oils, started her own garden and got into the plant scene outside of Washington in Portland, Oregon. Her partner being an Ocean State native, she moved and set up shop in Warwick in 2019. Besides using the infused oils and plants she grows at home herself from Lucayda Farm based in Cranston, she gathers other ingredient necessities including lavender and plantain from farms in Vermont, focusing on elements that grow nearby to support local and regional businesses and botanicals. hydrate and soften your skin with the Seatide Daily Cleanser or restore balance with the Meadow Rose Restore Cream. Available online. lagombody.co

GRAES Night C.A.P. Photo courtesy of Jennifer Manville and Josh Robitaille at Jennifer Manville Photography

GRAES

Cumberland-native-turned-Cranston-resident Becky Martin drew on her own skincare struggles to create a “one-stop shop” for healthy, glowing skin without all the extra products. GRAES — which stands for Generally Recognized as Effective and Safe — aims to simplify the beauty routine by offering products addressing multiple concerns. Its first product, Night C.A.P., is an eight-in-one night cream that hydrates, soothes, addresses fine lines and redness, improves skin tone, reduces hyperpigmentation and enlarged pores, and has anti-aging properties. graes.co

Herbs and Mylk

At herbs and Mylk, plant oils infused with herbs are blended with organic butters, clay and local milk. Lotions and soaps are naturally hydrating with intoxicating scents like rosemary, eucalyptus and orange and lemon, lavender and mint. Products are even topped with dehydrated citrus, herbs and flowers for that added link to nature. 650 Ten Rod Rd., Suite 129A, North Kingstown, herbsandmylk.com

Shore Soap Co.

A handcrafted bath and body brand, established in 2013 in Newport by husband and wife duo Jake and Steph Kopper, channels their inspiration from the sea to create quality products that portray nature and simplicity and are natural nutrient-packed. Try the Mermaid Kisses line, which includes an antioxidant-rich body lotion, phthalate-free body wash, and more. 401-846-0305, shoresoapco.com.

Photography courtesy of profiled Rhode Island businesses.

Yoreganics

Hearkening back to “the days of yore” when only pure products were available, Yoreganics is the perfect remedy for home-based pampering of itchy dry skin and eczema. The Yore Skin Combo Kit* includes a Yore Wash and a Yore Balm stick to wash and moisturize skin, while its popular laundry stain remover kicks grease to the curb (*Note: The combo kit and balm sticks are currently out of stock until March, but you can still purchase the wash individually). Since it was hatched in 2010, the Exeter-based company has incorporated organic jojoba and shea butters, olive and coconut oils, lavender, calendula extract and other raw ingredients to soothe weary skin, says founder Kim Mendes. “Our balm has only seven ingredients, so it’s all back to Mother Nature,” she says. “We focus on simplicity — a minimal amount of ingredients for maximum amount of uses. Our balm even heals bad attitude!” Available online. 401-965-8338, yoreganics.com

RI Soapworks

RISoapworks has history to back it up: all of its bath and body products are made on its Chepachet farm which dates back to 1736. Shop its Etsy page for handcrafted lotion bars, lip scrubs, lavender spa sets, face masks, salt soaks, post-shave balms, foot soaks, hand soaps and more. etsy.com/shop/RISoapworks