Kari Gran: Be Kind To Your Skin

With swoon worthy products plus stellar ingredients, Kari Gran is an all natural skincare and makeup company that may be best known for their Lip Whips and simple, yet elegant skincare routine, but they offer so much more. I was fortunate enough to be able to try a good bit of their line and WOW- it’s hard to even know where to begin. This line gets an A+ from me, across the board. As in, I LOVED everything and found a few tried and true favorite products along the way while testing these out. Everything from the ultra moisturizing Lip Whips to the gorgeously flattering blush had me at first sight.

Kari Gran was started after the namesake, Kari Gran, realized that all the toxins and hormone disruptors in conventional products were playing a big role in her autoimmune thyroid disorder. She and her long time friend, Lisa Strain, set out to create a line that was not only free of all the harmful ingredients, but that was also as luxurious and sexy as the products she was previously using. You guys know that’s right up my alley! Despite my somewhat crunchy ways, I don’t consider myself a hippy. I still love a beauty product that really performs and is packaged up beautifully. That’s exactly what they’ve created. So first things first, let’s talk about skincare.

SKINCARE

The skincare line consists of a Cleansing Oil, Hydrating Tonic and Essential Serum. The beauty of this line is that it’s simple yet you can customize it to some degree. I love using a cleaning oil since it’s so gentle on your skin and really does a great job of removing makeup, dirt and oil. They recommend using their Cleansing Oil at bedtime and doing an 8-10 minute massage. Afterward, simply take a semi-hot wash cloth and lay it on your face, letting it steam your face and allowing the oil to penetrate deeper for a more thorough clean. Wipe any remaining oil away and repeat if needed. Next is the Hydrating Tonic which comes in either Rose or Lavender. You can mist this directly on your face or you can create your own moisturizer by combining a few pumps with their Essential Serum and then applying it. Or you can just layer the Essential Serum on top of the Hydrating Tonic. The Hydrating Tonic also does wonders at setting their mineral makeup. My skin did really well with all of these products. It felt very moisturized, without being oily or causing breakouts. I love the Hydrating Tonic for a quick moisture boost throughout the day.

Cleansing Oil $30

Hydrating Tonic $35

Essential Serum $60 (30ml)

LIP WHIPS

Instant favorite. Honestly, I don’t think I can live without these now. I’m a full blown addict. These little glass pots are so elegant and the colors are gorgeous. I love the subtle shine and color they give. I love the Naked, the untinted, for lazy mornings and before bed. Naked and the lighter pink (Tinted) come in either peppermint or cinnamon pimenta berry. The darker pink, Radiant, gives a beautiful pink hue to your lips without being too bold. The best thing about these besides the intense moisture, is that they never cake up on your lips and they last for hours! If you try only one thing from Kari Gran, let it be this.

Naked $15

Tinted $15

Radiant $20

MINERAL MAKEUP

Foundation

Ok, first off- It’s amazing that you can order a sample set of all of their shades! Seriously, why don’t more natural brands do this? You get to find your perfect match and then they apply the $10 cost of the sample set towards the purchase of a full size foundation. How cool is that? I’m very neutral, which sounds like anything could work on my skin, but it’s actually the opposite. Most foundation is either for yellow or pink tones and both look a bit garish on me. Using their sample set, at first I thought I was maybe a 3. I wore it a couple days and it was slightly off, so I went with the 7 which looked lighter, but being a true neutral, it blended in amazingly well with my skin. I couldn’t believe how well it matched. This is mineral makeup so it’s a powder foundation, but it gives you a full, flawless coverage. This product surprised me so much with how well it performed. Not only does it cover nicely (almost making it so there’s no need for concealer), but it also lasts all day long. I use this with a bit of their setting powder on top and if I know it will be a long day, I also finish it off with a spritz of Hydrating Tonic. You can also add some of the powder foundation to their Essential Serum to create a liquid foundation.

Mineral Foundation $25

Concealer

I was able to sample both the fair and medium shades of their mineral concealer and I felt that the medium worked best. I really don’t need a lot of concealer while using their foundation, since it gives such a great coverage, but this worked well at touching up dark circles and the discoloration around my nose. This is easy to pat in with a brush or your finger and lasts all day. I would definitely use this after applying foundation and carefully layer it so that it doesn’t get caked up. This also does double duty as an eyeshadow primer. 

Concealer $10

Blush

The beautiful shade of their Peony Blush had me swooning immediately. It’s such the perfect, pretty shade of pink and it’s universally flattering. It layers well over the foundation and once again, lasts all day. It allows for buildable coverage, which is nice in case you want to go a little bolder or just have a light whisper of pink grace your cheeks.

Blush $20

Eyeshadow

They offer just one versatile shade of eyeshadow. The light bronzy brown color goes on easy and like the blush, it allows you to build up to a bolder look. You can also use it wet or dry, or even use it as  eyeliner. 

Eyeshadow $12

Setting Powder

This setting powder has a mixture of mica and aloe vera, making it silky and smooth. It really works wonders at setting your makeup in place and just finishing it all off. It gives the illusion of a smooth, glowing complexion. I have even been using this over other types of makeup and even on cream based makeup, it does a phenomenal job. 

Setting Powder $20

It’s hard to pick a favorite, given that I loved everything, but I will admit that the Lip Whips and Setting Powder may be the most used by me. I highly recommend the whole line though. Have you tried anything from Kari Gran? You can purchase these products direct from KariGran.com or  you can purchase the skincare line and the Lip Whips from Integrity Botanicals and Sephora even carries their Lip Whips!