Exfoliation is key, and not just for the skin on your face, but on your body as well, and the easiest way to do so is by using a body scrub.
Personally, I’m not a huge fan of scrubs in general, and body scrubs just seemed to create a mess in the bathroom with little to no actual benefit to my skin.
In my search for shampoo bars, I stumbled across a homegrown business that sells handmade shampoo bars, the cutest artisanal soaps, whipped soaps and the likes, and on a complete whim (because it looked so pretty) I ended up purchasing the product I’ll be reviewing today – Kaura – Bath with Rainbow.
Kaura sells their products via their online platform, and ship across India.
The body scrub retails for INR 249 for a 70 gm jar. (Webiste - currently a 100 gm jar for the same price)
I purchased this through their online platforms at full price. (There are many bloggers who have affiliate codes, using which you could get a discount)
Kaura
Kaura is an Indian brand, based out of Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, India. Kaura is founded on the principle that nature has provided us with everything we need to thrive, and hence their products are formulated with natural ingredients and mostly organic quality ingredients.
One of the places we generate a lot of plastic waste is in the bathroom - shampoo bottles, conditioners, shower gels - and the list goes on. Kaura’s aim was to provide products that take care of your skincare, haircare and body care needs while reducing and ideally eliminating their dependency on plastics.
A shampoo bar is equivalent to three 250 gm shampoo bottles, their skincare and body care products all come in glass jars with metal lids that can be repurposed, and their beautiful array of soaps and whipped soaps might want you to reconsider buying that bottle of shower gel.
Kaura products are handmade, made in India, organic and packed with natural ingredients and essential oils. While Kaura does not test on animals, some of their products do contain animal products, such as beeswax, and hence are not vegan.
What’s in my product?
Ingredients: Organic Sweet Almond Oil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Organic Unrefined Shea Butter, Cetearyl Alcohol, Emulsifying Wax NF, Beeswax, Castor Sugar, Lavender Essential Oil, Blueberry Extract, Avocado Extract, Colours / Dyes
Green - Yay!! Blue - Good/Fair Orange - Bleh! Red - Nope!
A cursory glance at this gives an idea of how moisturizing this product could potentially be, and it’s a sweet and short ingredient list (the best kind). Let’s jump right into the ingredient breakdown -
1. Sweet Almond Oil
When I think of almond oil, the first thing that comes to my mind is an old 90’s advertisement for bajaj almond drops, which honestly was what made me never want to apply that, and I stayed away from almond oil for a good long while.
Unbeknown to me, almond oil is actually beneficial for a number of reasons, and not just for your hair, but your skin will love it as well.
Almond oil is loaded with skin-replenishing fatty acids like oleic acid and linoleic acid. Oleic acid has the ability to penetrate the skin easily and replenish any lost moisture as well as reduce further Trans-epidermal Water Loss (TEWL), while linoleic acid is essential for ceramide production and helps strengthen the skin barrier.
Almond oil is also a well-known source of Vitamin E, a potent antioxidant that can do wonders for your skin. Additionally, it also contains some forms of Vitamin B.
While oleic acid is a god send for those with dry skin types, it is potentially comedogenic for acne-prone skin. However, this is less likely to be a major concern given that this is rinse-off product.
Those with severe acne-prone skin should definitely patch test before using products with almond oil, especially when it’s the first ingredient on the list.
2. Beeswax
Beeswax is the substance that is made by bees while building their honeycomb and is used commonly in cosmetics as a thickening agent and an emollient.
Historically, beeswax has been used in traditional European and Asian remedies for its anti-microbial properties. In Ayurveda, beeswax is used as a remedy for inflammation, bruises, burns, and cracked heels. Beeswax also has some preservative properties and was used in embalming and mummification practices by Egyptians and Persians.
Beeswax has lubricating and skin softening properties and helps reduce TEWL. Also, it contains sterols, squalene and flavonoids which have antiseptic properties, while the beta-carotene in beeswax when converted to Vitamin A delays collagen degradation and helps the skin heal quicker. Beeswax also forms a protective layer on top of the skin, protecting the skin from external stressors.
Honey tends to have a range of irritants, however, since beeswax has the smallest range of biological actives, it has a comparatively low chance of skin irritation and comedogenic effects. Very few people have reported allergies to beeswax, but it would always be wise to patch test before incorporating this ingredient.
3. Blueberry Extract
Blueberry is a potent antioxidant, and there are brands like Innisfree that have a whole range of products championing blueberry.
Blueberries are rich in polyphenols as well as Vitamin C, and research has shown that the antioxidants in blueberries are particularly good at protecting the skin from damage occurring due to exposure to visible and infrared light.
While blueberries cannot replace a broad-spectrum sunscreen, it would complement sunscreen and would help intercept damage from occurring in the first place.
Blueberries are safe for most, however, the presence of polyphenols could be too strong for some, especially with sensitive skin and it would be good to patch test before application.
4. Avocado Extract
Who doesn’t love avocados? They are yummy to eat, super healthy and filled with good fats for your body and is considered to be one of the most nutritious fruits in the world. But did you know that it is also extremely beneficial for the skin, especially for those with dry skin?
Avocado, like most plant extracts is a good source of antioxidants, however, that’s not the only thing it contains. Avocado extracts are rich in oleic acid, palmitic acid and linoleic acid, as well as Vitamins A, E & D.
Avocado extracts have been noted to have wonderful skin penetration abilities and can nourish different layers of the skin. It acts an emollient, that not only nourishes and smoothens the skin, but also helps retain moisture and reduce TEWL.
Since Avocado is high in oleic acid, which can clog pores, those with acne-prone skin might want to watch how their skin reacts before incorporating avocado into their skincare routine. As this specific product is a wash off, it is less likely to cause breakouts, but it is always good to patch test before use.
5. Olive Oil
We’ve all heard how olive oil is good for our health, and many of us might have even moved to cooking with olive oil. Olive oil is also extremely beneficial for dry skin types.
Olive oil is loaded with fatty acids, and is one of the largest sources of oleic acid. Olive oil can contain upto 80% of oleic acid! Olive oil also contains other fatty acids like linoleic acid as well as palmitic acid. Olive oil is also rich in antioxidants, tocopherol (which is pure Vitamin E) as well as carotenoids. Additionally, it’s one of the best plant sources of Squalene, which is a skin-identical emollient.
Given the high oleic acid content, olive oil is very comedogenic and can clog your pores and cause breakouts. Again, while this is a wash off product and is for the body, it might be good to test out the product in regions you get acne (backne) first before using the product.
6. Others -
Castor Sugar - Sugar is used as the exfoliant in this product. While I do not like scrubs, I feel sugar (and even salt in some cases) scrubs are one of the most gentle as it dissolves with water as well as body heat and is not too harsh on the skin.
Lavender Essential Oil - I particularly am not a fan not a fan of essential oils in skincare, and an ingredient like lavender has research showing that it is one of the most sensitizing essential oils out there. However, in this product, it is the only essential oil in it, and like most essential oils, would be introduced only in a small amount just to fragrance the product. If someone has observed allergies or reactions to lavender, it would be best to stay away, else, given that this is a wash-off product, I wouldn’t worry too much.
Colours / Dyes - While I am totally against synthetic dyes in skincare, and I feel I have had a bad reaction to the blue synthetic dye, my understanding is that the colours used here would either be organic colours or food colouring which necessarily won’t be bad for the skin. Additionally, as this is a wash off product, it would not stay for long enough on the skin to cause serious damage.
My thoughts on the product
I love this product, and everything it does for my dry and keratosis pilaris skin.
Without ado, let us break this down into packaging, touch & feel, how to use and changes noticed.
1. Packaging
I have spoken earlier about how the
brand looks to use only reusable and eco-friendly packaging, and the same holds true for this product as well. The parcel it is shipped in is a cardboard box with shredded paper and other wastepaper used to cushion the products within. They also send a cute note about their brand with the package, and sometimes do throw in free samples of their other products as well.
The product comes in a solid glass jar with a metal lid. While the lid looks a little flimsy, it creates a good seal and even though I keep the bottle in the bathroom, no moisture has seeped in yet. It has a simple label with the product details, key ingredients, and directions of use.
One aspect I would have liked is if they mentioned their entire ingredients list instead of just the key ingredients. Also, I think that them not mentioning the entire list of ingredients neither on the product labelling (no outside packaging), nor on their official website might be against “The Drugs & Cosmetics Rules, 1945”.
However, they are extremely proactive on their social media page (Instagram), and provided the full list of ingredients almost immediately when I requested for the same.
2. Touch & Feel
The product has fine sugar particles, and
you can see and feel the oils in the product (the sides of the glass jar tend to get oily). Physicals scrubs are never the best way to deal with exfoliation in my opinion, and while I could never let a scrub touch the skin on my face, I would happily apply an effective yet gentle scrub on my body. The issue with physical scrubs are that it could be harsh on the skin, not only leaving a scope for micro-tears on the skin (which could cause pigmentation and other issues), but also that we might not get uniform exfoliation.
What I LOVE about the product is how absolutely gentle it is on the skin, when applied of damp skin, and literally melts away in minutes and I can feel my skin absorb all the goodness. The oils in this form a layer on top of your skin, so even the sugar particles don’t seem as harsh on the skin.
I am in love with the scrub’s fragrance – I kid you not! There’s a hint of lavender (like the slightest – but you wouldn’t be able to guess), and a hint of the oils.
The only thing that disappointed me was how the product is advertised, compared to what you end up getting. The pictures on the website and their Instagram page show this beautiful layered body scrub with purples, oranges, yellows and blues – what you end up getting after it has been shipped, is an olive green, almost brown mix of all the colours. Some of it clumps, and when you break a clump you might find some nice colours, but otherwise it’s just a green-brown mess. This is bound to happen during transportation, and I do not know what the brand could do to stop this from happening.
Depending on how much you use, this would last you anywhere between 7 to 10 washes, which comes up to approx. INR 25 – 35 / wash. Given how amazing this wash is, I feel that they could provide larger options, because 70g flies quickly.
3. How-to-Use
The directions on the packaging recommends, “Can be used as a gentle scrub on wet skin, or on dry skin for a really good buff before you get into the shower. Skin-smoothing scrubs and beautiful butters for a gorgeous glow”
Personally, I would recommend using this on wet skin. I tried using it as a buff (on dry skin) on a small patch on my arm, and I felt it was slightly harsh for my skin.
I like to apply this on wet skin, all over my body, with special attention on areas where I have some build-up - upper arms, around my neck, back, elbows and knees.
While this is gentle enough to use it maybe twice or even thrice a week (depending on your skin type), I would recommend using it once a week.
4. On using the product for over a month
I have normal to slightly dry skin on my body. I have a genetic skin condition known as Keratosis Pilaris (KP) where there is a keratin buildup which forms a plug and blocks the hair follicle. This results in tiny bumps wherever there are hair follicles. For me this is prominent on my upper arms, back and upper thighs. It is not curable and the easiest way to keep it under control is to exfoliate the skin regularly. Additionally, my back seems to be more susceptible to clogged pores and I get many whiteheads on my back. I do not particularly have skin sensitivity, but my skin does react a little especially in those areas where the KP is more prominent. I also have dust, pollen and nickel allergies and this can cause severe urticaria (rashes) at times.
The brand claims that the scrub can reduce ingrown hair, remove dead & damaged skin cells (exfoliate), moisturize the skin and calm skin irritations.
I think this is a really good body scrub, especially for those with KP. You cannot scrub out the clogged pores in the case of KP, and KP tends to go hand in hand with dry, sensitive and eczema prone skin.
This scrub was very gentle on the skin, and did a good job at exfoliating my skin. At the same time it did wonders in moisturizing my skin. When paired with a good moisturizing body lotion post a shower, my skin felt so soft and supple (something I am not used to, since KP leaves tiny bumps). Also, I felt like my skin had a glow after using this product.
During the time frame of using this product, I did not have any skin irritation, so I couldn't really comment on the scrub's ability to soothe the skin.
I LOVED the experience of using this body scrub, right from how amazing it smells when you open the jar, to how it applies on your skin. It literally melts into the skin, and leaves the skin moisturized and glowing.
Final Thoughts
Is this the best body scrub ever – probably not, but it is an effective exfoliant, and moisturizes the skin brilliantly, that has left my skin soft and supple, and made my skin glow.
My issues being that this gets over quickly, and I’d like the option of buying larger packages, and if there was a way to ensure the product came as pictured – this would be a definite 5 / 5 product for me.
This is a definite repurchase for me!
Overall Rating: 4.5 / 5
Highly recommended for normal, dry and sensitive skin types.
Some of the ingredients in here are comedogenic and would recommend oily and acne prone skin types to patch test first.
Disclaimer: I am not a dermatologist. The product review is my personal opinion on the product, and what I understand from articles available online. The overview on ingredients has been sourced from websites that specifically look to provide information on commonly used ingredients in skincare and make-up.
Wherever I have mentioned a specific fact or figure, these have been sourced from published Journals, Paula’s Choice Ingredient Dictionary or INCI Decoder, and Journal sources listed on these websites. Information gathered from specific websites will be referenced as well.
I neither take credit for this information, nor can I guarantee the accuracy of these facts and figures and do not take responsibility for the same.
My main aim is to help people understand the various ingredients in their skincare and how those ingredients work, to help make intelligent purchase decisions with regards to skincare. If I have made any error or mistake, please do let me know, and we can work together to make the necessary changes.
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