Why Botanical Skincare?

The skincare industry is one of largest, money-making industries in the world when it comes to beauty and personal care products. Trends come and go almost instantaneously it feels, which makes it one of the most difficult industries to get into when it comes to making care products. One of our main missions when starting a brand was to create products that not only were the best for your skin but create something that actually works.

Kristina Stojanoski, Founder & CEO at Kiwa Studio became infatuated with skincare at a young age, she struggled with acne for most of her teenage years and up into her early twenties, "Learning more about what I was putting on my face had sent me into a spiral, I realized that I was using way too many products and many of them were abrasive on my skin" says Kristina, "Skincare is one of those things that I'd like to demystify for our community; when you don't know what exactly the products are doing to your skin, it can be easy to get caught up in beauty trends and find yourself doing way too many steps"

When Kristina discovered botanical care products it changed everything she says, "When I was a little girl, we would spend the summers at my aunts home back in the village in Macedonia where my parents both came from, I didn't know it then but my aunt was an herbalist. She'd pick and dry flowers like Calendula, or St. John's Wort and mix them into these beautiful, golden oils that she'd let sit on the windowsill for weeks until she decided to spoon feed them to us.

I still remember the blunt taste of the infusion that first time I tried it, as a kid I didn't understand but when I got older, something about this process radicalized me, I realized that she had used a simple technique using the gifts that the earth provides for us, to heal our family."

Herbalism is embedded in everything that we do even if you don't realize it.

This is what makes botanical skincare so important to me; this feeling that plants and herbs have always been the answer to healing ourselves not only internally but externally.

The most popular herbs you may be familiar with for their healing properties may be materials like Chamomile, Calendula, or even Rosehips. That direct plant to skin process is what we love here at Kiwa Studio. The science behind botanical skincare shows that it can deliver bioactive plant compounds like polyphenols, vitamins, and antioxidants, that mimic the skin's natural defense systems. [1.] These ingredients not only provide transformative results but since they are not synthetically created, they work in harmony with your skin's natural processes for healing, making them ideal for sensitive skin.

Adaptogens are another category of botanical, bioactive ingredients in skincare, that are currently being investigated due to their value in skin homeostasis and resiliency. [2.]

Naturally derived adaptogens from mushrooms, fruits, berries, and other plants stem from ancient medical preparations in traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, Kampo, and other alternative medicines. Adaptogens you may have most commonly heard of can be Reishi Mushroom, Ashwaganda, or Ginseng, a few of which we are present in our transformative, botanical skincare products that we craft here at Kiwa Studio. Studies show that Adaptogens may also offer anti-aging benefits and enhance overall wellness and longevity. [3.]

The importance of botanical skincare is more than just aesthetics and trends but it also lies in ancient tradition and practices that have been passed on for generations through herbalism techniques, something we hold at great value in our brand mission.

Sources:

1. National Library of Medicine

   https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2958188/

2. Liu XX, Chen CY, Li L et al. Bibliometric study of adaptogens in dermatology: pharmacophylogeny, phytochemistry, and pharmacological mechanisms. Drug Des Devel Ther. 2023;17:341–361. doi: 10.2147/DDDT.S395256.

   https://www.dovepress.com/bibliometric-study-of-adaptogens-in-dermatology-pharmacophylogeny-phyt-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-DDDT

3. R Sharma, P Sharma, R Bhardwaj

   American Journal of Multidisciplinary Research & Development, 2021•ajmrd.com

   https://www.ajmrd.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/D3102635.pdf