Review: Madara Organic Skincare

Madara are a Latvian company with ECOCERT status who have made great waves in natural beauty circles for their organic products using Nordic plants, herbs and oils. They do face, body and hair products as well as a baby range. Some of their products contain honey and beeswax so are not suitable for vegans but those reviewed below are all vegan.

I recently tried out three of Madara's bestselling products.

MICELLAR WATER

This micellar water was one I had heard lots of glowing praise about from fellow bloggers. I always use a micellar water to remove my make-up before cleansing, so I was keen to try this. It smelled delicately of flowers, went on nicely and left my skin very soft. Unfortunately, it wasn't as tough on eye make-up as I would have liked and I found myself using much more of it than I had of my previous micellar water and even then, I had to use another product afterwards to completely remove any residue. Just to add here that I don't wear waterproof mascara. As the bottle is only 150ml, I found that I used nearly half of it in a week, which at £14 per bottle, isn't particularly economical. So, it's a lovely natural water and would be fine on the rest of my face, but for eye make-up, it doesn't cut it for me.

Ingredients:

Aloe Barbadensis Rosa Damascena Hamamelis Virginiana Glycerin Benzyl Alcohol Sodium PCA Potassium Sorbate Lactic Acid Aroma Sodium Hyaluronate Paeonia Lactiflora (Peony) Root Extract Caprylic/Capric Glucoside Xylitylglucoside Propanediol Anhydroxylitol Xylitol Phragmites Communis Extract Poria Cocos Extract Rhamnose Glucose Glucuronic Acid

FINE LINE MINIMISING DAY CREAM

This moisturiser for dry to very dry skin was part of the July Love Lula Beauty Box. It's one of the Smart Antioxidants range of anti-ageing products. It's an absolutely gorgeous moisturiser, not too thick and greasy, but not too light either. It's perfect under make-up and the 20ml tube goes a long way. I would definitely use it again, but  I would have to trial it for a lot longer to comment on whether fine lines were reduced. Since I started a new skincare regime and switched to natural products this year, my facial skin isn't as dry as it used to be. However, when winter comes, I suspect this would be the perfect moisturiser for me. 

Ingredients:

Aqua Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil Alcohol Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil Dicaprylyl Carbonate Rosa Damascena (Rosa) Flower Water Glycerin Hydrogenated Macadamia Integrifolia Seed Oil Aroma Cellulose Xanthan Gum Propanediol Mica ( CI 77019 ) Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891) Alchemilla Vulgaris (Lady's Mantle) Extract Polypodium Vulgare Rhizome (Fern) Extract Sodium phytate Xylitol Sodium Hyaluronate Tocopherol Ascorbyl Palmitate (Vitamin C) Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid Cetraria Islandica Thallus (Lichen) Extract Sphagnum Magellanicum (Moss) Extract Citric acid Limonene Linalool Eugenol Benzyl Salicylate Citral

HERBAL DEODORANT

I bought this on the recommendation of many people. I have issues with natural deodorant and have yet to find one that suits me and does the job it's supposed to. Firstly, it was nice to find a roll-on as I do like them and prefer them above sprays, creams and pastes. Secondly, it smelled nice and thirdly, it seemed to actually work! It's not particularly fast-drying, but I expect that from any roll-on. The weather has been lousy since I started testing this, but I have used this in a hot work environment and while a couple of times I've had a hint of sweat at the end of the day, in general, it has held up remarkably well and better than any natural deodorant I've used so far. What a result! It's not cheap at £12 which is the only thing that puts me off using this long term. 

Ingredients:

Aqua, Glycerin, Potassium Alum, Rosa Damascena (Rose) Flower Water, Chondrus Crispus (Irish Moss) Powder, Calendula Officinalis (Calendula) Flower Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Chamomile) Flower Extract, Salvia Officinalis (Salvia) Leaf Extract, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Extract, Aroma, Limonene, Linalool, Geraniol

In summary: Three products from an exciting range that I really enjoyed using, two of which I would purchase again. I will definitely be adding Madara to my favourite brands list.

You can buy the Madara range at Love Lula here

Madara's website here is well worth a look. It has an extensive ingredients page and you can also book a tour of their factory if you find yourself in Latvia!