Review: Leyende Organic Products

Several months ago, I bought some products from Leyende and promised to write a review after I tried them. Although I wanted to make sure that I used them long enough before giving a non-biased opinion, this is quite a long-overdue post. Some readers have been asking for my verdict on their products, so here goes:

Being an organics junkie, Leyende was among the first local organics manufacturers that I ordered from. Their atttractive website layout and cute packaging lured me into buying. The humorous names of their product arrays likewise grabbed my attention.  The idea of paying through paypal made deciding to buy online a lot easier, although I ended up paying through gcash because at that time, they were having problems with their paypal account. I got 4 products that were neatly packed using environmentally-friendly materials.

1. Place In The Sun Face Sunblock SPF 30

Ingredients:

deionized aqua, infusion of rosemary and calendula (marigold), organic shea butter, organic sweet almond oil, virgin coconut oil, tinosorb, vit. E, vit. C, vit. B3, organic calendula & aloe extract, grapeseed extract

Strong Points:

This has got to be one of the best sunblocks I used. They say regular application of sunblock is one big favor you can do for your skin, but I say that using an organic variety is one of the healthiest investments you can ever make. There are no harmful preservatives to worry about  and  its lightweight creamy consistency makes it easy to apply to the skin.  It is quickly absorbed, with no sticky or greasy feel afterwards, and it doesn't cause breakouts, either. This odorless sunblock is a winner for  for people with sensitive skin and those who dislike annoying scents in cosmetics. The SPF 30 affords enough protection when you're going out.

Weak Points:

The price- it sells for Php400 or US $15 (for international customers) per 50ml tube. Not bad for its quality, organic nature, and the fact that it will last you for a long time, but somehow its cost makes me wish that Human Heart Nature (a local organic brand  known for its affordable prices) will have its own line of sunblock.

2. Kiss Kiss Balm



Ingredients:

grade a beeswax from ethical apiaries, organic calendula extract, organic sunflower oil, natural plant coloring: alkanet root, spirulina, orris root

Strong Points:

Their highly-emolient formulation of lip balm is one of my best defenses against dry lips. I think the pink variant I got is Froyo, which has the scent of berry yoghurt .  I can't say it has solved my perennial problem of dry,cracking lips but it does help lessen the problem. If you have issues with petroleum-based lip products, this will be your ally, because this works just as well, minus the petroleum. It can also act as moisturizer for cuticles, as well as a skin-protecting balm for burns and cuts.  Despite that it has 7 been months after I opened it, and  considering that it doesn't contain preservatives found in non-organic lip products, it is still intact with no signs of deterioration- .  A Php200 15 g jar will sure go a long, long way.

Weak Points:

It has quite a perfumy -lip balm smell that I find weird- it's like dabbing berry perfume on my lips. The breakable jar will not be convenient to carry around your purse, so most likely it will stay home and be part of your morning rituals instead of being a handy beauty arsenal brought everywhere. It has a glossy finish which is ok with women, but men with chapped lips will not like this for a remedy, unless they want their shiny puckers to announce to the world that they're wearing lip balm .

3. Face Canvas

Ingredients:

organic sweet almond oil, ylang-ylang infusion, organic mango butter, grade a beeswax, deionized water, virgin coconut oil, soy lecithin, organic carrot extract, vit. e., organic vanilla oil

Among the 4 Leyende products I bought, this was the first to go, not only because it was just  a mini 10g jar preparation, but because I always looked forward to applying this primer on my face. The milky-cocoa  scent is addicting, it's like feeding your skin with a yummy champorado (chocolate porridge). It's supposed to have mango butter but I don't know why it smells more chocolatey than mango-floatey to me. It's an organic alternative to silicone-based makeup primers  that aims to provide a smooth base and to control the oiliness of the face. Being a walking oil mine,  it helped my makeup last longer, its oil control is ok,  but not on a rave-worthy level. I think I paid more attention to its scent than its oil-control properties. I liked topping it off with my favorite mineral makeup powder and I can go to work reveling in the lightness and smoothness of my skin, as if I had no makeup on. The hydrating property and creamy consistency of this primer needs no addition of a moisturizer to your regimen, as this acts as a moisturizer and primer in one. This usually comes in 60g jar that costs Php450 or $15, which is reasonable enough for me.

Weak Points:

This is obviously something I really loved, so I can't think of any of its downside, except maybe that its scent can make you hungry.

4. Clean Slate

Ingredients:

grade a royal jelly, honey, beeswax, goat or soy milk, organic pineapple extract, ylang-ylang infusion, oat extract, a-tocopherol (vitamin E), grapeseed extract, organic coconut extract

Like the Face Canvas, the Clean Slate has a delicious scent that has the tendency to get you hungry. This vanilla- scented skin treat  multi-tasks as a facial wash, makeup remover and toner.   The royal jelly base allows thorough cleansing without drying, the pineapple extract acts as a toner, while the wild Philippine Ylang-Ylang infusion contains anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties.  The skin looks and feels clean after using this as a facial wash, although I'm not used to non-sudsy facial cleansers.  As a makeup remover, it can be likened be Pond's cold cream, but I still turn to my regular makeup removers for hard to erase eye makeups.

Weak Points:

It feels slippery on the skin even after rinsing, but is solved after patting the skin off gently with a towel. I used a product very similar to this one before which was given as a freebie by Luminare and was sold at a much cheaper price (less than Php 100 for a 50ml bottle). It got me wondering if the ingredients are the same coz the Php 350 /$12 price of a 100ml Clean Slate tube makes me want to ask Luminare for a truckload of that freebie. But then again, Leyende products are packaged differently. The brand has a classy appeal  and takes conscious efforts in ensuring the quality of their products. And did I mention that they had excellent customer service and quick shipping?

Leyende organic skin care products are available online at http://www.leyende.com/.