The products: Desavery Stellar Daily Serum, Smooth Hyaluronic Acid with Clary Sage and Bergamot, and Dream Oil Cleanser
It’s rare that you find a skincare range as beautiful as Desavery’s. Simple packaging is easy to achieve — just ask brands like The Ordinary and MAC. But designing simple packaging that’s truly beautiful is much more difficult, and it really sets this Desavery review apart.
Bright green pop against moody greys in dropper bottles, and damn, it works. I’m instantly cheered by this super-sharp packaging. It’s the only skincare line I’ve ever intentionally left out on my countertop, and somehow, it makes my counters look cleaner rather than messier.
The Desavery review you’ve waited for
Desavery is a 100% natural, organic, vegan brand. It’s formulated to be intense: each product is packed with active ingredients and sustainably sourced components. You get what you pay for here, which doesn’t always happen in the skincare world. Each ingredient is sourced in small batches from socially-responsible producers and shipped to Desavery within days of being pressed, so your fresh product is actually fresh.
I’m always thrilled to find another Canadian brand, and this one was no exception. Not only are these products gorgeous, they’re also one of the only skincare regimens that have made a difference for me overnight.
I have crazy dry, flakey skin, as I’m sure you all know. (That’s why I have an entire section on extremely dry skin!) But when I use this cleanser, serum, and oil, I wake up with flake-free skin every morning. The combination of active ingredients is a little too much for my skin—my skin tingles and breaks out after a few days—but using each part separately gives me great results without overloading my sensitive skin.
Desavery Stellar: A “hero” product
Stellar ($95 CAD) is the flagstone of the Desavery lineup, and it’s easy to see why. This serum highlights prickly pair, rosehip, and camellia oils to “brighten skin tone and improve elasticity.” It’s rich and hydrating, with a golden yellow hue.
These hydrating oils pair alongside clary sage, bergamot, and frankincense. They’re intended to balance the skin and “induce calm,” so it’s important to note that this one is quite scented. Stellar is the product that made my skin tingle at first (it’s so intense), but it’s amazing when you build up to using it at full strength.
If you buy only one Desavery product, let it be this one. It’s gorgeous and effective, and 5% of its profits go back to the women in the co-op that sources its prickly pear seed oil.
Desavery Dream and Smooth
When I started prepping for my Desavery review, I knew that Stellar would be the highlight of the post. But more and more, I found myself using Smooth ($55 CAD). The key ingredients (botanical sodium hyaluronate and salicylic acid) are the same in each, so I recommend picking one based on your scent preference. Mine smells herbal and hydrates generously, although I do find that I go through it rather quickly. (I’m a monster with my hyaluronic gels. I wish this came in a bottle as big as the Dream!)
I’ve never been a fan of oil cleansers, so the Desavery Dream Oil Cleanser ($57 CAD) was more of an obligated-by-my-conscience-to-try than an excited-to-try. It’s what I expected. Dream smells like a day at the spa, and it’s a thick oil that is best removed with a warm washcloth. The formula features spikenard, bergamot, and ylang ylang in a base of sunflower, camellia, and castor seed oils.
If you have truly dry skin, I absolutely recommend trying a product like Dream. It washes away my makeup without stripping my skin in the least; I just find that I can’t use it on a regular basis because my skin cells are so reluctant to shed. (You can get a similar effect by cleansing with jojoba oil and a hot cloth.) Unlike cleansing oils that you’d find in Sephora or the drugstore, this one doesn’t turn milky or foam upon contact with water — it really is an oil. For those who love a nourishing product, this one is great.
(But for those who think that cleansing oils are kind of slimy, I’d recommend sleeping on Dream and going for Stellar and Smooth instead!)
The Desavery review verdict?
I don’t prioritize all-natural skincare products, but Desavery makes me feel like I ought to. These products are good for the skin and the environment, and each bottle of Stellar gives back to the community.
I’m very happy with the Stellar serum, but less enthusiastic about the Dream cleanser. Smooth is another great find at a reasonable price point — I don’t like it as much as my favourite hyaluronic acid serum (SkinCeuticals Hydrating B5 Gel), but at $55 CAD, it’s sustainably-sourced and half the price.
Availability: $55 CAD and up. Permanent at Desavery.
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