• BEAUTY
Aavrani Review: A New Skincare Ritual
Reviewed by Maggie Gibson
Last Updated January 2022
Why We Love Aavrani
Aavrani is a woman-founded and led skincare brand that is made in the USA and uses earth-based ingredients to treat and prevent skincare issues like uneven skin tone, dullness, redness, fine lines and wrinkles, acne, and more. They sell a variety of skincare products from cleansers and masks to Vitamin C and moisturizers that bridge the gap between beauty and wellness. Their products are especially good for those with sensitive skin. Use them individually or as a full set to achieve long-term healthy and beautiful skin.
Pros
- Effective all-natural ingredients that target skin concerns
- Clinically-proven results for skin concerns after 21 days of use
- 2% of annual proceeds donated to the Shanti Bhavan Children’s project
- They sell a variety of skincare products that fit in every part of your routine. Buy them individually or in a set based on specific skin concerns.
- Take their quiz online to see which products work best for your skin
- Products range from $29-$70 and are available in a variety of sizes, including travel sizes!
Cons
- Like with any skincare product, it doesn’t work for everyone and you need to try the products for a few weeks to see how your skin reacts.
The Highlights
What’s included:
- Luxury skincare products made out of all natural ingredients.
- No parabens, mineral oils, sulfates, irritants, synthetic fragrances, or animal cruelty.
- Made in the USA.
- Clinically-proven, effective products that target specific skincare issues like uneven skin tone, dullness, and redness. Ability to shop based on specific skincare concerns.
- A woman-lead brand that focuses on embracing individual beauty and identity.
- 2% of annual revenue donated to the Shanti Bhavan Children’s Project to support young women’s education.
About Aavrani
Aavrani’s founder, Rooshy Roy, is the daughter of Indian immigrants. Born and raised in Michigan, Roy often felt the cultural duality between her Indian and American identities in her life, and ended up disassociating herself from a lot of her Indian identity as she grew up. As she continued her career in finance, she found the stress wrecked havoc on her skin but all of the products she tried to fix her skin issues didn’t work.
So, she decided to revisit her grandmother’s all-natural skincare and haircare recipes that she had such fond memories of experiencing during her summers in India as a child. Through this process, she not only completely improved her skin issues, but also reconnected with her heritage. Roy quit her job to build a company that allowed her to embrace her dualities and help others do the same.
Aavrani started by selling four skincare products each meant to represent one of the Aavrani rituals: Purify, Restore, Hydrate, and Revitalize and have since expanded their line. Aavrani's products are centered around the Aavrani ritual, which encourages embracing your deeper beauty rather than scrutinizing your skincare “problems.” Aavrani believes that a skincare routine is a time to center yourself and connect with your body, and they encourage people to take time when using their products.
Most importantly, Aavrani products are 100% natural, vegan, free of parabens, not tested on animals, and made in the USA. When used for 21 days, they have clinically proven benefits for skincare issues like dull uneven skin tone, dehydration, fine lines, and more. Aavrani also has a give back element to their brand; they donate 2% of annual proceeds to Shanti Bhavan, a program that empowers children from impoverished backgrounds through ways like education, emotional development, and physical fitness.
Ratings Breakdown
QUALITY
★★★★★
High quality, clinically proven, natural skincare. Gentle yet effective. The Glow Activating Exfoliator is unparalleled.
VALUE
★★★★
Inexpensive compared to other luxury products, but still on the expensive side compared to some other products available in the market. Savings when you buy their sets.
CUSTOMER
EXPERIENCE
★★★★★
The most beautiful packaging I’ve seen to date. The website and packaging all explain the background behind each product, the problems it tackles, and how to use it. Not to mention they look great!
BRAND
★★★★★
Inclusive and educational with a focus on connecting outer and inner beauty. Plus the company features a give-back element to help children from impoverished backgrounds.
PERKS
★★★★
Came with helpful hairclips to pin hair back when working through your Ritual. Also sell merchandise like comfy sweatshirts and skincare tools. Plus, you can subscribe and save if Aavrani becomes part of your daily skincare routine.
Unboxing Aavrani's Products
Aavrani's products arrived at my doorstep in the most beautiful boxes I have ever seen featuring imagery that nods to the brand’s heritage and natural beauty focus. In the inside of the main box, beautiful designs outline the all-natural ingredients in the set and the benefits to using each ingredient. Each box also speaks to how to use the product and what the benefits are. Once I unpacked them, they looked so beautiful sitting on my counter that I didn’t even want to take the products out of them to start the test.
Before I talk about my experience using the products, here’s a little bit about me and my skin issues. I have fair skin that features an oily nose and chin but an often dry and flaky forehead. I’m always fighting general dehydration throughout my skin, and I look for new products to use in my routine that will offer hydration without making my skin feel too heavy or oily. My skin is also sensitive to new products, and I have to counterbalance the redness that takes over my skin as well. While I don’t suffer from acne anymore, I do break out around my mouth and chin due to hormonal changes and I have been battling blackheads recently. I tend to get dark circles/bags under my eyes. These are just a few of the problems that I hoped Aavrani's products could help me with when I started using the set.
Glow Activating Exfoliator
Multiple estheticians have recommended that I use exfoliators weekly to treat my dry and flaky skin. Exfoliating is an important step in a skincare routine to remove dead skin and allow products to penetrate skin better and actually work. Because if you apply products onto dead skin, it’s not going to be effective and no one has time for ineffective products. So I’ve started introducing exfoliators into my weekly skincare routine, but they are often rough on my skin, leaving residual redness.
Enter, Aavrani’s Glow Activating Exfoliator. It uses turmeric, Neem, and honey to address skin concerns. Turmeric is anti-inflammatory and especially good for sensitive skin. Plus, Neem, an Indian skincare staple, is full of antioxidants, and honey draws moisture from the air for long-lasting hydration.
Aavrani claims their exfoliator is clinically proven to even skin tone and complexion, brighten skin tone, even skin texture, reduce redness, reduce acne scars and blemishes, receive irritation, enable moisturizer to penetrate for longer hydration, and reduce the appearance of pores. I mean wow. With results like those, sign me up.
The Glow Activating Exfoliator is the foundation of the ritual set. It is a dual-purpose cleanser and face mask to use about once a week to gently exfoliate the skin, brighten the skin, and even skin tone. The key word there is gently. Using the exfoliator is easy. Apply it to the face as a thin layer and lightly rub it in to activate the exfoliant.
Then, leave it on for 5 minutes while the mask hardens. Remove the residue with a damp cloth when the time is up and voila! Fresh, smooth skin. The first time I used it, I saw immediate results. Unlike other exfoliants, this one left my skin feeling soft, smooth, and hydrated. Plus, no extreme redness! Score. My skin really did look brighter and cleaner. I had a more even skin tone, and the texture with very smooth throughout the week.
Healing Rose Clay Mask
The Healing Rose Clay Mask is a recent addition to the Aavrani product lineup, and a welcomed one at that. This mask can be used weekly to draw out impurities in the skin and improve skin elasticity. As evidenced by its name, the mask features Rose Clay, Rose Water, and Rose Oil to help soothe and hydrate the skin, along with other natural products like Saffron and Pomegranate.
The mask is easy to use - just apply it to the face for 5 minutes. It will harden as it draws out impurities. Similar to the Turmeric mask, this mask goes on very smoothly and feels good on the skin. It’s easy to add into my skincare routine since it only takes 5 minutes to use, and it’s great for sensitive skin. While the Turmeric mask is my favorite because it hits a lot of skin concerns I am dealing with, I would recommend the Rose Clay Mask for anyone dealing with redness or rosacea due to the ingredients. Unlike other clay masks I have tried out, my skin felt smooth and hydrated, rather than tight and dry, when I took it off.
Purifying Oil Cleanser
I started double cleansing with an oil cleanser this year and it has completely changed my skin. I’ve found that oil cleansing is a great way to take my makeup off without dehydrating the skin like other makeup removers, wipes, or cleansers. If you wear SPF every day (which you should!) it’s also a great way to take off any leftover SPF. And although it may seem a bit counterproductive, Oil cleansing does not leave your skin even more oily than before, so it works for all types of skin.
Aavrani’s Oil Cleanser is a great product to try wherever you are in your oil cleansing journey. It’s made with 11 natural ingredients like sandalwood oil and aloe, and is very gentle on the skin. In fact, the first time I tried it, I was surprised at how gentle it was! But don’t let that fool you, it’s very effective too. It removes makeup easily while keeping your skin feeling hydrated and clean. Follow it up with a second cleanser or move on to your toner step.
Balance Restoring Serum
The Balance Restoring Serum is like a toner and serum combined into one. Made out of Tea Tree oil to fight acne, cucumber oil extract to sooth and relieve the skin, and chamomile flowers to block irritants, the serum is easy to apply with a cotton pad across the face and neck. The Serum does have witch hazel in it, which is an ingredient I have avoided in the past due to negative reactions with my skin. However, when I used the serum I didn’t have any negative results. Truthfully, I didn’t even know it had witch hazel until a few days after I used it and was looking at the ingredients to write this review! So I doubt there is enough in there to make a negative difference, but it’s still a good idea to be careful.
The Balance Restoring Serum is easy to use both day and night. It can be easily integrated into a daily skincare routine after cleansing to restore and protect skin. It’s also thin and easy to layer under or over other products. Unlike other serums, after applying it, it doesn't feel heavy on my skin and it doesn’t take a while to seep into the skin.
Firming Vitamin C
If you’re following skincare trends, Vitamin C is an ingredient you’ve probably heard a lot about. Vitamin C is an ingredient that helps brighten the skin, target hyperpigmentation, and fight any dullness. Aavrani’s Vitamin C is supposed to illuminate, brighten, and soften skin over time. The ingredients are skin plumping, featuring Amla Fruit, Papaya Enzymes, and Guava Extracts.
I’ve been using Vitamin C in my morning skincare routine for about two years, and Aavrani’s Firming Vitamin C is one of the best I’ve ever used. While other Vitamin C serums can be thick or heavy, leaving feel feeling sticky or dry, Aavrani’s Vitamin C is thin and delivers an immediate softening effect. It goes on easily and is very easy to layer. I absolutely love this Vitamin C. Compared to others on the market, this is a little on the expensive side, but it’s very effective so I will be purchasing more.
Moisturizing Hydra-Cream
Aavrani’s Hydra-Cream is their daily moisturizer that delivers instant hydration to the skin. It is oil free and made of Lychee Fruit, Tamarind Seed, and Moringa Leaf. Plus, hydrating ingredients like Hyaluronic Acid and Squalane help prevent moisture loss and reduce appearance of fine lines for a healthy, radiant complexion.
I loved this daily moisturizer from Aavrani. While it’s technically a cream, it’s not heavy like other creams that I have used. It’s lightweight and leaves the skin feeling soft and fresh. I’ve used this as both a daily moisturizer and a night time cream because it’s easy to layer and doesn’t clog the pores. Plus, it comes in a beautiful blue pump bottle that makes it easy to distribute the right amount on your hand. At $38, this is a great middle-priced high quality moisturizer that lasts for a while and works well.
Softening Hydra-Whip
Aavrani calls this the “ultra-hydrating day and night moisturizer.” This is thicker than their other moisturizer, and leaves the skin feeling soft and supple. It’s formulated with organic Coconut Milk, Meadowfoam and Rosehip Seed Oils, plus Shea Nut and Lavender Extract.
While I enjoyed the Hydra-Whip moisturizer, it was a little too thick for me to use in the daytime so I tend to use it during the night time, especially in the winter. I prefer the Hydra-Cream since it is a bit lighter but still just as hydrating, but I think both are good to have in your medicine cabinet for great hydration.
Eye Rejuvenating Elixir
Aavrani's Eye Rejuvenating Elixir works to minimize the appearance of dark circles and fine lines. It’s made out of vitamin rich almond oil, rosewater, and avocado oil to moisture and fill eyelids with vitamins that fight problems like dark circles and discoloration.
The eye cream is lightweight and easy to apply. For me, it’s worked the best to reduce puffiness and keep the skin under my eye soft and hydrated. After some late nights working, the Elixir helped fight the bags forming under my eyes. Plus, when I put it on, I know it’s playing the long game to protect my eyes against fine lines and wrinkles. A little goes a long way, so while this is the most expensive of the individual products, it lasts a while.
The Bottom Line
Aavrani's products make my skin feel like I just had a facial. After using their products, my skin was bright, smooth, soft, and hydrated. My skin had no negative reaction from the first time that I used it (a first for me!) and I saw a noticeable difference in my skin glow and texture right away.
Aavrani's products have been easy to adapt intermittently in my routine. The Restoring Serum is great when I need to give my skin a little TLC after a long day, and the Hydra-Whip has become one of my main moisturizers during these cold winters that dry out my skin. But the Glow Exfoliator is the star of the show here. It is the foundation of the set, which allows the other products to perform well and do their job. It’s unlike other products I have used before, and I would recommend it to anyone, especially those with sensitive skin and similar skin concerns. If any of this sounds interesting to you, explore and purchase the products below.