Teadora: Amazon Powered Beauty

Disclaimer:  I purchased these.

I've been on a search new body oils, fueled by my rather loose translation of Abhyanga.  What is Abhyanga, you may ask?  This video will both explain and demonstrate it better than I can, but it's the Ayurvedic practice of self-massage with warm oil. 

I like to do a quick oil massage after my morning yoga, as it further relaxes me and sets such a lovely tone for the day.  While I have some jojoba oil that works quite fine for this purpose, I tend to reserve it as a carrier oil to mix with my Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab perfume oils. Consequently, my eye was caught while perusing beauty.com's new brands by Teadora, a company that features products inspired by and sourced from the Amazon rain forest.  I love the culture/ethos of the company, which you can read more about here.  All of Teadora's products are 100% vegan with ethically sourced and sustainably harvested superfood ingredients. They are also free of harsh chemicals and toxins, cruelty, gluten, and synthetic fragrances, and are made in the US.

After doing a bit of searching, I discovered that Teadora has a "try before you buy" sample offer on their site where I was able to chose 5 different samples for a $5 shipping fee.  I believe there was a GWP sample offer as well, which accounts for the 6th sample.  Considering the oils are $48 for 8 oz. and come in 3 different scents, I figured I'd be better off trying some samples before committing to one.  That turned out to be smart, as my first choice based on the scent notes listed - Rainforest at Dawn - turned out to not be my favorite.  Instead, I preferred Rainforest at Dusk.  Descriptions below are courtesy of beauty.com.

• Radiance and Renewal Oil Rainforest at Dawn ($48 for 8 oz.):  Earthy & herbal with a bright, sparkling citrusy burst of bergamot and lemon swirled with eucalyptus, basil & earthy florals to awaken your senses. 
• Radiance Glow Oil in Amazonian Afternoon ($40 for 4 oz.): Exotic cattleya orchids, freesia and river cyclamen flowers, sparkling orange peel, savory green sage and delicate ylang-ylang blossom will take your breath away. 
• Radiance and Renewal Oil Rainforest at Dusk ($48 for 8 oz.):  Botanical yet smooth with sexy floral notes of rose absolute, geranium, amber, patchouli, blended with a hint of orange & coconut to soothe and revitalize your senses.

Right off the bat, I cannot figure out why the Radiance Glow Oil in Amazonian Afternoon is significantly more expensive than the other two oils, as the ingredient lists seem to be the same for all three:
Organic Tinctorious (Safflower) Seed Oil, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Kosher Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Berthorlletia Excelsa (Brazil Nut) Seed Oil, Organic Rosa Canina/Rosa Rubiginosa (Rose Hip) Seed Oil, Orbignya Oleifera (Babassu) Seed Oil, Eugenia Unifloran (Pitanga) Leaf Oil, Organic Mauritia Flexuosa (Buriti) Fruit Oil, Passiflora Edulis (Purple Passionfruit) Seed Oil, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Oil, Salvia Hispanica (Chia) Oil, Non-GMO Tocopherol (Mixed-Ester) Vitamin E, Retinol Palmitate (Vitamin A), Argania Spinosa Sprout Cell Extract, Isolmalt, Lecithin, Sodium Benzoate, Aqua, Natural Fragrances

The fragrances for all 3 oils arevdistinct yet not overpowering, and indeed I could not distinguish any fragrance 2 hours post application.  The oils were light and soaked in nicely without a greasy after feel, leaving my skin soft and nicely hydrated.

I also ordered samples of the Moisture Repair Body Butter in Dawn ($38), the Brightening & Exfoliating Mud in Dawn ($34), and the Sugar Scrub & Red Clay Masque ($36).  The body butter smelled like it had started to turn, although the formula itself was quite lovely.  The exfoliating mud and sugar scrub/red clay masque were nice but the small size precluded a whole body experience.  I used them on my underarms, where I've got some bumps from ingrown hair, and they both did a nice job of exfoliating without feeling too harsh.  They contain enough moisturizing ingredients that my skin was not stripped and instead felt velvety afterward.  The scents veer towards the more earthy/herbal end of the arena, but that speaks to their ingredient list and lack of synthetic fragrances, which I appreciate.

My order came with a nice hand written thank you note and a bonus sample bar of their Nourishing Exfoliating soap ($14).  It does indeed have a textured finish courtesy of acai seeds that when used directly against the skin does a good job of exfoliating.  I actually like this quite a lot.

Ingredients: Organic Sodium Palmate, Organic Sodium Cocoate, Aqua (water), Natural Glycerin, Amazonian Clay, Natural Açaí Berry, Organic Sodium Citrate, Organic Buriti Fruit Oil, Organic Cupuaçu Butter, Natural Fragrance.

After sampling everything I decided on the Radiance and Renewal Oil in Rainforest at Dusk, which I ordered from beauty.com due to several GWP's they had going on.  However, FedEx lost my order, whamp whamp.  After contacting beauty.com they promptly resent my order, minus the GWP's, which was the primary reason I ordered from them.  In the intervening 3 weeks I was waiting on my order I also discovered another organic oil blend that is more reasonably priced (more on that to come), so I sent the replacement oil back.  I'm sure I would have enjoyed the Teadora oil, but I really can't justify the price right now.