Maple Holistics Sweet Almond Oil Skincare Review | A Cruelty-Free, All Natural Brand!

It's true - once you experience the immensely soothing skincare benefits of almond oil, you never go back. This small almond oil obsession of mine is getting to be a bit real. . . 

Disclaimer: This product was kindly sent to me by Maple Holistics for testing and reviewing purposes.

Good day, everyone! It really is no secret that I have converted to natural body care, hair care, and skincare products. Makeup is still a bit of a work in progress in that regard, but really, with everything else, the simpler (and shorter!) the ingredients list is, for me, the better. 😁

So, how does one go about reviewing different brands of base oils without it getting a bit repetitive? In all honesty, of the total of 3 different natural almond oils I've tried in the past, I've enjoyed all of them: my introduction to almond oil was with the Aura Cacia Nurturing Sweet Almond Skincare Oil, then Nature's Truth Aromatherapy, and now, this Maple Holistics Skincare Sweet Almond Oil. All three are completely free of any preservatives, parabens, or any synthetic fragrance (all of them have little to no scent), all are cruelty-free, and all are incredibly soothing and are optimal for dry, dehydrated winter skin!

While remaining ultra soothing and nourishing, I've noticed a few different things while using this almond oil from Maple Holistics, as compared with the others I've tried. Read on for the review. Here's my roommate's kitten's approval (haha the cap is closed, trust me)! 😄😂😅

Application

When it boils down to my use of these oils, I'm actually quite boring in my methods. I simply deposit a dime-size amount into the palm of my hand, and I massage the oil into my face or apply it to damp hair. It's no different with this one from Maple Holistics. It gives a wonderful glide, and absorbs quickly into the skin. I use it in the morning and in the evening - something unique to the Maple Holistics almond oil from others I've tried is that it is cold-pressed, which is an optimal method of pressing for oils used in cooking as well as for beauty purposes (please note, this product is not to be ingested). So, when an oil is cold-pressed, the seed or nut is crushed and ground up, and the oil is forced out and dispensed in a separate manner. The less heat, the more pure the oil is. So since this method creates little to no heat, it gives you an oil with optimal, A-grade benefits. Bonus to Maple Holistics for making this so affordable at $9.45 for a generous 4 oz bottle!

Bare skin, within 5 minutes after applying Maple Holistics Almond Oil - absorbs beautifully!

Product Claims

I agree with all the product claims that are listed on Maple's site for this oil (to see this list of claims and to check out the product and site for yourself, please check out the Maple Holistics Site - they also offer free product samples, which can be found on their site at this link so you can get a sampling of their products for free). This oil definitely hydrates, without leaving a heavy, greasy feeling or residue on the skin or hair (this one may actually feel even a bit more lightweight on the skin once absorbed than the Aura Cacia, which is pretty lightweight as well!). 

This Maple Holistics Almond Oil has even been tested on my untamed, thick, coarse, unruly tresses, which I'm very weird about testing oils on (as my hair gets greasy pretty quickly). So, my thoughts: I found that this worked not only as an efficient frizz-tamer, but it also retained a bit more healthy shine and felt very silky in the 2 days post-wash, a bit moreso than it would have if I had just used a cream 

conditioner after shampooing. 

I've also used this as makeup remover. I just used a cotton round soaked in water, applied a light amount of the oil evenly to my face, and worked the cotton round help lift the skincare oil and makeup. A few cotton rounds later, all traces of makeup are completely lifted and removed beautifully. Due to the price per ounce of almond oil, I do prefer to use natural, unrefined coconut oil solid, instead, as it's cheaper. 

Consistency & Scent

This oil has a rather thin consistency, which aids its cause in feeling very lightweight during wear on skin, body or hair. This product is completely fragrance-free, to my nostrils. 

A Better Glance at the Consistency

Hello, there, Mr. Panda! 

Overall

I can definitely see myself purchasing this after I've polished off this bottle, as it's still moderately affordable. The price bracket is just a couple dollars more than what I've become accustomed to paying for almond oil, but this is high quality, and that quality is definitely evident upon first use. I love that it's still affordable, and the affordability is actually a bit surprising, given the cold-pressed process, which heightens the purity and overall quality of an oil to top-rate, and retains many, if not all, of the vitamins and minerals contained in the oil. Not to mention, the results are what I expect from a nice, high quality almond base oil: soft, smooth skin and hair that doesn't feel bogged down with product. 

I've experienced no clogged pores or irritation during my use of this in the past 5 days. The restorative properties of this are bar none, and using this on areas of inflammation or on painful blemishes makes me think of a more discreet Madam Pomfrey, who is a healer of magical powers in the Harry Potter series. Only almond oil soothes irritation and diminishes discomfort and inflammation at such a rate as she can heal Hogwarts students' minor sports scrapes and small cuts. I mean, the blemish is still there (and I've had many of them in the past month), but I don't feel it, ya know what I'm saying? This oil also tones down redness unlike any expensive skincare product I've ever used. I've never experienced any sort of skincare product working as fast as almond oil in that regard. So, since Aura Cacia has kind of fallen off my radar as far as availability (it's been out of stock for a while at the only Whole Foods within a 20 mile radius of where I live), I have no qualms with trying out something new, and would rather pay just a couple of dollars more on this if I know I'm getting something of moderately higher quality (I did receive this one for free from the company, just fyi 😁).

My One Slight Critique...

Just something I noticed, was that there wasn't much information on the label of the product. If the label on the packaging itself could have a bit more information about the product (listing a few of the claims would be very helpful - I see the directions for body, face, and hair on there, though, which is great in and of itself!) as well as including the email contact that's on their site for customer service and their Holistic Promise, that would be immensely helpful. Everything else is 100%, and I have no problem giving this product and my overall experience so far a hearty rating of 5/5.

More About Maple Holistics

This New Jersey-based company seems to have a really positive, genuine and engaging outreach on social media - they're trying to get natural, healthy products into the hands of more people, which I believe to be altruistic and something that's unique and kind of sets them apart from other companies. Their coordinators are pretty awesome and professional (at least the one I spoke with was! 😃), and when I looked online at their site to see if there was anything extra I could give in my post as far as giving more info on what their products and services are, and the layout of their site, I saw that they even have a subscription box of their products available for purchase on their site, which I found really interesting, and something not many companies offer.

By the way, I'm not being paid or endorsed or anything to tell you all about this - I'm not doing this in hopes that they'll send me more products - in fact, I'm moving in a couple weeks, so won't have an address associated to my name for a while anyways. 😂 So yeah, I'd be perfectly cool if this is the only free product I get from them in exchange for an honest review. I'm just saying this as a researcher, as this is actually the first company I've ever collaborated with, and I did so specifically because I was so impressed by their policy, their standards of health, and their views in regards to the all natural beauty offerings, as well as their efforts to make healthy beauty more inclusive and available to more people. So, of course, if I'm impressed, then yeah, you bet I'm gonna say something, peeps. 😊 

Oh, yeah, and I'm shook (I abhor that word with my entire being lol, but it accurately portrays how I feel)....but get this....Maple Holistics has an actual working customer service phone number, and multiple forms of email contact. Sheesh, you'd think it would be the norm, and yet, I can name at least 4 of some more well-known companies that have been around for a while and are everywhere on social media and market themselves to death, but still only have an email contact as their sole point of customer service. I mean, really now...So yeah, this is pretty impressive, on Maple Holistic's part. Another awesome bit, is that, according to their site, they have a 100% money-back guarantee! Welp, they may just have me as a customer in the near future, because as far as I'm concerned, those above characteristics are the makings of a successful, great company for customers to enjoy purchasing from. Hats off to you, Maple Holistics. With the way you're doing things now, you'll definitely go far and you'll grow tenfold!👍👍😃😄

Best,
- Cailee