Botany Essentials Gender Neutral Beauty

If you want to cut down on the number of beauty products you travel with, and share as much as possible with your partner on the road, Botany Essentials offers an award-winning range of unisex goodies that everyone will love. But sharing is not the only reason why you should buy them.

• What Is It: A range of beauty products which men and women can use. 
• Why buy: There is a full range of products including body care, skin care and hair care in gender neutral packaging. 
• The Details: Botany Aromatherapy Hair & Body Wash and Conditioner cost rrp $20 each for 100ml, Naturals Hand & Body Body Wash costs rrp $35 for 250ml, Botany Naturals Hand & Body Lotion costs rrp $35 for 250ml, Botany Aromatherapy Balancing Creme Cleanser, Hydrating Mist & Toner, and Hydrating Creme cost rrp $35 each for 100ml, Botany Naturals Bath Soak costs rrp $45 for 200g, and Travel Blend essential oils cost rrp $28 for 12ml. Available from www.botanyessentials.com.au.

Road Test

A few years ago, when I was still freelancing for a major newspaper as a cruise  expert and travel writer, I was asked to write a story about the ideal beauty products which men and women could share on the road. First I did my due diligence; I asked men I knew what they would use from their female partner’s corner of the bathroom, and what put them off. One of the big things about female beauty products which didn't appeal was fragrance, especially if it was too “girlie”. While I found enough products for the story which kept both sexes happy, I struggled when it came to finding body washes, hair care and face creams. Fast forward to 2018, however, and unisex in beauty is a thing, with men and women across the globe sharing all manner of goodies from fragrances, to jewellery and some fashion. And leading this trend is the Melbourne based Botany Essentials, which was established over 20 years ago in 1997. Its award winning “gender neutral” organic products have beaten some of the best beauty brands in the world, with accolades including the Pure Global Beauty Award for Best New Skin Care Product 2018, and Best Organic Skin Care Manufacturer 2018 in the Lux Awards.

Botany Essentials doesn't use beautiful people to sell its products, it just sells beautiful products, with a focus on making natural products from Australian native flora. There are a number of brands within the range, and I was recently sent some to road test. First up was Botany Aromatherapy Hair & Body Wash, a nourishing, low foam, hydrating shampoo formulated with petitgrain and jojoba oil, along with soothing geranium and lavender. It’s suitable for washing hair frequently, something many people do on holiday, and doubles up as a body wash. The companion to this is Botany Aromatherapy Conditioner, which also features petitgrain, jojoba oil, geranium and lavender, leaving your hair smooth and tangle free, and nourished with softness and shine. Next up was Botany Naturals Hand & Body Body Wash, an intensive aromatic hand and body wash with premium Australian native plant extracts; it comes in a variety of different types, with the one I was sent containing native seaweed, avocado, sea minerals, and vitamins A, C and E. All of these botanical ingredients combine together to condition and hydrate the skin, leaving a fresh clean natural scent with the delicate aroma. A companion to this is the gorgeous body Botany Naturals Hand & Body Lotion, which not only smells divine thanks to a lineup of ingredients including Davidson plum and geranium, but is also intensely nourishing thanks to moringa oil. 

Among the lineup of gender neutral skincare products, there’s Botany Aromatherapy Balancing Creme Cleanser, which contains orange blossom and geranium, and is a gentle, soap free foaming cleanser ideal for sensitive and mature skin. After cleansing you can use Botany Aromatherapy Hydrating Mist & Toner, which contains rosewater, chamomile and witch hazel, to hydrate, balance and soothe the skin, and to finish use Botany Aromatherapy Hydrating Creme, which contains rosewood, frankincense, ylang ylang, geranium and jojoba oil and is suitable for all skin types. Botany Essentials also has a lineup of essential oils, one of which is suited to travellers. Travel Blend contains pure lavender, ginger, and peppermint, which can be used in vaporiser, added to massage oil or body lotion, inhaled from a tissue, or sprinkled on your pillow for a restful night’s sleep. And finally there’s Botany Naturals Bath Soak, a luxurious mineral-rich soak that soothes and moisturises the skin, with ingredients including marshmallow, Manuka honey and native seaweed combined with frankincense, neroli and geranium.

UltimateTravelMagazine.com Loves 

• Botany Essentials products are made with certified organic ingredients.
• Some come in handy travel sizes, with larger sizes to use at home.
• They are highly affordable.
• The products smell great - earthy, natural and fragrant without being too “girlie”.
• The Travel Blend essential oil is small enough to slip into your handbag for day-to-day use if stressed.
• The Bath Soak doubles up as a gentle body scrub on the road.