What is a toner and why do you need one?

We frequently get asked this question at Fig & Flower when making skincare recommendations. Toners are an important step in skincare to hydrate, revitalize, soothe, and balance the pH of the skin. Toners can be used right after cleansing or sprayed on the skin throughout the day for a good dose of refreshment or rehydration. Those with more oily or combination skin might feel a toner is enough on its own after cleansing, but those with dry skin usually want to follow up with a moisturizer to help lock in the moisture. Depending on ingredients, some toners or toning mists can also be sprayed on top of makeup to give your skin a more dewy look. Here is a look at some of the toners that we sell at Fig & Flower and how to decide which one could work best for you.

Final Takeaway:

Toners are an excellent multi-use product that offer tailored benefits to the skin depending on personal hydration needs and lifestyle. We encourage you to come by Fig & Flower to test out some of these amazing products and see how adding a facial toner or mist can elevate your skincare routine.

When I think about holiday gifts, I think in two different ways: what I would want to give... and what I would want to receive. As the owner of Fig & Flower, I'm a little biased; I love every single product and brand that we carry. I'm lucky in that I get to not only know the brand, but the person behind it which is a unique and awesome position. However, if I had to choose my absolute favorite items in the store, this is a good collection. When you're shopping for those green gods and goddesses in your life, I'd consider gifting them something from this list. If you're sending your list to someone, add one or two of these items (treat yourself!). 

Ursa Major Golden Hour Recovery Cream: This wonderfully rich yet fast-absorbing face cream provides deep hydration and nourishment to heal dry, sensitive or neglected skin. Use it daily for intense hydration or at night as a "wrinkle-busting" recovery cream. Ideal for men and women with drier skin or anyone recovering from prolonged exposure to the elements.

HollyBeth Organics Grits and Honey Scrub: Home is where the heart is, and in the case of this deliciously effective facial exfoliant, it’s where the ingredients were born. In HollyBeth’s quest to create the ultimate scrub, her mother recommended a true southern staple — grits. This southern-inspired scrub gently eliminates dead skin cells, leaving behind a soft and radiant complexion. Left on for a few extra minutes, it becomes a luxurious, deep-moisture facial mask. Great for face and body!

Vapour Lux Organic Lip Conditioner:  Lux is the pure prescription for healthy lips. This luxurious Organic formula glides on like a dream to restore vital nutrients and protect lips from moisture loss and environmental stress. Lips need moisture and purity above all else and Lux delivers. Organic Jojoba oil nourishes and regenerates tired lips and restores a supple youthful appearance. Lux’s lip-specific infusion contains antioxidant Helichrysum Flower, anti-inflammatory Lemon Balm, and restorative Organic Calendula Flower.

ILIA Lipstick Crayon: ILIA Lipstick Crayons are packed with healing oils of Coconut, Sesame and Cranberry Seed. 80% Organic, Vegan. 

One Love Organics Cleansing Sponge: The Cleansing Sponge is made with 100-percent pure konjac plant fiber, prized for its ability to detoxify pores and smooth skin while buffing away dirt and makeup. Soft yet exfoliating, The Cleansing Sponge is ideal for everyday use on even the most sensitive skin. The following sponges cater to specific skin types.

Captain Blankenship Golden Waves Sea Salt Shimmer Spray: Captain Blankenship's original Mermaid Sea Salt Hair Spray gets golden! It's the same classic organic Sea Salt Hair Spray formula but with added natural gold mica for beautiful shimmer. This golden magic works well on all hair colors, adding life, shine, and strength to your tresses. Stroll through a sunbeam and watch your organic glam make heads turn!

Sambuca Modern Apothecary Essential Oil: These 100% pure essential oil blends are perfect for any diffuser (like our new Mia) to keep your home smelling (naturally) lovely! These blends are undiluted and are to be used in a diffuser or diluted properly.  Use to make your own room spray, use a few drops in a bath, in a body oil...get creative! You can also add them to body lotions or oils for a little added scent. Free from all synthetic fragrance additives.

100% Pure Pretty Naked Palette: The Pretty Naked Palette is your very own makeup magic kit that will not only have you looking gorgeous, naturally but conveniently fits in your clutch. This palette includes soft, neutral tones that will enhance and beautify without making you look too made up. Each individual product provides a 100% Natural, nourishing formula packed with antioxidants, vitamins, and beautiful colors from pigments of fruits, seeds, flowers, and vegetables. Palette contains: pink champagne luminescent powder, pretty naked blush, and eye shadows in flax seed, toffee, and chestnut.

Kjaer Weis Lipstick: Moisturizing, organic ingredients like shea butter and jojoba oil are activated with the warmth of your lips, keeping them smooth and drenched in color. A rich, velvet finish more opaque than Kjaer Weis Lip Tints. As with all Kjaer Weis products, this item is refillable. 

Revive Bath & Body Bar Soap: Scented with a wonderful aroma blend, these soaps are sure to please every nose. Compared to a store bought bar of soap, these handmade soaps are made from vegetable-based oils and do not contain any harmful chemicals, preservatives, parabens, or synthetics found in commercial soap. These are gentler and milder, which guarantees the softness of your skin. 

The holiday season kicks off a time of giving and gifting. As a retailer, trust me when I say that I'm just as excited for the season as you are, but this year, I'm focused less on the gifting and more on the giving. As always, Fig & Flower will be participating in the usual Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday sales (get those details here!), but this year, we're also celebrating Giving Tuesday. 

Giving Tuesday is happening on Tuesday, November 29th, and I'm so proud to be participating. The date is reserved for the day after Cyber Monday and is a time for everyone to come together for a global day of giving. For some, that means donating time, and for others, that means making a donation. At Fig & Flower, we're using Giving Tuesday as a day to support one of my favorite causes, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics ("CSC").

The CSC, a project of the Breast Cancer Fund, lobbies and seeks to overhaul the regulation of chemicals in personal and beauty products. These chemicals are linked to adverse responses (with breast cancer potentially being one of them). Generally, people with compromised immune systems going through chemotherapy avoid these chemicals which is why the campaign is a project of the Breast Cancer Fund.

I feel personally connected to this organization for a few reasons. Firstly, Fig & Flower is a member of the safe cosmetics industry. I take pride in supporting my fellow green beauty warriors who are working to make the beauty industry safer and more transparent. I even had an opportunity to contribute to one of the most recent CSC reports about unsafe Halloween makeup. How cool is that?!

Additionally, as a former attorney I know that the most tangible results for consumers will come from policy reform. Concrete policy reform will ensure that citizens are protected from unsafe chemicals, and lobbying is how we make change. Joining forces with the CSC is a way to support the lobbying efforts that will get policy changed... versus just putting good products into the universe.

Essentially, I wanted to give back beyond the store and beyond simply selling nice products. Getting involved with the CSC was a good fit for me and for Fig & Flower's mission. Our Giving Tuesday will focus on that, and 20% of proceeds from that particular Tuesday will go to the CSC and the Breast Cancer Fund. Additionally, a portion of sales through the end of December will go back to the CSC.

I'd love for you to shop with us on Giving Tuesday (and of course, any other time you want) to help us give back to a great cause. Join me and Fig & Flower on our mission to make the beauty industry a better place. 

Greetings, lovelies.

Part of our recent rebrand has been adding some of the most swoon-worthy natural products to our lineup. We've added new products from our established brands, giving you more from your favorites to fall in love with. We've also added all new brands for you to discover and experience. We'll have a few more additions rolling out shortly, but we're too excited to not share what's new right now.

Here's an in depth look at the newest brands now available at Fig and Flower:

Conscious Coconut: This coconut oil is an amazing moisturizer, hair de-frizzer, teeth whitener, makeup remover and basically a little miracle for the modern world. With coconut oil, a little goes a long way so start small. Those using Conscious Coconut have seen improved texture and tone thanks to the increased cellular turnover and stimulation of collagen. The high antioxidants prevent destructive free-radical activity, which are the primary cause of aging. Scarring and stretch marks fade and signs of aging diminish as well. Conscious Coconut's coconut oil and packaging are made free of all artificial ingredients, GMOs, fillers, parabens, alcohol, fragrances, sulfates, artificial colors, or unnatural preservatives. And they wouldn’t dream of touching an animal in the process.

Captain Blankenship: Born out of a desire to create organic beauty products that create a direct link with nature, Captain Blankenship lives up to its mantra "beauty wild with nature." Cold pressed organic plant oils, flowers, seaweeds, sea salt and organic essential oils bring us back to the primacy of experience with the land and sea. These ingredients not only conjure the natural world, but are highly beneficial for our skin, body, hair and senses

Ilia: Ilia understands that our skin is our largest organ, and can absorbs just about anything we put onto its surface. Formulated with this in mind, and dedicated to creating the purest products possible, Ilia's products are some of the best in the biz. The ethical-sustainable approach embodied in each piece is filled with certified organic bio-active botanicals that nourish and rejuvenate the skin.  Each product is filled with up to 85% bioactive organic ingredients. A combination of on trend pigments and super nourishing elements has set ILIA apart from the conventions of organic beauty.

Lotus Wei: Lotus Wei's flower elixirs and essences are pure, natural elixirs with the power to shift your mood. Flower alchemy is based on the idea that your body operates like an instrument. Sometimes, it's perfectly in pitch, or sometimes, it needs a some fine tuning. Flower essences act as a natural tuning instrument to realign your body and your mood. 

Luxe Apothecary:  Luxe Apothecary was built around the idea that women are pretty... pretty KIND, pretty SMART, pretty STRONG, and pretty FUNNY. That's why Luxe partners with the Lovin' Soap Project, which helps provide soapmaking and entreperuership skills to women in developing nations.Luxe Apothecary is botanically inspired, truly holistic beauty products handcrafted for the health of your body and skin.

Moon Dust by Moon Juice: Moon Dusts work synergistically at the deepest levels to enhance your beauty, brain, body, sexual energy, sleep and spirit. These transformative formulas are alchemized with the most potent organic and wild-crafted herbs, adaptogenic plants, and bioactive minerals available. Add these botanical blends to your daily routine to help your body adapt to physical, mental and environmental stress.

Pour le Monde: Pour le Monde’s certified 100% natural eau de parfums have impressive staying power. Since these fragrances do not contain any man-made chemical extenders, we suggest using them liberally, don’t be afraid! Naturals work with your own chemistry and gently evolve, so you won’t smell overpowering like synthetics. 

Red Flower: Red Flower offers an ever-evolving line of flower body washes, lotions, shampoo and conditioners that are entirely botanically based, 100 percent vegetarian and paraben-free, available in 13 flower scents. 

Sigil Scent: Unisex fragrances are free of harsh chemicals and synthetics. Instead, they're brimming with the energy of real flowers and plants.  Choosing only organic, wildcrafted, and sustainable materials for use in their products, the natural, long-wearing perfumes are hand blended and poured in small batches. Each scent tells a story: an intention, a moment alone in nature, to be remembered with every application.

Check out all the newest products from Fig & Flower here!

Call us late to the game, but Instagram is quickly becoming our favorite platform to post on. For one, we get to showcase some of our favorite brands and give them lots of love. For another, we have a space to show-off all of the fun things happening in our store on a daily basis. By following us on Instagram, you'll get sneak peeks at exciting changes, be the first to see new product right when it arrives, catch a glimpse of founder Sara behind the scenes, and even get a little motivation from time to time too. In sort, we're using Instagram to bring you the best of the best that Fig & Flower has to offer. Join the fun by commenting on our photos with your makeup mood of the day, showing our pets some love, or liking our latest and greatest finds. 

Don't miss a thing; follow us on Instagram.