Twelve Beauty: A Boxwalla Beauty Discovery

Have you ever learned about a brand (or song, or new word), and once you did you started to see it everywhere? This is what happened to me with the brand Twelve Beauty. As I’ve learned about this brand I have begun to question how I’d never heard of them before. Whatever the reason, this is a brand I’m happy to have discovered, and happy to share with you.

I learned about the brand through Boxwalla’s Instagram page. I plan to do a review of the Boxwalla subscription service soon. The quick version is this: Boxwalla is a subscription platform that is designed to help you discover and experience some of the highest quality products available in the beauty, book, film and food categories. I’ve found the Instagram page to be truly inspiring and I absolutely love how they unveil new themes and products which are available every two months. So when they were teasing at the Twelve Beauty collaboration for the April Beauty Box, I knew I needed to get my hands on it. And I have not been disappointed.

fyi- this post contains affiliate links, but as always, I only share things I love and recommend.

A little about Twelve Beauty

One of the things that I love about Boxwalla is that each month is about telling a story. And man does Lavanya know how to tell a story. For April we were invited to explore “The Chronicles of a Plant Lab” which belongs to founder, formulator, botanist and cosmetologist Dr. Pedro Catalá. Dr. Catalá is passionate about plants and skincare. Utilizing his vast botanical knowledge, you can expect high-quality products which help soothe and support sensitive skin. Twelve Beauty, named after the 12 wonder ingredients that Pedro believes are essential to promoting healthy skin, has honestly been a delight to discover.

Included in the sold-out April Boxwalla Beauty Box were the Ideal Brightening Corrective Serum ($90) and The London Mask ($92). The box, a value of $182 (!!), cost me only $49.95 as a part of my Boxwalla subscription. This, my friends, is why you are continually hearing me rave about the benefits of green beauty subscriptions on my IG stories.

Ideal Brightening Corrective Serum

My first impression of this product? “Wait, this is a serum?” My second impression… “oh hello magical potion.” This serum is a hydrating, antioxidant treatment, which is lotion-like. I’m used to serums that are thin and oily, but this was a more like a milky foam. Put a pump on your hand, and it dissolves into your skin with the slightest of manipulation. Within seconds it’s gone; sunken into your skin and off to do magical things.

And if you don’t believe in magic, I mean, I guess that’s cool. Here’s what’s really happening: the hydrating and lipidic ingredients are working synergistically to mimic the hydrolipidic structure of your epidermis. This formulation allows the serum to both hydrate and moisturize the skin. Ingredients include white genepi, mallow, buddleja (butterfly bush),  peppermint, cowslip, willowherb, & lady’s mantle to name a few.

This blend was designed to both brighten your skin’s complexion and to reduce the appearance of dark spots. As a girl who has added quite a few dark spots to my already freckled face, I’m excited to see if this serum gets my situation together.

The London Mask

This is the product the caught my eye. If you read my post on Spring cleaning your skincare, you know that my love of a good mask knows no bounds. They are the most versatile step in a skincare routine, and I like to rotate them out according to what my skin needs. So, when I saw the all the buzz around this mask, I just needed it in my collection. This mask, which is a delightful light pink hue, is designed to counter the effects of pollution on our skin. The use of kaolin clay, mallow flower, vitamin B5, and olive squalane, (among others) is both soothing and nourishing.

Two things struck me as notable about this mask. First, it is smooth like no mask I’ve ever used on my face. This is a testament to the three-day hand blending it undergoes! No wonder this product is typically a limited edition item with only 50 jars made each month. Second, you’ll notice the use of olive squalane. If you’re into skincare, you’ve no doubt seen a lot of hubbub about squalane because of how it mimics the way our sebum moisturizes and protects our skin. Squalene is one of the main components of human sebum, squalane has been hydrogenated, making it a hydrocarbon that is more stable (it won’t oxidize). Our body’s ability to produce squalene begins to drop once we hit 30, so adding this to our skin helps it stay healthy and happy.

My Final Thoughts?

After only a few uses I knew, The London Mask has a forever home in my beauty cabinet.

And if you’re thinking, “this chick loves masks; perhaps she’s not that discerning.” I can assure, every mask that I love deserves its spot on my shelf. They all serve a purpose, and my willingness to mix and match to meet my skins individual needs is going to be my golden ticket to forever youthful skin… or so I hope.

Twelve Beauty has been a gem to discover. The more I learn about Dr. Catalá’s commitment to both product curation and sustainability, the more excited I become to try the other products. Next on my list? The Nutritive Repair Emulsion.

Have you tried Twelve Beauty? What is your favorite product?

PS- While the April Boxwalla Beauty Box is no longer available, the fantastic duo to be featured in the June Box has already been revealed (Theme: MOSSAIC). If you think you might want to try them out, I’d suggest you get on it. You can SIGN UP HERE.

Xo, Kimberly Fe'Lix