I recently came across Maoli (Hawaiian for true or real, also a term used to describe those native to the Hawaiian islands) and loved the concept behind the company--natural ingredients with scents paying homage to Hawaii. Being a hapa myself with roots in Hawaii on my Dad's side (I'm the first of my generation in his family born on the mainland and of mixed descent--my paternal family is Japanese), I felt a kinship to the family behind Maoli. Especially in the last year, I've felt a strange homesickness for a place that held such value in my family, where so much of our identity was drawn from, and that I visited frequently growing up. My grandfather passed at the beginning of last year and I wasn't able to go to Oahu before he died, I think this has a lot to do with my missing the islands. I have a very sensitive nose and a lot of allergies as well as skin sensitivity. Add that to my desire to find amazing natural products whenever possible and I knew Maoli and I would be a match made in heaven--or at least I hoped!
I decided to start with their lip balms because living in the Northeast is brutal on everything, especially your lips. I purchased 3 flavors--Candy Cane Forest, Rice Pudding, and Sugar Plum. I intended to purchase all 4 flavors--the fourth being Gumdrops--but somehow I managed to miss it. No idea how I did that!
I love that these come in really nice quality screw-top tins, which are very generously filled! As you can see, no fake dyes here. :)
Sugar Plum
Sugarplum has a spicy scent that isn't overly powerful.
Candy Cane Forest
This lip balm has a lovely candy cane smell with what I think is a hint of vanilla. It reminds me of the candy cane tea I bought this past winter from Trader Joe's! It's a bit minty on your lips, which I love.
Rice Pudding
This was one I was very interested to smell. I absolutely love rice pudding, it's one of my favorite desserts! This scent is actually quite spicy; even more than Sugar Plum. I'm not sure I would instantly think of rice pudding smelling this, but it's definitely a nice spicy, wintry scent.
I wish I had grabbed Gumdrops! It's described on the site as a mix of orange, lemon, and sugar--yum.
Price
These are priced at $5 on the Maoli website.
Where to Buy
You can purchase these on the Maoli website--www.maoliperfumes.com.
Final Thoughts
I love the ingredients in these lip balms, not only are they natural, but they're organic as well! The scents/flavors are nice and subtle, but definitely not boring. The balm is fairly solid and melts slightly with the touch of your finger, allowing you to apply a thin coat on your lips without packing too much on. I love that I can use these on my two little guys without worrying about the ingredients! This lip balm left my lips soft and a bit more hydrated. I am dying to try the fourth lip balm I somehow missed and I'd also love to try their solid scents. Shipping was also very reasonable.
In addition to lip balms, Maoli creates lovely solid scents. I've been a fan of solid scents for a long time (alcohol-free formulas are always great) and Maoli's look amazing! One whiff of plumeria and I'm back in Honolulu. Maoli Perfumes offers 4 different scents at the moment that all look amazing--perfect scents for this spring/summer. All in all I'm so glad to have come across Maoli and I look forward to trying more of their products in the near future!
Mahalo, Maoli Perfumes, for these fabulous lip balms!
What do you think? Will you be giving Maoli lip balms or solid scents a try?
