Good Clean Goop.

Gwyneth Paltrow is my hero, and I’m not afraid to admit it. I know not everyone feels this way, but I think she’s amazing. I read GOOP every week. I own all of her cookbooks. Yep, I drink the Gwyneth Kool-Aid. Even when I was just a little girl, I loved her. There’s just something magnetic about her. When I was younger, it was because I wished I looked like her… as an adult, it’s more about how together she seems, and how she seems to just have everything figured out.

So when I was invited to the launch of her new skincare line with Juice Beauty, I was nearly euphoric. The night before, I agonized. What will I wear?! (I went with a simple striped tee and my favorite Holst + Lee necklace.)

The event itself was what you’d expect. We (a group of beauty editors + bloggers) gathered on the first floor of Haven’s Kitchen before being led up two flights of stairs to a sun-drenched studio for… (are you ready for it?) smoothie making lessons, with Gwyneth herself. I ran into my friend (+ fave beauty blogger) Annie, and grabbed a coffee. What was different from usual was the vibe of the room/ was the fact that every single person in the room was just as giddy as I was. Editors are a tough crowd. They’ve seen it all, it takes a lot for them to get excited. Not the case with this one. A few things I overheard, in hushed voices: “I never get excited about anything but THIS….” “I’m shaking.” “No. Literally, I’m shaking.”

Gwyneth emerged, wearing all white (a sheer swiss dot top and flare jeans if you were curious)… and as radiant and glowing as you would expect. She’s taller in person than I had imagined.

She walked us through the inspiration behind creating her line, passionately taking us through why an a non-toxic beauty routine is so important and how crazy the chemicals we put in our bodies are. Plastics in our face creams… lead in our lipstick. Great. And as I’ve said here before, 60% of what you put on your skin is absorbed directly into the blood stream. Her goal was to create a line of products that is “safe enough for our daughters, and powerful enough for those of us who have maybe spent too much time in the sun.” She talked about the packaging (she used white ceramic jars which are beautiful on the vanity, but also chemical free… no plastic, which can actually leach chemicals into the products). I was struck by how down to earth, friendly, and humble she was. She gets a bad rap (and I’ll admit, she says some of the most ridiculous, privileged things at times) but in person she was completely lovely. I was awe-struck, natch.

At the end of the event, we took home the entire product line. A cleansing balm, a night cream, a day cream, an eye cream, a face oil, and her five minute facial (essentially a hybrid between a peel and a mask). All are non-toxic, formulated to be as organic as possible. (The face oil is the most organic of the lot… 99% organic.) To be honest, I felt a little bit apprehensive about trying the line. I’d been waiting forever for it, but I was also worried. What if I hated the products?! That would just be so sad. There are six products in the line. I spent nine days using exclusively Gwyneth’s products (morning and night) to be able to give the full line a proper review. Spoiler alert: I did not hate them. There were a few products that were just average, but a few real standouts.

First up: The luminous melting cleanser is one of the best cleansing balms I’ve tried. It’s got a nice, thick consistency and is deeply comforting + soothing to apply (perfect for winter skin). It also gets all of my eye makeup off in one swoop… even tough waterproof mascara. It feels like a treat for your skin at the end of a long day.

The eye cream is like a cloud. It’s whipped and so lightweight. I’d pat it on, and then pat on some more… the skin just soaks it right up. The downside here is that if you have dry skin (like me) you might want to apply this in layers (I’ll apply it first, then the day cream or night cream, and then add another layer of eye cream). That being said, I like how quickly it absorbs… some eye creams are too greasy and my liner will run because that area is overly hydrated.

The face oil is a favorite for sure. It’s 99% organic and extremely hydrating. Gwyneth pats a layer on over her moisturizer (I’ve started doing this and love the results — it leaves my skin so soft) and she also recommends applying this on the plane.

The day cream and the night cream are your standard face creams. There is nothing particularly incredible about either but they are both great moisturizers and perfect for sensitive skin. I found the night cream to be incredibly comforting… like swaddling your face in a cocoon of buttery hydration. It really plumps up the skin. With both moisturizers, my skin is on the dryer side so I pat on a layer of the face oil to really lock in the moisture. The night cream is 79% organic and the day cream is 73% organic.

The five minute facial is my favorite product in the line. Incidentally, it’s Gwyneth’s favorite. But man… be warned: this stuff is POTENT. I stupidly didn’t read the instructions (leave it on for three minutes, massage your skin, wash it off) and left it on for ten minutes. My skin was really red after using it. (I have super sensitive skin.) But it was also incredibly soft. I sent a few terrifying selfies to my girlfriends, slathered on the night cream, patted on a layer of face oil and my skin was fine (not at all red) the next day. A few days later, I tried it again… only leaving it on for the recommended three minutes. No redness, this time around… just glowing, smooth skin.

I’ll leave you with a (completely gratuitous) photo of the two of us. #bestdayever #bestfriends #justkidding.