Kelly Driscoll

I’ve said it before: moisturizers are one of the hardest skincare products to get just right and yet arguably are one of the most important products in our routines!

The highly anticipated debut moisturizer from Krave Beauty has landed and its goal is to simplify your moisturizer search.

“There will never be a moisturizer that will please everyone — but Oat So Simple is a moisturizer that will quell all your worries so you can moisturize and thrive.” – Liah Yoo, Krave Beauty Founder

Oat So Simple was developed to work for a variety of skin types, conditions and concerns, but does it deliver on this claim?

My Skin Type: combo/dry, dehydrated, sensitive

*Heads Up: I received my Oat So Simple Water Cream as a press sample from Krave Beauty

No Frills, Just Oats

Oat So Simple Water Cream is the first moisturizer from Krave Beauty and was developed based on feedback from Krave customers. 2,364 respondents told Krave exactly what their ideal moisturizer would be and one concept kept emerging from all the surveys — simplicity. Simplify the ingredients to amplify the benefits.

So Krave set out to create a moisturizer that would be safe, gentle and moisturizing for all skin concerns while allowing for flexibility and customization (more on that later). This moisturizer was made to be safe for fungal acne, ecezma, sensitive skin and suitable for use during pregnancy.

Krave specifically chose jar packaging for its total recyclability and PET plastic is used since it has the best chance of being recycled into other materials later on. Why choose plastic over glass? Due to Krave’s international operations between the USA and Korea, heavy glass packaging shipped overseas has a bigger carbon foot print verses lighter-weight plastic.

Texture

This is such an interesting texture! It’s called a water cream and you might be expecting to see a gel-like texture but instead it’s a fluffy white texture. Once you start to spread Oat So Simple across your skin you’ll see it transform from creamy to watery and you’ll feel the hydration on your skin.

This absorbs quickly, leaving skin feeling soft and conditioned. I’ve noticed a bit of a tackiness to this, it hasn’t interfered with makeup or sunscreen but it could be a turn off for some.

How to Customize Oat So Simple

Beyond just using Oat So Simple as a traditional moisturizer, you can use it a few different ways to customize it to your skin’s needs:

• It can be layered up multiple times to achieve the moisture level you desire.
• Mix in a drop or two of facial oil for added nourishment.
• Mix with Great Barrier Relief for a moisture barrier cocktail.
• Add in your retinol, AHA or BHA to help buffer the exfoliation.

Ingredients — Oh So Simple

INGREDIENTS: Water, Butylene Glycol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Squalane, 1,2-Hexanediol, Behenyl Alcohol, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP Copolymer, Avena Sativa (Oat) Meal Extract, Ethylhexylglycerin

Highlights: Fragrance, essential oil, drying alcohol, silicone and cruelty free. Fungal acne safe and vegan friendly. Minimal ingredients (9 total).

• Oats 79.8% of them to be exact, are the star ingredient of this product and are well known for their soothing and calming benefits for the skin and they act as a natural humectant. Oats have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant benefits for skin and can help aid healthy barrier function with their polysaccharid content. Most Krave products take their star ingredients from the culinary world (matcha, kale and beet) so oats are a natural fit.
• Squalane is an awesome oil for skin moisturizing and TEWL (transepidermal water loss) prevention. It’s skin identical, making it compatible for all skin including fungal and traditional acne prone skin types. Squalane is a light oil that is non-greasy and it’s what helps lend protective and moisturizing benefits to Oat So Simple without creating a heavy feeling.

My Experience

This was an interesting one to test since I wasn’t very impressed with this on my first few uses. While the water cream texture was exciting, it doesn’t suit my combo-dry skin. In the dry winter air, Oat So Simple left my skin crying out for nourishment and moisture.

Round two of testing saw me mixing this with a facial oil to up the nourishment. That definitely boosted the cream but I still found Oat So Simple wasn’t protective enough for my skin at this point in time.

I want to clarify that the temperatures have been hovering around 20F/-6C and it’s been really windy and snowy! My skin suffers the most in winter because the cold and dry temperatures aggravate my dehydration. Having a moisturizer with occlusive and protective ingredients helps to hold more hydration into my skin and Oat So Simple has very little occlusive properties.

Finally, I tried the cream mixed with Krave Great Barrier Relief and I felt this combo was protecting my dry and dehydrated skin. Using 2 pumps of Great Barrier Relief mixed with Oat So Simple helped keep my skin comfortable and protected overnight without waking up to tight skin!

I was happy to get this moisturizer to work for my skin and I think the idea of being able to mix and match your moisturizer for your skin’s needs nicely fits the philosophy of the brand to listen to your skin’s cravings, but it left me wondering a few things:

• Do I really want to invest in a cream that requires me to mix in more products in order to make it work for my skin?
• How “minimal” is the cream when you are adding in more products to suit your needs?
• With all the customization options, is this really “oh so simple” or just oh so complicated?

The Final Word

I really do admire this formulation and the philosophy behind this cream and I have no hesitation recommending this to my oily skin and fungal acne prone friends. However, I’m not a huge fan of this for dry and dehydrated skin and I’m not really down with the whole mixing to make it work idea. That leaves me feeling a little 50/50 about marketing Oat So Simple as a product that is suitable for all (although arguably, they come close).

Pros:

• Minimal, straightforward ingredients
• Fungal acne safe
• Sensitive skin friendly
• Fragrance free
• Cruelty free and sustainable, fully recyclable packaging
• Female owned, independent brand
• Environmentally friendly, vegan and cruelty free

Cons:

• When used on it’s own not moisturizing or protective enough for drier skin types
• Potentially complicated and expensive when needing to mix in other oils or creams
• Tacky finish
• Minimal but potentially boring product

Recommended for: Oily and normal skin types. Suitable for those suffering from fungal acne, traditional acne, eczema, rosacea and safe for use during pregnancy.

Krave Oat So Simple $28 80ml

Krave Beauty