Our Philosophy
Sunlight and the Nature of Being
Existentialism 101
What does it mean to be a corporation? And what does that make us?
Corporations have an enormous impact on our lives: they alter our environment, they affect our health, they create (or take away) jobs, they provide products and services, and they use our money to do it. Responsible citizenship is rarely at the top of the list.
Paint it Green
Fortunately, consumers have the power of the purse. If there is demand for safe, effective products and responsible practices, the market will respond. Unfortunately, it’s easy for companies to appear green. Actually being green – in product, package and practice – is another matter. Companies won’t take that next step until informed consumers demand it.
An Open Kitchen
The keys are information, openness and honesty. Vivesana aims to help push the envelope toward consumer empowerment and corporate responsibility and transparency. We do more than simply list a few ingredients, we provide full information about our ingredients and our packaging. We take the next step – buying locally whenever possible and supporting sustainable farming. And we give 10% of what we make to organizations fighting the good fight. Not surprisingly, we’ve found that operating in a responsible manner dramatically improves product quality.
Keeping Perspective
All the while, our goal has been to improve the world around us. Sana found worthy non-profits to work with and support. We ensured that every aspect of our practices was responsible and sustainable.
We’re more than happy to pull back the curtain. We hope we can help lead by example. Join the movement!
May 2nd, 2010
The lovely people at Ecofabulous just made us blush. Read what they had to say about the Vivesana approach to sun care. We think they’re doing great work, too!
And read on, to see what scores of other reviewers have had to say…
Posted in Events, Locations, Open Conversation, Open Conversation, Open Kitchen, Organics, Naturals & Synthetics, Our Philosophy, Our Practices, Our Press, Our Story, Solar to Polar Baby, Solar to Polar Ultra | No Comments »
February 6th, 2010
Vivesana announces its newest retail partner, the Hippocrates Health Institute of West Palm Beach.
Standing apart as one of the most prominent wellness centers in the country, the Institute embodies many of ideals Vivesana strives to meet. Live Healthy!
Posted in Gift Page, Open Conversation, Open Kitchen, Organics, Naturals & Synthetics, Our Innovations, Our Philosophy, Our Practices, Our Press, Our Story, Solar to Polar Baby, Solar to Polar Ultra | No Comments »
October 21st, 2009
Basking in Sunny Praise: Where to Begin?
We’re blushing. We’ve received scores – possibly hundreds – of reviews those with the most discerning eyes of all – the bloggers.
Here are just a few notable examples of the blogs and websites that have given their thoughts.
We’ll keep posting the reviews as we find ‘em. Click on any of the links below to see what the experts have to say…
Ideal Bite, The Style Page, Livestrong, Beauty News NYC, The Greenists, Babble, Baby Gadget, Mamaista, Cool Mom Picks, Treehugger, Quiskaeya, Mogul Baby, Nonchalant Mom, Totsnob, Smorgasbite, Beauty Snob, Re-Nest, DKmommyspot, Green Blog, Sustainability Digest, This Full House, Green Goddess Dressing, FindBuzz.com
Posted in Find Us, Gift Page, Locations, Open Conversation, Open Conversation, Open Kitchen, Organics, Naturals & Synthetics, Our Innovations, Our Philosophy, Our Practices, Our Press, Our Story, Solar to Polar Baby, Solar to Polar Ultra | No Comments »
September 27th, 2009
Posted in About Vivesana, Our Press | No Comments »
January 6th, 2009
We love it when restaurants open their kitchens up. Not only is it fun to watch the pros in action, it’s a good sign when a place feels confident enough in their ingredients and practices to pull back the curtain. No corner cutting, no unswept corners, no dirty tricks!
Skin care is not so different. You feed your skin the same way fill your stomach. But when it comes to skin care, as consumers, we always felt like we were flying blind. Who knows what’s inside the pretty packages. Is it all made in an industrial vat somewhere? Maybe we’d read too many scary headlines.So, we pulled back our own curtain. Our products are our babies – we couldn’t be prouder of them, and we’re more than happy to share every last detail! Skin care consumers finally get an open kitchen of their own…What does all this mean? It means we’ll tell you not just what are ingredients are and what they do, we’ll tell where they came from. We’ll tell you where our packaging is made and how. We welcome comments. No more guessing…
Posted in Open Kitchen, Our Story | No Comments »
January 5th, 2009
Good question. Better answer. Sana removed water from its formulations for two giant reasons. First, topically applied water as a skin care treatment is a red herring…see how long it lasts on your skin without a proper barrier. Fact is, topically applied water does not provide any lasting benefit to your skin. But practically every other skin care product out there is mostly water. What gives? Not our business, but here’s a tip: check the latest price for water. Sana does not believe in cutting corners with fillers. Water needs to be in your skin, not on it.
Second, water is where microbes live. It’s true. Water is a wonderful, vital element that we would not last long without. But it’s filled with bacteria, germs and other critters. Especially standing water. Anytime it sits for a period of time, the little guys are going to find it. It’s not so different in skin care. Water may be an excellent way to stretch a product, but it’s also the main reason synthetic preservatives (and synthetic emulsifiers) are necessary. Take the filler out, and suddenly there’s nowhere for microbes to grow.didn’t stop there, but removing water is the single biggest leap.
It’s just like cooking – once you start cutting corners with unnecessary ingredients, you need to start balancing them, and before you know it, the “recipe” has gotten away from you. It’s first principles for Sana: stick with ingredients that directly benefit skin. What does it mean for you? 100% natural, synthetic-free products that go all the way toward beautiful, healthy skin.
Posted in Open Conversation, Our Innovations | No Comments »
January 4th, 2009
So where does the Bisphenol A tree grow? Watered your phthalate plant recently? We’ve been scratching our heads too. Too many supposedly ‘all natural’ or ‘organic’ skin care products are filled with multi-syllabic preservatives, emulsifiers, thickeners…etc. that sound suspiciously unnatural to us. Unfortunately, slippery sloganeering is so widespread these days, no one bats an eye. The Government has usually left it to companies to police themselves – or more accurately, each other. Problem is, larger competing companies – with a few exceptions – apparently figure it’s better to live and let live, allowing each other to carry out mutual deceit.
It’s not just the ingredients that are being mislabeled. In fact, the Environmental Working Group recently concluded that over half of the sunscreen products on the market make claims about effectiveness that are unacceptable or misleading under the FDA’s draft sunscreen safety standards. Think back to the “all-day protection” that couldn’t last until lunch, or the “water-proof” sunscreen that washed off with your first dip, or the “mild as water” lotion that warned you to avoid contact with your eyes.
Plans to tighten up labeling standards are in the works, but we think companies have a responsibility to be honest. It’s one of the reasons Sana was born. We’ll do our part to push the envelope and to pull back the curtain. And we can all do what we can to demand clear honest labels. Is that too much to ask?
And hey, if there’s a Bisphenol A tree growing out there somewhere, we’ll eat our words!
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January 4th, 2009
Grandma’s Sunday lasagna. A crayon-smeared birthday card from your son. The best stuff is homemade.
Sana began in a kitchen in upstate New York. First, just friends: farmers, teachers, chefs, parents — all reading, studying, mixing, and testing. Then the pros: chemists, doctors, pediatricians, checking the science and improving the formulas. The kitchen grew into sophisticated labs. The testing started in the bathroom, the tennis court, the ski lift, and the waves, and then moved to formal testing. But it was in our hands the whole time.
It was a leap of faith. The chemists wondered why we were re-inventing the wheel. It’s so much easier to do it the same way as everyone else, they said. Friends, family and co-workers scratched their heads skeptically. A few warned we were crazy. Isn’t that how all great movements start?
Creating from scratch forces one to understand everything, to examine assumptions, and to take full ownership of the final product. We did it because we weren’t comfortable with mass-produced alternatives. We’ll take a home-cooked meal over something processed in a mysterious vat, any day. We like our fresh, local, carefully chosen ingredients. Skin deserves a touch of homemade care, too.
And it’s not just the crème you rub into your skin. The company is homemade, too. We’re made up of families. We care about the same things you do.
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December 29th, 2008
Sana products are for everyone who needs to soften, moisturize and protect their skin…and needs to do it gently, safely and naturally. Isn’t that everyone? Not quite. Sana is specially made for people who have dry skin, a thin barrier, or who are suddenly dealing with particularly dry air. Also active, outdoorsy people who don’t let the elements slow them down. And athletes who don’t have time to reapply. Don’t forget those mothers dealing with hormonal changes, stretching, and the occasional baby nip. And kids, who’d rather run free naturally.
That still sounds like everyone. Not quite. If you have naturally oily skin or are in extremely humid conditions, barrier support might not be your top concern. And if you don’t like the products, or have an allergy to any of the ingredients (please, please look to check), you should stay away…we won’t be offended.
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and the Takoma Park Co-op have in common? They don’t share a style or a coast, but they do share an overarching, all-consuming drive to carry the best quality products they can find. As it happens, they also began carrying Vivesana yesterday afternoon. We’re thrilled to be working with both of them, and love what the variety of approach says about Vivesana – stores from across the spectrum meet when it comes to strong, safe, stylish and effective sun care. Hurray!
The blogosphere, of course, already has their own two cents on the subject (e.g., 
