This essay first appeared Wednesday, November 29, in The Strategist Beauty Brief, a weekly newsletter in which our beauty writers share their must-tries, can-skips, and can’t-live-withouts. But we liked it so much we wanted to share it with all of our readers. If you want more first impressions of buzzy launches, quick takes on what’s trending on TikTok and Instagram, and deep dives into the week’s best beauty launches, sign up here. The Strategist Beauty Brief is delivered every Wednesday.
I’ve always been Goop-curious, but I’ve never actually bought anything from its beauty line. The prices are high — like Dr. Barbara Sturm–expensive — but in all my time researching and reporting on beauty products, it’s never been recommended to me. So I figured good.clean.goop, Gwyneth’s more affordable brand that’s available at Target and on Amazon, would be my best opportunity to try it out. The lineup covers a lot of ground — skin care, body, scalp, and supplements — but everything is between $20 and $40. That puts the price more in line with brands I already love, like Naturium and La Roche-Posay, but I still wanted to know if the products had that special Goop something. I decided to test out two products over the course of nine days: the Body Smoother Replenishing Cream, because it seemed like a good staple, and the Healthy Aging Serum, because it makes the biggest claims — to fix hyperpigmentation, wrinkles, texture, and dullness.
Where both products were lacking right off the bat, even compared to my other drugstore products, was the packaging. The containers were really, really light — bordering on insubstantial. (Compare that to my tub of Naturium Body Butter, which is about twice the size.) When I tested both on the back of my hands, I was immediately struck by the scent. The serum smelled herbal and slightly medicinal; it’s not uncommon for a serum to smell unpleasant, but this one was really potent. The body cream was even stronger, with a synthetic floral fragrance (even though the product description specifically describes the lotion as “synthetic-fragrance-free”). It brought me back to my tween years when all I wore was a fruity and floral lotion from Bath & Body Works. (This is not a welcome memory.)
I began my testing that night. After showering and washing my face with a gentle cleanser, I put a pump of the serum on my cheeks, nose, forehead, and chin. I liked how easily the waterlike serum spread, but seconds later, my face felt tacky, almost as if I put on a thick lotion. It took about a minute or two for this to go away, and I layered my moisturizer on top. My skin didn’t feel greasy and instead felt silky smooth and hydrated, as if I had just exfoliated and followed up with a moisturizing mask.
For the next nine days, I worked the serum into both my morning and nighttime routines, and my skin felt moisturized all day, even through the cold weather. But I noticed it only worked well when applied right after cleanser and before my moisturizer. Anytime I tried to use it as part of a larger routine, like after using my NuFace or applying a vitamin-C serum, it would pill — and I think it caused little bumps across my chin and cheeks. It wasn’t a full-on breakout, but this happens when my pores are clogged from heavy, comedogenic lotions (and it’s not something that’s happened with any other serum I’ve tried). Disappointed, I took a break from the serum for a couple of days until my skin calmed down.
I had more success with the body cream, which has a fluffy whipped texture and made my skin look glowy, like I’d just applied body oil. It combatted my dry, scaly winter skin — even after an especially cold three-mile run when I wore shorts. Usually, I’d come back with chapped, red skin all over my legs, but my skin looked the same as it did after applying the body cream that morning. I even started to get used to the fragrance. But then, on day six of using it nonstop, my boyfriend asked if I had changed my perfume (even though I wasn’t wearing any). He didn’t say it in a mean way, but I realized then that “synthetic rose” had become my new signature scent. And that’s just not me, supple legs be damned.
I’m not sold on good.clean.goop. The good doesn’t outweigh the bad, and the prices, while much, much cheaper than the main Goop line, are still kind of high for Target. (That tub of Naturium Body Butter is $20 for nearly eight ounces; the four-ounce tub of good.clean.goop body cream is $30.) I totally get the vision — effective, no-frills formulas at a decent price — but good.clean.goop just didn’t meet that standard. As hopeful as I was to add a little Goop to my life (without the bee stings or vaginal steamings), I don’t think I’ll be buying again.
This article originally appeared in The Strategist Beauty Brief, a weekly newsletter from our beauty writers on their must-tries, can-skips, and can’t-live-withouts. Sign up here.
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