Table of Contents
About UpCircle
Nowadays, it is important for a brand to accompany good products with a good social outlook. Now more than ever, we are seeing brands take the initiative to lessen their ecological footprint, become more sustainable, and innovate how they do business.
UpCircle, the UK-based cosmetics company, has featured sustainability and consciousness at the core of their brand since day one.
Before reading this UpCycle review, you may already be familiar with the brand. Since their launch, UpCycle has received massive press attention from outlets like The Daily Telegraph, Refinery29, Glamour, and Daily Mail. The company even has an Instagram account with over 82.6K followers, where they regularly post about their internal team and beauty influencers using their products.
Still, just because a company is popular and buzz-worthy doesn’t mean their products are high quality. With cosmetics in particular, it’s important to do the research to make educated purchasing decisions so you know that what you’re putting on your skin won’t be harmful.
This article will serve as your go-to resource to determine whether the brand’s products will be worth your time and money.
Launched in 2016 by brother and sister duo William and Anna Brightman, UpCircle does cosmetics differently. The pair wanted to reduce waste and repurpose natural items, like used coffee grounds, which would inevitably end up in landfill. So beginning with a focus on coffee grounds, UpCircle started collecting reusable natural materials from local London coffee shops for their cosmetics products.
On the company’s website they write: “creating a positive environmental impact is at the heart of what we do here at UpCircle. We want to leave the world better than we found it.” With the mentality that “every little bit helps,” this company is dedicated to reducing, reusing, and recycling natural materials.
Today, UpCircle’s wide range of cosmetics products are all vegan, cruelty-free, and 100% natural. Reusing items like coffee grounds and steeped chai tea herbs, “you get to enjoy the uplifting benefits of nature’s own skin rejuvenators – and do the planet some good, too.”
Before jumping into this UpCircle review, there are several key aspects to consider. Let’s go through some brand highlights to get things warmed up!
Highlights
- Great selection of cosmetics
- Vegan and cruelty-free product formulations
- 100% natural ingredients
- International shipping
- Competitive pricing
Why You Should Trust Us
Our mission is to help you make better, more informed purchase decisions. Our team spends hours researching, consulting with medical experts, gathering insight from expert professionals, reviewing customer feedback, and analyzing products to provide you with the information you need.
UpCircle Review
Cosmetics are never cheap, and you want to be certain that what you’re buying is well-formulated and high quality — after all, no one wants to cause their own break out!
My UpCircle review will help you decide if you should purchase from the company. It is worth noting that this article will focus on only a select few of the brand’s best selling products though!
UpCircle Coffee Face Scrub Review
One of the company’s most popular and best selling products is easily the Coffee Face Scrub. Formulated with 100% natural ingredients, this scrub gently buffs away dead skin and leaves your face soft and rejuvenated.
Like most UpCircle products, this item is created with repurposed Arabica coffee grounds from real London cafes. It also contains chamomile and shea butter to nourish and moisturize skin, and rosehip and geranium to give the product its signature floral blend. This product formulation is suitable for sensitive skin – in fact, chamomile is known for its skin soothing abilities.
To use, the company recommends shaking the tube before applying the product to a clean, damp face. After leaving on for several moments, you should rinse the scrub off. This product can be used multiple times a week — though it is not recommended for daily use.
This product comes in a 100ml glass jar and comes in packaging that is 100% recyclable.
The UpCircle Coffee Face Scrub costs $16, though the company does offer free international shipping for orders over $20. No UpCircle review is complete without mentioning this product!
UpCircle Organic Face Serum with Coffee Oil Review
Every good skincare routine needs a facial serum. The UpCircle Organic Face Serum with Coffee Oil is bound to elevate your existing routine by leaps and bounds.
Certified organic and 100% natural, this product has won several prestigious awards including the Sainsburys 2020 Beauty Award, the Boom 2021 Best of Organic Market Award, and a 2019 Town and Country Luxury Beauty Award.
This facial serum is formulated with jojoba, sea buckthorn, and rosehip oils for moisture. It also uses vitamin C rich coffee to fade dark spots and brighten complexion.
For use in the morning and at night, this product is scented with geranium, rose, and lemon essential oils. Writing this UpCircle review, I know it’s also important to highlight the product’s versatility as a beard and hair oil.
The UpCircle Organic Face Serum is suitable for use on all skin types. The 1oz bottle retails for $20, and though that may seem pricey, a little bit of this formula goes a long way. Should you buy this serum, it’s sure to become a new staple in your daily routine.
UpCircle Cleansing Face Balm with Apricot Powder Review
Another ever-popular UpCircle product is the Cleansing Face Balm with Apricot Powder. Also an award-winning product, this item won “Best Value Product” at the Women’s Running 2020 Awards.
The Cleansing Face Balm is gentle and can be used to remove makeup, pollution, and impurities from your skin. Skin is left “deeply cleansed, soothed, and hydrated,” according to the company’s website.
In line with the brand’s dedication to recycling and sustainability, this product is formulated using apricot pits which have been ground into a fine-powder. This means the formula is rich in antioxidant vitamin E.
It is important to clarify that this product is suitable for use on all skin types. 1.8oz of this formulation retails for $24. It also comes in a sleek-looking glass jar with an aluminum lid, which is of course, also 100% recyclable.
UpCircle Espresso Martini Soy Wax Candle Review
UpCircle sells more than just cosmetics! For $16.50 you can also purchase an Espresso Martini Soy Wax Candle from the company, which is 100% natural, vegan, and plastic-free.
Hand poured in Yorkshire, this candle uses a soy base and repurposed coffee grounds. The scent will transport you right to a Yorkshire Cafe. This candle is 180 ml and can burn for up to 35 hours. .
The company recommends that the first time you light it, you should allow the wax to melt evenly across the top so it reaches both edges of the jar. This will ensure your candle does not burn into a tunnel on your next use.
It is also important for me to note in this UpCircle review that once your candle is done, there will still be about 1 cm of wax at the bottom of the jar. Fret not, as this is simply a safety precaution to ensure the glass will not crack — you’ll still get the same amount of burn time.
Next time you’re diving into your beauty routine, why not light this candle to set the mood?
UpCircle Chai Latte Soy Candle Review
If the Espresso Martini scent isn’t for you, UpCircle also offers a Chai Latte Soy Candle. Still soy-based and hand poured in Yorkshire, this candle is also 100% natural, vegan, and plastic-free. It was even given the “Indy Best Buy” award from The Independent in 2020.
This candle is infused with repurposed chai spices to smell like a sweet chai latte. The product is 180ml and will also burn for 35 hours. Like the Espresso Martini Soy Candle, it is important to burn the wax edge to edge on your first use, as soy candles have a “memory,” and this method will prevent tunneling of the wax.
According to the UpCircle website, this candle is best for when “you’re about to sink into a bubble bath, delve into a book, snuggle up for a date night or enjoy a romantic meal.” The candle retails for around $17, and it is bound to be a hit with any chai fan.
UpCircle Plastic-Free Safety Razor Review
Another non-cosmetic item offered by the company is the UpCircle Plastic-Free Safety Razor. This razor even won the “Best Tool of the Trade” award at the 2021 Natural Health Beauty Awards.
Made entirely of chrome, this razor is non-disposable and will save you money compared to traditional plastic throw-away razors. When the blades get dull, you can simply replace them with the company’s refill pack — thus sending less waste to landfill.
This product is unisex and can be used on the face and body. On their website, the company writes: “do not apply pressure when using – hold the handle gently and let the weight of the razor head glide over your skin.” The razor comes with two blades in a box and costs $30.
To purchase this product in the U.S. or Canada, buyers must be over the age of 21. On the company’s website they claim that by purchasing this product, the buyer confirms they are over 21-years-old.
UpCircle Tube Squeezer Key Review
Every once in a while, you find a product that you didn’t know you needed — the UpCircle Tube Squeezer Key is that product!
According to the company’s website, “this metal key is the perfect accessory to help you squeeze every little bit of your favorite scrub out of its aluminum tube.” This is guaranteed to help you reduce waste and ensure you get every last bit of your beloved product!
This item can also be used as an UpCircle toothpaste tube key, wherein once attached to your toothpaste tube, it’ll help push every drop out. Made from metal alloy, this product is also 100% plastic-free and recyclable.
To use it, “simply slide the key in at the top of the tube and twist.” The UpCircle tube roller key retails for $3 on the company’s website — a small price to pay for a product that will end up helping you save in the long run.
UpCircle The Pamper Kit Review
The final item included in this ] review is the UpCircle Pamper Kit. Since this is a sample pack of the company’s best selling products, it’s a great way to test out their formulations before committing to purchasing a full-sized item.
The UpCircle Pamper Kit includes:
- Organic Face Serum (0.05 oz)
- Cleansing Face Balm (0.1 oz)
- Face Moisturizer (0.1 oz)
- Clarifying Face Mask (0.1 oz)
- Eye Cream (0.1 oz)
- Face Toner (0.1 oz)
- Body Cream (0.16 oz)
All of these products — like all of the company’s offerings — are natural, sustainable, vegan, and cruelty-free. The sample pack is a benefit to those with sensitive skin — if you don’t like the product or it causes adverse reactions, no harm no foul. It’s also ideal for use as a travel set for nights away from home or weekend getaways.
The UpCircle pamper pack retails for $10 and makes a great gift for the skincare and cosmetics lover in your life.
UpCircle is cruelty-free
UpCircle is a cruelty-free and vegan brand. This means that the company does not include any animal products or animal byproducts in the formulation of their cosmetics. They do not test their products on animals, nor do they pay third-party companies to test on animals.
UpCircle is for Everyone
UpCircle is an inclusive brand, not designed with one specific sort of consumer in mind. Though their audience is undoubtedly eco-friendly and environmentally conscious, their products are safe to use by all people regardless of age, sex, gender, ethnic background, or ability.
It is worth noting however that certain skin types, namely those with sensitive skin, may not be best suited to the company’s products. It is important to always test a formulation on your hand (not your face!) before use, just in case there are any adverse reactions or effects.
Comparison: UpCircle vs. Facetheory
UpCircle is far from alone in the cosmetics marketplace. Already intensely crowded and competitive, you may be wondering how the company fares against other retailers like Facetheory. The answer: very well.
While both brands are vegan, natural, and cruelty-free, UpCircle’s dedication to reusing and repurposing existing products like coffee grounds and chai spices puts them above and beyond other cosmetics companies.
It is also important to consider cost. Although Facetheory offers a wider selection of cosmetics products, their items, as a whole, are slightly more expensive than UpCircle.
UpCircle Reviews: What Do Customers Think?
Overall, customers adore their UpCircle products. The following reviews have been aggregated from a variety of sources, including the company’s website, Amazon, and other third-party retailers:
- Coffee Face Scrub – Floral Blend: 4.9/5 stars from 353 reviews on the UpCircle website.
- Organic Face Serum with Coffee Oil: 4.8/5 stars from 1,160 reviews on the Ulta website.
- Face Cleansing Balm with Apricot Powder: 4.8/5 stars from 1,221 reviews on the UpCircle website.
- Chai Latte Soy Candle: 4.9/5 stars from 72 reviews on the UpCircle company website.
- Plastic-Free Safety Razor: 5/5 stars from 5 reviews on Amazon.
- Tube Squeezer Plastic Key: 5/5 stars from 12 reviews on the UpCircle company website.
- The Pamper Kit: 4.9/5 stars from 375 reviews on the UpCircle company website.
Most reviews of the company’s products are incredibly positive. On the UpCircle website, one buyer wrote of the Coffee Face Scrub – Floral Blend saying that the product “has a wonderful texture which really feels like it’s cleaning my skin like never before. I use this with the soap and face cream and always wake up with lovely soft skin which is no longer red and irritated.”
On TrustPiolet another customer wrote:
“I bought a number of products from UpCircle a few weeks back and love all of them! Everything smells delightful and is super effective. I particularly like the cleansing balm and coffee eye cream.”
Is UpCircle Worth It?
According to UpCircle reviews, the company’s products are absolutely worth the buy. Effective, affordable, and environmentally conscious, any item from their product line is sure to become a soon-to-be staple in your new beauty routine.
UpCircle Promotions & Discounts
UpCircle rarely offers promotions and discounts on their official website. Third-party retailers are subject to their own sale schedules.
To be alerted of discounts and promotions for UpCircle, it is recommended that you sign up for the company’s e-newsletter through their website.
Where to Buy UpCircle
There are several locations you can purchase the brand’s products at the time of this UpCircle review, including:
- The UpCircle official website
- Amazon
- Ulta
- BeautyBay
- Faire
- iHerb
FAQ
Who owns UpCircle?
UpCircle is owned by two siblings, William and Anna Brightman from London, UK.
Where is UpCircle made?
All UpCircle products are made in London, UK, where they still collect reused coffee grounds from local cafes and coffee shops.
Is UpCircle vegan?
UpCircle is a vegan and cruelty-free brand. They do not use animal products or animal byproducts in their formulations, nor do they test on animals.
What is UpCircle’s Shipping Policy?
As a company, UpCircle ships internationally. Wait times and shipping charges are subject to change based on the country being delivered to. Their full shipping policy can be read here.
What is UpCircle’s Return Policy?
Should you not be satisfied with your UpCircle products, the company offers a 14-day refund policy, meaning they will accept any unused and unopened products up to 14 days after making your initial purchase.
The cost of shipping any returns back to the company is at the expense of the customer.
How to Contact UpCircle
If you need to contact UpCircle, you can do so at [email protected], or by phone at (+44) 0800 368 9570. There is also a live chat option on the company’s website.
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