Would you believe it’s a stone?

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Written by Arden Fanning Andrews.

“In my opinion, cocoa butter is the best thing you can put on your body -- it is so high in Vitamin E and all the nutrients you need for that glowing summer skin,” Kate McLeod tells me as she describes the key ingredient in her hyper-moisturizing, ultra-clean Body Stones.

Smooth, handheld orbs of concentrated moisture, McLeod’s waterless recipe means no fillers, no preservatives, all skin nutrition: “It’s like a power green juice for your body.”

CLEAN, WITH AN INVISIBLE TOUCH

McLeod created a first-of-its-kind hydrating formula that melts on contact and “glides on like silk.”

Her eponymous line’s signature stones, Grounding (scented with woody vetiver and fresh bergamot), Naked (zero essential oils), and Daily (the OG bestseller with rose, frankincense, and neroli notes), all share five core ingredients: cocoa butter, sweet almond oil, apricot kernel oil, avocado oil, and fractionated coconut oil.

Thanks to the chef’s calculations, “it doesn’t feel like you’re putting a candle on your body,” she says. “Solid moisturizers get a bad name because a lot of people fill them with beeswax — so you’re literally putting wax on your body.” Her recipe (inspired by French chocolate) has none of that.

FRENCH SECRETS

The reason it sounds almost too good to be true is because it’s thanks to a new technique she dreamed up in the kitchen, combining experiences from opening a bakery in London and ayurvedic practices she picked up while teaching yoga. Also, Paris: “I became familiar with French chocolate, and French chocolate has a lot of cocoa butter,” she explains. “I started with a basic ganache recipe, melted the cocoa butter down on my stove and added in other oils.”

CONCENTRATED HYDRATION

“It’s 100% plant-based nourishment. Think of it as a concentrate,” she explains, noting that she only has to use her body stones two or three times a week for better hydration than traditional lotion.

“Up to 60% of what you put on your body will absorb within the first minute after application — your skin is sucking it in,” she says. “Are you feeding your skin alcohol, which is drying, and water, which is going to evaporate off? Or are you feeding your skin the best natural plant-based ingredients to nourish, seal, and lock in that moisture? That’s what’s in the stone — that’s why it’s different from a bottle of lotion.”

A PLASTIC-FREE FUTURE

Wrapped up in cloth within bamboo canisters or recyclable paper boxes, McLeod’s recipe has been tapped by customers for over 70,000 stones to date.

“For every stone we’ve sold, we’ve kept a bottle out of a landfill,” says McLeod. “We are plastic-free, we are water-free, and that is going to remain — forever — in all of our packaging.”