When Adriana Green launched ESTELÍ in 2016, she didn’t envision it becoming a full-time business. At the time, she was experimenting with natural skincare and selling small batches at markets on the West Coast. “It really started organically,” she says — fitting for a brand rooted in botanicals.
By 2021, she was refining the brand’s identity and packaging in preparation for a full relaunch. ESTELÍ went live the following year, and today she runs the business full time from her home in Norfolk.
The company’s origin, though, was less about entrepreneurship and more about a personal health reckoning. In her mid-30s, Green began experiencing chronic cough, inflammation, rashes, and digestive issues. “All my life, I spent more money on beauty products than food,” she says with a laugh. She believed that price equaled quality — “which wasn’t the case,” she says.
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When she couldn’t trace her symptoms to anything she was eating, she turned to the beauty products she was using and was “obsessed with,” she says. For years, she had never studied the list of ingredients. “You just care about what’s on the front, the beautiful skin, shiny hair.” One evening, she sat down at her laptop and examined every ingredient in her routine. “The ingredient list was basically another language to me; it didn’t make any sense,” she explains. As she researched, she learned about endocrine disruptors, allergens, and irritating compounds. “I realized … this might be it,” she says. Soon after, she was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s disease, an autoimmune condition that affects the thyroid.
The discovery left her shaken and frustrated. “If this stuff wasn’t safe, then why was it on the shelf?” she thought. She also learned the prevalence of “greenwashing” — products highlighting fruits or botanicals on the label that appear only in trace amounts. Vague terms like “natural fragrance” were especially concerning. “They can put hundreds of different ingredients all enclosed in that fragrance,” she notes. “There’s a lot of sneaky things the industry does.”
Determined to take a different path, Green began educating herself on natural ingredients to nourish skin safely and effectively. She learned about organic skincare formulation through Formula Botanica, an organic cosmetic formation school, and soon began personally vetting every ingredient she used. “As a formulator for my brand, and knowing how important it is to me to have safe ingredients, I have to know everything in that ingredient, and I will list it,” she says. “I want to be as transparent as possible.”
Inspired by Nicaragua, her mother’s homeland, Green built ESTELÍ around ingredients that mirror the lush landscapes she remembers from her first visit there in 2007. As she explored naturally derived botanicals, she was captivated. “It was like a kid in a candy store,” she says. “I became enamored with these natural ingredients and their properties and benefits.”
Green began using these in all her products: face oils, mists, vitamin C serums, masks, body oils, mineral soaks, sleep sprays, and seasonal perfume mists. She sources organic and wildcrafted (grown in a forest, not farmed) ingredients whenever possible, favors unrefined oils, and is Leaping Bunny certified (free from animal testing).
Scent plays a central role in her philosophy. “A lot of the essential oils that are in there have a purpose contributing to the health of your skin. But also I believe that scents help people spiritually as far as mood,” she notes. “I love for people to realize what amazing things we have that are growing literally around us.”
Her body oils and face oils are among her best sellers, along with a newer trio of seasonal perfumes. “The fall one has certain spices and herbs — one of them is really good for coughs. I’m starting to really correlate the ingredients’ power with the fragrance,” she says. “To me, flowers, plants, nature are beautiful to look at. They’re healthy for us, and they’re multipurpose.”
For those new to plant-based skincare, her advice is to simplify. One of the biggest hurdles she sees is the long-held belief that everything should be oil-free. Many routines start with toners that “take every last drop of oil from your skin,” she says — leaving it feeling like paper — only to be followed by an oil-free moisturizer. “Our skin and our bodies are so amazing, they don’t need much. Give it stuff that can help support it. A lot of beauty is good sleep.”
Green says one of the most gratifying parts of her journey was getting her products out into the world. “Seeing your name on store shelves and at Nordstrom.com — that’s really rewarding.” Equally meaningful is the validation she feels when customers return again and again. National outlets have taken notice, too: Oprah Daily named ESTELÍ Verano Body Oil a top pick for oily skin; NYLON praised its quick absorption and “f*cking incredible” scent; and Spa & Beauty Today highlighted the Rosa Jamaica Hydrating Face Mist as a top choice for hydrating and nourishing skin.
Her deeper motivation, though, is helping others navigate complex health issues. The more people she meets with autoimmune diseases, the more she feels grateful to offer an alternative. She also thinks about the next generation and how to create a healthier path for them. “I think of my kids,” she says. “I’m hoping that I can prevent them from going through these things by researching.”
ESTELÍ products can be purchased online at estelibody.com and at nordstrom.com.
