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Grand Rapids mother-daughter team making safe, organic skin care products

Posted at 1:55 PM, Apr 26, 2017
and last updated 2017-04-26 13:55:53-04

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- A mother- daughter team in Grand Rapids is changing the way people think about their cosmetics. Together they founded their own line called Keeki Pure & Simple.

Natalie and Kiana "Keeki" Bauss were living on a farm, raising chickens and growing vegetables when Natalie realized their lifestyle didn't match their practices. “Here we are on our farm, raising our 26 alpacas and our 75 chickens. Keeki was going out to the chicken coop to collect the eggs in the morning, going out to the garden to collect vegetables," Keeki Pure & Simple Co-Founder Natalie Bauss tells FOX 17. "Then all she wanted to do is paint her nails and I’m thinking, 'wait a second, this doesn’t match our lifestyle.' You can’t do that.”

According to a study by the American Journal of Public Health, your body absorbs 64% of what is put on it. For Bauss, that statistic was concerning while raising her daughter Keeki, who was 7 at the time.

“She tried to look for nail polish that I could use that was even a little bit better on the market. We tried a few brands and I just didn’t like the color options because I wanted fun bright colors that every 7-year-old kid wants," Kiana “Keeki” Bauss, now 17 explains. "They had colors like lavender purple and this gross green. I wanted something fun, so she started making me options.”

What started as options for Keeki turned into a business named after her, Keeki Pure & Simple. But after making everything from nail polish to sunscreen for Keeki, Natalie came to a mid-life realization.

"Making all these products for Keeki, I realized, 'oh, my gosh, I’m going to be 50 soon. I need to come up with something that has efficacy that’s totally on an organic level for myself.'”

So once again, Natalie got to work, making a new line, a more mature one called KPS Essentials. The line is taking off. She just got back from New York where the line received high praise from a rep at Good Housekeeping magazine.

Natalie explains, “We were able to give her a facial in the lab at the Good Housekeeping Research Institute. It was very exciting and she called our facial a transformational facial, saying she’s never seen anything like it."

To give their products a try, visit their websites:

Enter code FOX17 at checkout to recieve a 20% off.

For a KPS facial make an appointment at Apsara Spa at (616) 451-4505 or Vasaio Life Spa (616) 942-2966 and mention FOX 17 News for a discount.