At Luna Delgado Botanicals, natural is everything.

Aromatic scents of eucalyptus, citrus and cedar are the first to hit customers’ noses when they enter the door. The decorative moss, crystals and sea shells, however, aren’t the only things straight out of nature — the products are infused with botanical extracts that soothe the skin and mind.

Luna Delgado offers lotions, mists and serums intended to help customers with ailments under Ayurvedic medicine, an ancient medicinal practice originating from India that uses natural therapies to help treat illnesses. According to Johns  Hopkins medicine, herbs, oils and other common spices are used extensively to treat disease in Ayurvedic treatment.

Store founder Luna Delgado, who opened her Evanston practice in late March, sells products to replace medicine cabinet essentials and rejuvenate, replenish and maintain the skin.

“In natural products, we recognize that the skin is a digestive organ, and we want to only put a whole foods diet on the skin, just like we eat internally,” Delgado said.

The shop’s brand is named for Delgado, who said she has been practicing Ayurvedic and herbal medicine for 30 years. For the majority of that time, she developed her own botanical products.

Delgado launched a plant medicine line called Luna Delgado Botanicals after she was forced to close her clinic due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Before, she hosted small monthly lectures at her home to teach her students of Ayurvedic medicine about its principles and how to make products. She sold her line online and hopes her new shop — located at 800 Dempster St. — will allow her to relaunch that series for the community.

Delgado said her current best-selling product is a topical foot cream called Deeper Sleep Cream, which is part of her wellness collection. The product helps reregulate the sleep cycle with botanical medicine, which is absorbed through the skin at the bottom of the feet.

She also plans to offer educational workshops for customers. On April 18, she’s hosting a Sound Bath session at her shop in collaboration with yoga and sound meditation facilitator and Evanston resident Elizabeth Lidov.

Lidov, who originally visited the shop as a patron, said she had trouble finding non-irritating products for her sensitive skin. But, Delgado’s skincare has made a big difference for her –– especially the Winter Serum.

“I have some underlying rosacea, so redness in the skin, so it really helps with calming down the skin and getting a nice even skin tone,” Lidov said.

Luna Delgado Botanicals has three product collections: wellness, aromatic therapy and skincare. Delgado said the botanical extracts in her products act as natural preservatives, and added that her products are all vegan –– with the exception of local honey in her face masks.

Brianne Johnson, Delgado’s associate, said Delgado considers the wellness of everyone during her manufacturing process.

“She has such a beautiful story and vision,” Johnson said. “Bringing that to as many people as possible is the greatest vision I could hope for.”

Since Ayurvedic medicine focuses on bringing the body to a balanced state, Delgado also creates seasonal skincare based on environmental changes.

Delgado said her products and workshops are age-inclusive, because not only does botanical wisdom “predate everything,” but everyone has skin, and should feel comfortable taking care of it.

“Everything from skincare, to wellness care, to aromatherapy, to perfume – it doesn’t need to be synthetic and bad for your body,” Delgado said. “It can be natural and just as powerful.”

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