This Maui Farmer Makes the Best Face Wash I’ve Ever Used
All great produce-driven skincare discoveries should happen on the Road to Hana.
You’re reading “The Dirt,” where we talk to cool gardening-adjacent folks to learn more about their work, their relationship to plants and the gardening wisdom they’ve learned along the way. Today, we’re talking to Maui-based skincare entrepreneur Shelley Lee about her line and the ingredients she grows on her 7-acre regenerative farm.
I’ve been obsessed with small-batch botanical skincare lines — especially ones I’ve never heard of that use local native ingredients (hello, kakadu plum) — since at least 2015. One day while escaping my Vogue Australia desk during lunch, I discovered Luna Beauty and Apothecary, a tiny shop near my office that carries natural skincare from around the world. Owner and holistic esthetician Faye Akilotis, whose glow rivals that of a wood nymph, introduced me to the benefits of rosehip oil — among many other botanical potions meant to balance out my irritable, acne-laden skin. And voila! Within a couple months of swapping out my much harsher, synthetic chemical-clad products (and finding a f*cking amazing facialist), my skin finally cleared up and birthed a radiance that I only wish my 18 year-old self could have believed was possible.
But after last year’s fires knocked us out of orbit, I lost all desire to deal with my face (the fact that I had to literally trash every single smoke-damaged product in our bathroom while wearing a Tyvek suit, P100 mask and gloves probably didn’t help the situation). One tends to deprioritize fine lines and pallor when you don’t have long term housing and are on day seven of wearing your only sweatpants not covered in toxic dust.
In September — as we moved out of our VRBO and started to feel settled in our new house — I began toe-dipping back into my skincare routine. After months, I finally replaced my favorite strawberry rhubarb exfoliant. And opened the Neroli cleansing oil I bought on my most recent trip to Sydney at — where else? — Luna. I discovered a wonderful new facialist so close to home that I now walk to appointments. And soon, that fierce desire to nurture my skin returned in full force.
So a December family vacation provided the perfect timing to discover a novel, routine-shaking product.
On a drizzly afternoon spent shopping in the oh-so-charming Paia Town on Maui’s North Shore (the start of the famed Road to Hana), I found glass jars of potions on a shelf in a very cute swimwear boutique.
“Oh those products are amazing,” the store associate swooned in a way that actually felt real. “My esthetician told me to use the face wash and now it’s the only cleanser I use.”
I noticed her perfect pearlescent glow as she pointed toward a glass dropper bottle filled with black liquid. But I was skeptical (save for their own natural disasters, I felt fairly certain that this area’s gloriously low-stress lifestyle could produce “eight hours of sleep” skin on anyone who called it home, irrespective of their skincare routine).
Then the associate told me that the maker of said potions — called Oshan Essentials — grows most of her ingredients on an organic farm down the road. Incredibly intrigued but still not ready to commit to an unknown face topical, I splurged on a jar of chamomile, calendula and macadamia oil after sun body balm that smelled like tea.
Two days later, after realizing that I never wanted to be without this thick, sweet-smelling moisturizer (which feels like a body mask) again, I bought the face wash.
(Revert to the title of this post).
Turns out that the black liquid is a blend of coconut, olive, jojoba and hemp oils combined with sandalwood, frankincense, activated charcoal and vetiver grass. While I plan on chatting with my dermatologist about this slightly woodsy, velvety cleanser during my next appointment, I can’t deny how clean, supple, clear and soft my skin has felt since using it. Plus I’m excited to get ready for bed every night, because using a drop makes me feel like I’m at a spa.
I needed to know who made it. And I definitely needed to know the story of her farm. So back home in Ojai, I tracked down Oshan founder Shelley Lee, a former pro surfer and jewelry designer who indeed grows the papaya, ginger, guava and turmeric (among other native ingredients) used in her products on the 7-acre carbon neutral farm she shares with her daughter and husband, zero-impact architect David Sellers.
I’m clearly not the only one who has fallen in love with Lee’s products — they’re also stocked at the Four Seasons Maui and Marlow, an ingredient-driven, James Beard-recognized pizzeria in Maui’s Upcoutry that I visited in 2022 after a hike and haven’t stopped thinking about since.
Lee was kind enough to talk to me about her move to Maui, why growing things just for fun is wonderful, how to plan a garden if you don’t have major acreage and her least favorite farm “task.”
The below interview has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.
It sounds like you’ve had a really cool, creative career path so far – first as a pro surfer and then as a jewelry designer. I’m really interested to learn more about your journey to becoming a natural skincare entrepreneur. What made you decide to start Oshan Essentials? When did you become interested in natural skincare?
My connection to nature and botanicals began early. Growing up as a competitive swimmer gave me a deep awareness of the body, which I later expanded through studies in biology and human anatomy.
I was raised in Israel, about an hour from the Dead Sea, where I worked with a company specializing in mineral-based skincare. There, I saw firsthand how powerful natural ingredients could be for compromised skin. At the same time, witnessing environmental damage from large-scale mineral harvesting shaped my commitment to responsible sourcing.
Before founding Oshan, I was a professional surfer for a brief while and a Bikram Yoga instructor. Long hours in the ocean and under the sun gave me an intimate understanding of what salt, wind, and UV exposure demand from the skin. Needing a moisturizer that will not drip and sting my eyes became a real need in the hot room. It became simple: I wanted to create what I needed and couldn’t find thoughtfully sourced, simple yet luxurious products for sun-drenched, ocean-shaped lives.
Moving to Hawai‘i had always been a dream. I had built a successful jewelry brand in Israel in 2005, which I continued managing after we relocated. After more than a decade in the fashion world, I felt called to create something with deeper meaning and lasting impact.
Life in Hawai‘i brought everything into alignment. I was surfing daily, then became a mother, and my relationship with self-care shifted deeply. I came to understand how meaningful small, intentional rituals can be in restoring both body and mind.
Around that same time, our friends Bob and Kelly King began producing macadamia nut oil on the Big Island with an inspiring zero-waste approach. They transformed macadamia nuts that were unsuitable for the food market into high-quality oil, preventing them from going to landfill. Their facility is powered by biodiesel produced on Maui from locally grown sunflowers, making their process as thoughtful as the ingredient itself.
Having access to this beautiful, responsibly produced local oil became one of the sparks that led to the creation of Oshan.
Working alongside aromatherapists and chemists, I began developing formulations that unite botanical tradition with scientific understanding. Ocean life, motherhood, holistic study, and local ingredients all converged into what Oshan is today — a brand devoted to caring for sun-exposed skin through daily rituals inspired by the sea.
Essential oils and herbs remain part of my everyday family life. Blending for friends and loved ones is second nature — a practice grounded in a lifelong respect for the power of plants.
I know you live and work from a gorgeous farm on Maui’s North Shore. Did you grow up taking care of land or being exposed to people who farmed? How has your previous experience gardening/farming/taking care of land shaped your Maui farm (and ultimately your business)?
I grew up in the city and never spent time on farms. My aunt was a farmer, but I never got involved in that world.
Moving to Maui and living on land changed me. When you care for a farm, you start understanding the pace of real growth. Farming taught me patience, observation and humility. It also deepened my relationship to ingredients. When you watch turmeric or ginger come out of the soil, you feel its potency differently. It makes the product creation feel grounded and sacred.
How long have you been growing crops on your current property? Were you planting and cultivating crops prior to starting Oshan Essentials? Or did you start farming to support your skincare products?
We’ve been on the farm for about 10 years, and the land has evolved slowly and naturally over time. A lot of our daily farm life is centered around our cattle and sheep, which take a lot of hands-on care.
We do grow some crops, but we’re not trying to operate like a large produce farm. The truth is, skincare doesn’t require a huge amount of plant material the way food production does. With botanicals like turmeric and ginger, a little goes a long way, especially when you’re working with concentrated extracts, infusions, and oils. And once these kinds of plants are established, they’re actually very resilient here, they thrive in the climate and become part of a long-term ecosystem on the land.
One of our goals for 2026 is to plant more, expand what we grow, and deepen that connection between the farm and what we create through Oshan.
Is everything you grow used in Oshan products or is there other produce growing that doesn't make it into your formulations? What are some other things you’re doing with the fruits and vegetables growing on your farm?
We grow papaya, guava, ginger, and turmeric and beyond that we also grow things like citrus, banana, avocados, coconuts, lemongrass, lilikoi, comfrey and aloe.
Not everything goes into formulations. Some crops are for food, for family, for community, and sometimes simply because we love growing them. I think that’s important: not everything needs to be commercialized. Some plants exist just to feed you, heal you, and keep the land alive.
What we don’t use in products we eat, share, preserve, juice, and trade or feed our cows.
You obviously had a process when it came to planning out your land and deciding what you wanted to grow. What’s your advice for someone who’s just starting to think about growing produce but doesn’t know where to start?
It’s overwhelming at first because your imagination runs faster than the actual growth. Ask yourself:
“What do I want to eat every week?”
“What grows easily in my climate?”
“What will still thrive when life gets busy?”
Start with “core plants” that you know you’ll actually use. Add support plants (pollinator-friendly herbs, companion plants) and don’t fight your microclimate. Watch where sun hits, where water collects, what gets wind. The land tells you what wants to happen.
How involved are you with the daily maintenance of the crops growing on your land? What does a typical day on the farm look like for you?
My daily involvement with the farming side is actually pretty minimal. Like I mentioned, the types of plants we grow are fairly low maintenance once they’re established, and being on the windward side helps a lot because we’re lucky to get consistent rainfall.
Most of my days are really centered around Oshan itself. We craft, bottle, and label everything in-house, so the making of the skincare takes up the majority of my time and energy.
Weekends are when we focus on the farm — harvesting, planting, and adding extra irrigation when needed. It feels grounding to switch gears and work with the land after being in production mode all week.
My favorite farm task is harvesting. It’s the most satisfying part, and it reconnects me to the source of everything. The task I absolutely hate is weed whacking.
I know you also source ingredients from other farms around Maui and Hawai’i. What qualities do you look for when deciding whether or not to partner with a fellow grower?
Clean growing practices (or organic mindset even if not certified), deep respect for the land and small-scale, thoughtful farming. And I’m always drawn to growers who care about quality over yield. When someone knows their plants intimately and understands harvesting timing, drying, storage, that’s everything. You can feel it in the final ingredient.