Our story — Meet Apinya
I grew up in Brisbane, the daughter of Thai parents who ran a small herbal dispensary on Wickham Street in Fortitude Valley. My mum kept dried botanicals in every drawer and mixed her own skin treatments from recipes her mother had written in a notebook that came over from Chiang Mai in 1987. I left for London at 24 to study cosmetic formulation at a private college in Shoreditch, thinking I'd come back in two years. I stayed for seven. By the end I was working in a small contract lab in Hackney, developing fragrance and skincare bases for independent brands. Good work, genuinely interesting, but none of it felt like mine.
Before I started Creston Goods, I spent a lot of time thinking about what I actually knew. I knew Thai herbal tradition from watching my mum. I knew modern formulation from seven years in London labs. What I didn't know was Australian botanicals, not properly. So when I moved back in 2019 and ended up in Bowral instead of Brisbane, partly for a relationship and partly because the Southern Highlands felt manageable after London, I started doing the research properly. I drove out to a native plant nursery near Moss Vale and spent about three hours talking to the owner about kaolin, pink clay deposits, and what grew locally. That conversation changed the direction of everything.
The actual starting point was a Sunday in March 2020, the week before the first lockdown. I had 4 kilograms of New South Wales pink clay I'd sourced through a supplier in Mittagong, a batch of cold-pressed macadamia oil from a grower near Dunoon, and my old London formulation notes spread across the kitchen table. I wasn't planning to launch a business that day. I was just making something. But the face mask I mixed that afternoon worked better than anything I'd made in the Hackney lab, and I thought, this is actually the combination. Thai formulation instincts, Australian raw materials, proper cosmetic chemistry. I registered INK CRAFT PTY LTD six weeks later.
These days the workshop is a converted garage on the edge of Bowral. Orders go out Tuesday and Thursday. I still source the pink clay through Mittagong and the macadamia oil from the same Dunoon grower. The team is small, three people plus me, and we do everything here except the label printing, which goes to a printer in Marrickville. I'm not trying to be the biggest natural skincare brand in Australia. I'm trying to make things that actually do what they say they do, and to keep the supply chain close enough that I can check it myself.
— Made in Bowral, started at the kitchen table. — Apinya, Apinya Nantanon
Journal
Why it took eight months to find the right clay
Finding a local kaolin source that actually worked in a face mask took longer than I expected, and the answer was closer than I thought.
When I was living in Berlin I used a German pharmacy clay mask every second week, the kind that came in a brown glass jar and cost about fourteen euros. It worked well. When I moved back to Bowral in 2022 I assumed I'd find something similar locally within a few months. I was wrong. The first three kaolin samples I ordered online were fine for soap making but too dense for a face mask, they dried too fast and left skin feeling stripped rather than settled. I started asking around at the Southern Highlands Farmers Market and eventually someone pointed me toward a small minerals operation outside Oberon.
Oberon sits about 90 kilometres northwest of here on the plateau, and the kaolin deposit there has a finer particle size than a lot of what comes through mainstream cosmetic suppliers. I drove out on a Tuesday in November, which was probably not my smartest move because it was already 34 degrees by ten in the morning. The owner, a quiet bloke named Trevor, walked me through the processing shed and explained how the clay was washed and dried before milling. He'd been supplying potters and a couple of soap makers for years but hadn't really dealt with skincare formulation before. We talked for about two hours.
The Oberon kaolin ended up being the backbone of the Outback Glow Clay Face Mask. I blend it with white kaolin from a secondary supplier in Queensland to get the right draw without over-drying, and then the native botanical additions, wattleseed extract and a small percentage of Davidson plum powder, bring the colour and some of the antioxidant load. The Davidson plum component gives the mask that dusty pink-red tone people ask about. It's not a dye. It's just what Davidson plum looks like when it's dried and milled fine.
Getting the ratios took another four months of bench testing. I was doing batches of 200 grams at a time in my kitchen, applying the mask myself three times a week and keeping notes in a plain spiral notebook. My husband started calling it the red face era. By February 2024 I had a formula I was happy with, one that sits on skin for ten minutes without cracking, rinses clean, and doesn't leave that tight feeling that made me suspicious of clay masks for years. The final product uses roughly 60 percent Oberon kaolin by weight.
I mention all of this because I get asked fairly often whether local sourcing is just a story brands tell. In this case it genuinely changed the product. The Oberon clay behaves differently on skin than the alternatives I tested, and I wouldn't have found it without that conversation at the farmers market. Trevor now gets a monthly order from me. He seemed mildly baffled by this arrangement at first but I think we've both settled into it.
The body scrub routine I actually stick to
I've been using the Bush Botanical Body Scrub twice a week since winter started and here's what that actually looks like in practice.
It's August and Bowral is cold. Not Sydney cold, real cold. We've had a few mornings this week below two degrees and the wood heater has been running since six. My skin in winter gets dry in a specific way, not flaky exactly, more like dull and a bit tight across the shins and upper arms. I started making the Bush Botanical Body Scrub partly because of this. The scrubs I'd used in New York were either too abrasive or loaded with fragrance that made the bathroom smell like a department store. I wanted something that worked without being dramatic about it.
My actual routine is simple. I use the scrub in the shower twice a week, usually Sunday night and Wednesday morning. I apply it to damp skin, not wet, there's a difference. Wet skin dilutes the oils too much and you lose the slip. I work in small circles starting at the feet and moving up, avoiding anywhere the skin is thin or broken. The lemon myrtle in the formula means it smells sharp and clean rather than sweet. I leave it on for maybe 90 seconds before rinsing. That's it. The whole thing takes about four extra minutes.
The base of the scrub is fine sea salt from a South Australian producer I found through a food-grade supplier directory, mixed with macadamia oil pressed in northern New South Wales. Macadamia oil is genuinely underused in body care. It has a fatty acid profile that sits close to human sebum, which means it absorbs without leaving that greasy film that some heavier oils do. I spent time in Tokyo where light-texture skin products are standard and that experience changed how I think about oil weight. Heavy isn't better. Appropriate is better.
After rinsing I pat dry and apply whatever moisturiser I'm using that week, usually something simple. The scrub has already deposited a thin layer of macadamia oil so I don't need much. By the next morning my shins no longer feel like sandpaper, which is the benchmark I'm working to in winter. I've had customers message to ask whether the scrub is safe for sensitive skin. My answer is always that the salt is fine grade so it's not aggressive, but everyone's skin is different and a small patch test on the inner arm first is just common sense.
One practical note: the scrub will separate in the jar because there are no emulsifiers holding the oil and salt together. Give it a stir with the small wooden spatula that comes with it, or just a clean spoon. This is not a flaw, it's what happens when you don't add ingredients whose only job is to make a product look uniform on a shelf. Keep the lid on between uses so water doesn't get in and dilute the oil layer.
Making candles in a cold stone room in October
October in Bowral means unpredictable temperatures, which turns out to matter quite a lot when you're pouring 80 candles in one afternoon.
The workroom at the back of our property is an old stone outbuilding that used to be some kind of cool store. It holds temperature well in summer, which is the point of stone construction, but in spring it lags behind. On a 22-degree October day outside, the room might still be sitting at 14 or 15 degrees inside at noon. This matters for candle making because the temperature of the room affects how the wax sets, specifically how quickly it contracts and whether the surface stays smooth or develops sinkholes and wet spots. I learned this the expensive way during my first batch last October, 80 vessels poured, about 35 of them with surface problems.
The Native Flora Scented Candle uses a coconut-soy blend, 70 percent coconut wax and 30 percent soy from an Australian supplier in Victoria. Coconut wax has a lower melt point than straight soy and throws scent well at a lower fragrance load, which I prefer because I find heavily fragranced candles headache-inducing. The scent blend is built around boronia absolute sourced through a Perth-based essential oil wholesaler, with supporting notes of wattle and a small percentage of sandalwood from a certified Western Australian grower. Boronia absolute is not cheap, it takes roughly 1 million flowers to produce a kilogram of absolute, which is part of why the candle sits at the price point it does.
This October I installed a small oil-column heater in the workroom and let it run for two hours before pouring. Getting the room to a stable 20 degrees made a visible difference. I poured 96 vessels over two afternoons and lost three to surface defects, which is a rate I can live with. The wax is melted in a double boiler setup, poured at 58 degrees, and the fragrance is added at 55 degrees before pouring into vessels that have been sitting in the warmed room for at least 30 minutes. The wick is a flat-braided cotton, 6mm diameter, held centred with a wooden wick bar across the top of the vessel while the wax sets.
The vessels are a recycled glass tumbler from a supplier in South Australia, 220ml capacity, wide enough that the melt pool reaches the edges by the second hour of burning. This matters. A candle that tunnels straight down the centre wastes most of the wax and throws very little scent because the melt pool is too small. I test every new batch by burning one candle for four hours and measuring the melt pool diameter. It should reach within 5mm of the vessel wall. If it doesn't, the wick needs to go up a size.
Spring in the Southern Highlands is genuinely beautiful, the cherry trees on Bong Bong Street are doing their thing and the public gardens look like someone turned the saturation up. But from a production standpoint it's the most awkward season because you can have a 10-degree swing between morning and afternoon on the same day. I've started checking the Bureau of Meteorology forecast the night before any pour day. Stable temperature matters more than warm temperature.
Late summer in the Highlands and what I've been burning
March is when the heat finally breaks here and I find myself reaching for the Koala Calm blend every evening without really thinking about it.
By the first week of March the mornings in Bowral have that particular quality where it's still warm but the light is different, lower and a bit golden, and you can feel that autumn is coming even though the temperature hasn't dropped yet. February was brutal this year, 38 degrees on three consecutive days in late January and the garden looking sorry for itself by mid-month. I'm not someone who handles heat well, which is ironic given that I grew up in Queensland before years in London made me forget what Australian summer actually feels like. Coming back has been a process of relearning.
The Koala Calm Essential Oil Blend started as something I made for myself. In London I'd used a lavender and chamomile blend from a small apothecary in Marylebone that I'd add to a diffuser on evenings when work had been relentless and I couldn't settle. When I came back to Australia I wanted something that felt more local, not as a concept but just as a smell. The blend I landed on uses blue cypress from a Northern Territory distiller, Australian sandalwood from Western Australia, and a small percentage of kunzea, which grows wild in parts of Tasmania and has a quality that's hard to describe, something between eucalyptus and something softer.
I use about 6 drops in the diffuser, usually starting around seven in the evening. The blue cypress is the dominant note, woody and slightly smoky, and it grounds the blend in a way that lavender-forward blends don't for me. I've had a few customers say they find it unusual at first and then can't imagine using anything else, which maps to my own experience. It's not immediately pretty. It settles into something. The kunzea percentage is low, around 8 percent of the total blend, because it can tip sharp if you use too much.
March is also when I start thinking about the next product development cycle. I've been testing a body oil for the last six weeks that uses emu apple extract alongside macadamia and rosehip, and I'm about 70 percent happy with the texture. The remaining 30 percent is that it still feels slightly heavy on humid evenings. I'm working with a cosmetic chemist in Sydney to adjust the oleic to linoleic ratio, which sounds technical but basically means making it absorb faster without losing the skin-feel I want. This is the part of the job that doesn't photograph well but takes the most time.
I don't have a neat conclusion to this. It's just a particular time of year and a particular set of things I'm thinking about. The summer is ending, the rosehip bushes in the garden are setting fruit, and I poured a new batch of the Koala Calm blend last weekend, 48 bottles, which will last me a few months at the current rate. Autumn in the Highlands is the best season here and I'm ready for it.
Customer reviews
Priya M. — Surry Hills, NSW — 2024-03-14 — 5/5
Genuinely one of the better face masks I've tried
Ordered the Outback Glow Clay Face Mask after seeing it mentioned in a group I'm in, and it arrived in three days which was quicker than I expected. My skin felt noticeably smoother the next morning — not just tight and dry the way some clay masks leave you. I've already ordered a second one.
Tom R. — Brunswick, VIC — 2024-05-22 — 4/5
Solid body scrub, good scent
The Bush Botanical Body Scrub smells really good — not overpowering, just clean and earthy. It does what it says and my skin felt soft after use. Packaging was secure and nothing leaked in transit. Only reason it's four stars is I'd like a slightly larger size option for the price.
Chloe D. — New Farm, QLD — 2024-07-08 — 5/5
The candle is now a permanent fixture
Bought the Native Flora Scented Candle on a bit of a whim and I'm really glad I did. The scent throw is good without being overwhelming, and it burns evenly without tunnelling. I've bought two more since and given one as a birthday gift.
James K. — Fremantle, WA — 2024-08-30 — 4/5
Hair oil actually works
I was a bit sceptical about the Eucalyptus Revive Hair Oil because I've been burnt by similar products before. This one actually absorbs well and doesn't leave my hair greasy if I use a small amount. Took about six days to arrive to WA on standard shipping, which is fine.
Mei L. — Fitzroy, VIC — 2024-10-11 — 5/5
Koala Calm is exactly what I needed
I ordered the Koala Calm Essential Oil Blend during a pretty stressful week and it's become part of my evening routine now. The scent is calming without being medicinal. Arrived well-packed with no leaks, and the bottle is a decent size for the price.
Sarah O. — Glenelg, SA — 2025-01-17 — 5/5
Great gift, great packaging
Ordered a few things as a birthday gift for my sister and added the gift wrap option at checkout. The presentation was really neat — the kraft paper and note card looked thoughtful without being over the top. My sister specifically mentioned the face mask was her favourite thing she received.
Nathan B. — Hobart, TAS — 2025-02-04 — 4/5
Good products, takes a bit longer to TAS
I've ordered the body scrub twice now and I'm happy with it — does the job and smells good. Delivery to Hobart took about eight business days on the standard option, so just worth knowing if you're in Tassie and need it by a specific date. Would still recommend.
Anika W. — Paddington, QLD — 2025-03-28 — 5/5
Repurchased the candle three times now
The Native Flora Scented Candle burns cleanly and the scent lasts well into the room even after you've put it out. I've repurchased it three times and each one has been consistent. Fast shipping and the order arrived exactly as described.
Shipping
We ship Australia-wide using Australia Post for standard delivery and StarTrack for express. Standard orders typically arrive within 3–7 business days for metro areas and 5–10 business days for regional or remote locations. Express orders are generally 1–3 business days metro and 2–5 business days for regional areas, though these are estimates and not guarantees. Orders placed before 2pm AEST Monday to Friday are dispatched the same day. Orders placed after that cutoff, or on weekends and public holidays, are dispatched the next business day. Once your order leaves our Bowral workshop, you'll receive a tracking number by email.
Shipping is free on all orders over $75. For orders under that threshold, standard shipping is a flat $8.95 and express is $14.95. All prices on our website include GST, and your invoice will show the GST component clearly. We don't ship internationally at this time. We pack all orders carefully using recycled materials to reduce damage in transit — fragile items like candles and glass bottles are wrapped individually. If something arrives damaged, please see our returns policy or contact us at hello@crestongoods.com.au with a photo of the damage within 7 days of delivery.
If your order arrives damaged or is lost in transit, we'll work with you to sort it out promptly. For damaged goods, email us a photo of the item and packaging within 7 days of receiving it and we'll arrange a replacement or refund. For parcels that appear lost, we'll lodge an enquiry with Australia Post or StarTrack on your behalf — this process can take up to 5 business days to resolve. Please make sure your delivery address is correct at checkout, as we're unable to redirect parcels once they've been dispatched. We're not responsible for delays caused by the carrier once the parcel has left our workshop.
Returns
We want you to be happy with what you receive from Creston Goods. If you change your mind about a purchase, you can return it within 30 days of delivery, provided the item is unused, unopened, and in its original packaging in resaleable condition. To start a return, email us at hello@crestongoods.com.au with your order number and reason for return. Return postage for change-of-mind returns is at the customer's expense. We recommend using a tracked service, as we can't take responsibility for return parcels that don't reach us. Refunds are processed to your original payment method within 5–7 business days of us receiving and inspecting the returned item.
Under the Australian Consumer Law, you're entitled to a remedy if a product is faulty, not fit for purpose, or doesn't match its description. If your order arrives damaged, defective, or significantly different from what was advertised, you don't need to return it at your own cost — contact us first and we'll arrange the appropriate remedy, which may be a replacement, repair, or full refund depending on the situation. These rights apply regardless of our standard return conditions and are in addition to any change-of-mind policy. We take these obligations seriously and will respond to any faulty goods claim within 2 business days.
For hygiene reasons, we're unable to accept change-of-mind returns on opened skincare products, body scrubs, oils, or candles. This includes the Koala Calm Essential Oil Blend, Outback Glow Clay Face Mask, Bush Botanical Body Scrub, Eucalyptus Revive Hair Oil, and Native Flora Scented Candle once the seal or packaging has been broken. This exclusion does not apply if the product is faulty or unsafe — in that case, Australian Consumer Law protections still apply in full. If you're unsure whether a product is right for you before purchasing, feel free to email us and we'll give you an honest answer.