Sometimes I get out of the shower and *really* don’t feel like moisturizing. Which is silly, because how luxurious is it to get out of a hot shower and slather yourself in moisturizer? I guess I just haven’t found a routine that makes me want to run to my vanity before the steam dissipates just yet.

Self-care takes work, but it shouldn’t feel like work; having your body care routine stress you out kind of defeats the purpose. That’s why Jasmine Tookes (you’ll know her from every photo you’ve ever seen and thought to yourself “wow, that model is gorgeous”) and Sabrina Castenfelt (a less photographed but similarly lovely and brilliant investor) co-founded Brunel, a body oil-focused beauty brand “rooted in mood-elevating wellness.” They want to make your skincare routine feel more like a ritual… with immediate impact.

Ahead, the co-founders tell us everything we need to know about the line—including what they love most about their initial launches.

The Inspiration

Beauty has always been a passion for Tookes. When you’ve worked in the fashion industry alongside top glam artists for over 15 years, it comes with the territory.

“I’ve wanted to create a brand for a very, very long time. Probably since I was, like, 15 years old. It just never felt like the right time or the right message or the right story to tell, because the beauty market is very saturated. There’s just so much going on,” the supermodel tells Byrdie.

And then, about a year and a half ago, she met the equally passionate Castenfelt. They realized there was a “white space” in the market and decided to dive into it. The name they chose for their brand—Brunel—is derived from the French word for brown. It plays into grounding textures and the nature-inspired formulations they utilize.

“Something that united us was how our beauty or skincare routine is really the one time in a day we’re guaranteed to have to ourselves. With our very tired, stressed lifestyles—Jasmine as a model and a mother and myself in private equity—we don’t get much sleep. Looking toward that skincare, body care, beauty routine and trying to find a way to turn that more into the wellness experience that it could be—and that in a lot of cultures it is—was really the beginning of how we started with Brunel and approached the body oil category,” the investor adds.

The Products

Tookes is a lifelong body oil user. Looking back at interviews from her early modeling days, you’ll find her mentioning her love of the product often.

“Culturally, I’ve always been taught to really take care of my skin and enhance it in the most amazing ways possible. I think moisturizing is the best thing you can do for your body, to keep it really supple and firm and toned,” she says. “I’ve been a teacher to a lot of my friends growing up, to my husband, to people today. So I’m hopeful that with Brunel, I can teach the world about taking care of your body.”

Brunel is launching with three oils to start: safflower, castor, coconut, and jojoba oil blends The Awakening Body Oil and The Golden Hour Glow Oil, plus the restoring sunflower, camelina, and quinoa seed oil-based Renewal Body Oil.

For each product, the founders came up with a theme. Awakening was “energizing,” Renewal got “relaxation,” and Golden Hour Glow was “confidence.”

The Awakening Body Oil

“Awakening Oil is the oil that you want to put on right in the morning. It really just gives you that boost of energy and confidence while also brightening and firming and toning the skin, leaving you with a beautiful, smooth complexion,” says Tookes of the squalane, vitamin C, magnolia extract, and VitaGlow D-infused formula. It smells floral and fresh with just a touch of woodiness thanks to a blend of magnolia, creamy coconut woods, and warm amber.

And by the way… if your morning body oil ritual coincides with getting dressed, you don’t have to fret. This stuff dries down fast.

“The other day I put it on my skin and then put a full silk outfit on that was cream. I was a little nervous at first, but I was like, ‘Okay, let me actually put this fast drying to the test.’ And it was totally fine,” Tookes says. “So for anyone that doesn’t like that really oily feel, or doesn’t want their hair to get oily after it touches their chest, Awakening Oil is perfect.”

The Renewal Body Oil

If you’re looking to wind down instead of wake up, you’ll want to reach for Renewal. Tookes brings hers everywhere.

“This is one of my personal favorites because I’m the girl that likes to leave the shine on my skin. I like to really feel it soaking in,” she explains.

Designed to hydrate, soothe, and restore your skin while promoting a sense of relaxation, the serenely fragranced oil (you’ll find notes of lily of the valley, lavender, eucalyptus, and green cedarwood) works with active ingredients like ceramides, squalane, magnolia extract, and Immunight “for a recharged glow.”

“[I love anything] that that can help my skin look more awake or make me look like I’ve slept 20 hours when I haven’t,” Tookes adds. “This is my perfect oil, so it’s always traveling with me.”

Golden Hour Glow Oil

Last but not least (actually, in some ways this one does themost) there’s Golden Hour Glow Oil, a “beautiful, sun kissed summer oil” with a touch of shimmer and caffeine complex to energize your skin. The iridescence comes from mica, and magnolia extract is once again present to help soothe discomfort and even your skin tone.

“We tried to basically bottle golden hour, that beautiful light, and it works beautifully across so many different skin tones,” explains Tookes.

While some glow-boosting oils turn the skin orange or look unnaturally dark, the formulators made sure this one was creamy and easy to blend.

“It sort of melts into the skin and gives this beautiful, luminous glow” she adds. Meanwhile, the jasmine and sandalwood-based scent “takes you away on vacation.”

“I think what’s also so unique about these oils and something that I would love for people to fully grasp and understand is that most oils you put on your skin have long-term benefits, like the smoothing of lines and really supple, tight skin. But I think what’s so great about these is that you have quick benefits, like the mood enhancing,” notes Tookes. “You wake up, you feel good, you feel energized. And then at night, you actually feel like, ‘Okay, it’s time to relax.’ And really time to wind down and be calm.”

How to Use the Oils

Tookes finds that the oils work best right out of the shower (I guess that means I’m about to revamp my routine at long last).

“Leaving your skin a little bit damp really helps for it to sink in and moisturize the body as much as possible,” she says. “So that’s what I’ll do in the morning, and then at night, whether I’ve taken a shower or not, I love to lather on the Renewal Oil. I also like to do different massage technique—a little bit of lymphatic drainage and just massage everything really nicely before going to bed.”

Castenfelt, who lives in New York but spends a lot of time in Scandinavia’s harsh weather, says the immediate impact you feel on your skin is only part of the oils’ charm.

“If you are massaging it into your skin, especially at night, you really do get a sense of relaxation,” she says. “It’s almost like a forced meditation, because you’re really forcing yourself to take that moment of self care.”

Don’t Be Scared of Body Oils

If you’re still afraid of body oils? Don’t be. Also: face your fear by starting with Awakening.

Grab a a bottle of The Awakening Oil and put it on your skin,” says Tookes. “It’s not sticky, it’ll dry down fast, and you will see the most incredible benefits from it.”

Also: try the shower method.

“If you dry down without putting on an oil, you can feel your skin dry,” adds Castenfelt. “Here, you’ll instantly feel that moisture and that smoothness. So, after shower: Awakening. Hopefully, that’s the cure for the fear.”