Ruth-Ann Thorn never thought she would get into the beauty business. She saw a need for representation of Native American beauty products after a trip to Sephora with her daughter. She created N8iv Beauty and with it is bringing traditional native medicine to skincare and representing for the next generation.
“We look at skincare in a little bit of a different way. It’s beauty but it’s more about the healing of the skin and especially getting under those layers,” says Thorn, who is part of the Rincon Band of Luiseno Indians.
N8iv Beauty uses acorn oil as the primary ingredient, which is something that California Natives have used as a food source. Thorn said acorn oil is the most potent things people can use to heal the skin.
“Acorn is really interesting because it is so full of nourishment that our people could eat the acorn and just have that; acorn meal and drink water and have everything the body needs to really be quite healthy,” she said.
Thorn shared that acorn could be soaked in water for eight to ten days and consumed. The water the acorns soaked in was traditionally used to tan animal hides. The tannic acid from the oil breaks down the top layer of skin and goes three layers deep.
“The skin, in our culture, is considered the mama bear of the body, it protects the body. In order to really get healthy skin, you have get to the layers underneath that are in hibernation,” she said.
N8iv Beauty began with three products, Starlight Regenerative Cream, Daybreak Moisturizing Cream and Starlight Regenerative Acorn Oil serum. Thorn said that because of Native people’s connection to nature, they understand how to interact with plant medicine and use it to heal the body. All of the products that N8iv Beauty is bringing to the market are based on traditional medicine, as well as a connection to the animals and the plants.
The product line also includes the Móyla (MOON) polish exfoliate & moisturizing sleep mask, Avéllaka "Butterfly" Regenerative Eye Cream, Timét (SUN) Color-Correcting SPF 30 Sunscreen, Móomat "Ocean" Nutrient Rich Cleanser and Móomat "Ocean" Nutrient Rich Serum.
The number 8 in the brand’s name comes from the eight season calendar that the tribe follows. Thorn said that representation is important because young people are looking for identity within beauty. N8iv Beauty creates opportunities for representation by bringing young people off the reservation and letting them model for the brand. It provides a space for them to see themselves reflected in a brand that reflects their culture.
N8iv Beauty was named one of TIME Magazine’s 10 Most Influential Fashion and Beauty Companies of 2026. N8iV Beauty is sold at Ritz-Carlton Spas and a percentage of all sales are donated to the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Movement, an organization focused on finding and supporting missing Native mothers, sisters, aunts and daughters.
