14 posts tagged “care”

2,008 readers and a panel of dermatologists helped select the 25 winners of the 5th Annual Beauty Awards.

Votes were cast at www.naturalhealthmag.com for their favorite products. Out of the mass of nominations and submissions, 25 of the year’s best beauty products were chosen.

Some of the submissions and winners may seem suspect to those who appreciate products that are organic and natural from start to finish.

I’m not sure what the deciding factors were but I think they could have done with some help from Stacey and Jo Fairley and their Green Beauty Bible!

Here are the winners -

FACIAL CLEANSER
Olay Definity Penetrating Mousse Cleanser

FACIAL EXFOLIATOR
Skin 2 Skin Oatmeal & Pomegranate Scrub

EYE CREAM
Yes to Cucumbers Eye Love Cucumbers Soothing Eye Gel

FACIAL MOISTURIZER
AVEENO Positively Radiant Tinted Moisturizer

FACIAL NIGHT CREAM
Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins Night Health Bedtime Face Cream

ANTI-AGING FACIAL TREATMENT
Aveda Green Science Firming Face Creme

LIP BALM
Burt’s Bees Sun Protecting Lip Balm SPF 8 with Passionfruit

HAND CREAM
The Healing Seed Virgin Organic Hempseed Oil Hand Cream

BODY MOISTURIZER
Avalon Organics Grapefruit & Geranium Hand & Body Lotion

BODY SCRUB
Aura Cacia Nourishing Body Polishes Fair Trade Certified

SELF-TANNER
Pur Minerals Get a Little

BAR SOAP
Dove Go Fresh Burst Beauty Bar

BODY WASH
Nature’s Gate Pomegranate Sunflower Velvet Moisture Body Wash

SUN CARE
John Masters Organics SPF 30 Natural Mineral Sunscreen

SHAMPOO
Paul Mitchell Tea Tree Lavender Mint Moisturizing Shampoo

CONDITIONER
L’Oréal Paris EverPure Sulfate-Free Color Care Moisture Conditioner

HAIR COLOR
Natural Instincts Champagne Indulgence Collection

HAIR STYLING PRODUCT
Pantene Pro-V Nature Fusion Smooth Vitality Smoothing Crème

BLUSH
The Body Shop Nature’s Minerals Cheek Color

CONCEALER
Jane Iredale Zap & Hide

EYE SHADOW
Almay Pure Blends Eyeshadow

FOUNDATION
Physicians Formula Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin Liquid Foundation SPF 15

LIP COLOR
Aubrey Organics Natural Lips Sheer Tint

MASCARA
Kiehl’s Marvelous Mineral Mascara

NAIL POLISH
Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Nail Color

At a Glance
When I received this product, straight off, I was really impressed that someone had finally done a luxury foaming face wash without harsh chemicals in it. When I checked the ingredients list, this was substantiated as the ingredients are pure and simple; there are no SLS’s, no parabens or phthalates. The foaming element of this organic face wash comes from Lauryl glucoside and Sodium lauroyl glutamate, on closer inspection both of these surfactants are extremely low hazard with the Environmental Working Group classing them as 1 and 0 toxicity respectively, which is excellent. The other main ingredient is Certified Organic Aloe Vera, (unlike luxury high street brands that despite the high price still use water as the main ingredient). Other ingredients include organic plant botanicals and extracts that have excellent herbal properties and benefit for the skin such as ylang ylang, aspen bark extract, plantain, rose damascena, glycerin and citric acid (vit c).

The packaging is really nice, natural high quality recyclable box, nicely printed, very classy and not at all tacky or cheap. The actual foaming face wash inside is in a brown glass bottle which looks really pretty in the bathroom, something you can definitely put on display. It’s not too big and bulky either so, easy to handle and it has a pump top which makes it easy to use last thing at night when you just want to go to bed!

The price is not bad, quite reasonable, at £22 it’s not the cheapest on the market but for what’s in the bottle it’s definitely not overpriced. Other organic skin care lines of this caliber would be charging £50 or more for this sized bottle.

So; what’s it like?
The fragrance is absolutely divine, not nasty yukky or overpowering, just divine. I felt really good after I had used the product, and have had this backed up by other testers who have also said the same thing. You only need a little bit as it lathers up really well, so it’s easy to see that the product is going to last for a while. It leaves your face feeling clean, not stripped bare but moisturized and soft. One of our testers has extremely sensitive skin and eyes, and found that it didn’t irritate her at all.

Leaves you feeling really pampered and like you’ve done something really good for your skin.

A week on, people have commented on how my skin looks good, skin clearer, pores are more refined and black heads reduced.

Good Points
Packaging, look, performance, quality, fragrance and wellbeing factor

Bad Points
Not suitable for people who like more traditional wipe off facial cleansers. Doesn’t say anything on the packaging about removing eye makeup, although it did take all my make up off and having checked with the manufacturers they have said that it is safe for use around the eye area also.

In Summary
A top performing luxury product you can use every day; very pure and worth every penny.

For more information on John Masters products and organic skin care in general visit www.buyorganics.co.uk

Eselle Organics products have been a bit hard to come by over the last month or so, as they have been busy rebranding and packaging their line. Not that there was anything wrong with the old packaging, I loved the bright orange, but I’m sure Sarah McIntyre will have created something equally exciting.

Even though August is traditionally the quiet time of year, die hard Eselle Organics fans will have found the dirth of products hard to swallow, but good news is here at last as Eselle have informed us that their new products will be available in the next 10 days or so.

One product we will surely welcome back with open arms will be the Men’s sensitive skin moisturiser; all those men out there must have really rough faces without it. Not good news for the girls either!

Extra good news, all the old branded stock is reduced from now to make way for the new products, not much left in stock, so it’s only until stock lasts!

We’ll let you know when we have an exact date and a sneak preview if possible.

TTFN!

Sonia

Normal healthy hair should be shiny, bouncy, full and vibrant, but ‘LIFE’ happens and we can end up with sun-damaged hair that can affect our image and self esteem.

Although we look forward to our summer holidays and the sun coming out, especially in the UK, the effect of the sun on our hair can be pretty strong, and heat coupled with UV, can leave you with sun damaged hair. Whilst your hair won’t be damaged forever and will eventually re-grow, it will in the meantime suffer breakages and lack of moisture, leaving it looking weak and unhealthy. If split ends and brittle hair are left unmanaged they could also affect your new hair growth, so read up below on what to do next!

How the sun damages your hair

When most people think of the effect of sun on hair, they generally think of it as lightening their hair colour. This happens because the hair contains melanin, just as your skin does. Melanin is the pigment that gives hair its colour but it also protects the hair from free radicals which would otherwise cause damage.

UV rays cause the melanin in your hair to oxidise and discolour. As the hair is dead and cannot react to the UV rays by increasing the level of melanin as the skin does, the lower melanin levels are characterized by a lightening of the hair. The lower levels, therefore, also cannot perform their free radical hunting duties so well.

Lemon juice is a commonly known natural method for bleaching hair when exposed to the sun and lots of people use it as a cheap way of getting highlights. Unfortunately, whilst it does have a slight lightening effect, it can also cause dryness as it upsets the PH balance of the hair.

Another damaging effect of the sun is that it depletes the hairs level of Keratin which is a vital protein that gives healthy hair its strength and vitality. When Keratin is undamaged, it lies along your strands of hair like tiles on a roof. However, when you weaken the keratin in your hair, some of those ‘tiles’ become broken and shift out of place, causing the hair shafts to weaken and become easily damaged. When this happens hair strands do not reflect light as well, causing your hair to appear dull.

Finally, the sun damages your hair by sucking the moisture and oils out of it. The moisture level should be around 8% but sun damage, bleaching and other hair treatments can cause this to fall to as low as 2%. When this happens, you’ll end up with split ends and brittle, broken strands of hair, hair that looks, weak, lack luster and dull.

How to protect your hair from sun damage

The best way to protect your hair from the sun is to wear a hat, and for those of you who don’t find a hat fashionable enough, try a bandana, they can look very stylish and be mixed and matched with your outfits, they’re great for men, women and kids!

Even though a hat or bandana may protect you for a while, they won’t be possible all the time. This is where John Masters Sea Mist Spray with lavender can help, this beautifully scented spray not only adds texture and volume to the hair, but actually protects your hair from drying. When it’s used in conjunction with their Honey and Hibiscus Hair Reconstructor after washing, then your hair will be kept in optimum condition and better able to cope with the harsh effects of the sun.

How to Treat Sun Damaged Hair

The best way to treat sun damaged hair is to immediately switch to natural hair care products that are going to nourish, restore, revitalize and rescue frizzy, dull, dry hair and revert it back to its natural shine and balance.

By using harsh chemically based shampoos, styling products and colourants, you will only further damage your hair.

We recommend using John Masters Honey and Hibiscus Hair Reconstructing Shampoo. This organic shampoo is a must for sun damaged hair because it contains Linoleic & Hyluronic acids (which are normally found in abundance in young hair) combined with soy, rice and oat proteins to renew and reconstruct damaged hair. Each wash will fortify, strengthen and moisturise your hair as the honey and hibiscus extracts and 9 other certified organic extracts and plant oils penetrate the hair with nutrients. Also, it doesn’t contain any harsh chemicals such as Sodium Lauryl Sulphate, parabens or phthalates which would aggravate your hair further or damage your scalp.

Follow the natural shampoo with John Masters Honey and Hibiscus Hair Reconstructor which is a super intense conditioner that revitalizes and restores dry, damaged, colour treated, chemically treated, chlorine and sun damaged hair! Again, Linoleic & Hyluronic acids help to reconstruct the hair, whilst soy protein strengthens the hair follicles making your hair look thicker, fuller and shinier, wheat protein helps keep hair tangle free and easy to comb through along with adding shine. Finally, Bergamot treats and nourishes dry scalp and hair.

For a more intense treatment add 12 drops of dry hair nourishment to 1 ounce of conditioner, massage into hair and scalp. Wrap with hot towel and leave in 20-30 mins. And rinse.

Both the John Masters Honey and Hibiscus Reconstructing shampoo and conditioner when used in conjunction and regularly, will quickly and easily restore bounce, shine, volume and health. All in all, with rich nutrients, oils and conditioners specifically formulated by the best natural organic hair care expert on the planet, you can’t really do better for your hair.

Now if you’re on a budget, don’t worry as we have another great alternative for you that will keep the pennies in your pocket whilst also restoring the condition of your sun damaged hair naturally. Green People’s Moisturising shampoo and Moisturising conditioner are a little less pricey but will also do a fantastic job.

Green People’s Moisturising Conditioner contains several ingredients which are especially helpful to sun-damaged hair. The first is Jojoba oil, which has a very similar composition to the natural sebum and oils which lubricate and protect your hair from damage. These make an ideal replacement for the oils which are stripped away through sun and chlorine damage. It also contains Quinoa oil, an essential oil rich in antioxidants which help in protecting against UV-induced free radicals

In addition to the Jojoba oil and Quinoa oil, Green People Moisturising Conditioner also has soothing Chamomile extract and protective Marshmallow extract. These will help to bring the condition of your hair up, helping it to become shiny, tangle-free and rehydrated.

We should always be looking for ways to take better care of our skin. With the help of organic skincare products this can be easier than you would think. There are many reasons to take care of our skin with possibly the most important reason is that our skin is the most noticeable part of our body; in order to have healthy skin, we must take care of it.

So what makes organic skincare and beauty products good for you? Well it is the fact that none of the harmful chemicals normally associated with makeup and skincare aren’t present in organic skin care and healthcare products, thus making them much more compatible with, and less allergenic to, the skin. This reduced exposure to toxins and chemicals will typically have much more positive effects on the skin, and tell tale signs of the overuse of skincare and beauty products will be unnoticeable as there is no accompanying skin damage.

Because there are many standard skincare products that contain toxins that can hurt our skin it is definitely worth seeking out an organic alternative? Of course the problem can be finding these organic products, be it organic skincare, body wash, deodorant or toothpaste, but thankfully there are a wealth of online stores dedicated to organic skincare and organic living and thus the search becomes easier.

The next task is to make sure the products in question are actually organic, and not just labelled as “natural”; using a reputable website and looking for things such as Soil Association certificates can make life easier here too.

In the long run those tat choose to use organic skincare over normal skincare products, as well as organic makeup and natural health and beauty products tend to have much younger, fresher and smoother skin, than those who abuse the typical skincare and cosmetics on the market.

By Jason Payne

For a great range of certified organic skin care and organic makeup products, visit www.buyorganics.co.uk

New in store is the complete facial organic skincare range by John Masters. This luxurious range of cleansers, toners and face creams for all skin types including age prevention, smells absolutely divine. When you use it day and night, you actually look forward to pampering your skin as the aromas uplift you and the products leave your skin feeling and looking fabulous.

The facial skincare range is formulated with the same dedication as John Masters organic haircare range, it is a performance led brand that really concentrates on producing natural organic products that work. When you invest in buying the complete range for your skin then you really are making an investment towards your health and wellbeing. We are sending out free samples with any orders placed at the moment until stocks last. If you would like to try a sample then email us at mail@buyorganics.co.uk .

Contact us also if you have your own blog and would like to review all our skin and make up products on a regular basis!

As promised in my article last week here is a rundown of 10 useful skincare and makeup safety tips to keep yourself from allergies, rections and damage to your skin.

1. Be sure to clean your hands and face before applying make-up or other cosmetics. Use clean towels, fresh organic cotton wool, as even cotton wool is bleached and treated!

2. Never share your make-up. Clean cosmetic brushes and applicators frequently, with soap and water and dry thoroughly.

3. If you want to test a product in a store, ask for a new, unused applicator and ask the salesperson to wipe the opening of the tester with alcohol. If you are buying online, see if a sample is available first, if not, only buy one product at a time so that you don’t get stuck with large expensive items.

4. Keep cosmetic containers tightly closed, except when being used. Keep containers free of dust and dirt. Keep organic products in a cool place, away from direct sunlight, and do not let water contaminate the inner contents of the product.

5. Do not use eye make-up if you have an eye infection, discard those products and use new ones when your infection is gone.

6. Discard products if the color changes or they develop an odor. This may mean the preservatives in the products are no longer able to fight bacteria or that the essential oils have lost their goodness

7. Invest some money in seeing a nutritionist, and having an allergy test done. Check out the following info to help you keep toxins at bay and to assess your daily toiletries.

8. Use organic and natural products within 6- 9mths of opening, if you have kept them really cool they may last longer. Do not buy organic or natural products in bulk as they go off.

9. Try scent free products as scent is a common allergen

10. In order to heal from an allergic reaction, propolis ointment (from beehives) such as one by Trevarno can act as a good healing agent instead of non beneficial petroleum jelly.

I hope these tips and suggestions come in handy, and keep you safe and looking fab. We stock a great selection of organic skincare and organic makeup at www.buyorganics.co.uk, so please cme buy and have a look.

Sonia

The beauty and skincare industry is a billion dollar force to be reckoned with. Many companies get away with putting all concoctions of chemicals together that may have been tested individually but may not have been tested in combination or tested to see what they turn into when they breakdown in the bottle. Slap on a smart label and a big or very small price tag and you have something – not sure what – in a bottle.

The natural and organic skincare and beauty industry is now a growing market for those who want purer products that do not carry all the growing hazards presented by high street brands. Instead of buying a bottle of chemical preservative with a few essential oils thrown in, consumers are getting savvy to what they are buying, and would rather buy a bottle packed full of pure nutrients for their skin with a little bit of preservative to keep it fresh!

So if you’re not on the band wagon yet, here are 10 reasons why you should give it a go!

1. High street brands contain 0.5 – 6% of active ingredients, the rest are made up of cheap ingredients that have no value for your skin or body, including mineral oil derived from petrochemicals, formaldehydes, synthetic preservatives ( parabens) and emulsifiers, colorants and fragrances that contain phthalates

2. Organic Brands contain on average approximately 80 – 90% active ingredients, ingredients include more expensive nutritionally based oils that are good for your skin such as Apricot oil, sea buckthorn oil, plant emulsifiers instead of synthetic ones, and essential oils instead of synthetic fragrance

3. Unlike the early brands of organic skin care and other and natural beauty products up and coming new brands are sophisticated and luxurious to use and yes, they do work!

4. The Soil Association has announced a new EU-wide, harmonised standard for organic health and beauty products. This is brilliant news for the growing organic health and beauty industry and also for the consumer as this is the first common standard in the world that will ensure clarity and transparency, so that everyone can understand what ‘organic’ means.

5. The ingredients in organic skincare products have been grown or produced without the use of pesticides, or chemical solvents, they are either wild harvested, grown from organic farms or handmade with care and attention

6. Organic skin care products are produced in a socially responsible way without harm to wildlife, the environment, people or animals.

7. Organic products tend to be Vegetarian or Vegan meaning you won’t be smearing animal fat on your face

8. Organic beauty products feed your skin rather than coating it with plasticizers or thinning it or chemically destroying it as other products can do

9. The saying you get what you pay for is very true of organic products. Sure they are more expensive than a non-organic equivalent, but at the same time you can be assured you are keeping your skin safe, are helping the environment and are pampering yourself with real luxury.

10. Organic products are non – toxic and do not cause the side effects associated with chemicals in high street products such as hormone disruption, depression, skin allergies and cancer.

Unfortunately as the Soil Association's standard has only recently been agreed, it means there are still some unscrupulous manufacturers out there that will label their products as “natural” or “organic”, yet they are no better for you than many non-organic products. The best advice is to look out for reputable brands such as Green People, Eselle Organics, Earthbound Organics and Miessence.

So what are you waiting for?

Summer is the time when our skin gets an airing, especially in the UK. We hardly get a chance to reveal our skin normally, as we shelter from wind, rain and cold weather most of the year. You maybe planning on a vacation abroad or just want to get the sun kissed look, so now is the perfect time to get yourself pampered and looking fabulous.

If, like me, you’re feeling a tad pasty and unconfident about revealing your winter body for the whole world to view on the beach, then take a few vital steps to create a confident new you. Not only will you look healthy on the outside, you will genuinely be healthy on the inside as you can easily achieve the look without the use of loads of nasty chemicals that could compromise your health, cause allergies or skin sensitivity.

Some of our recommendations are classic favourites that are time tested and really do work, rather than the latest new fads on the market!

It’s really important to get your skin ready for receiving new products that are going to revitalize and energise, so getting rid of old built up dead winter skin cells is an important first step; with this all important natural beauty care treatment, you’ll find your skin glowing and ready for the sun. This step is called exfoliation and can be done easily through some home made treatments such as granulated sugar. But for those of you that prefer all the aromatherapy oils formulated into an invigorating and beneficial ready made scrub, you must try our Spiezia body scrub, or Eselle Organics luscious and invigorating Lime and Coconut organic body scrub. Exfoliate your whole body from toe to décolletage (cleavage) at least once a week to keep your skin looking healthy throughout the summer. Don’t forget the hard to reach bits. Exfoliate gently but regularly for optimum results, its really important to follow with a moisturiser so that your skin doesn’t dry out, that’s why Eselle’s Lime and Coconut Body Scrub is so good, it’s a two in one that leaves you smelling fabulous and silky smooth afterwards.

If you have let the body lotions slip, then make sure you don’t forget this all important step now. Dry, flaky, greying skin will not look healthy and will easily damage under the sun. To get your skin beautifully primed, moisturize everyday after you shower or bath, with an all over organic body moisturiser. For lotions, try Essential Care Hand and Body lotion or Green People’s No scent Hand and Body Lotion, but if you really love to pamper yourself try Organic Apoteke’s Body Cream, one of our Raw Gaia or Eselle Organic Body Butters.

The next and final stage before hitting the beach is getting the tanned look. Wise sun worshippers will know that tanning beds are not such a good idea and increase the chance of skin cancer dramatically. So getting that tanned look in a healthy non-damaging way is essential if you are looking for the sun kissed look this summer. Even if you’re not going on holiday but want to look like you’ve been on the beach, then we have the natural, healthy alternative to getting the perfect tan. Green People’s Self Tan Lotion, like all of our products, has no parabens, phalates, petrochemicals, colorants or nasties, and can be applied 2-3 hours before needed. To build up your tan, you will need to re-apply again after 3 days. If you’ve followed the first two steps to getting your skin primed well, then the self tan stage will be easy!

When you finally do hit the beach, make sure you use organic sun protection, start off with a high factor such as Green People SPF22 and then reduce down to SPF15 as your natural tan builds. This will prevent you burning and also from damaging your skin. John Masters Sea Salt Mist gets your hair in the mood for the beach by protecting it and giving it extra Body and wave. Use a healthy bronzer such Inika’s Mineral Bronzer on your face along with a luscious lip gloss from Sante, and Zoya’s fabulous Kylie 299 Coral Pink nail polish to complete your summer look – and all without exposing yourself to one nasty chemical, how clever is that!?

Essential Care Organic skin care is one of the purest lines of organic skincare on the market today. Not only is it simply packaged and reasonably priced, it allows individuals committed to caring for their body naturally to continue to do so despite the credit crunch!

This month we are having an Essential Care bargain month. We have lots of offers on our Essential Care organic skincare, but only until stocks lasts.

We will be sending out free samples of Essential Care with every order placed in January while stocks last, so this could be a very limited offer, or could carry on into February!

To get an extra special bonus just follow these steps:

- Simply sign up as a buyOrganics member when placing your order

- or if you are an existing member, all you need do is buy an essential care product

and we will send you a generous sized trial size of gentle herb shampoo absolutely free!

Free Trial Size Shampoo Offer open until stocks last from 26th January onwards!!! We’ll post a blog on the blog site when we run out!

Check out all our Essential Care organic skincare products at our website or just follow the link below.

http://www.buyorganics.co.uk/m-essential_care-24.aspx

Happy New Year!

Sonia x