New Year, New Natural Nivea

Hi everyone!   

Hope the new year is going well so far for you.

Well without further ado let me say how I've been enjoying the skincare oldie brand, NIVEA and now especially with its all new pure and natural range.

I have always loved the Nivea brand in the little blue pots and it is all my mum ever uses.   She says it is the only cream that does not irritate her eyes- bit of a strange comment- but that's what she said.
I would not have used it that often the past few years as I did actually find it too thick for my face and hard to rub in smoothly,but recently I started to steal a little bit from my mum's large tub just to dab in any dry bits that appeared on my face after I had used mineral foundation.  Well I loved how that small dabble gave me a smooth finish.
So I ended up buying myself this mini blue pot version so I can pop it in my handbag.

The lastest Nivea Visage Pure & Natural range has recognised the modern trends towards more natural and pure skincare products.
I have been using these two products lately and I must say I am quite impressed:

1. Nivea Visage Pure & Natural Cleansing Toner
2. Nivea Visage Pure & Natural Soothing Day Cream

Lets take a look at what they are all about and my thoughts on them both.

Read more »

The best ways to wake yourself up in the morning before you even step out of the bed!

We all hate that moment when the alarm goes off in the mornings and you nod off for a few more minutes and then another few and another few and it seems to get harder.   
Well the best way is for me to tell you how I feel when I wake up and you can empathise with feeling the same.

How I feel in the mornings:

I grumble and stretch and always push the snooze button a few times and somehow think that it is going to make me feel better and make it easier to get up but in the end it just makes me feel groggier.
I mainly feel too cosy to whip away the duvet and let the cold in.  My head always seems warm and beddy and this is mainly the problem because I cant shake that tired eyes feeling.

BUT now I have this all sorted in seconds without having to step out of the bed to go to the sink.
Click below to read more about how I wake up and feel fresher in the mornings.

Read more »

November nurture- Successful care for my dry skin in the chilly weather!

Well hello,

How are we all settling into the chilly weather,? Although I don't think settling will ever be the right word. Coping or bearing would be more like it!  Well its not quite biting yet, but it's there all the same.

I wanted to write a little about my skin reactions to this chilly weather and how I try to combat it.

First of all my skin gets little dry patches in winter on my arms mainly and my hands get dry too and I also get heat rash when I come in from the cold into sudden warm the first few times, I burn up.
Also I definitely do not drink enough water, because I either have a very small bladder or an overactive bladder so I am always trying not to drink too much water when I am on the go or I would be in and out of the toilet.  
And of course the cold weather does not help that either. I feel like I even need to go lots more.
But it is something I am trying to work on too to get the 8 glasses of water per day to keep me hydrated and protect my skin.  
I try to keep my skin moisturised though in other ways to protect it from the elements.

Before I head out I use a moisturising cream on my hands and face to create a barrier for my skin against the cold dry air.
 
Here is a luscious lotion that I have been dying to mention for a while and that I use before I go out in the cold mainly on my hands.  I put a face cream on before I use some light foundation.  
I like to use a variety of different creams for different times because I guess I do not want my skin to get too accustomed to one cream and then not be able to cope without it.
During the day I tend to use this one:

Karmalife Nourishing Body Lotion, Tropical Spa.


It contains shea butter, avocado oil and vitamin E and also pro-vitamin B5, all fabulously moisturising for the skin.
It is not heavy and is very softening.  
This lotion is the most excellent one I have used as regards softening and getting rid of any dry patches, especially since my hands and feet get especially dry during winter.  The next morning my hands are angelic, silky fresh from the heavens, sorry to be so dramatic, but I just love it.
I picked this up among the jumble of items available at TK MAX and was instantly attracted to the scent and how soft it was on my skin.
The scent is of zingy ginger, sweet vanilla and deep sandalwood.

I was happy with the ingredients, no major nasties as far as I can see.  
Once there are no parabens then I am happy. 
They seem to be the first thing I look for because it is the first thing I started to look for when I started on the lookout for more natural products so I guess it is just built in now and I judge a product by whether these are in it or not.
I am now on the lookout for this product again at the moment, but I think I will have to source the product online, but at the moment after a brief search I cannot seem to find it.   
Let me know if any of you come across it, I will only be delighted.


It says on the product that it is ideal after a shower/bath to massage into warm dry skin, but I actually put this on my hands before I head out in the cold to protect it and keep it moisturised even if it is under gloves.

My new thing now at shower time to make my skin lovely and soft and full of moisture is actually coating some sweet almond oil from Holland & Barrett over wet skin and then I rinse it off with warm water.  
The excess is taken away but there is a still just a nice amount left on your skin and then I pat my skin dry with the towel and I feel silky soft.   It really beats away that dry wintery air.

Have a go and enjoy beautiful soft skin and also please give me a shout if you come across that Karmalife nourishing lotion, if you get the chance.  
Thanks!

Here are some of the other products- from my first post- that I also love to use for my face or as a body cream at night.




 

Eat right for your type!

Hi all,

Well I thought I would share an interesting book I came across recently.
Basically it focusses on the idea that eating the wrong foods that are incompatible for your bloodtype can be detrimental to your overall wellbeing.
Eat Right 4 Your Type  (Disclosure:  Affiliate links from Amazon)


I had a flick through this book on the section of my blood type O ( Well the funny thing is I dont actually know my blood type but I assume I am O as both my parents are both the same type so I figured I can't be any different. Anything to avoid needles!! I know I will have to get one some day at least, but not today or tomorrow or next week!!)
Anyway this book I found got me thinking about a few things. It has a great clear concise breakdown of the foods you should be having more of, those that are neutral and those you should be avoiding.
Also sections added about what sort of exercise you need for different types and also aspects of personality and how food contributes.
I found it fascinating in the sense that certain foods could be hampering you from your true sense of wellbeing. Some can even cause issues that make it harder to shift weight, some can be lowering/overworking your immune system or making you more tired/stressed.

Like for instance I found out the acidic items like vinegar, tomato ketchup or other condiments can irritate my stomach lining, as the stomach lining of O types is quite sensitive. Also that orange juice is something to avoid- that amazed me too. And also that the best way to combat stress for my type is actually vigorous exercise, while a high protein diet is what generally drives the O types.
Definitely worth having a look and experimenting with a few things. A few eye openers in there for me, but it is nice to know these things sometimes.

Relatively short and sweet today.  Well hope you have a look out for this book and have a peep ( I spotted it on the book shelf while I was babysitting so I had a flip through.)

All the best!!

Reduce ingrown hairs, razor bumps or burn after waxing or shaving!

Hi everyone!

Well I thought since I was talking in the last post about my new shaving with oil regime that I would also share the last part of that regime with a new product I purchased recently. It is not completely perfect the fact that it is not a natural product but we dont have to be strict- a little effort goes a long way in trying to be more natural- and some products can be forgiven and I will discuss all the concerns and benefits. 
I like to share all my finds with you and you can make your own decisions as to what you would like to do.

I just know that ingrown hair and razor bumps/burns are a pain for a lot of people so I wanted to tell you about a decent- not so well known in my opinion- product I found that helps.
Some of you might have already heard of this or are using this product already, but I can imagine a lot of you are like me and hadn't heard of it until very recently or only hearing about it right now in this post.

I was researching not too long ago about reducing ingrown hairs and razor bumps that sometimes occur- although for me not really at all- and I came across a product that people were mentioning and it had good reviews.
People were saying they had tried various different options like most of us, but they were very happy with the result and are going to continue with it.
Well here it is-  

PFB Vanish.

I purchased this 4oz bottle on ebay for 15 pounds and it came with a travel size version also. I will provide a link at the end for the trial version.  Lets take a look!

First of all, here is a general synopsis of the details about the product:

• Unisex
• Roll-on gel.
• Softens hair and hair follicles reducing ingrown hairs and razor bumps resulting from shaving, waxing, tweezing, electrolysis and laser hair removal.
• Exfoliating
• Moisturising
• Anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial.
• Can be applied daily.

It can be used on the,

• Face
• Neck
• Underarms
• Legs
• Although most shaving products I have come across are not for the bikini area or will state that it is ok for the bikini line, this one does not state the bikini area at all.     I have used it perfectly fine on the bikini area, no problems.  It can help along the bikini line where sometimes the edge of underwear can irritate freshly shaved skin.

( Although this seems like a product that may irritate sensitive skin due to containing alcohol as you see in the ingredients below, I have pale relatively sensitive skin and I have not experienced any negative side effects from using this product, but I know everyone is different.  Plus I figured it was a good sign that it was not stated on the product that it was harmful in any way to sensitive skin)

ALSO IT STATES ON EBAY THAT YOU SHOULD NOT USE THIS PRODUCT IF ALLERGIC TO ASPIRIN.

The ingedients exactly as on the product are:

SD Alcohol 40B, Aqua, Isopropyl Alcohol, Salix Alba (Willow)Bark Extract, Propylene Glycol, cyclomethicone, Glycerin, Hydroxyproplcellulose, Camphor, Salicylic Acid, Glycolic Acid, Lactic Acid.

I know you are probably thinking ok this means absolutely nothing to me and most people do not care, but there are a few that would be eager to know.

I know some of these are not exactly excellent to see such as the alcohol and the acids and of course the propylene glycol (which is actually a main ingredient in anti-freeze and leads the active ingredients- quite often the bad ones in a lot of products- easily into the skin) but in this case it is helping to retain moisture in the skin, allowing the moisturising agents like glycerin and the anti-inflammatory willow bark in to maximise the great results of the product.

There are not many ingredients in this product which I like to see actually plus this is usually not a product that is used daily and sometimes you just need to let one or two products with questionable ingredients slide if they work very well and this one does work well in doing what it says on the tin.

The way I saw it well I am making an effort in other ways to avoid bad ingredients and this one didnt have any of the usual nasties like parabens or sulphates so I was happy enough to use it.
Plus propylene glycol is in so many products that people use every day, like deodorants,shampoos, shower gels, makeup, baby lotions and sun lotions and these are the products I try to avoid it in.
Can't help but love one or two great products that are not exactly the natural ones we crave.

Applying this product:

• I just roll it quickly across my skin and then rub it in with my hands.

• I usually apply this the day after I have shaved because using the oil to shave makes my skin smooth so I allow this to absorb first and the next day apply PFB vanish.

• It does make my skin feel soft, even before I started using my shaving with oil routine.

• The product does not have a pleasant smell and although it is not very strong, I advise opening a window while applying after a shower and when you wash your hands thoroughly afterwards the smell subsides within just a few minutes.                                                                                         I seriously didnt care about this and most of the other people that purchase this product obviously didnt either because to be honest I would rather have a smell for a few minutes than have annoying ingrown hairs or razor bumps.  It says on ebay that it is a herbal smell but I wasn't so sure, see for youself.
  

Well if you choose to purchase this product and give it a go, I would love to hear how you got on with it.   You can leave a comment or contact me here.
The duo that I bought has now ended on ebay but this link I will give you here is for a 2oz trial version which I would recommend so you can try it out first. Here is the link (as at the time of this post) on ebay.    Good luck!

Best Wishes

I've got it oil- a fabulously smooth and natural shave!

Well recently I went to shower and shave up nice and discovered I had run out of my usual shaving gel, which is this one,

Satin Care for dry skin from Boots - a creamy moisturising foam gel that I always had a nice smooth nick free shave with.
BUT, because I didn't have my Satin Care, I decided to try some oil instead.
It is something I have been hearing about for a while, but never really believed it would be any good, plus I have been wanting and always casually sourcing something more natural with every product that I use.
Shaving creams I always overlooked because there is what there is on the market(or I just have not bothered looking hard enough) and I just buy it because there is no other option. But now I found what I like and it's natural :)

I heard a few people raving recently about how they had a great smooth shave just using an oil on their skin like olive oil, sesame seed oil, jojoba oil, etc.  so I decided to give it a go, using sweet almond oil as I had a small bottle of it there that I bought from Holland and Barrett.  Well I was very impressed. 



With the water on my skin, I lathered the oil over it and left it a few minutes on both my legs and bikini area.   Then I began with the razor and it was all smooth and perfect, not one nick.  My skin just felt so nick proof with the oil on.

The oil packs up a little on the razor but washes away easily with warm water. 
Also because your skin is smooth with oil, a few hairs gets stuck onto the skin, but you can feather them off with either a bath brush or a quick rustle of the towel on your skin.

I was very impressed and I am not rushing out to buy more shaving gel.   
My skin felt so beautifully soft, smooth and healthy afterwards.

I'm loving this sweet almond oil and it is quite long lasting because you do not need a huge amount to lightly coat your skin for shaving.


Have a go, let me know what you think!!

September skin love!

Hiya,
It's the last day I can use that title for another year!  Well thought I'd see September out with some of the latest products I've been trying out.

First up it's this,

Dr. Organic Rose Otto Body Scrub,

* Exfoliating
* Hydrating
* Anti- ageing

Yes please! That is what I like to hear and see. I love all this natural stuff and with these great properties for our skin. This product is available at Holland & Barrett.
I like this creamy scrub that has a nice rose scent with micro particles of pure volcanic lava that lightly exfoliates. 

Ooh la la naked is a 97% natural creamy body wash and I am fond of this at the moment.  It is part of the same range as the 24 hour naked body butter I reviewed at the top of my first post here.

I really do like this range and it was one of the first of the natural ranges I spotted when I first started keeping my eyes peeled for natural products.

This product is vegetarian and vegan friendly.
It glides on in the shower with a silky soft feeling and leaves my skin smooth and moisturised.  I got this product at Boots, but here are more details from the naked bodycare site.



Green People self tan lotion is a product which I actually got from ebay as it was a little cheaper for the 200ml bottle.
I found it while researching tans that do not leave a smell on your skin.
At first when I used it, there was quite a smell (not the usual one your thinking of) resonating from it after I had put it on and I was thinking, hmm why is it so strong.   It is the combination of rosehip, geranium and sandalwood, all natural, so I was happy with that. The smell faded after a while.  I put it on before I went to bed, then I had a shower in the morning and I had a nice natural tan and NO icky smell developed.
It is non-streaky and gave me a lovely natural glow.
Check it out on the Green People site.

Last but not least, is Veet, a brand we have all come to use at some point. Although, not a natural product I had to give it a go since it is the hair minimising body moisturiser with vitamin E for sensitive skin.  I picked this one up at Boots.

I was not expecting much and was fully prepared from the reviews that I had read saying that it does not really minimise hair, just makes it softer and less noticeable.

But in fairness, less noticeable is the key word here as this is the what the detailed product information on the Boots site says,
 "...used daily, reduces the appearance of hair re-growth & softens the hair so stubble is less noticeable. Veet Hair Minimising Body Moisturiser with ProMinimise, to effectively hydrate your skin up to 24 hours, leaving your skin feeling smoother for longer."


Some say it works if you really use it religiously, but in my experience of using this for about three weeks every day after my shower, I didn't notice any reduction in my hair growth rate, but it did make my legs feel very smooth indeed and actually made my legs feel freshly shaven for longer, so I guess this is a good thing, even if the hair is still growing back at the normal rate.

I loved the smell of the product with a light coconut scent which I loved and I think this was the general reviewing consensus of others too.  The smell just blew them away that they didn't care about the hair minimising.  My leg hair is quite soft anyway usually, but I did have a freshly shaven feeling on my skin every day that I used it.  So all in all I liked this for the smoothness and scent.

So has anyone used these products before? What do you think?   Any other gems you would like to share, I would love to hear about them!