Showing posts with label skincare. Show all posts
Showing posts with label skincare. Show all posts

AEOS Skincare

Posted by spriglet On Monday, 28 November 2011 22:34 1 comments
When I was little, my favourite shop to go into with my mum was a place in Lindfield called Witchcraft; a beautifully quaint little gift shop which was full of soaps in the shapes of roses, dolphins and stars, bath pearls that melted into water to make it soft and scented, and all kinds of gorgeous smelling bath products that I couldn't get enough of and happily sniff all day.

AEOS, or Active Energised Organic Skincare, instantly reminded me of Witchcraft because of the lovely scents in their products. We all know I have a super sensitive skin type, which usually means I steer clear from fragrances, but if I'm careful I tend to be OK with organic products - something I definitely need to research more. A few patch tests later and I've discovered AEOS is on my 'safe' list - and thank goodness for that.

It's refreshing to find a range that really is all about the ingredients; AEOS use the 'living energy' of the natural ingredients to create skincare products loaded with effective plant extracts and essential oils. The brand has its own bio-dynamic Shire Farm where most of the ingredients are grown and the rest are from organic farms around the world. Their philosophy is to look after the activity and balance of the soil, which leads to the strength and the vitality of the plant, which provides optimal effects on the skin. Yes, it's all a bit scientific, but good to know how it works from the moment it's in the soil to the moment you're putting it on your face.

Apart from the scent, the first thing that struck me when I took a look at the products was the colour; not toxic and bright like so many others but subtle yet distinct. Apparently, this is down to 'spagyric tinctures', or liquid gems and crystals that are said to energise the ingredients. 

AEOS have a three-phase system: Renewal, Rebalance and Replenish. With oils, lotions and exfoliators to renew the skin, conditioners and hydrating mist to rebalance and serums to lock in moisture, they've worked out exactly what your skin needs and how to get it from natural sources. Even better, the products are light and dewy on the skin, and smell like they belong in a five star spa (or Witchcraft if you know Lindfield well). I've added them to my beauty Christmas list...

Disclosure: I received the AEOS products from a PR friend to try out for the blog. 
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The Beauty of BB Cream

Posted by spriglet On Saturday, 30 July 2011 22:09 0 comments
Image from Superdrug
A month or two ago, my friend returned from a trip to South Korea gushing about their beauty habits. Apparently, their nail varnishes last longer and chip less than ours; they understand the importance of skincare and realise that tanning is skin damage; and they use something called Blemish Balm, or BB Cream as it's known, to look flawless while looking after their skin. Well, lucky them.

Straight away, I took to Twitter and asked the beauty bloggerati if they knew of it or whether you could get it here - and judging by the reponses, it was very new on the scene in the UK but word was slowly getting around. I discovered you could get it on eBay but thought I would wait for a few more reviews before buying it. 

So what is it? Well, given that it's important enough to have a Wikipedia page, it's pretty special. As said in the text there and as explained to me by my friend, it was developed by a doctor in Germany and started out as something dermatologists used to help their patients heal and protect their skin as well as cover scars, acne and blemishes after laser therapy. It's sometimes tinted so basically acts as a foundation, primer and skin treatment in one. It also can have a whitening effect which is, I'm told, quite big in Asia. So we Brits want to look brown and they want our pasty complexions - are we ever happy?! 

Anyway, news got out about this fabulous stuff and it's become far more mainstream - and now, it's here. Everyone I follow on Twitter appears to be trying it, ordering it or just plain raving about it - and I ordered mine from Superdrug last night. I don't wear foundation but I have been hunting for a decent primer, and absolutely swear by wearing an SPF daily (currently using my Avene moisturiser).  I can't wait to try it out - though I have to say, SPF 15 is not exactly protection. Hopefully they'll up the SPF when more of them come out...

For before and after pics, check out this blog - thanks @Tsunimee for sharing! Have you used it yet? Does it live up to expectation?

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Review: Sanctuary Therapist's Secret Facial Oil

Posted by spriglet On Monday, 17 January 2011 23:59 1 comments
Sorry Sanctuary, the secret's out. After attending a very well planned blogger event at The Sanctuary Spa last summer, I finally got around to trying out the wonder product that all the therapists and PRs were raving about - the Therapist's Secret Facial Oil. 

Now, as we know, I have the most sensitive skin in the world (fact, I don't need a survey) and we also all know that faces are possibly the most sensitive area of sensitive skins - and the last place you would want to cause problems since your colleagues and, well, people have to look at it every day. They don't have a choice. 

So I was very hesitant about giving this a go. First, I tried it on my wrist. All good. Then on the inside of my elbow. Still all good. Then behind my ear (which was worryingly close to the face, but Twitter assured me it's the best test. And you have to trust Twitter.) All good. Then: the face.

Hallelujah! No allergic reaction, no redness, no nothing. And the best part? This beauty product actually does what it claims to do. 

The oil looks a lot like olive oil but has a gorgeous light sunflower scent to assure me it's not. In a slick glass bottle (I like to see what's going on my face, so this gets a tick), the lid has a dropper so there is no risk of wasting any of it - just drop what you need into your hand and enjoy the fact that this bottle (30ml) will last a long, long time. It claims to be a 'super charged plumping treatment for younger-looking skin'. It's made with pure oils of sunflower, jojoba, wheatgerm, rosehip seed oil, rose, and frankincense. And it's paraben free.

The lovely Lipgloss86 advised me to use it a few times a week, at night - that way, it has time to sink in and you don't have to worry about keeping your makeup on after. It also means you can rinse off in the morning to get rid of any that hasn't sunk in. This was a great tip since I'd already tried it in the mornings and didn't love it as a base (though this is one way of using it). Plus, once you've got it on, you won't want to cover it up with anything else - it's too luxurious. 

The only word that works to really explain how this oil makes my skin feel is 'nourished' - sorry to sound like Davina. The winter has brought back a bout of awful dry skin for me that E45 cream was barely managing to keep up with - until now. I've been using the oil every other evening plus always on the night before a night out, and it's given me the softest skin I have had in a long time. It isn't greasy, it smells good, and it definitely does plump the skin to make it more radiant. I'm not sure about the 'younger' bit yet, since I am having age issues (see other blog posts) and don't want to think about whether my skin looks old or not. But I will still be using this product when I'm 30, that's for sure.

A skin-saver that I'm not allergic to? That is a beauty regime I can get along with... 

Have you tried it, or any other Sanctuary products that are worth mentioning?

Disclosure: I received this oil as part of a goody bag at a bloggers event at The Sanctuary
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All things bright and beauty-full

Posted by Judy Johnson On Saturday, 30 May 2009 23:54 2 comments
As a lover of all things beauty without quite the bank balance to keep up, I was very excited to see a piece in thelondonpaper about a new site which allows you to try out brand spanking new beauty products for as little as £1. Sound to good to be true?

It's not. LatestInBeauty.com have realised that we're not all convinced by shiny glossy adverts who tell us 'you will have clearer skin, with no wrinkles, just by using this cream!', particularly when they're airbrushed to the point that it's a little insulting and haven't had a wrinkle in their life because they're 20 years old and already using Botox.

So Latest in Beauty have created a fantastic service, teaming up with plenty of beauty brands to keep anyone happy, to offer samples f beauty products. Yes, you can sometimes get samples in the bigger department stores - but not always, and not without listening to the hard sell first. Simply register on the site, then take a look through the categories - Skin care, Make up and fragrances, and Hair and body. Choose one product from each, and for a £1 text you will get your three samples delivered to your door. You can do this once a month, so choose wisely!

So for my first month, I tried:
  • Estee Lauder Idealist Pore Minimising Skin Refinisher
  • Christina Aguilera fragrance
  • Elemis Vitamin Rich Body Lotion
When I say samples, I mean samples. The Estee Lauder product came in seven sachets - one a day for a week. The Elemis tube was the tiniest thing I've ever seen, but very cute and would be great for travelling! The fragrance was like the small sample tubes you get in department stores, which is actually pretty handy for carrying around in my handbag.

I wasn't keen on the fragrance (too strong, and I adore Vera Wang's Princess too much) and I've tried Elemis products before and knew they were good, so the cream is nearly finished. My favourite was the Estee Lauder Idealist - a gorgeously light, citrus-scented gel like substance which sank into my skin beautifully and felt amazing. The sachets were very generous, so one would be enough for face and neck; my skin has never felt softer and I didn't want to put moisturiser over the top for fear of losing the lovely silkiness. I felt brighter and fresher and after putting the first application on in the evening, I woke up the next day still feeling soft and smooth. A definite must-buy!

Looking forward to next month when I can try another three beauty freebies...
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