Skin care
Product: REN Clarimatte T-zone control cleansing gel
Price: £16 150ml (Currently £12.80 here)
My skin type: Normal with Oily T-zone
Natural credentials: No Parabens, sulphates, petrolatum, synthetic fragrance
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this.
It’s not something I use every day, usually only when I’ve been out in the city all day and I feel really grimy or if my skin is starting to break out, but it does the trick every time.
It smells really beautiful, which makes it feel luxurious, it’s very light and dissolves easily on the face, almost too light in fact and sometimes makes me question if it is actually working, but after use my skin feels super clean and smooth and any blemishes I had are already starting to fade.
Price wise it’s not bad, and I also find that one pump is enough so it does last a decent amount of time which really makes it worth it.
Product: Love the Planet Washable Cleansing Pads
Price: £7 for 5 (plus postage)
I use with: Millecular water
Cotton wool pads were my go to item every morning and evening, and doing the math I was probably getting through around 900 a year which works out about £11-15 a year. I would try to buy organic ones but that wasn’t always possible or affordable and even then they would still end up going to landfill.
I finally took the plunge and bought these reusable ones from Ethical Superstore, and have now been using them for a couple of weeks (which is why they don’t look super white in the photos!) and so far I love them.
They are pretty large so if I’m not using make-up I can use one side per day (half in the morning and half in the evening). The fabric is soft towelling so it lightly exfoliates with each use which has actually been amazing for my skin, since using them have felt confident enough to go without my BB cream on occasion. I was worried that my make-up remover would just sink in and be lost but it doesn’t at all, and I’m pretty sure they actually give a better coverage than standard cotton wool.
They come with a handy little wash bag, and I’ve been adding some stain remover for aesthetic reasons, I may need to buy a second set for those weeks I’m too lazy or forgetful to wash them.
Hair Care
Product: Organic Surge Shine Boost Conditioner
Price: £8.95 (Or £4.95 if you’re lucky!) 200ml
My hair type: Normal – oily
Natural credentials: Organic, Made in England, free from synthetic fragrance, PEG’s, Parabens and silicones
So in the past I have tried a lot of paraben and silicone free shampoos and conditioners. None of them worked for me, I gave them all a couple of months, like you’re supposed to, but my hair just didn’t like any of them and I walked around for a couple of months with quite the greasy mop!
I found this Organic Surge half price in TK Maxx so decided to give it one more try. I started using it with a paraben free shampoo (so maybe my hair just likes silicone?) and like it a lot, It doesn’t make my hair greasy, just soft, clean and healthy looking. I’ve already decided to take the plunge and try the shampoo with it too.
Product: Une Nuit à Bali Dry Shampoo
Price: 15€ 35g
Natural credentials: 100% natural ingredients and only 3 of them!
This came to me via the Liberty beauty advent calendar 2 years ago (A very generous gift from my sisters). It’s a dry shampoo powder and just doing a quick research I can’t find it for sale in the UK.
I really love the idea of a natural dry shampoo as the areole versions usually contain a lot of alcohol, which is not good for your hair. This one is a bit like using talcum powder, but a tad more luxurious, haha. I find it works best putting it on the night before (which I know might defeat the purpose of using one) but if I do I wake up with my hair looking almost just washed clean.
I will say though that as it is a bit on the pricy side I probably won’t re-buy it once it’s finished but I will be looking for maybe a more purse friendly natural one.
Studio CIY 