I have finally managed to squeeze a few free days into my schedule so I am grabbing this opportunity to have a little break and heading off in direction the countryside in a little cute village in France ! I thought I would take this perfect occasion to write a post about my summer natural beauty products essentials as I doubt I will get another chance until next year! So let’s not waste any more valuable packing time and dive straight in…..
Scrub
Don’t miss this vital preparatory stage! Make sure to exfoliate your face/body preparing your skin to be exposed to the sun. Exfoliating helps to remove the dead cells which enables a far more uniform and beautiful tan. I would advise you to do this a few weeks before exposure to the sun.
These are my current favourite face scrubs:
Nourish – A great 3 in 1 product which I have talked about already in my post here! It can be used as an exfoliator, cleanser or mask. It’s really convenient when you go on holiday to avoid getting bogged down with loads of products!
Marilou Bio – This does a great job for a very affordable price! This scrub is effective without being aggressive. In addition, it rinses easily and leaves the skin clean and soft.
Prime Time – My favorite exfoliant of the three. I love its oily texture which turns into milk upon contact with water and its smell that reminds me of lemon acid candies. My full review is here.
For my body I prefer a scrub to be a little more vigorous:
The Salt Parlour – I highly recommend the scrubs from The Salt Parlour, a small British brand that deserves to be far better known. Their scrubs are really well made and feel divine. My favourite is the Repair, a Dead Sea salt scrub made with Matcha tea, Coconut oil, Apricot oil and Jasmine. It leaves the skin hydrated and deliciously scented (complete review here).
For DIY lovers, a mixture of baking soda with a carrier oil of your choice will do just fine. After thoroughly dampening the skin, apply the mixture to the body and exfoliate. Soft skin is guaranteed!G
Sun Tan Lotion
This is an absolute necessity……..but no one needs me to tell them that! We all know the huge danger the sun poses to our skin and how important it is to protect ourselves effectively so there is no need for me to go further into any of that. However, there are so many amazing natural suntan lotions appearing that hopefully I can help on that front!
This year I will be taking 2 sun creams with me, Acorelle SPF 50 (which was recommended to me by Naturellement Lyla) and Simple As That SPF 30 (which I found out on the eshop Purnatural). I wasn’t as organised as I would have hoped to be and ordered them late so I haven’t received them yet! I will just have to let you know my thoughts on both of them when I return from my holiday, sorry ;-). Last year I used the sun creams from Green People and MyChelle which were both great, my review is here.
After Sun
Aloe Vera is your best friend and ally here! No matter how hard you try sometimes you still end up getting sunburned, particularly on the tip of your nose! In this case I would advise putting some Aloe Vera gel on it as soon as possible!! It is highly effective to refresh, relieve and immediately soothe a sunburn. For even more efficiency, add 3 drops of Calendula oil (cicatrizing and soothing properties).
Damage can be done to the skin from sun, even long before it burns, so to repair skin heated by the sun one of my favorite products is the refreshing fluid from Acorelle. I absolutely loved this product last summer so I am taking it with me again this year on holiday. I apply this fluid (which is enriched with peppermint hydrolate, coconut oil and monoï) over my whole body. It hydrates and nourishes the skin perfectly without any greasy or sticky effect……oh and it smells amazing!
Also, don’t forget your feet, especially at this time when wearing open shoes most of the time. The best remedy to treat them is Shea Butter as it hydrates and relieves dry feet.
Finally, to refine and preserve your tan, I add a few drops of Carrot oil to the Acorelle fluid. Carrot is an excellent source of beta-carotene !!
Essential oil
In summer I get absolutely bitten to death by mosquitoes, it seems nearly impossible for me to escape the evil little critters! I always make sure to have Lavender Spike essential oil on hand as it is such an effective oil to calm the bites of mosquitoes or other insects. Just apply a drop to the bite and it quickly relieves the itching and inflammation of the spot. Make sure you apply it quickly though and renew every 15 minutes (max 4 times a day). It is also great to soothe sunburn by adding 2 drops to the Aloe Vera + Calendula macerate mixture.
Hair Protector
There is so much strain put on our hair on holiday when you start factoring in sun, sea, sand and swimming pools that it’s always a great idea to protect your hair as much as possible. During summer I use Sesame oil and Karanja oil as both carrier oils are known for their ability to absorb UV. I simply mix a few drops of each oil and apply to my hair before going out into the sun.
I hope this little selection is useful to you and will enable you to have a beautiful natural summer too! How about you guys, what are your favorite natural summer products?
To help you make sure you are stocked up on all your summer essentials Purnatural is offering 15% off throughout their website (no minimum purchase) with code OHMYSKIN15 (which can also be combined with their other promotions) :)
