Wonderful Green Smoothies

For the last two and a half weeks, I have been drinking lots of delicious green smoothies. They have made such a big difference to my energy levels, and also to my skin

A green smoothie is a drink, which has lots of green leafy plants in it. I started looking into these drinks for health reasons, as I felt like my general health could be improved. 

I moved to a new country over 2 years ago, and it has taken its toll on my health (increased stress, etc…). Unfortunately I now succumb more easily to coughs and colds, and there are times when I feel like I am always ill. I think my skin has also suffered, but I am not sure about this as I have recently reached the big 3 0.

Two and a half weeks ago, I started reading Green for Life by Victoria Boutenko. It is an inspiring book, and it promotes the drinking of green smoothies for health. There are also around 5 pages of green smoothie recipes of which I have tried about half. I have to say, that I am so happy that I have discovered green smoothies, as my energy levels are so much better now. When I wake up in the morning, I have less grogginess which is so great. My boyfriend has also noticed a difference

The book explains that by eating more leafy plants, our bodies become better balanced in terms of acid/alkali and minerals. By blending the green plants, rather than eating as salad, our bodies are better able to absorb the nutrients as the cellulose walls are broken down. Victoria recommends blending rather than juicing as the fiber is preserved, and the plant oxidises slower. Did I mention that they are also delicious?

In terms of my skin it is definately more glowing. Looking at my skin now, I can’t pinpoint the actual difference, but I would say that my skin looks generally less tierd. However it’s only been 2 weeks so I hope the benefits will continue…

I urge anyone wanting to improve their health the look into green smoothies.

SPF15 suncream is not ‘strong’ enough – BBC

Hello all. Today I came across an interesting article, suggesting that people living in England should use  a suncream of at least SPF30. It is interesting as before, it was recommended that people use at least SPF 15. You can read the article here.

I must admit that although I try to apply my suncream thickly, I often fail. Instead I find it easier to apply 2 thin layers, waiting a couple of minutes in between. That way the skin is not quite so greasy looking :-p

As the sunny weather is coming to Switzerland, I’m thinking about changing my suncream for a higher factor. I have my trusty Shiseido SPF 50 suncream which I will dig out for the sun

Emu Moisturising Eye Cream review

Hello! I am on a quest to find a good anti aging eye cream, and I purchased the Emu eye cream just over a month ago.

I decided to give this eye cream a try, as I hear so many positive things about Emu oil and how it helps with dry skin and acne. This cream has amazing ingredients and for the price it seems a steal (especially if it works).  For £8 you get 25ml, which is a generous amount for an eye cream. I’ve been using this cream every morning and evening for a month, and so far I’ve used about a third of the tin.

In addition to Emu oil, this cream contains aloe vera, shea butter, coconut oil, retinyl palmitate, vitamin e, and hyaluronic acid.  

The cream is pale yellow, and comes in a tin with a screw top lid. Some people may feel this is unhygienic, but for me it is fine as I always use clean hands.

It is a pretty thick cream and feels sticky when applied straight from the tin. This is how I actually first applied this cream and I feel like it irritated my skin, especially my delicate undereyes, as the cream is so sticky.  I got around the stickiness by first warming a little of the cream on my wrist, and then applying it to my eyes. It helps a lot if I apply the cream immediately over my hyaluronic acid serum, as the eye cream then glides without sticking or tugging.

Sorry, I think the tin looks blue on one side, as there was a blue light from my computer

I would like to point out that it is not a good idea to use this cream right next to the lash line. I tend to do this (bad habit I know) as my first wrinkles tend to appear here. By applying this cream so close to my eye, the cream gunked up and made my eyes uncomfortable.

Having said all that, this cream is moisturising, even though it is not an oily cream. My skin feels no longer feels taut, which is a huge huge plus. It sinks into the skin and leaves an almost matte finish. However for me the stickiness and the ick factor (of using emu oil!) is a negative so I will not repurchase. After a month, my fine lines still look the same (if not slightly worse) than before.

Has anyone else tried this cream? I would love to hear your thoughts

Small Haul – Lush’s Dream Cream and Joico Hair Treatments

Hi everyone! Today I went to Lush, one of my all time favourite shops, and bought the much raved about Dream Cream.

Dream cream is much loved for it’s effect on troubled skin. It is said to help even medical skin problems, such as eczema and psoriasis. As a child I had severe atopic eczema on my arm, and I wish that products such as this were around then.

I wanted this cream, as I wanted something suitable for sensitive skin. The skin on my face and neck is becoming more sensitive, I think because of the Vitamin C and other treatments I’ve been using. I hope the natural ingredients will help to soothe and calm my face and neck.

My boyfriend has some active psoriasis, and I will be testing this on him as well. Over the last month, I’ve been testing various things on my boyfriend’s psoriasis and there have been some surprising results. I will write about that soon.

I also received the much loved Joico hair products 4 days ago. I have used twice already, the K Pac Deep Penetrating Reconstructer and the Intense Hydrater. All I can say is that they are miracle workers. I will write a post about that soon

Skincare oils

Today I want to share my love of skincare oils! Oils are amazing and can be used to clean the skin as well as to moisturise.

I clean my skin using the oil cleansing method. This method involves applying the oil to dry skin, then massaging it in for a few minutes to melt away all the gunk on the face.  I love using my oil in this way, as I find that there is less stress to the skin in terms of pulling and tugging. It is the perfect way to remove all my suncream, makeup, stubborn waterproof eye makeup, and natural oils. In fact it feels so lovely that I sometimes take advantage and indulge in some facial massage

The principle behind the oil cleansing method is that oil melts oil. I remember times when my hands were dirty from car or bike grime, and washing with soap and water took a lot of scrubbing and scraping. However with oil, it comes away nicely.

In fact in Asia, cleaning with oil has been popular for many years. Many people practise double cleansing, a process where the skin is first cleaned with an oily cleanser, then a soapy cleanser is used afterwards to remove the oil. There are products were these 2 steps are combined into one e.g. the oil is easy to cleanly wash away.  Clarins Pure melting gel is such a product, and it feels truly extravagant to use

I actually do not double cleanse, as I like to leave a thin film of oil on my face. The film is like a moisturiser and it helps to keep my skin hydrated.

I also use skin oils directly on my face to moisturise. I use around 5 drops all over my face every night especially in the winter. On some nights, I apply my usual moisturiser on top. I have blemish prone skin and in my experience the oils help to draw out the impurities faster. Using oils has not caused my skin to break out more, and I feel the tone of my skin is improved.

However I would suggest that you experiment with different types of oils. For me, my skin does not like olive oil and much prefers rosehip oil, grape seed oil and sweet almond oil. I have spot prone normal to dry, sensitive skin and these three oils work really well for me.

Let me know if you like using oils as much as I do.

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Free Origins Facewash or Cleanser (UK only)

Sometimes I wish I still lived in the UK.

There is a fab offer on at the moment whereby you can trade in any old skin care item (any brand, full or not) for a full sized Origins fashwash or cleanser worth £16. Just head down to your local Origins counter…

What you could get, Checks and Balances or A Perfect World

The offer is available only today and tomorrow, and is for Earth Month.

Such a great deal!

Humidifyer to help dry skin

taken from amazon.co.uk

I have wanted to buy a humidifier for a long time now, in the hopes to lessening the stress on my skin whilst in my flat. I have these fine lines under my eyes and I hope that a humidifier would prevent them from getting worse. I have learned from research that when the weather outside is very cold and snowy, the humidity indoors can drop dramatically.

I have only lived in Switzerland for 2 years, prior to that I have always lived in the UK so my skin is used to wet and overcast weather The Swiss weather is in my opinion harsh to skin. It is low humidity, and the sun is almost out everyday.

For the last week, I have put open bowls of water in my bedroom, so that the air is somewhat more hydrated when I sleep. My bedroom has high ceilings, and to be honest I am not sure what help a cold bowl of cold water is. It would be better for me to use hot or steaming water, so that the air humidifies faster. However I am surprised at how much water has evaporated in a few days. To be honest I haven’t noticed a huge difference to my skin. But by using this, my save my face pillow, my eye creams and skin cream, my skin looks more plump and hydrated.

I am still on the lookout for a humidifier, and I definitely hope to buy one before the winter comes.

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