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This is a big step in the right direction for Pure & Green Organics. This statement from Plant Ark explains what this acutally means for you, the user of Pure & Green’s Organic skin care:

Pure & Green are Silver Medal Winners

We are very proud to announce Plant Ark endorsement of Pure & Green Organics products. Endorsed products will be clearly identified with the “Proudly Endorsed by Planet Ark” logo. Look for this logo on individual products.

“Our endorsement means consumers can now buy quality beauty products whose environmental claims they can trust without worrying about “greenwash” and false claims”, says Paul Klymenko, Planet Ark CEO.

To gain the Planet Ark endorsement Pure & Green Organics was evaluated against four criteria – its environmental impact, health, quality and cost. This confirms that products don’t impact the environment, do not contain synthetics or petrochemicals, have the highest quality ingredients and offer maximum value for money.

“Our aim is to create one of the world’s most sustainable, truly organic beauty brands. Both the ACO bud logo and our new Planet Ark endorsement shows that we have become pioneers in the cosmetics industry,” says Grace Culhaci, founder Pure & Green Organics.

Why Planet Ark?

Planet Ark is an Australian not-for-profit Environmental organisation, founded in 1992. Plant Ark is non-political and is not aligned with any political party. Well-known for planting 15 million trees for its National Tree Day Campaign, and the Recycling Near You programme promoting the recyclability of household items via celebrity ambassadors. The Planet Ark Environmental Foundation aims to work with people and business to teach them the simple ways in which they can reduce their impact on the planet, at home, at work and in the community. Planet Ark is largely funded by corporate sponsorship working in partnership with businesses and organisations that want to help bring about real environmental change. Buy purchasing endorsed Pure & Green Organics products a percentage of the sale goes back to Planet Ark to allow their wonderful educational work to continue.

For me Summer is a time of colour and sparkle and so as soon as I saw Luna Glitter nail polish from Zoya, I had to have it. I mean what is better than glitter toenails when at the beach? The light reflecting qualities will make your toes sparkle so much that no-one will notice if your bikini line isn’t quite coiffed. Of course I jest but really I do have a passion for bright toenails and this Summer will see me with far more than a nude shade of nail. In Luna, Delilah and Blyss, these polishes glitter like never before:

Another product I have just flipped over recently is a new one from Remedica (and I have been waiting with bated breath for it to be released): Remedica Recovery Lift. It is described as an outerwear gel serum. One of the reasons I love it (apart from the divine orchid smell) is the versatility of use. With a light and non-greasy texture, it can be used as a makeup primer, eye gel and slow aging serum, under or over moisturisers or sunscreen. It imparts a smooth finish so that even mineral make up can be applied without issue. I also think this would be ideal as a serum for those with congestion or prone to acne as it is oil-free and full of healing ingredients.

Benefits of Remedica Recovery Lift:

• Light weight, oil free / non greasy, hydrating and glowing veil
• Contributes to the look of lifted – smooth skin
• Long term help in minimising the look of sun induced pigmentation and depth of wrinkles,
• Plumps surface skin cells and hydrates and locks in moisture,
• Provides an instant tonifying and revitalising effect.

This brings me to favorite things…apart from Christmas cake of which I have had much already, my favorite thing this year is my Slip Pillow Case. When I first got one, I could barely take it off my pillow to wash. I soon sorted this issue by not washing it at all…no just kidding, I bought another one so I never have to do without again.

Naturally I chose the pink cases as despite being an adult, it is still my favorite colour. In any case, I just love it and have bought one for my grandmother and mother for Christmas.

I would love to hear about your favorite things, new product discoveries and summer highlights.

While New Year is the traditional time for giving up habits and setting goals, I decided to start early and once again gave up my daily coffee. This has been an ongoing issue for me for many reasons. Firstly I have a dairy intolerance so after 10 years of drinking milky lattes, I finally gave up dairy and my hormonal breakouts magically cleared up (my recent icecream indulgence has seen new breakouts so I have backed off again). This saw me drinking soy lattes for all of one week until I declared that there was nothing so disgusting that soy milk – for me anyway. So to black coffee and my addiction switched from mid strength lattes to super strength long black coffee with sugar. I found myself needing my daily cup and getting irritable if I didn’t have it. Sometimes I didn’t even want coffee at all but drank it anyway. Finally one day recently when I found myself forcing down a coffee I didn’t want out of habit, I decided to give it a miss entirely – well for a while at least.

So I did for exactly 4 brain-fog filled days. On day 5 my brain felt so foggy, I had not one but two mega strength coffees and drove home from the coffee shop with hands shaking and vision blurring. Not only was my heart racing but much to my dismay my skin went all blotchy. From a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective this is due to the heating effect of coffee and if heat builds up in the body (from too many coffees) or isn’t eliminated effectively (poor digestion) it held in the body and can result in red, blotchy skin. Other foods that have this effect include alcohol, spicy foods and hot drinks. This is one of the reasons that those with rosacea tend to react to these foods so badly. This is not to say that coffee is bad, just that for most people having it in moderation is a good idea and for those with rosacea or those adversely affected by “heating” foods, going without it better.

And so for the sake of my skin, which is a refection of my inner health, I have come to the point now that I can have coffee occasionally rather than every day. When I do have it I REALLY enjoy it, when I don’t I don’t miss it too much! Black and herbal teas are a thirst quenching replacement.

What we eat can certainly have an effect on the appearance of our skin. In my case firstly dairy and then “heating” foods or drinks. However, knowing what affects your skin in these ways can be the hardest thing to work out. A full elimination diet is a comprehensive way of finding out which foods affect you and how but can take a long time and are often quite difficult to sustain. You can shortcut this process. If you suspect you may be reacting to a particular food, it is worth testing your theory by taking the food group out of your diet completely for at least 3 days. Then test yourself by having a serve of the food and noting how you feel. Any number of symptoms may arise including: digestive issues, mood swings, irritability, energy drops, headaches and many more. A good rule of thumb is that if you feel rotten after eating the food it is worth minimising its inclusion in your everyday diet.

Are there any experiences that you have had with diet and skin issues. Please share them and what you did about it with our readers as it may be the very thing that helps someone else.

Yesterday a regular client came in with a gorgeous sunkissed look. Normally paler than me, she said that she had used and was now addicted to Lavera Sunless Self Tanner. There were no streak marks nor that orange tone that is common with the very pale using self tanner. I thought she looked great and may even try it myself!

Lavera Sunless Self Tanner is based on two natural ingredients, vegetable-derived DHA (Dihydroxyactone) and the sugar agent Erythrulose react with the amino acids of the skin, resulting in a brownish tint of the pigment. This reaction is completely harmless and a safe alternative to chemical tanners. This unaltered photo shows a smooth, natural tan develop on the right arm only 3 hours after initial application, compared to the untreated left arm. As with all Lavera products, our self tanners are certified natural by the BDIH, contain organic ingredients and are free of parabens and other synthetic ingredients.

I found these product reviews about Lavera Sunless Self Tanner: