What: The perfect cleanser.
For: Removing makeup and impurities. For all skin types.
Review: There are a few products that I use so regularly that I take them for granted and forget to focus on them with a review. MV Organics Gentle Cream Cleanser is one of them. This is the perfect cleanser. Thoroughly cleanses makeup? Tick. Removes impurities and keeps breakouts at bay? Tick. Leaves skin super soft & nourished? TICK.
In addition to its skin loving properties, it was the scent knocked my socks off - as most people who read the CBB regularly have probably realised, I need only a drop of citrus fragrance to fall in love with a product, and this cleanser is a delicious blend of rose, chamomile and mandarin. Heaven. This cleanser makes your morning shower feel like a mini spa session.
The cleanser is best used with a muslin cloth. Only a few pumps of product are needed to cleanse the really face well - the texture is thick, luxurious and creamy. After massaging the product into skin, hold a damp warm muslin cloth over skin for about 5 seconds (the steam from the cloth will further soften skin). You then use the cloth to gently buff the cleanser off skin, which doubles as gentle exfoliation.
Clean creds: 75% organic - and just look at this ingredients list! Water, Sweet Almond (Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis) Oil, Cetearyl Glucoside, Vegetable Glycerin, Glyceryl Monostearate, Vitamin E (Tocopherol), Honeysuckle (Lonicera Caprifolium & Lonicera Japonica) Extract, with essential oils of Rose, Chamomile and Mandarin. Nothing scary there.
Verdict: I can recommend this cleanser for almost all skin types, unless you are very sensitive to essential oils. It worked beautifully on my skin and, although not a conventional ‘anti-acne’ cleanser, it kept breakouts at bay without drying skin. Although it’s on the pricier side - $45 - a bottle lasted me for about 3 months of consistent use. It’s also a great one to take travelling as it comes in a super lightweight bottle and a no-mess pump dispenser.
Buy it here
*This product was sent to me as a PR sample for my honest review.
What: Deliciously scented cream for hands.
For: Non-greasy moisture.
Review: WARNING: You WILL want to eat your hands after using this hand cream. It is the most delectably scented product I have ever used and I am tempted to have a nibble of my palm every time I put it on. It has the freshness of a punchy citrus scent with the sweetness & warmth of vanilla… and yes, I am drooling as I write this!
I find that this is the perfect hand cream to keep on my desk at work, as it provides a good level of hydration - sinks in quickly, leaves no greasy residue (no slopping over keyboards here!) and the fragrance is a wonderful mid-afternoon pick-me-up. I wouldn’t recommend it for super dry hands, but it’s very nice for medium-level hydration and for keeping hands soft & smooth. Along with the scent, I’m also a little bit in love with the packaging, which has a very cool vintage apothecary style. I’ve been using the tube but it is also available in a pump dispenser, and I think this would look beautiful in a bathroom or on your bedside table (all products also come in lovely boxes, so it would make a gorgeous gift!).
Verdict: My new favourite hand cream. But don’t blame me when you find yourself licking your fingers after use…
Buy it here (Australians, the full Grown range is also available at Priceline)
*This product was sent to me as a PR sample.
What: Richly hydrating body moisturiser with a delicious rose fragrance. Think rose petals in the spa, not Grandma’s hand cream.
For: Dehydrated skin
Review: This is a lovely luxurious moisturiser – not one that I use every day, but one that gets doled out for special occasions. The cream is (as the name suggests) ultra rich, so it’s quite hydrating and leaves a fine film of moisture over the skin. I wouldn’t use this if I were about step into a stinking sweaty day, but it’s a nice one to use before you go out because of the light sheen it gives to skin. Skin is silky soft to touch and lightly fragranced – even my boyfriend notices when I use this (which, believe me, is a BIG DEAL. I’ve sometimes walked around in a clay mask all over my face and he hasn’t noticed). The only slightly annoying thing I find about this moisturiser is the tube – it has a very nice looking wooden top but I find that this collects moisturiser in the rim. Although I’m sure I’ll be quite pleased once I get to the end of the tube and rediscover this hidden stash of moisturiser…
Clean cred: No synthetic fragrances or colour, sulfates, glycols, pegs or parabens. Australian owned and made. Against animal testing.
Verdict: Lovely ‘special occasion’ moisturiser. For the price you wouldn’t want to use this every day, but it really is nice to pamper yourself with or would make a gorgeous gift (the packaging looks very smart).
Available from here.
Okay, I know this is perhaps a couple of polish trends behind, but I can’t go past a greige polish - smart enough for work, cool enough for play. This one is Sheswai Lacquer in ‘Stoned’ - it is ‘3 FREE’ which means it contains no formaldehyde, toluene, or DBPs. Available here.
Cara Birnbaum swaps her trusty potions for an all-green regimen for two weeks, and learns a few things on the way… Click the title above to read about her journey.
Lusting for summer on these cold winter nights… add some colour and get Abbey Lee’s look with Nvey Eco Organic Lipstick in ‘Red Orange Slight Shimmer’, available here:
[Image from here]
