Natural Facial Oils

The oil stage of the nightly face regime isn't something that everyone needs to do, but I have found that adding oil to my face (before the moisturiser) has done a good job at helping to keep my face soft and moisturised.

I've tried a number of tester face oils in the past and have really enjoyed the way they felt and the effect they had on my skin, but the Dr Organic Moroccan Argan Oil Facial Oil is the first oil that was brought and tried in full.  My Mum actually got it for me for Christmas and then I brought it again from Holland and Barrett when it ran out.  This oil smelt amazing and it was really nice rubbing it into my skin.  It sank in pretty well, though it did sometimes feel like some residue was left on my face.  However, it don't mind this feeling so it didn't bother me too much.  The packaging says that it's suitable for vegetarians, but a look at the ingredients show that it's actually vegan and Dr Organic is cruelty free (though pending it's status on Logical Harmony).  If I was going to buy a premade face oil again this would definitely be on my list, but I decided to give mixing my own a go.  In fact, the oil in the picture is actually my own concoction in the Dr Organic bottle which I reused to not only reduce waste but also because it works so well. 

These are the oils I now use to make my own facial oil.  They are based on the fact that my skin tends to be dry and scars easily, usually after the rare times I do get a spot and in connection to one of my treatments connected to having PCOS.  The two main oils I use are Jojoba and Avocado.  This is usually in a 50 / 50 consistency but I will change that depending on what my skin is going, using more Avocado oil when my skin is particularly dry.  Jojoba oil is a good allrounder, good for both hair and skin, and used by Native American tribes for years.  Jojoba oil is unique to other oils as it closely resembles our own waxy sebum which conditions our skin.  I do sometimes use it on it's own and, because it's a wax, it doesn't feel oily or greasy on the skin and always feels like it's absorbed completely into the skin.  I use it because it acts to replace our own sebum which gets stripped off every time we wash and the Jojoba oil acts as a protective layer on my skin which moisturises my skin and helps prevent my mild eczema from flaring up.  Avocado oil is one of the thickest, most nourishing of the oils as it contains large quantities of palmitoleic acid (a fatty acid found naturally in human adipose or fat tissues.  The idea is that as the body recognises this as a fatty acid as something familiar it absorbs into the skin's lower layers providing nourishment.  It is usually recommended for more mature skin, but I love it for the fact that it is so moisturising and is a natural inflammatory, helping with any allergies or eczema.  It also helps with any scarring I have.

The other oils I probably don't need to add, but I like putting them in.  The first is Rosehip oil (which usually makes up 10% of my oil mixture) which contains Vitamin A and high concentration of alpha-linolenic acid, which are good for reducing irritation and fading scars.  You almost always need to mix this with other carrier oils.  The last is an essential oil, Frankincense in fact.  This is the only essential oil I use in my face oil, but it's a great essential oil.  For me it's the regenerative properties that makes this a great oil which helps with any scarring I have, but I also use it to help with the pigmentation around my mouth that started when I fit 30 and I have to say that it's been very effective on that front.  If I was to add another essential oil then it would probably be Clay Sage, which is meant to be good at regulating the production of sebum helping with dry skin, but I'm happy with what I have at the moment.

So the makeup of my homemade facial oil at the moment is:

• 45% Jojoba oil (may vary)
• 45% Avocado oil (may vary)
• 10% Rosehip oil
• 5 - 10 drops of Frankincense

I love this combination but, if my research into oils has taught me anything, it's that all the oils have some benefit for almost all skin types (whether oily or dry) and it's just about finding a combination that suits you or just that you like.

Dr Organic Moroccan Argan Oil Facial Oil can be found at Holland & Barrett.

I brought the oils from Mystic Moments (you can get other things for making soaps etc).

A good resource I've found for information regarding oils is Natural Living Ideas.

Project Pan 17 Update #2 and Other Products

I have to admit that I really thought that this month was going to be one of those months where I didn't finish anything.  So I'm very happy that I have managed to get rid of one product as least.

And that product is the Bourjois Color Boost in Orange Punch.  I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this product.  The colour was lovely and very vibrant, but it was a little too glossy for me and didn't have a very long staying power (even when drinking through a straw).  I also had to wear my Urban Decay lip liner in Ozone to make sure that it didn't migrate into the very fine lines I have around my mouth.  But it you like glossy, lip balm like products I think you would like this.  I actually didn't use the NYX Butter Gloss this month at all as I didn't notice any further change in the products smell.  It will be what I'm using in March though.  While I've been trying to up date my information on products that are cruelty free I have found that, while Bourjois is meant to still be cruelty free itself, it does sell products in China.  So I won't buy anymore products from them.

As with the eyeshadows before, I have been concentrating on using up the pink / purple shadow from the H&M palette, the purple Body Shop shadow I can't remember the name of and the Body Shop shadow in Coconut About Me, with the Natural Collection shadow in Sea Shell as a highlighter.  The progress has been steady and I will keep using all of them except the purple H&M shadow throughout March as I start wearing a more smokey look to go with the NYX Butter Gloss.  I've stopped working on the Natural Collection shadow in Sable for now as I've been using the H&M shadow as a base shadow.

There's not much I can say about the Barbara Day eye primer, the MUA powder foundation in Shade 4, and the Bourjois blush in Ceidre 48 as, despite wearing all these products on a daily basis, there is no evident progress.  I'm hoping at some point one of these will suprise, but for now I'll just keep plodding along.  I'm not sure about Barbara Day and can't really find much information about it, but MUA is cruelty free (though it is in the grey area section in Logical Harmony so I will keep an eye on that).

The progress on the Soap & Glory Smoulder Kohl Waterproof Eyeliner in Superblack has been very similar to that during January.  At this rate it will definitely be finished by the end of the year, but I'm hoping to see more progress during March as I change my make up look to that with a smokey eye.  Soap & Glory is cruelty free according to their website, but is in the grey area on Logical Harmony's cruelty free page. Will keep looking on this as well.

My progress on the Wella System Professional Polish Cream has been much better this year than lasts and carrying it in my bag to apply whenever I remember is probably what has been helping.  It is an old product and does help at reducing the amount of frizzy, but other than that I don't notice a huge difference in my hair and the oils I would normally use are much more effective.  It is so close to being finished though, so I will keep going.  Wella is not cruelty free and I won't buy their products again.

As last month I've been just wearing the Max Factor Glossfinity nail polish in Raspberry Blush.  I usually have to reapply this every three days as it doesn't seem to last the admin work much longer.  Theoretically I should have been further down than this, but, as before, I don't always want to wear polish.  Must do better this month.  The colour is nice, but I won't buy this again as Max Factor is not cruelty free.

The Jean Paul Gaultier Eau De Parfum is also a product I've been using on a daily basis, but as the scent is such a strong, long lasting one I don't have to reapply at any point so the progress is slow.  I am hoping to get this finished by the end of the year, but I won't hold my breath.  I still can't find if Jean Paul Gaultier is cruelty free but will keep searching.

The last products aren't in any specific project, but are items that I've been working on as a general downsizing of all my products.  The first is one of my favourite moisturisers, The Body Shop's Body Butter in Smoky Poppy.  I succumbed last year and brought another two when they went on sale, and this is the last one.  The body butter is great for my dry skin and I love the smelly, just the right amount of lightness and sweetness.  Unfortunately they don't make this anymore or I probably would have continued buying this and part of me wished I'd brought even more.  I am now just down to using my shea butter as a body moisturiser.  It's very oily, but is exactly what my dry skin needs and that's now just one body moisturiser.  I also used up the last of my Dr Organic Organic Virgin Coconut Oil lip balm.  This was one that I used during the day as it had SPF.  It was very effective at keeping my lips soft and doesn't seem to have any ingredients that actually dry out my skin.  The only thing that I didn't like about this was the slightly odd taste it left in my mouth.  According to their packaging Dr Organic does not test on animals and is in the pending section on Logical Harmony.

It seems to be the month of using up the back ups of the same products.  A little while ago I wanted to try Bioderma Micellar Water that everyone is talking about and brought a double pack off Amazon.  This is the last one and while it did a very good job at removing my make up without hurting my eyes I won't be buying this again as Bioderma is not cruelty free.  Lastly is the Desert Essence Tropical Breeze Deodorant.  This was one of the deodorant's that a friend of mine sent to me from Canada to help me try and find a more natural deodorant.  Unfortunately this wasn't very effective, I usually had to reapply it at around lunch time and, as before, the tea tree smells too similar to my natural smell, which I find disconcerting.  I couldn't use it on a daily basis as it became less effective after each day and I had a reaction to it.  There isn't any biocarb in it so it must have been the corn starch.  So, back to looking for another natural deodorant.

To see my previous posts on my 2017 Project Pan:

• Introduction
• Project Pan Update #1

Night Face Moisturiser

Ok, so I know I've said this a 100 times, but I have dry skin and it can be very sensitive to some products.  It has taken me awhile to find products that are more 'natural' than the conventional products, gave my skin enough moisture and didn't cause my skin to itch or go red.  I concentrate on putting moisture back into my skin during the night (my morning routine is pretty simple) and use oil and then a cream.  I'll do another blog on the oils I use, but here are the face moisturisers I've been trying.

After doing some reading about ingredients that are good for dry skin I decided to go for something which contained Vitamin E, known for it's moisturising properties.  I had a nosey in my local Holland and Barrett and found the Dr Organic Vitamin E Cream.  This was a lovely product, sunk into the skin really well, and I liked that, while I mainly used it on my face, I could use it anywhere I had dry patches.  It's also vegan, cruelty free, and paraben and fragrance free.  The fact that it's in a glass jar is also a plus when it comes to reducing waste.  Definitely worth having a look at and I will probably buy it again in the future.

Next I tried the Barefoot SOS Face & Body Rescue Cream that I had a sample of.  Designed specifically for dry and sensitive skin, this seemed like the perfect solution.  This product is also vegan and cruelty free, as well as being free from a whole load of synthetic products including parabens and sulphates.  Though it does contain essential oils it didn't irritate my skin at all and did leave my face feeling very soft and nourished.  The only problem I had was that I could still feel it sitting on my face after a couple of hours and I don't like that feeling.  I might think about getting this as a hand and dry patches moisturiser, but not as a face moisturiser.

Another product that I first got as a tester, but then brought as the full product, was the Green People Fruitful Nights Night Cream.  I love this stuff.  It smells amazing and did really feel like it was moisturising my face, though maybe not as well as the first two products.  Vegan, cruelty free and free from a number of synthetic products, it also donates some of it's profits to charity.  Green People is a great company and I don't think I've not enjoyed a product I've bought from them.  I am very tempting to buy this again and probably will in the future, but as I'm trying to streamline my beauty products right now I wanted to see if I could find something that could be multiply purpose, like Dr Organic Vitamin E Cream and Barefoot SOS Face & Body Rescue Cream.  This product is also on the slightly pricey side.

The last product that I got (and am still using) is the Jason Revitalizing Vitamin E 5,000 i.u.  I decided to go for another Vitamin E product as I felt it did so well before and this has been very effect.  Jason is another environmentally friendly company and all their products are vegetarian (though I believe this one is vegan), cruelty free, and free from the usual synthetic ingredients.  They also support Care, a charity that helps girls go to school.  As a product it has done a good job at moisturising and has been something that I could use on other areas of my body where there has been dry patches.  During my time using this I had also used up my last eye moisturiser and have just been using this instead of buying a new eye moisturiser.  It has done a very good job in this role as well and hasn't irritated my sensitive eyes at all.  You also get a lot of product for not a lot of money so is well worth getting.  The only downside for this product is that it comes in a plastic container, but seeing as it lasts for such a long time I don't feel as bad using it.  I've almost finished this one, my second pot, and am going to buy it again.  However, this time I'm thinking of going for the 25,000 i.u. as my skin has been unusually dry recently so I want something stronger.

So that's all the moisturisers I have tried so far and it may not seem like a lot, but all of these products take a long time to use.  I love the fact that I have found a multi-tasker which I can use on my face, eyes, and body.  Definitely makes life a lot easier.

If you have a moisturiser that you like let me know.

Project Pan Update #6 and Other Products

Month six is over and I've actually managed to finish a few things off this month, a couple of which are in my Project Pan.  I did catch a cold for a little bit and during that time didn't really have any interest in using any of these products, so I'm glad I still managed to get some finished.

The first product I finished was the Glove Summer Glow (no longer available in this form).  This only took a couple of months to finish and did help moisturise my skin, but I really don't like self tanners.  I'm not entirely sure what possessed me to buy this (having pasty white legs doesn't actually bother me that much) and I really don't like the smell of self-tanner or having to wait before I could put any layers on.  On-top of which Dove is not a cruelty free brand, so I won't be buying this again even if it was available.

This was one product I was worried I wouldn't actually finish, despite being so close.  Red lipstick doesn't really go with a runny nose.  But I slathered it on during this last week and it's now all gone.  Even if Max Factor was a cruelty free brand I wouldn't buy this Cherry Kiss lipstick again.  Firstly, I really don't like the smell (and consequently the taste) of this, it's way too strong, and it was too shiny for me as a matte girl.  It was relatively moisturising but this also meant that it migrated into all the fine lines around my mouth.  It also wasn't very pigmented and, on the days that I decided to wear it without a lip liner, you could see my own lip colour through in patches.  I am glad this now finished (and so's my partner, he hates shiny red lipsticks).

I have been using the Mac lipstick in Creme Cup and Jane Iredale Lip & Cheek Stain in Forever Pink, but not very often so there hasn't been much progress on these.  I'll probably concentrate on the Mac lipstick this month as it's the one that isn't cruelty free.

All I can say about this Teal Elf eyeliner is that it's just as well I like this colour because it is taking forever to use up!  I use this every day as an eyeliner on my upper lid but, now that I've used up the red lipstick, I'll be doing more smoky-eye looks so I'm hoping to use the rest of this up this month.  Elf is, of course, cruelty free.

The progress of these eyeshadows are following the same slow but steady pace as before, though the white is speeding up a little now that I'm using a bigger brush to highlight my face.  I've removed two of the eyeshadows from this palette for now so I can concentrate on these five.  I'm beginning to feel like I won't finish any of these by the end of the year, but I still have another 6 months so we'll see. 

The Max Factor mini nail varnish in Ruby Tuesday is one product that I haven't finished but which I am just going to get rid of.  It literally chips within one day, though I do do a lot of typing for my job, and I'm not someone who wants to spend every evening painting my nails. So this is going in the bin.  I'm not a huge fan of this tone of red anyway.

These are two products that weren't in my project pan but that I've finished in June.  I got these in a Zoya set and they are the Armour Topcoat and the Fast Dry Drops.  The topcoat was good, and apparently had UV protection, but nothing to write home about other than the fact that it doesn't have all toxins other topcoats have.  The drops were good though and definitely helped dry the nail varnish very quickly, meaning that I didn't have to worry about waking up with weird ridges on my nails.

These are some of the last face samples that I have left.  I didn't notice any real benefit from the Caudalie Radiance or Estelle & Thild Biocalm Anti-redness Rescue Serum sample, though they did smell nice very nice and smoothed onto my skin easily.  However, I did like the Madara Time Miracle Eye Cream.  At the moment I just use an Aloe Vera with vitamin E eye cream which I really like but which you can't get anymore.  I have to be careful with eye creams as they can make my eyes puffy and itchy, but this really didn't, made the skin around my eyes very soft and moisturised.  I'm not sure about the reduced lines and wrinkles though, I'd probably need to use it for longer to notice any difference in that.

These are products that I've been concentrating on using up as I try and reduce my moisturising and perfume products.  The first is The Body Shop Smoky Poppy body butter.  Body butters work really well with my dry skin and I love the smell of this one.  Unfortunately The Body Shop only had this scent as part of the celebration of the end of WWII last year, which is a shame as I'd want to buy this all the time if it was permanent.  I do wish I'd brought more of this product or at least a larger tub.  They do still have some of this on sale online, so maybe.....  

The Burt's Bees cuticle cream I've had for years and it is now finally finished.  It smells lovely, lasts a long time, works really well, and is cruelty free.  That's all I need to say.

I got a couple of these Dr Organic Organic Virgin Coconut lip balms from Holland and Barretts when they were having a deal, mainly because they contained spf 15 in them.  They smell nice (if you like coconuts) and do moisturise your lip. The only issue I have with them is the taste it a little odd, but that's it really.  I would recommend getting one if you have a Holland and Barretts near you.

The last product is one of the perfume samples I'm working through this year and is the Calvin Klein perfume in Euphoria.  It smells alright and worked ok with my skin, but it definitely didn't make me euphoric.  Even if I wasn't going down the more natural route I wouldn't buy the actual size of this.

I should probably say here that I didn't really use the Lily Lolo primer that much this month so there really isn't much change in that.

Now that's 21 pan products to go.

Below are links to all my previous project pan blogs:

• Introduction
• Project Pan Update #1
• Project Pan Update #2
• Project Pan Update #3
• Project Pan Update #4
• Project Pan Update #5