I have a few requirements when it comes to cosmetics and skin care: cruelty free, natural, clean, vegan better. I do my best to avoid the nasty ingredients such as SLSs, parabens, PEGs, silicones, etc. Petrochemicals are the sneakiest with so many derivatives and aliases. I also avoid palm oil and it’s derivatives as I prefer orangutans. Coconut oil marketed as the good oil I’m also cutting down on as it can be just a damaging crop as palm oil. If I do get products with these ingredients in I try to get organic or sustainably sourced. With make up it’s a little harder so I go for cruelty free brands. I prefer products with less plastic and thankfully more brands are aware consumers don’t want unnecessary plastic (or governments are telling them less plastic). My skin type’s oily sensitive, acne prone and now wrinkles. I know nothing stops those lines, but if I can delay them then….
I’ll be straight up honest (no pun!) I didn’t like this cleanser. Maybe I’m biased towards Korean cleansers but this I felt didn’t clean my skin at all. I gave it a few days but I could tell on the first use, it wasn’t removing make up. I think I applied it twice each use. On Honest Beauty it’s recommend to apply like a cleansing balm which then foams a little as on Honest Beauty videos. I found it didn’t foam or get milk like colour. It says avoid contact with eyes and on its video it removed eye makeup or what looks like eyeliner. Let’s just say it stings like a MF if it gets in your eyes thanks to the rose water! It blotchy removed eyeliner and mascara and left my skin feeling striped bare dry still with make up residue on. I think I ended up using it as shower gel.
Welcome back to another Beauty Finds! This edition Sioris Stay With Me Day Cream!
I have a few requirements when it comes to cosmetics and skin care: cruelty free, natural, clean, vegan better. I do my best to avoid the nasty ingredients such as SLSs, parabens, PEGs, silicones, etc. Petrochemicals are the sneakiest with so many derivatives and aliases. I also avoid palm oil and it’s derivatives as I prefer orangutans. Coconut oil marketed as the good oil I’m also cutting down on as it can be just a damaging crop as palm oil. If I do get products with these ingredients in I try to get organic or sustainably sourced. With make up it’s a little harder so I go for cruelty free brands. I prefer products with less plastic and thankfully more brands are aware consumers don’t want unnecessary plastic (or governments are telling them less plastic). My skin type’s oily sensitive, acne prone and now wrinkles. I know nothing stops those lines, but if I can delay them then….
I discovered Sioris in Miin Cosmetics last year. Initially I was a little skeptical. The packaging is minimal, I didn’t want a plastic packaging brand again (dream on Nat) but I wanted to try new moisturisers. Their own site is mostly in Korean so I rely on stockists for product and brand info such as Miin Cosmetics. I believe the packaging is minimal with investment in the actual lotions and potions. Previously I was using Kora Organics and Honest Beauty moisturisers but I wasn’t happy with them. Kora Organics lotions (from douglas.es) are expensive for what they are, Honest Beauty, Honest Hydrogel Cream (from douglas.es) I liked, but couldn’t find what their hyaluronic acid sources were. Honest Beauty last year dropped a vegan line which had me questioning the hyaluronic acids used as they can be animal derived.
I decided to try Sioris Stay With Me Day Cream which the girls at Miin Cosmetics recommended. My skin in a day or 2 looked so much more healthier I went back to purchase the You Look So Young Night Cream and A Calming Day ampoule. Sioris isn’t an organic brand but everything they use is natural, mostly vegan and seasonal. Yes, seasonal. They use seasonal ingredients in many of their products. This also means that sometimes products aren’t available due to selling out fast until the next batch. Their prices aren’t cheap, but they’re not too expensive being mid range price with a little going a long way. All products are nasty ingredient free save one below. The products also are fragrance free, with no artificial fragrances or perfumes added so the smell of products is subjective. Some say it smells bad, but honestly it doesn’t smell of anything. Their Forever Young Night cream does as it contains tamanu oil, but the scent dissipates quickly and I’ll take that scent over artificial heavily scented or perfume any day.
So far most Sioris products I’ve used I’ve liked. Stay With Me Day Cream is a Daily Moisture Cream formulated with Schisandra fruit to help hydrate the skin intensively without being oily. Jeju Calendula and Ceramide also help soothe and strengthen a weakened skin barrier.
The cream has a slight pink hue which varies from batch to batch as it doesn’t contain any colouratives. The only ingredient that is on the bad list is butylene glycol. It’s rated 1 on ewg safety list and it is in the first 1/4 of ingredients. I’m hoping however all the other ingredients cancel out any damage done. It’s first ingredient is citrus junos fruit or yazu fruit which renowned for it’s high vitamin C properties (I’ve just started a yazu serum: by Urang (Miin Cosmetics here. Yes, I love Miin Cosmetics!) which it packed with it and have noticed a huge improvement in skin tone). Schisandra fruit is renowned for it’s skin calming and restorative properties. I’m in! Calendula calms skin and acne.
Welcome back to another Beauty Finds with a difference! Rather than review several products at once, from now on single product reviews starting with Colourpop Hyaluronic Tinted Moisturizer.
I have a few requirements when it comes to cosmetics and skin care: cruelty free, natural, clean, vegan better. I do my best to avoid the nasty ingredients such as SLSs, parabens, PEGs, silicones, etc. Petrochemicals are the sneakiest with so many derivatives and aliases. I also avoid palm oil and it’s derivatives as I prefer orangutans. Coconut oil marketed as the good oil I’m also cutting down on as it can be just a damaging crop as palm oil. If I do get products with these ingredients in I try to get organic or sustainably sourced. With make up it’s a little harder so I go for cruelty free brands. I prefer products with less plastic and thankfully more brands are aware consumers don’t want unnecessary plastic (or governments are telling them less plastic). My skin type’s oily sensitive, acne prone and now wrinkles. I know nothing stops those lines, but if I can delay them then….
Colourpop Pretty Fresh Hyaluronic Tinted Moisturizer I picked up on holiday at Ulta in the USA. I knew about the brand but never looked into thinking I couldn’t get it in Spain. While there are silicones listed I like the ingredient list as compared to other BBC creams, tinted moisturisers, foundations the list is kinda minimal.
Pretty Fresh hyaluronic tinted moisturizer. A hydrating tinted moisturizer with skin-perfecting, lightweight coverage for fresh healthy looking skin.
I prefer BBC creams as they give a nice glow, provide coverage without looked caked and are light weight. Most Korean BB creams are too pale for me and western BB creams are more like tinted moisturisers which do nothing for me. Provide hardly any coverage. Colourpop’s is more like a BB cream, it covers amazingly, doesn’t settle in fine lines or wrinkles and does’t clog my skin too much. It never looks caked on yet provides lightweight medium coverage. It stays on on hot humid days and is almost waterproof after dip in the sea. With a face mask depending on how long you wear it for it doesn’t rub off too much. It’s easy to apply with a beauty sponge (I use Tarte Babassu foundcealer multi tasking sponge from Sephora Espana). Bonus it gives you a glow while looking natural no makeup. Perfect!!!
I was concerned about the hyaluronic acid source as I’d read that it’s obtained via animals. I contacted Colourpop customer service who kindly said they’d check and get back to me. Good news, they hyaluronic acid isn’t obtained from any animal source! The coconut water I overlooked. I’m not perfect throwing out all of what I said about what I look for in products. Bad Nat.
Welcome to another Beauty Finds! Freshly Cosmetics Energy C, Emerald Clay and Cherry Blossom Facial Masks.
Scroll down 5 paragraphs for the reviews or stay to read on about why I like Freshly Cosmetics concept.
I have a few requirements when it comes to cosmetics and skin care: cruelty free, natural, clean, vegan better. I do my best to avoid the nasty ingredients such as SLSs, parabens, PEGs, silicones, etc. Petrochemicals are the sneakiest with so many derivatives and aliases. I also avoid palm oil and it’s derivatives as I prefer orangutans. Coconut oil marketed as the good oil I’m also cutting down on as it can be just a damaging crop as palm oil. If I do get products with these ingredients in I try to get organic or sustainably sourced. With make up it’s a little harder so I go for cruelty free brands. I prefer products with less plastic and thankfully more brands are aware consumers don’t want unnecessary plastic (or governments are telling them less plastic). My skin type’s oily sensitive, acne prone and now wrinkles. I know nothing stops those lines, but if I can delay them then….
Freshly Cosmetics every month usually towards the end of the month and when releasing a new product have 20-25% off everything for 2 days. It’s good time to stock up! Masks are sold as a trio for €72 or €26 each. If you wait for discount days you save. With the 3 masks there’s at least one for your skin type.
I like the concept of Freshly Cosmetics. All natural, recyclable glass pots and bottles or metal bottles. In store you can refill shampoo and conditioner bottles. Some products are carton/cardboard box free. Only plastic being the lids, pumps, seals and product labels. They used to use plastic shipping bags in addition to cardboard shipping boxes however this year they started shipping just the boxes only. Filling packaging is shredded unbleached paper. While they try to eliminate all unnecessary plastic, you do get plastic stickers which you can’t opt out of. They’re usually cool stickers however for me they’re just waste if each order you receive them. After trying several of their products most don’t work for me apart from the Healthy Protection Facial Sunscreen which is my go to face sunscreen, one mask and their toothbrushes. I can’t put my finger on why they don’t work, they just don’t. I feel I can get better products for around the same price that work. Out of all the masks there was only one I like and repeat buy.
One thing aside from the glass jars I do like about the masks are that they’re quick working for busy people masks. Five minutes is the recommended time before removing with warm water. That’s about the time to apply, quick body brush, comb hair before showering to make sure it’s tangle free post shampoo, turn the shower on, wait for hot water to come through before jumping in.
As for the ingredient list, refer online. I have good eyesight close up, but man, the print’s so small on some they’re crazy to read as the colour bounces with the background colour like on the Energy C mask.
This antioxidant facial mask provides an extraordinary luminosity to the skin, thanks to the combination of 9 natural clinical active ingredients that target dull skin, wrinkles and blemish, while also providing firmness. Among its ingredients, we find the kakadu plum, an active that counts on the highest concentration of natural vitamin C, and an innovative natural technology of chicory oligosaccharides that provides a natural lifting effect. Thanks to its natural amino acid content, the Energy C also repairs and fills wrinkles by 17%, and protects the skin from harmful blue light with the B-carotene active. This magnificent fruit cocktail is perfect to achieve smooth, luminous and revitalised skin up to 20 applications. Forget dull skin! The Energy C Facial Mask is the energy injection your skin needs.
I now have issues with ‘glow’ masks. They do give a glow. Nearly all I’ve tired afterwards my skin is on full shine. Shine. I have oily skin so now I avoid them. They also again nearly all make my skin feel weird. It’s hard to explain like my skin is dehydrated but not and agitated on attention and full on oil slick. This one was no exception. I think it’s the kakadu plum as most contain it. Wrinkles lifted? My skin did look smoother but I couldn’t deal with the shine. If you have dry skin and want a glow for the day try it. If you have oily skin, skip it. Let your oil work for you. I did like the texture: custard like gel. It’s smell is nice too. Sadly it didn’t work for me. Would I repurchase? No.
Welcome to another Beauty Finds! This edition is soap. More specifically body soap. One of the first things I switched out when I started wanting to use less plastic was shower gel. Its alternative being soap. An old fashioned bar of soap which I think now is having a huge comeback as people leave plastic bottles behind.
And not just any soap! Firstly it has to be cruelty free, plastic packaging free, palm oil and it’s derivatives free and petrochemical and it’s derivatives free along with being free of a host of other nasty ingredients. With most of my beauty products I try to think about the environment after products have been washed or flushed down the drain. Just like all my other beauty products, in addition to being cruelty free, palm oil and petrochemical and their derives free (I might allow 4th or 5th generation petrochemical) I do my best to avoid parabens, phthalates, SLS, PEGS and a load of other nasty ingredients. I choose to avoid palm oil as I prefer orangutans. Its alias like petroleum can be tricky. I try if possible not to go coconut oil as it’s crops can be just as bad as palm oil crops. If I can I prefer to use sustainable palm and coconut oil. With skincare it’s bit more tricky so I go for cruelty free and try to avoid some nasty ingredients. My skin type is oily, sensitive, acne and now those wrinkles! Body skin type dry.
I was sad when I finished using this as I know I won’t be able to get it again. It was a USA find earlier this year on holiday from Wholefoods. Blackberry scented but not if you get me. It’s a little more musky than I go for but I liked it nonetheless. It didn’t irritate my skin, it left my skin hydrated, I liked it’s creamy texture and it didn’t leave scum marks in the shower that are a bugger to clean off. It’s scent so strong that between uses it lingered in and around the bathroom. Even the packaging I saved to write it up still has its scent. As for the packaging, I like it for what it is. Undyed cardboard to fit its rustic feel. The only cons I have are: the colourings as it what they are, is it vegetable colouring, is it natural, is it environmental friendly and the fragrance oil: what is it in case of reactions. Would I repurchase? Yes if I could get it in Europe.
The soap swirls are cool! Mona Lisa hereDog or cat here. The surprises inside the packaging added to the soap! The horse reminds me of ballon horses!
Another USA find I was sad to finish. I found this in a weird organic, super health food shop in Oahu. An expensive health food shop. But it is on an island with prices higher due to import. There’s nothing fancy about Sappo Hill’s packaging. Only plastic the price sticker. It comes in a display box which you select from. It was also the cheapest cruelty free soap I found in the USA and for now in Europe that’s plastic packaging free.
