Monday, January 30, 2017

Green beauty and more wishlist - Winter 2017





Wishlist Winter 2017

Wishlist Winter 2017 by green-life-in-dublin

Hi Lovelies!


Welcome, welcome πŸ’•πŸ’•πŸ’•

Here's my second post for the day, and this time it is my wish list, I think it is important to let out our wishes into the open and then see what happens. Life has a funny way of fulfilling your dreams, you know :) So let's see what my heart desires at this point of my life, shall we?

πŸ’•1. Josh Rosebrook products, The Nutrient Day Cream,  The Hydration Accelerator, The Active Enzyme Exfoliator and Cacao Antioxidant mask are the ones that call my name the most.

πŸ’•2. Lotus Wei Healing Sleep. I have my eye on this anointing oil on Content Beauty, sadly they don't have the matching mist, so I would have to get this. As I wrote in my Lotus Wei review I found myself being way too sensitive to handle anointing oils, and prefer mists instead as they have much lower concentration of essential oils.

πŸ’•3. Living Libations - I want to try their dental line, gum drops, frankincense toothpaste and any other product in the dental line. Plus their Poetic Pits is calling my name too. I keep hearing only the good things about their skincare line, especially The Best Skin Ever oils, but those will have to wait, as I have way too many face products.

πŸ’•4. Juice Beauty concealer. And foundation. And lip products. And skincare. Do I need to go on?

πŸ’•5. Bella Aura products. Everything sounds amaaazing!

πŸ’•6. Tree of Life painting.

πŸ’•7. Antonym Blush in Peach. And eye liner.

πŸ’•8. House plants. Would you believe that the only two plants I can grow are cactuses and aloe? I managed to kill everything else, and that's my mom being a florist and a landscaper?! Funny thing is I used to know a lot about plants, as I was helping to let them grow when I was still living at home, but as soon as I moved away I managed to forget everything. Go figure.

πŸ’•9. Buddha statue. You can never have enough Buddha statues in your house, right? And they look so good next to plants πŸ˜„


So that is it for now.
Lots of Love, 
Renata.
  

DiY Umami Dip (Or Marinade) GF DF

Hi Lovelies,


Welcome back! And if you are new here, welcome πŸ’•πŸ’•πŸ’•








As I published my intended post already (see my last post, "My Skincare Routine") so I have to come up with something quick, and quick and tasty it is! 
Haha, I probably should explain myself a bit more here, not losing my focus on green beauty, I plan to expand my blog a bit more and include some other type of posts, like quick and easy recipes (GF DF and mostly healthy too), outfits of the day, book reviews and stuff like that, what do you guys think of it? Would you like to see posts like that?

So today's post is a easy peasy recipe of something that definitely can be used as a dip or marinate or stir fry sauce, it will take you oooh, like 30 seconds to make and it definitely has that umami feel to it, it is bursting with goodness and flavour! I originaly came up with it by accident when making a dip for spring rolls, and started using it so much more ever since, I marinated salmon with it, I ate with rice and stir fried veggies, I used it in pad thai, I used it a thousand times as a dipping sauce, you get the idea. I do not claim it to be my original idea, as it contains only three ingredients, so I think someone is bound to be offended, but I swear I didn't copy it from anywhere, I just threw some ingredients when freestyling in the kitchen, something I do a lot, and the result was so good I thought it is worth sharing with you guys!

So without further ado, here's what you will need:

πŸ’• half a cup of tamari sauce (or soy sauce if you don't avoid gluten)
πŸ’• 0.25 cup of sweet chilli sauce
πŸ’•some chopped scallions (spring onions)
πŸ’• optional - water to thin it out if you are using it as a dip

It couldn't be easier - just mix all the ingredients in the bowl and ta-dah, you just made your own umami! This makes quite a lot, so store the leftovers in the fridge and use within a week.

And fiy - I don't plan to turn into a food blogger at all, in fact I think I would suck at it, as the dishes would have to be prepared at noon to get the best possible light for shooting them, and my east facing apartament is dark at the best of times. Secondly, when I prepare food, all I want is to eat it RIGHT NOW instead of style and take photos of it πŸ˜‹ My family would attest I like my food pipping hot and straight when it's done, so styling and photographing it for hours in the end would be a torture for me. Respect for all the food bloggers out there.

P.S Want to know how to make super loaded sauerkraut, aka home made probiotics? Click here.


That is all for now,
Lots of Love,
Renata.

Saturday, January 28, 2017

My Everyday Skincare Routine



Hello Lovelies,


Welcome back! And if you are new here, welcomeπŸ’•πŸ’•πŸ’•

My skincare, Earthwise Beauty, Neal's Yard Remedies, Mahalo


Today I will share my skincare routine with you - I thought you will never ask? Well, actually a lot of you have asked, so there you go, this post is for you! As you know me, I only use truly natural cruelty free products, so that's what you will see here.

As my skincare is really simple, I will share both AM and PM routines with you. You will find minimal products here, no acid peels or anything like that, my uber sensitive and dermatitis prone skin is at its happiest when I leave it alone. Last year was the year I discovered a lot of great clean beauty goodies, because post battling dermatitis my skin is very finicky, and started disliking products I used to use for years, like rosehip oil. So with a lot of trial and error I am finally down to my happy place where I don't want to change a thing because it works so well for me!
Being a green beauty blogger I test and I am sent new things all the time, but I always find myself going back to these products, especially if my skin goes haywire from doing so!  So yes, I can safely say these are my Holy Grail Products for the moment.


AM Routine 

First thing I do is to spread my face with two pumps of Nap In Meadow by Earthwise Beauty - this wonderful anti-inflammatory beauty stole my heart and I will want to have this forever, something does not happen often! It is aloe based serum that has an amazing ingredients and one of my favourite ingredients of late in a form of blue tansy (another being turmeric, found in Mahalo oil and balm) - amazing for inflammation, I can attest to that! My face is brighter and with less blemishes, more even in colour and more happy overall. I took a break from it for a few days and I immediately saw the difference in my skin, it went red in some places, dry patches reared their ugly heads again, and no one wants that, right? It is not enough moisture on its own right now, so I layer it with other products, but it might be enough in the summer, we will see.


Next is the facial moisturiser that I am loving for more than six months (but I am yet to review, whoops!) is Neal’s Yard Remedies Palmarosa one. The funny thing is it is aimed at oily skin, but it suits my dry skin perfectly. I was using it on its own during summer, and when autumn rolled around, I added Mahalo Vitality Elixir oil and voila, it worked like magic to transition my skin into winter!
Speaking of Mahalo (see review here) Vitality Elixir, it is exactly what goes on my face next, often times mixed in with the facial cream, one pump of each and I am set for the day. This oil is very quick to sink into the skin and does not leave you with residue whatsoever. So don't be afraid to try it if you are oil-phobic, it is just divine and will leave your face protected from the elements! And do I need to tell you that ingredients are top notch natural and the best quality you can get??


My eye oil of now is Earthwise Beauty Passion oil, highly anticipated eye oil release from Ava Khan, green beauty community had been asking her to create an eye product  and she took her time until she was sure it is perfection! It is a mix of beautiful only the best quality oils and butters that is supposed to nourish, moisture and protect the delicate under eye area. And protecting it does indeed, it forms a protective layer on your skin. As it is an oil, it takes about ten minutes or so to sink in. It works well for me because I use powder concealer these days (or should I say mineral foundation as a concealer, mine is surely pigmented enough to do that. It is by Pure Anada and you can see the review here. My opinion on it hasn't changed, still love it so much). But I have to say it might not work for you if you use cream concealers, once I decided to bust out my trusty fave Hynt Beauty concealer (review here) and the two didn't gel well together, I had mascara smudges all over. So if you are gel/cream concealer lover, you might want to use this eye oil at night? Oh, and the bottle you see here is not the original bottle, the oil comes in a tiny vial with a dropper. I was forever afraid of knocking it over and/or accidentally touching the dropper with my finger and contaminating the product, so as you can see in the photo below, I transferred it into more substantial glass bottle with stainless steel roller ball, which is naturally antibacterial, so no more worries for me.


So that is my morning routine. As you can see, I am committing two cardinal sins of not washing my face and not using the sunscreen! I shall face the Purgatory for it, but it my choice and I am standing for it. With so very few rays of sunshine we get here in Ireland, I may as well catch them all, given half the chance. But I do use (natural) sunscreen in summer, mind you.


Now let's go grab a cup of tea or coffee, and let's dive into the evening routine, shall we?

PM Routine

So, in the evening I do wash my face with Earthwise Beauty Marshmallow Suds, this is the second cleanser in my life that does not dry out my skin. Yay or what? You have to shake it really well, because it comes layered in two layers, the oil part and the “marshmallow suds” part and you have to mix those two prior to using. Ingredients are really good, but even if I didn't perused them, I would still be ok with using it, as I trust anything that Ava creates is top notch natural and the best quality. It leaves a layer of oil on my skin after washing, but I am ok with it, as it is a layer of moisture, and I can skip the moisturiser if I want to.


Next is the same combo as in the morning, the NYR moisturiser plus Mahalo Vitality elixir and the eye oil by Earthwise Beauty.


I have to say that my skin is extremely happy with this routine, I don't get much redness or dry patches which is fabulous in winter, isn't it? On the rare occasions where I do get dry patches, it is remedied by balms, there’s two favourite ones in my rotation, and those are the Mahalo Rare Indigo Balm and the ISun Soothing Balm, and sometimes a sheet mask by 100%Pure, their Caffeine one (you might want to see review here where not only I review them, but I also share my frugalista tip on how to make them last three times longer, and no, it is not wearing the same mask over and over again!) - I said it before and I say it again, this mask will make your skin red carpet ready, it will take care of a multiple things at once, your skin will be glowing and happy, you might want to skip make up the next day. I have tried their other two sheet masks, but this is my firm fave. I also use Mahalo Bean mask and iSun Algae Mask, on a weekly basis too (I own some more masks, plus I DIY them, but that will be another posts for another time) but I don't know how about you, but I need to be home alone if I want to mask, I am poked fun at if I wear a mask in front of my family. The sheet masks from 100%Pure scare my children and I am forever told to take them off, which is why I nicknamed them Hannibal masks. So yeah, as "me” time doesn't happen often in the Casa Green Life In Dublin, I am lucky if I can squeeze it once or twice a week.
I was really late to the masking party, like really late, it was only last year I started masking regularly. Sure I did it before too, but it was more like once in a moon, or three times a year if I am honest. Doing them on a regular basis made my skin so much better, and I really like that. I pledge keep my masking game strong in the future!


I should also say that I spray my face with Jane Iredale mists throughout the day.

So that is it for now, that is all the skincare routine I do. let me know the products you can't live without?
Lots of Love,
Renata.

P.s. Earthwise Beauty and ISUN Skincare reviews are to come really soon, keep your eyes peeled.

Wednesday, January 25, 2017

The Drink That Keeps Me Well In Winters

Hello Lovelies,


Welcome back! and if you are new here, welcome πŸ’•πŸ’•πŸ’•





Today I wanted to share another well kept secret of mine, the secret I've been shouting about from the rooftops for the last few months, haha! I featured it in my Autumn Favourites post (you can see it here) and if you have been following me for any length of time on Instagram, you know I've been banging on about  about it all over the place too. It gathered so much interest that I thought it might as well do a special blog post about :) So here we go, let's see what is the fuss all about it?

The special drink is none other than rooibos tea with a few extra ingredients, and I swear to God that it is exactly the thing that saved me from sickness time and time again, because anyone who knows me knows very well that it is common for me to get flu eight times in the winter alone. (little correction here, I used to get sick a lot prior to my dermatitis diagnosis, because if you have auto immune disease, you basically have no immune system). If I do get sick, I take OreganolP73 which is another of my not-so-well kept secret, (read more here and here if you are interested) but this is not what this post is all about, so shall we go back to the drink?



Here's what you will need:

πŸ’• Rooibos tea
πŸ’• Lemon
πŸ’• Ginger
πŸ’• Honey or other sweetener of your choice

And it couldn't be easier - just pour boiling water over a packet of tea and a few sliced of ginger and let it steep for a couple of minutes. After the tea has brewed to your liking, discard the tea bag and add lemon and honey to sweeten it up. My vegan friends can use maple syrup, sugar or any other sweetener of your choice. But since I am not a vegan, I choose honey, because it adds to the healing properties of the drink. And of course I shouldn't  tell you to not add honey to the boiling water, everybody knows that right? We want those precious enzymes, and they are lost or killed in boiling water. This drink does not contain caffeine so it is perfect for everybody, even children if they will have it (mine don't like ginger in it), for those of us sensitive to caffeine (hello, me!) and just like matcha, this drink is both stimulating and calming at the same time! I know, odd, but it is true. If I drink it in the mornings, I add a few extra slices of ginger to give me that kick that I need, and I have to say I love to have it in the evenings to help me wind down after stressful day!

Let's see why this drink is so good for you?



Rooibos tea benefits for the health:
There are plenty of them! And since I learned that rooibos is abundant in minerals including zinc, that is when I knew I should give it another shot. I have tried it years ago and remember disliking it with passion, but now that I think of it, I probably oversteeped it and didn't flavour it in any kind of way. Because let's face it, us hoomans tend to go for tasty things first, and think of benefits second, okay? And it is acquired taste, let me tell you that! If you are die hard black tea fan you might not like it at first, but give it a chance, and I promise you you will love it. The trick is to not oversteep it, because it becomes bitter easily then. And this tea is strong! Anyway, Renata, stop rambling and get back to the benefits!

Health benefits of red rooibos tea include it's use as a cure for nagging headaches, insomnia, asthma, eczema, bone weakness, hypertension, allergies, premature aging, hypertension,   Drinking rooibos tea can further ease severe stomach cramps, as well as bring relief to asthma and other related conditions. It also boosts the immune system, and it is music to my ears! Rooibos contains polyphenols that have anti-inflammatory, antiviral and antimutagenic qualities. Aspalathin and nothofagin are two other vital antioxidants that rooibos tea contains, making this a great beverage to boost your immune system and protect your body against all types of diseases and conditions, like diabetes. It is also rich in calcium thus making it good for bone health. Furthemore, it contains Quercetin, which is music to my ears once more, as it means it is brilliant for treating allergies, dermatitis, psoriasis and other similar diseases!
That is just a very short description of it's benefits, I highly suggest you do your own research. Wikipedia is a great way to start, but if you are not the one to read pages upon pages of content, try Pinterest for great infographics (like this one and this one. I am not publishing them here on my blog as I am not the one creating them, therefore I don't want to run into trouble).

Ginger benefits:
In short, it has strong anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-cancerous properties to it,  it helps treat morning sickness and other forms of nausea, it reduces muscle pain, lowers blood sugar, helps treat chronic indigestion, reduces cramps (including menstrual cramps) and studies show it can improve brain function too.One thing I definitely can confirm from my own experience, it helps fight infections, and gives you that natural boost when you need it. If you are only in the beginning stages of cold, take epsom or magnesium salt bath, drink this tea and go to bed, tomorrow you will wake up like a new hooman with no sight of any illness! Great or what?

Lemon benefits:
I am sure all of us know that lemons aid in digestion and detoxification, bumps up your natural VitC levels, rejuvenates your whole body including the skin, boosts energy and mood, plus helps flush out toxins out of your body, balances your PH levels (which can only be a good thing in my books). What's more, the potassium in lemons helps nourish the brain and nerve cells, and aids in detoxification by strengthening the liver. And did you know that lemon juice helps replenish body salts after a workout? Me neither, until I went in deep for my research :)

Honey benefits:
Honey has been used for thousands of years, and I am sure you don't need me to list it's benefits, I imagine everybody knows them already? I grew up with it, my mom and granny always used to stock up for winters and honey was treated like gold, administered by spoonfuls like medicine and was kept well out of our reach so we kids wouldn't eat it all in one go. I really believe in it's healing properties. I am sure most of you are/were the same, with the exception of vegans. (if you are a vegan reading this, more power to you, and I am sorry but I don't know any plant alternative to honey that would have even remotely close benefits to honey. Choose your favourite source of sugar, maybe maple syrup?) May I emphasise the need of not putting it into hot water as not to kill it's precious healing abilities?
Honey is a powerful cold and cough "medicine" making it ideal for our drink here. It is antifungal, antibacterial and antimicrobial, it helps prevent heart disease and cancer, as well as gastro interstinal disorders. It balances five elements in the body, reduces your allergy symptoms and regulates blood sugar, as well as having many benefits to it. All that using it internally, but let's not forget it can be used externally too, to treat wounds, soothe itchy scalp, and more. And if you choose manuka honey, well, the benefits shoot trhough the roof then, it is a king of all honeys. Again, I urge you to do your own research and choose good quality raw honey to get the most benefits out of it. That bear shaped plastic jar of liquid honey? Put it back on the shelf please! Not only it has been heat treated (successfully destroying it's health benefits) but is is mixed from various honeys and sugars too, and it is not what you want.




So with all that benefits combined, is it any wonder that this tea is a superhero in winters? It has saved me from getting a cold or flu time and time again! I feel very strongly about it and I think everyone needs to hear about it :) I can't recommend it highly enough! 
(but please apply common sense and don't overdo it, and if you are on any kind of medication, see my disclaimer below).


Have you tried rooibos? How about ginger and lemon tea? What is your go to tea if you are sick?
Please share with me, I would love to know :)


That is all for now,
Lots of Love,
Renata.




Content for more research: Wikipedia, Dr. Axe, Authority Nutrition, Organic Facts, Dr Oz and Dr Mercola.

AND a disclaimer (because I have to)
This information here is not designed to treat diseases and if you are on any kind of medication, consult your doctor before making any changes in your diet or daily habits. I can not be held responsible for what you will do with this information, and I am only sharing what works for me.

Did I do good with this disclaimer?

Monday, January 23, 2017

Project Pan 2017 - Natural Beauty Edition

Hi Lovelies,




Welcome back! And if you are new here, welcome πŸ’•πŸ’•πŸ’•


Project Pan - Green and Natural Beauty (100%Pure, NYR, Lotus Wei, Jane Iredale, Dublin Herbalists and more



This is my first Project Pan post and I don't know all the rules, but I think I should pick ten items and try to use them up in a given time frame, right? I will bend the rules a bit and won't give myself a time frame, I will be happy to use up SOME of it, but in order for that to happen I need to line these products up in a little cute tray and place them Right Under My Nose, as that is the only way I will be able to do it. If the products stay in a different places of my house as they are now, I know I can easily forget them for months at the end! Hence the need for a Project Pan in the first place. My newest products are usually my fave products to play with, hence I can forget what else I have. And when it comes to skincare I am finally at a stage where I am perfectly happy with it and don't want to change a thing about it, so I kinda have to force to use some of the new skincare that is coming in. Bloggers life, much? Oh, and not all of these products will be repurchased for various reasons, but I will touch on that talking about individual products.


So, what is in my Project Pan?

Lotus Wei Inner Peace serum

(see review here) I am including it into Project Pan in a bid to make myself to use it more, aka on the regular basis, as I always forget... Lotus Wei almost made it into my 2016 Best Products but the only reason I didn't include them as I was not consistent with them enough. I should try harder.


100%Pure skincare minis
These came with their recent GWP (gift with purchase) and as I already know from experience that this brand products expire in 6 or so months, I need to get to work on them! So far I broke into one of them, the aqua boost, nothing amazing if I am honest with you. One of them is going into the green beauty swap.


100%Pure Coconut shampoo 
Acquired in the same order, I am working on it girl! I think I will review it as I really like it, but I can't give you my firm opinion on it yet, it *might* be giving me itchy scalp, but I can't claim on it for sure yet, as it is only two times I used it, the first time I used ot on its own and it did definitely made my scalp itchy (and so did my husband’s) but the second time round I used oil treatment prior a wash, and I am fine. I need to play with it more. Let me get back to you on this.


Earthwise Beauty products
Again, these products have a short shelf life, so mama needs to hurry up and enjoy the goodness while it lasts! Definitely reviewing them soon. In one word - amazing! (but not all of the products suit me).


Galore of samples
Dublin Herbalists (I am working on that review guys!) and many other samples are patiently waiting up for my attention! Waaay too many to mention, I could be sitting all day typing them names here, so I won't bother, as they will appear in my Empties posts anyways. I used to be good at trying them on, but I sort of let them pile up as you can see! I swear, they are making babies (aka new samples) when I am not looking!


Kjaer Weis foundation
I got it in the wrong colour so I couldn't use it in summer and fall when I had a slight tan. You know, the joys of internet matching yourself! I tried a sample of Paper Thin and seeing it was just a tad too dark, I went and ordered a shade down, and I gasped when it arrived, ghost town anyone? See the shade difference below. This is definitely one area when beauty products need to have a love child, it is me alone thinking that the difference in shades is too stark? One is way too pale and yellow based, the next shade up is waay darker and much more pink based. Kjaer Weis, if you are listening,please release a shade in between of Silken and Paper Thin, I can't be alone in-between-shades? And I feel it is too extravagant to purchase two shades of this to blend to your perfect colour. And too much work for most of people too. Because of all these reasons listed I tend not to reach for it, but I need to finish it up as it is borderline expiring.





W3ll People stick foundation
None of the problems mentioned above, this matches me perfectly, and it is not about to expire, but I need to use it up and probably won't buy it again for two reasons - it smells like crayon (mine did smell so from the start and the smell is getting stronger even though the label says it is still good for another year). Frankly it makes me gag and it also does not last on me, four hours is the maximum I can get out of it, and I need my product to do more than that. Yes, I can carry it with me and touch up, but I don't want to be worrying if my foundation is fading and settling into pores. And yes it does settle into pores. Sadly this product and I will part ways once I am done. It went really fast once I was using it, and I then I left it for a couple of months as I was testing new products.


100%Pure Organic Matcha moisturiser
I just had to get it once 100%Pure came out with their organic line. Sadly this does nothing for me apart irritating my skin, so now I use it as a (expensive) hands and body moisturiser. It irritates my hands also, but then again I am the most sensitive person, so if you are like me, stay away from this product. Everyone else, be my guest.


So I think that is it, that is all the products I want/need to use up quickly. That not might be entirely true, as all my 100%Pure products might be borderline expired or expiring soon, but I am keeping my head in the sand about this and don't want to accept the fact. Wish someone would tell me about their 6 months expiration date BEFORE I dropped a small fortune on the products. Throwing away almost untouched palette only after mere six months? Unthinkable to me and that really boggles my mind!

Another product I was going to add was Neal’s Yard Remedies Wild Rose balm (see review here), but it expired on me, so the problem sorted itself out. Not repurchasing either due to finding more amazing balms and the high cost of it. It also has "use within three moths after opening2 label, which also does not sit well with me, and I want to know why. Balms are waterless creatures thus they need little to no preservatives and can last for a year without a problem. Most balms have 12 months expiration date, so I want to know NYR reasons for it, but my inquiry email remains unanswered for months even fast forwarding it twice.





So that is my Project Pan post, there you go. I didn't intend it to be bitchy and I hope it does not come across like so! I am the least bitchy person ever, and anyone who knows me would attest to that. The thing is, in my blog I want to be as throughout about products as possible listing all I can think of about the products, and my only intention is to be clear and honest. I am not going to bash any products or brands here, nor I am telling you not to buy products just because I didn't like them. Quite the opposite, I want to be as clear as possible so you could make informed desisions yourselves. We are all different and what does not work for me might be your perfect product, you just never know.


What is in your Project Pan? Please share with me, I really want to know :)



Lots of Love,

Renata.

P.s. I give myself six months to use up the products. I will do update in three months.

Sunday, January 22, 2017

Greenfrog Botanic Review

 Hello Lovelies,


Welcome back! And if you are new here, welcome πŸ’•πŸ’•πŸ’•



This is long overdue review of Green Frog Organics body and hand washes that I received back in November last year, but then the sickness, holidays and life in general got in a way, so I am posting this now, as I am nearing the end of these products. Better later than never, right? And in this case it is better as it means I used these products for longer so I can give you rounded up review rather than first impressions review.

So shall we get to business?

Green frog organics started many monsoons ago when two founders met in Thailand and discovered magical soapberries in a busy Delhi bazaar. And the rest is history as they say :) To see more of their story and ethos of the brand go to their website.

Their products are made in the UK, and they are very proud to be vegan, palm oil free, sustainable and cruelty free (approved by Leaping Bunny). Those are all the things that we like, don't we? All of the botanical soap products are ecological, environmentally friendly and made from 100% biodegradable plants and minerals. Now, does that not sound great? All that and they are super affordable, body washes retail for 8.80£ and hand washes for 7.80£ for 300ml.

Soapberries ( Sapindus Mukorossi) were and still are used in Himalayas for washing and bathing for centuries, in the traditional Ayurvedic system of medicine to treat dry and sensitive skin, eczema and psoriasis. From this, the brand makes the base of a botanical soap, known for its skin healing properties, and then it is mixed with generous amounts of Mexican Aloe Vera (certified organic). Last step is adding antibacterial and mood balancing essential oils.

And now let's look at the individual products?


Greenfrog Botanic bodywash


 Rose & Neroli Botanical Body Wash

This does not suds up at all, but works well nonetheless, it will get your body clean and leave no residue on your skin. It does not dry out your skin either and I really like that about this product, as some of natural body washes can be drying, for example everyone’s beloved DrBronner's is notorious for it and I can't use it on its own. This is not like that at all, so I think everybody can use it, including the most sensitive skin types like moi. The only thing I didn't like about it how fast it ran out, meaning I would need to purchase it frequently. But most of are well used to buying your body washes frequently, so it is not a problem. Will I repurchase it? Not in the near future as I have too many products waiting to be tried out, but we will see. #Bloggerslife

Ingredients:
Aqua (water), Potassium Cocoate, Lauryl Betaine, Coco-Glucoside, Sapindus Mukorossi Fruit Extract*, Glycerin, Xanthan Gum, Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf Powder*, Levulinic Acid, Potassium Sorbate, Parfum (Fragrance) : Citrus Noblis peel oil**, Citrus Aurantium leaf oil**, Lavandula Angustifolia herb**, Pelargonium Graveolens leaf oil Geraniol**, *Certified Organic Ingredient **Naturally occurring within essential oils. 0% Paraben 0% SLS, ALS 0% Phenoxyethanol.


Neroli & Lime and Geranium & Peppermint Handwashes

I have got two of them, but I am bundling them together as they are essentially the same thing only in different scents.
Ingredients:

Aqua (water), Potassium Cocoate, Lauryl Betaine, Coco-Glucoside, Sapindus Mukorossi Fruit Extract*, Glycerin, Xanthan Gum, Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf Powder*, Parfum (Fragrance) : Pelargonium Graveolens (Geranium) Oil, Mentha Arvensis (Peppermint) oil, Levulinic Acid, Potassium Sorbate, Citric Acid. Citronellol**, Geraniol**, Hexyl Cinnamal**, Linalool**. *Certified Organic Ingredient **Naturally occurring within essential oils. 0% Paraben 0% SLS, ALS 0% Phenoxyethanol

 Well, there’s not much to say here apart from that they do their job well. Again, like with shower gels, they so not suds up but they work well. Only after using Geranium & Peppermint one I found myself scratching my hands, meaning they were irritated a little, but it didn't give me a rash or anything, and it was quickly remedied by a rich hand cream. I think it was due to the peppermint essential oil, as I have used products with geranium loads of times with zero problems. Another slight thing I found I wasn't a fan of was the slimy texture of the products, but if that does not bother you, it might be your perfect products!

I am really happy that companies like this exist as we need them! For the first time in my life I am feeling spoiled when it comes to the green beauty, we have more choice now more than ever! Whereas it used to be so hard even a few years ago. Green beauty scene is exploding and I am so grateful to be a part of it. I see no reasons not to switch to natural products!

You can get them from their website, Wholefoods and selected stores or from LoveLula.com (the latter website ships for free, which I love. Fast shipping and top notch customer service too!)


Have you tried their products? Which one is your favorite? How about their skincare?


Lots of Love,
Renata.
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 P.s. The products were sent to me for review purposes, but opinions are mine and mine alone. Not paid, not sponsored, not on brand payroll in any kind of way. The link is afiiliate. Thanks for reading the small print.