The Green Familia » organic beauty products

Voya’s Organic Face Serum

Brenda — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 11:00:04 +0000

Folklore surrounds them, the Greeks worshipped them, and movies are rife – it is irrevocable, we all need a hero! A little pick-me-up to protect and defend all year round.

Thankfully a modern day saving grace now comes in a bottle in the shape of VOYA’s organic face serum, ‘My Little Hero’. This luxury anti-ageing serum has seaweed extracts to nourish, hydrate and smooth, boosting the skin’s natural defences and leaving us safe from ageing nasties!

And with fans including Jennifer Hudson, we reckon this little hero is a must have product for every woman this winter.

Just a few drops massaged into your face and neck each night will keep your skin healthy and radiant throughout the autumn & winter. The intense, easily absorbed blend of fragrant organic oils, anti -oxidant minerals and seaweed extract has a powerful detoxifying and hydrating effect on the skin. The seaweed has excellent anti-aging properties and greatly improves the suppleness and elasticity of the skin, soothing away fine lines. Nobody should go to bed without their little hero!

VOYA is a voyage that began in 1912 when the first seaweed baths opened on the wild Atlantic coast of Strandhill, Sligo, Ireland. The tradition is continued today by the Walton family who own VOYA and run a seaweed spa visited by thousands of people every year. They have created the world’s first range of certified organic seaweed based products by blending wild hand – harvested seaweed with the finest organic ingredients from around the world.

The range of anti-aging facial skin care products also includes a cleanser, face wash, exfoliatior, toner, mask, moisturiser and eye cream. All products have been approved by the Soil Association or the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

MY LITTLE HERO anti – ageing face serum, 30 ml, RRP £50. Is available to buy from www.voya.ie and leading spas and salons nationwide.

TGF Rated Review: Girls with Attitude

erica — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 11:00:04 +0000

I was lucky enough to be sent the Girls with Attitude Rock on Beauty Collection to review recently. The collection is made with 99.5% organic ingredients so there are no hidden nasties inside.

What is it? Three different balms: Calm Balm Lavender, Beauty Balm Rose and Fresh Feet Peppermint. They all come in individual handbag sized pots.

Who’s testing it? Me - keeping this one to myself.

In use – Massaging the Calm Balm into my temples, after a busy day with my two year old, did bring an instant feeling of peace. The balm smells lovely and because of its size it could easily be carried around and fished out when the stresses of the day get to you.

Rose is one of my favourite fragrances so I love the scent of the Beauty Balm. It’s an effective moisturiser and skin softener. The suggestion is that you use it on lips, hands, elbows and knees. It works well on all these areas, but it won’t last very long if you use if it as an all purpose moisturiser.

Fresh Feet does what it says on the tin. My feet felt soothed and pampered plus they smelt fresh and minty. A real treat for the feet.

Any negatives? The balms come in handy handbag sized containers so they are very portable, but obviously they don’t contain a lot of the products. This is fine with the Calm Balm as you only need a little at a time and the tin should last well for even the most stressed. I wasn’t sure that such small containers were as suitable for the Beauty Balm and Fresh Feet. I used Fresh Feet three times and the tin was half empty. If you use the Beauty Balm as a lip salve, the container size is fine, but if you use it for larger areas it will quickly run out. However, if you’re packing light for a short break away or a festival weekend, these balms could really be what you need to take you through.

Price and Availability? Price from £9.75 and available from ASOS or Amazon.

Overall I loved the products, but wasn’t sure that the sizes were appropriate in all cases. However, the packaging has a great slightly funky look and would look good in any handbag.

Rating 4/5

Trilogy Rose Hand Cream

erica — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 12:00:50 +0000

Erica writes …

Since having my baby boy my hands have been very dry and sometimes rough, so I have become much keener on buying good handcream than before. Trilogy Rose hand cream targets a range of hand problems including my dry rough hands, but also ageing skin, damaged cuticles and brittle nails.

It contains a range of botanical including marshmallow and calendula to soften and smooth dry skin plus horsetail to help deal with problem nails. It contains a base of evening primose, rosehip, jojoba and almond oils with rose oil to provide the scent.

Available from Love Lula for £14.65.

Competition: Win a chocolate goodie pack worth £20 from Essential Trading Co-operative

Brenda — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 11:00:06 +0000

Brenda writes…

Mmm, my mouth is watering at the thought of next week…From October 13th – 19th is National chocolate Week. So all you chocoholics, enjoy! To celebrate this great week, Essential Trading Co-operative have kindly donated a chocolate goodie pack for the readers of The Green Familia. See below for details of this great competition.

In this goodie pack you will receive: milk chocolate banana coins, milk chocolate cashew nuts, dark chocolate brazil nuts, dark chocolate dates, dark chocolate spread, duo swirl chocolate spread, hazelnut chocolate spread and organic raw cacao nuts.

I managed to catch up with Eli Sarre, who is the Marketing Director from Essential Trading Co-operative which was started way back in 1971 and talk about the company and it´s history. To find out more about them, check out our earlier post on Essential Trading Co-operative.

To win this yummy prize all you have to do is tell me, in what year did the business start?

Email your name, your address and the answer to competitions [at] thegreenfamilia.co.uk by 5pm, Monday 13th October 2008, please do not forget to add the @ sign.1. Prize draw is open to UK & Ireland residents only.

2. Competition prize is one Essential-Trading Co-operative chocolate goodie pack worth approximately £20 and you will be notified by email if you have won and can expect to receive your prize up to 7 days after that.

3. By entering this competition you agree to be added to the The Green Familia Weekly Update mailing list. Your details will not be shared with others. If you’d prefer not to be added to the list, please add ‘no mailout’ in the subject of the email.

4. The winner will be drawn at random on the 13th October 2008. Please ensure that all of the requested information is included in your email otherwise it may be exempt from the draw.

5. No cash alternative will be offered for any prize.

Full terms and conditions apply.

Greenie Thought for the Day: Organic Moisturiser

Kat — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 08:00:56 +0000

Kat writes…

In keeping with the organic theme in honour of Organic Fortnight my latest offering is the best yet. My Aunt and her school chum have been whipping up gorgeous creams in their kitchens. Using organic Shea Butter from fairtrade co-operative in Ghana and spring water from Brigstock they have created the best creams I have ever tried. Now, she may be family but I wouldn’t lie to you – best ever!

They have a wide range of moisturising yumminess. Eye cream, night cream, day cream, tinted moisturiser, anti-wrinkle, intensive hand cream, beautiful baby, foot cream and active man shaving cream. To name but a few. All are luxurious and feel fabulous on your skin. My husband loves the Active Man Hand Cream which has cured his dry hands and a friend of mine has seen exceptional results on her baby’s eczema from the Beautiful Baby Moisturiser. The secret is the Shea Butter, which they keep as pure as possible so it is packed full of skin loving vitamins.

Prices start at £4.50 and you can view the whole range at Shea Alchemy.

Mummy & Daddy Beauty Essentials

Brenda — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 15:00:58 +0000

Brenda writes…

PUKKA ROSEWATER

This is just perfect for those hot summer days (well we can dream). This delicious organic rosewater has many uses. It is suitable for all skin types and it’s recommended for the following: lifts the spirits, reducing inflammation, reducing perspiration, to freshen and tone the skin and also it can be added to food or to make a refreshing drink. To use as a drink place 1 tablespoon in a glass of water. Add to food as required. Or to use externally spray liberally over the face and body as desired. Comes in a 100ml bottle. Available from Love Lula for £9.75.

ROSA FINA CREAMY FACE WASH

Coming from the fantastic company Barefoot Botanicals is the Rosa Fina creamy face wash. This product refreshes and nourishes without drying or irritating the skin. Rosa Fina creamy face wash is GM free, suitable for vegans, cruelty free and made from 100% plant origins. Available from Naturisimo for £14.95.

MENS FACIAL MOISTURISER FROM TREVARNO

So many glorious products to choose from this wonderful company. But I have decided today to feature one for the men. I have to say my hubby is more obsessed with creams and potions than I am so I will probably invest in a tub of this as part of his birthday pressie. This light moisturiser contains: Jojoba oils, Olive with Calendula and Sesame with Carrot oil, Grapefruit seed extract enriched with Vitamin E. It has been blended with Teatree, Lemongrass and Rosewood essential oils to help tone and soothe the skin, just perfect for usage after shaving. Available in 2 sizes from Trevarno - for 30mls it is £10.35.

EDELWEISS SUN LOTION SPF15 with TAN ACCELERATOR

This sun lotion was voted the best Sun Protection by the Natural Health and Beauty Magazine 2008.

It offers you 3 layers of sun protection with a natural sun tan accelerator. It protects against UVA & UVB, contains natural antioxidants to protect against cell damage and helps support the immune system. It is suitable for medium complexions, people who are prone to eczema and psoriasis, and for vegetarians and vegans. Also 30p from each sale goes to the Penny Brohn Cancer Help Centre. Available from Green People for £15.99.