Coconut Oil - A Beauty Must Have!

You know what, every now and then I like to try a bit of homespun beauty. I don't go crazy, like mixing my own shampoo in a vat over the bath or anything but I have been known to plaster porridge on my face (oats make a great exfoliator and are very soothing for dry skin).

This latest kitchen cupboard discovery is the endlessly useful coconut oil. I'm not talking cocoa butter or shea butter. This is more like the insides of a Bounty. Without the sugar. And organic. And virgin. *Blush*

It's a great ingredient and has been included in hundreds of skincare formulas I've come across before. It's also the 'healthiest fat in the world' (cue fanfare of silver hornets and trombones) with an amazing array of health promoting properties. Google it if you're interested but as a quick overview it acts differently to other saturated fats - this one is a medium chain triglyceride which means your body metabolises it right away and doesn't store it like it does other fats. It can reduce bad cholesterol, it's great for keeping your heart healthy, it's anti-microbial, ant-viral, anti-inflammatory and it has a whole host of anti-oxident action too. Seriously it's overwhelming stuff. I'm breathless just thinking about it!

But aside from eating it (I have yet to try it on my toast but I hear it's a great cooking oil too as it's stable at high temperatures) the reason I'm loving it so much is how good it is for the skin. I feel a little silly after declaring it can have boundless good effects on your health and then following it up with, "I use it to take my eye make up off!" but it's true. I do. And there's nothing better if I may be so bold.

Quick moan: I hate taking off my eye make up. Firstly, because it generally means the removal of my entire eye - without make up I look like a little blind mole that's been dug up from the soil and dangled in bright sunlight; pallid, squinty, shy. And secondly, it's just messy, my eyes sting, go red, get sore. Its just a faff isn't it?

So using something that is quick, uber-gentle and actually good for my skin instead of leaving me with nightmares of propylene glycol molecules dancing around my bloodstream in some kind of Wizard of Oz mash-up, well, it's just perfect really. I dampen cotton wool with warm water, squidge a bit onto the pad, it quickly turns into a liquid from the heat of the pad, I apply to my eye, hold a few seconds, circle my eye a couple times and then wipe away. DONE.

After using it to remove eye make up so successfully, well, one thing led to another and what can I say,  I began using it as a full face cleanser! Bam! Right now, I have to say, it's even made me put my Clarisonic down and reach for the hot cloth method once more. Yikes. It makes my skin look so clean, so much more even and I love that! (There will be updates on my progress with Mr. Clarisonic soon)

So then I went the whole hog and began using it as a body oil, it's LUSH! I was getting a pesky little eczemary patch on my arm, Lo! And Behold! it cleared that up in a matter of days, nay, hours. It instantly relieves dry skin and it works to generally improve skin tone and elasticity. It's blooming marvellous. I don't usually go in for a body lotion or such like, mostly because it's a bit of a bore applying it but I'm loving this and it smells all tropical and exciting.

I won't go on any more. You get the picture. Buy a jar of it from your health food shop for about £4 and quench that winter skin! 

rms beauty - skincare with colour

rms is rocking my world right now. The reason I'm so in to this make up brand is because it's really all about skincare. Skincare with colour. Food for the face. There's many a great philosophy on their website (which I highly recommend you read) but the plain truth is these products are super-high-performing make up products made with beautifully beneficial ingredients for your skin. What's not to love!

rms was created by make up artist Rose-Marie Swift - so you don't have to just take it from me that these are great make up products! After many years working as a make up artist, Rose-Marie began to suffer with her health, tests revealing she had high levels of heavy metals, solvents and pesticides in her body. When asked if she worked in the cosmetics industry, a connection between her illness and her work as a make up artist was made. Launching the line only in 2008, the brand is one of the first truly organic colour lines of its kind and I think it is a relatively undiscovered little gem here in the UK.

I bought 'Un'-cover up because I desperately wanted a concealer that wasn't adding to the problem of ageing around the eyes. I was convinced the one I was using (not natural) was thinning my skin and helping to deep furrows beneath my poor peepers. You'll agree that urgent and expensive measures were necessary. 

Although it feels like you're paying a lot for this TINY little glass pot (its £28.00 for 5.67g) let me stress that this is a very highly pigmented little product that packs a powerful punch, metaphorically speaking - no black eyes here! It conceals very well. Not mask-like mind, which is fine by me. And without deadening the skin too, which I think many uber-concealers do and is something I hate.

Even better you can also use this as a foundation too. This encourages you spot correct the areas that need a little coverage, like around the nose and mouth without the need for a heavy layer all over the face. I mean you can still do that (and I often do!) because with a product like this, you are only feeding your skin not suffocating it. It doesn't cake and with good blending it's quite undetectable on the skin.

It's very different to other mineral make up I've used and to your regular foundation/concealer. It's a very solid, opaque, pigmented 'balm'. It's not a cream. It's dense. But it is very oily. Please do not let that put you off.  This base of coconut oil is precisely why it's so good for your skin and what makes it special. Although I do feel the need for some kind of finishing powder (welcoming Lily Lolo mineral foundation here) I love the texture of this product. It spreads better than butter! And it doesn't drag the skin. And it's actually keeping your skin nourished and protected whilst you look fabulous. Besides the coconut oil we have castor seed oil, beeswax, cocoa seed oil, jojoba seed oil, vitamin E and rosemary extract, plus various minerals like titanium and iron oxides to give it its colour. And that's it ...I know! 

The other product I bought was the Lip2Cheek which (the name has probably already tipped you off) can be used as both a lip colour and a cheek tint. Multi-tasking to the max. The colour I chose was 'Smile' which is a beautiful coral (above). rms ask you to note that this particular shade is 0.2% safe synthetic colour - it seems not even nature does this kind of coral all by itself! Oh well. I can live with that.

The texture of this one is similar to the 'Un'-cover up but a little less oily. It dabs in very nicely on the cheeks and the lips, again it's very pigmented and contains a similar line up of natural base ingredients with various mineral pigments making up the colour (+ that 0.2%). It's the same price too, £28.00 but for slightly less product. But I say think of it as getting two products in one. (All the other colours in the range are 100% natural by the way. Typical I wanted the one that wasn't! Hah!)

I think it's fair to point out that I think these products don't have that 'last all day' factor like some make up promises to do (but never does either). But after all, why would you want it to? It's much nicer to top up your make up during the day, keeping it fresh and keeping out those nasty ingredients.

And one more thing! I also think it's important to point out that although these products mightn't last all day, they do LAST FOREVER! I have been slapping on the 'Un'-cover up literally all over my face in what I like to call the Three Layer Effect (using Madara Moonflower Tinting Fluid under it and Lily Lolo mineral foundation over it) and there is still loads of it left. The Lip2Cheek I have barely even dented with every day multiple applications. There is actually great value here.

And furthermore, compare these prices to those of the big beauty houses and there's nothing in it except that these products are uniquely designed to be nothing but nourishing on your skin, acting like skincare whilst performing like make up. And there's a lot to say for that.

rms beauty 'Un'-cover up and Lip2Cheek available at Content Beauty in store and online, which is  such a lovely shop and where I bought mine.