Skincare Favourites of 2017

Happy New Year! I hope you’re having the best start to 2018 and hopefully not feeling too worse for wear today after last night’s celebrations. Before starting any new posts of the year I really wanted to do a quick round up of my favourite skincare products that I used/discovered in 2017. These products may not have been necessarily new but it was the first time that I had used them and loved them so much I wanted to make sure I gave them a mention on here.

Sukin Certified Organic Rose Hip Oil

I’ve used Rose Hip oils in the past and loved them but as I wasn’t able to get hold of the brand I usually used, I decided to give this one a go. I’m not sure if this was a slightly bigger bottle than what I was used to but I found that this oil seemed to last me a lot longer and a little went a long way. Rose Hip Oil – especially organic is an absolute miracle worker for your skin. Packed with vitamins, antioxidants and essential fatty acids, it can help to repair damaged tissue and regenerate skin cells, which makes it perfect for scars and stretch marks! I tend to use this around my hips and thighs for my stretch marks and then sometimes add a few drops to my normal body moisturiser for extra hydration. I definitely recommend this if you have dry/damaged skin.

If you are thinking of switching some of your skincare products for natural alternatives then please please start with your deodorant. You only have to google the words conventional antiperspirant to see the amount of research and evidence explaining the dangers and risks involved with using them, it’s down right scary and completely unnecessary. I have been using natural deodorants for about 18 months now and I would never go back to a conventional antiperspirant. I have tried quite a few different ones so far and I like to regularly change them up so that my body doesn’t get too used to one. My two favourites have been Neal’s Yard Remedies and the one I have featured here, Schmidt’s. This deodorant has been my favourite scent so far and I love the creamy texture of the stick, it’s so moisturising and leaves your skin feeling soft. There have been a few natural deodorants I’ve tried in the past that irritated my skin especially if they contained large amounts of baking soda/arrowroot, and although this one does contain some arrowroot I haven’t had any irritation at all, even when using it straight after shaving! 

Typically I’m a strict coconut oil user to cleanse my face and remove make up as it works brilliantly and leaves your skin moisturised. However, I do often find myself needing something extra to cleanse a bit deeper into my skin and for this reason I decided to try the Sukin Sensitive Cleansing Gel. Usually I’m not a fan of this kind of product as my skin tends to dry out after using them but I find that if I use this gel around 3 times a week while sticking to the coconut oil routine in-between then my skin feels even more fresher than normal and still nicely hydrated. I love how the gel is suited for sensitive skin and is also paraben and sulphate free. 

Balance Me is a really nice brand that I have used before but cannot for the life of me remember what products it was I tried before this one! But anyway, the radiance mask is a really lovely product that I like to use 2-3 times a week to keep my skin feeling soft and smooth. Considering it’s a face mask it doesn’t give you that tight dry mud mask feeling like conventional face masks, and it’s actually a lot more like a creamy moisturiser. The mask smells heavenly and contains tiny shell particles that very gently exfoliate your skin without drying or irritating, which is really important for my skin. I only leave the mask on for about a minute and then use a warm damp muslin cloth to remove it. It leaves you feeling like you’ve had a mini midweek spa treatment.

I saved the best for last… I love, love, love this little face oil! Hence why, as you can now see the bottle is empty and I need to replace it asap. I was sent a sample of this amazing product by Love Lula, (thanks guys!) and it was the first time I had heard of Ooh! I later found out that it actually stands for Oils Of Heaven, which is perfectly named as this oil is so heavenly! I wasn’t too sure about using an oil as a moisturiser thinking that it would be heavy and most likely impossible to use underneath make up, but oh how wrong I was! It’s extremely lightweight and honestly the most moisturising product I have used on my skin. Also, I tried it underneath my make up and it worked perfectly, not breaking up my foundation at all. I used this every night for a few weeks and each morning my skin looked incredible, the surface was completely soft and smooth and my complexion had even improved. If you are looking for a new face moisturiser and want to try something a little different I would definitely recommend this product.

So there we have it, a round up of my favourite skincare products of 2017. I hope this has been insightful and inspiring for a more natural way to care for your skin, and given you some ideas of great products to try. Thanks so much for reading and I will hopefully see you back here again soon!