SOS Organics Wild Mint and Herb Garden Handmade Soaps {Product Review}

Wild Mint

Price: Rs 80 for 100gms

Ingredients

I know the print is totally illegible so I shall put it down here - coconut oil, vegetable oil, lye, peppermint, rosemary essential oil, nettle leaf powder

the swirls had nettle leaf powder on them so the soap was little scrubby as well but not harsh or even enough!!

Pros

this one feels really really cool, perfect for hot summers!!! In fact, whenever I used this soap, my skin was cold :D you would understand what I am saying if you know the peppermint coolness like you get when you eat Polo or any other mint!

wasn't very moisturizing but not drying either!

Cons 

expensive coz it does melt away in 20 days for one person!!  
would love to know what exactly is the vegetable oil they use!

Herb Garden

Price: Rs 80 for 100gms

Ingredients

Pros

after using the Wild Mint, this one didn't really make a mark!

decent soap with moisturizing properties!!

Cons

again expensive coz it melts super fast but there is a way to use handmade soaps and that should be followed stringently. Check the tip here (at the end of the post). 

Availability

Natural Mantra (recently hiked their prices because of shipping costs but I do hope they bring them down soon!)

SOS Organics (you can order from their site directly but minimum order is 500 and no COD)

Interesting Fact: I would also love to bring to your attention the fact that the soaps sold by Earthy Goods are manufactured by SOS Organics only. Check out my reviews on their soaps as well :)

Related Posts:
Earthy Goods Forest Honey Nourishing Handmade Soap
Earth Store Cinnamon Spice, Jasmine Lavender and Mountain Rose
Earthy Goods Vanilla Patchouli Indulging Handmade Soap

Tips on How to use Bath Oil? {Five Series}

---

Yes, as you can discern from the post title, I am starting a new series called the Five Series. I shall be covering all the topics as much as possible in which 5 points on the topic would be covered. You can send me the post requests too!! I shall try to keep these posts short and quick so that you can read them easily.

---

Massage and Moisturize

The regular use of oils is as a moisturizer. Aromatic bath oils are amazing for massages as they are extremely relaxing for the body and mind.

Aromatic Baths

This is my fav of all of the ways. I love to tip the bath oils into my bath water and add 5-20 drops depending on my mood and enjoy my bath. Yes, I smell amazing after that and can forgo moisturizing if I am feeling lazy. Great for hot baths as warm water releases the scent better (yes, a beauty sin!).

Facial Treat

Drop 5 drops in steaming hot water and steam your face. This relaxes your senses. Also, add it in your Pedicure and Manicure routines as well. 

Perfume 

Apply the bath oil on your pulse points and enjoy the aroma.

Hair leave-ins

Yes, these bath oils are generally light so you can take a drop or two in your palms, rub them together and pass them through your hair concentrating on the ends.

Just Herbs Cascade Moisturising Day Care Lotion Aloevera & Wheatgerm {Product Review}

Price: Rs 345 for 100ml

Ingredients

Key Ingredients -Aloevera 5% **,Wheatgerm oil 0.5%, Jojoba oil 0.2%, Apricot kernel oil 0.2 %, Vetiver extract 0.1% ,

Other Ingredients -Aqua ( Purified/Mineral water) , Sunflower seed oil**, caprylic Capric Triglycerrides ( Fractionated Coconut Oil) Glyceryl stearate citrate/cetearyl alcohol/glyceryl caprylate*, Glycerine** Shea butter** Soy Lecithin, Dicaprylyl Carbonate*, Parfum, CI 14720 (colouring agent), Octyldodecanol*,  Disodium EDTA, Herbs-Essential oil Complex( Natural Preservative) Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate.

** Certified Organic Ingredients

*  Natural Ingredients certified by ECOCERT

98.2% NATURAL RAW MATERIALS from renewable resources (Total amount of ingredients whose usage in cosmetic formulations follows sustainable standards)

Pros

- gets absorbed very quickly

- leaves the skin dewy and radiant

Cons

- not moisturizing for dry skin

- can make you sweat more

My Experience

the left is the Cascade Lotion

The product is very thin and gets absorbed into the skin pretty easily. And, I really like that it makes my skin look hydrated and moisturized without getting heavy. But, the main issue with this product is that it makes me sweat a lot if I am not in AC or in front of the cooler. I have used the product on my entire body and liked the way it kept my skin moisturized for 6 hours straight. 

The packaging is also very handy and travel-friendly. It comes with a pump. Only two pumps are required to cover my face and neck. Ok, this is a good product for normal to oily and combi skin but not suitable for dry skin. So, even if you have a combi dry skin, its not the product for you. I did face dryness sometimes.  Overall, its a good product to try out and see if it suits you. 

Also, I would like to point out that last time when I had reviewed the Silksplash face wash, I had complained about the secretive cleansing base, the PR guys from Just Herbs had reverted back immediately and furnished me with the entire ingredient list for this product. They also said that their packaging and ingredient listing policies are going to change soon in the near future. So, I am looking forward to the revelations :)

PS: Product sent by brand. 

Franc Essential Cleanse and Body Melt {Product Review}

I will be talking of two products today and I will be writing about the remaining two in the next post. I received a sample each of all the four (above pic) so this won't exactly be a review. Instead, I would describe my limited experience with the samples. Lets start with the Cleanse and wrap up with Body Melt. Do visit their online store to check out their other products. They do have an interesting range of products and their ingredient lists are worth a look (almost natural).

Franc Essential Cleanse

Ingredients

My Experience

I have used this cleanser only two times. The first time I used I felt it to be a little drying for my skin but the feeling did not recur after the second use. It takes away all the impurities and cleanses well and I found that it need not be followed with a face wash like some cleansers do. But, I felt a very faint feeling that probably it leaves behind a film which I never like in my product so I always use a face wash to get rid of the effect. Otherwise, it left my skin supple and soft both the times and also did a little brightening job. It doesn't feel heavy and it did suit my combination skin.   

Franc Essential Body Melt

Ingredients

Full of Cocoa and Shea Butters

My Experience

I have used the body melt mainly for my hands and legs. I found it to be a bit hard to take out from the sample first of all. It is a thick cream and requires a lot of rubbing in the skin to get absorbed as opposed to its name. It didn't definitely melt on my body but the amount was less so I can't give a judgement on the product. It moisturized my skin well but it took a lot of time to get absorbed and later (around after half hour) my skin felt soft but till then the cream felt a little heavy for me on my hands but it was great for the legs. This product is mainly for dry skin as it is extremely creamy and moisturizing.

PS: Product provided by the brand for consideration.

Keep your skin moisturized this winter with Banana

This is a tried and tested trick in this season itself for over a week and the results were fabulous. But, this is only for people with dry skin or normal skin.

Blend banana really well but do not make it too watery. Keep the consistency to creamy and put appropriate amount of chickpea flour in the blended banana. Blend to get rid of lumps. The paste should enough to cover your entire body so 2-3 bananas may be needed. Now, take a really quick shower with luke warm water. Then, apply the banana chickpea flour paste on your entire body. Cover your face and neck too. Leave it on the skin for at least 10-15 minutes. Wash off without using any cleanser or body wash. You should not feel greasy but in case you do, then try to dilute the paste with rose water or simple water instead of taking a shower again. Now, immediately after washing the paste off your body, apply a thick moisturizing lotion on your skin to keep all the moisture inside. This gives best results when done at night as we have ample of time to allow the paste to stay on the body and the nutrients to get absorbed.

This is an extremely amazing remedy for people suffering with dry skin in winters and specially when none of the moisturizers are able to help you. You can substitute banana with milk cream too but it becomes very greasy for some people. I am repeating this again this remedy is for only people with normal or dry skin. Oily skin people can also use this treatment but not for face only for their bodies. The skin is smooth, supple and amazingly soft. Any blemishes and dark spots start to vanish within a week but do not expect too dramatic results.

Should you use a body cream or a body lotion?

There is a lot of confusion between which product is better for skin: a cream or a lotion. So, I would start by giving you a definition of both the terms and then you can yourself decide which is the best for you. 

Lotion: It is a mixture of few drops of oil in water held together by a chemical substance because oil and water do not mix. 

Cream: A mixture of few drops of water in oil. The density of the product can vary according to various formulations.

When compared, body lotions are easier to apply as compared to creams. But, when your skin is damp, creams are also easy to apply as they spread well in contact with water. 

Which one is better?

I can not answer this question. It is a personal choice but I can answer a different question: why cream than a lotion? Have you ever felt that your skin has become drier after applying a lotion? I have. This problem is common in people with dry to normal skin and in extreme weathers. Why so? Because, when you apply the lotion on your body, it spreads easily creating a large surface area for water in the cream to evaporate quickly. Thus, it ends up drying your skin after a little while instead of keeping your skin moisturized. The rate at which evaporation takes place is dependent on the environment and the viscosity (thickness) of the lotion. More thick the lotion is, better it will keep your body moisturized.

My Recommendations

Thus, I would just recommend that recognize your skin type correctly and choose products mentioned for your skin type only. Using wrong products can affect your skin and make it look aged.

Dry Skin: Oily creams or thick lotions

Normal Skin: Your choice and preference

Oily Skin: Oil-free moisturizers and light watery lotions

Now, a latest skin type is aging skin. How do you categorize it? Well, according to me, it should go under dry skin because as you age, your skin loses its tendency to keep moisture intact and becomes dry. Also due to the loss of collagen, it is no longer firm.

Whatever my thoughts be, I would definitely love your opinions on this topic. Do not forget to write down your comments.