In no particular order, six balms to have on your radar this month, from Neal’s Yard’s iconic Wild Rose and Ami Iyok’s balm-textured lavender Ultra Rich Dream Cream to Pinks’s Anti-Ageing Deep Cleanse Melt, manna from heaven for dry or more mature skin…
AMI IYOK – UlTRA RICH DREAM CREAM. More of a balm than a cream, this all natural, all singing, all dancing wonder is by Spanish eco beauty brand Ami Iyok. Apply at night for smoother skin in the morning (also excellent, unofficially, on nails and cuticles).
PROTO-COL MIRACLE BALM. How many ingredients can you fit in a pot? Proto-Col have squeezed in rather a lot. Plant derived collagen, hyaluronic acid, beeswax, jojoba seed oil, bergamot oil, Vitamin E and orange oil and coral seaweed for starters. Each one’s in there for a reason, making this a hard working multitasker. More about this on the Proto-Col site.
PINKS BOUTIQUE, ANTI-AGEING DEEP CLEANSE MELT. It’s NEW – just launched – it’s rich, it’s nourishing, it smells good (hard to pinpoint but there’s rose geranium in here) and it melts off eye makeup. Eco spa + beauty brand Pinks’ glycerine, shea butter and coconut oil-based cleanser is super-easy to use. Apply a little with lukewarm water on the face, massage in deeply then rinse with warm water and finish with a gentle cloth. If your skin feels tight after cleansing, it probably needs this! Their massage candles are amazing.
NEAL’S YARD REMEDIES WILD ROSE BEAUTY BALM More of an icon than a balm, really, one of the reasons NYR’s all natural skin quencher is an all time hero product is the high percentage of wild rosehip oil which is fantastic for anti-scarring and a potent antioxidant. Team that with geranium, starflower, hemp and rosemary oil and you have a winner in your hands. Use to cleanse, treat dry patches, as a lip, elbow, etc. balm and it’s a fabulous deep conditioning treatment for the face and skin, too – simply leave it on.
BAMFORD ORGANIC LIP BALM Bamford’s 100% organic ingredients, Soil Association certified lip saviour contains anti-inflammatory arnica as well as pink grapefruit, peppermint and rose. Super emollient and subtle-tasting, if you battle with dry lips in winter or on windy beaches, this is one lip balm you’ll be wanting to try.
JUSTBE BOTANICALS LIP BALM Nut-free (thank you, wish more brands would mention that) as well as vegan and very nice, this lip balm is minty enough without going overboard.
If it’s new to you, JustBe Botanicals is a brand well worth a look at. Founder Gail is Scottish and got onto our radar before Christmas (after we saw a Tweet by Sandra at Beauty Balm – follow her at @Beauty_Balm). Gail even makes the most delicious aromatherapy chocolate (both bars she sent us to try, the warm cardammom milk choc and a decadent white chocolate and raspberry, were so good!)
Her “try me” sets are great little travel sets or gifts, too.
What she has created is impressive, and very ‘feel good’ to use.
Lip Balm Ingredients: EcoSoya Wax (Glycine Max), Coconut Solid (Cocos Nucifera), Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia Chinensis), Vitamin E (Tocopherol), Spearmint Oil (Mentha Spicata) and Tea Tree Oil (Melaleuca Alternifolia). Note: there is no hint of tea tree oil in this, so if you are not a fan, no worries, but it has useful antiseptic/antibacterial properties.
JustBeBotanicals.co.uk