We dream of long hot summers in the UK and when a heatwave arrives it feels (too!) muggy and hot, not least in London.
Here are five cool-down/keep hydrated products that really come into their own when it’s warm and all you crave is cool.
1. WELEDA FOOT BALM
Refreshing, all-natural, non-greasy and infused with antibacterial, antiseptic, antifungal ingredients like lavender, rosemary, sweet orange, “lemony” may chang, calendula, myrrh and kaolin (which is a natural anti-sweat solution) this is the next best thing to having a handsome man fan your feet with exotic palm leaves.
£9.95/75ml at WELEDA.CO.UK
2. L’OCCITANE VERBENA EAU DE TOILETTE
I think I really fell in love with Verbena about five Octobers ago. I was driving in the beautiful autumn forests in Ifrane, 45 mins up in to the mountains from Fez and found a very rustic B&B with beautiful gardens. The Moroccan guy who ran it happened to be there and after a quick tour of the house – amazing views of a bright streaky autumn red setting sun from the rooftop! – we had a mint tea before he picked a huge bunch of herbs for me to take back to my hotel.
I kept the big bunch of the verbena in an envelope and brought it back to the UK – I love Verbena’s grassy, herby lemon-esque scent, and the tea is a good “calmer”. L’Occitane’s Verbena EDT is the perfect freshen-up spring for warm July days – L’Occitane have blended Mediterranean verbena with a base of geranium and lemon tree – it’s sparkly, unisex and very, very “summer”! £42.
3. MOROCCAN MINT BODY WASH by THE BODY DELI
There’s a Moroccan theme developing (again!) but it’s not intentional and all I can say is this Mint Body Wash by California brand The Body Deli is gorgeous!! A Beautiful World stocks it (if you love beauty you can’t get anywhere else, Cult Beauty and ABW are two of the best sites to check regularly). ABW’s founder Liz spends part of her year in the US, hunting down the most lust-have clean beauty brands to bring them over here so we can get our mitts on them in the UK, too.
Mint, rosemary and sweet orange are in the all-natural ingredients but the Marrakech-evocative mint really cuts through – one of the best wake-up showers I know (also works well in a hot shower in winter!)
£18.95 (LOW STOCK!) Buy HERE
4. ROSA ROSA HYDRATING TONER (doubles as a cooling spritz)
Bodhi & Birch make lovely things and this is one of them. Infused with Damask Rose, Orange Blossom and Camomile, spritz over your face and let it dry (e.g. before applying Bodhi’s Rosa Rosa moisturiser). Cooling, calming and a good one for sporting events or the sunlounger.
£28
More details HERE
5. PUKKA’s LEMON & MANDARIN TEA (with VERBENA)
There’s a Verbena theme developing now (unintentionally, again) and I have not actually tried this tea but I love some of the others like the Three Cinnamon (one of my “winter teas”) and the Honey, Ginger and Lemongrass (I think it is?) which is a staple if I’m feeling a bit run down and racing through an afternoon riddled with deadlines.
Have you tried this one?
www.pukkaherbs.com
