I recently wrote about Keshi Organics, a WA based company selling organic skin care, and thought I would post an update with their latest offer.

Keshi Organics Special Offer

With their current special, you receive $25 off the regular price for their moisturiser – Hydrate or Revitalize. This brings the price down to $30 which is really affordable for a 50ml bottle.

So if you saw my last post and were thinking of trying Keshi Organics but weren’t sure, now is a great time to try or if you already use their moisturiser, you can get another bottle at a huge discount.

Visit the site here.

ByronShop.com is an ‘organic skin care & eco-lifestyle’ shop based in the Yarra Valley in Victoria.

We strive towards an eco friendly environmentally sustainable business, offering and supporting quality products and businesses who support our vision.

We strive to find effective products of the highest quality that nature provides.

The products we recommend respect and support your natural rhythms as well as those of our environment. It goes without saying that we source and offer organic and biodynamic products where ever possible.

They stock some of my favourite organic skin care products – Dr Hauschka and Sanctum Organics. Both brands have a wide range of products which should be suitable for most people.

Byron Shop also sells Waleda skin care products which I haven’t used and don’t know much about so any comments about that brand are more than welcome.

Byron Shop has lots of special offers and you get free samples with your order. So check them out.

Leave a comment with your feedback  if you have ordered from ByronShop.com. I’d love to know what you think.

It’s always nice when you come across locally made organic skin care products. I feel so much better purchasing them instead of something that was made overseas and flown in. If you feel the same way, check out Keshi Organics.

Not only is Keshi Organics an Australian made product (based in Busselton WA) but they are hand made too, which I think takes real devotion!

Here is what they have to say about their brand:

As you are aware more and more people are looking towards organics as a way of looking after themselves and the environment.  Keshi Organics is unique even in the world of organics as we don’t use thickeners such as stearic acid or gums in our products.  The Keshi Organics range is formulated to be beneficial to your skin, naturally.  Handcrafted with love and integrity the product is luxurious and the packaging very stylish and desirable.   We’ve been accepted onto the Safecosmetics.org data base and currently  getting accreditation with PETA  as cruely free, and vegan apart from the pearl shell in the cleanser.

The product range includes:

• Face and body moisturisers
• Cleansers and scrubs
• Body oils
• Scents

I only recently heard about Keshi so have yet to try it but am looking forward to testing it out soon. If you use or have used their products, please leave a review in the comments.

Visit Keshi Organics here.

Rising concern about chemicals and how they affect us isn’t just centered around food anymore. Every product we use in our daily life is under scrutiny, and rightfully so. Beauty products, for instance, are applied daily for most women (and for many men too) and more often than not can contain some seriously nasty chemicals. Applied directly to the skin, these chemicals are easily absorbed into the body with all sorts of unpleasant results. Although it requires a little more effort at the makeup counter, we have to ask: why take chances with the largest organ in our body?

First and Foremost: Petrochemicals

It can’t surprise anyone that petrochemicals top the list of things you want to avoid in your beauty products. Beyond just being bad for you, they are derived from crude oil and other nonrenewable sources that make them doubly bad for the environment. Ingredients like Denatured Alcohol, Benzyl Alcohol, and even so-called healthy mineral oils all have a host of nasty side effects including dermatitis, irritating the eyes and skin, and causing extreme acne. If the planet isn’t a good enough reason to steer clear, certainly those counter productive results are.

The Runner-Up: Phthalates

Sure, that lotion you’re eying may smell like the bee’s knees, but you should know that most synthetic fragrances contain phthalates. In fact, these nasty little buggers are in just about every mainstream cosmetic, as well as glues, plastics, and nail polish. Unfortunately, they also mimic hormones and are endocrine disrupters, and are seen more and more often in the blood of pregnant mothers and infants. Early studies are tying these chemicals to genital development and birth defects.

Other Things to Avoid

If just trying to avoid those two major ingredients wasn’t enough of a challenge for you, try including these ingredients on your taboo list. Sulfates like sodium lauryl are used in most shampoos and cleansers to create lather, which seems harmless enough. Unfortunately, they are often either derived from petroleum or vegetable oils that can be mixed with pesticides. Also beware of synthetic colours: often made from coal tar, they can contain heavy metal salts that cause skin irritation and are extremely carcinogenic. 

While living green might seem a bit overwhelming at first, isn’t the extra peace of mind worth a little effort? Try the beauty sections at your local health food stores to find a plethora of viable options. 

I’ve never heard of Inika before but they have some great looking mineral eye shadow colours that I’d definitely like to try. Their eye shadows can be used wet or dry or as an eyeliner which is great – I love multi-purpose cosmetics

About The Brand
Every Inika product is 100% Certified Vegan or Certified Organic, or both. Inika is 100% Cruelty Free and committed to environmentally ethical manufacturing. It’s glamour that’s good for you, and good for the earth. A decadent range that provides incredible performance.

Packaging
Recyclable plastic, recycled cardboard

Inika Mineral Eye Shadow

Inika have some chic eye shadow colours. I particularly like the Turquoise and Industry shadows.

Have you tried Inika cosmetics? What did you think about them?

Inika is available online at Pukka.

A lot of people really like mouthwash, especially since it makes your breath smell great and gives you a clean feeling in your mouth. Not only that, but mouthwash is good for you too. Here in Australia, there are a lot of people who use mouthwash… almost everyone does. But, did you know that there are a lot of things about common, shop bought mouthwashes that are not very eco friendly or natural?

Well, natural means green, and if green is what you want, then the green coloured mouthwash at the shop isn’t going to cut it for you. So, if you care about your health, and about the health of the planet, then here are some recipes for some great natural mouthwash that you can make right in your own home! It is better for you, will help give you that clean feeling, and what do you know? You might even make a difference for our planet… so, isn’t it worth at least a try?

How to Make Your Own Natural Mouthwash

The first recipe here is for rosemary mint mouthwash. All you need are 2 and a half cups of mineral or distilled water, one teaspoon of rosemary leaves, one teaspoon of fresh mint, and one teaspoon of anise seed. Now, simply boil the water, and then add the herbs and seeds. It is sort of like making iced tea! You just infuse for twenty minutes, cool, and strain. Then, it is good to use as a mouthwash or gargle.

If you are having a big problem with bad breath and you need something a little bit more potent than a rosemary mouthwash, you can make a baking soda mouthwash. For this, just mix 50mL of water, one quarter of a teaspoon of baking soda (you can also use sea salt), one drop of tea tree oil, and one drop of pure peppermint oil. This mouthwash will really combat those germs associated with bad breath and it should leave a refreshing, minty taste in your mouth when you are done! Of course, as you already know, it is free from harmful chemicals and is completely eco friendly!

You can also make a minty mouthwash using dried parsley, whole cloves, peppermint extract, and ground cinnamon. You just boil about 300mL of water, add one tablespoon of parsley with two tablespoons of the cloves, cinnamon, and peppermint, and let them infuse for about ten minutes. But cover tightly and keep it refrigerated!

You can also buy organic and natural mouthwash here.

I’m sure you all know that Absolutely Gorgeous is one of my favourite Australian online skin care stores. They’ve changed a lot over the last year or so, now specialising on their own range of products.

For those of you who haven’t heard about Absolutely Gorgeous, here is a brief overview taken from their website:

Absolutely Gorgeous is committed to natural beauty and well being..

We specialise in luxurious, skin and body care using pure, organic and chemical-free ingredients.

All products in the range are proudly Australian made, free of petrochemicals, parabens, sulphates, contain no artificial colours.

Great Australian made products at great prices.

Absolutely everything on their site would make a fantastic Christmas gift and if you place your order before the 21st December 2009 you get free delivery within Australia.

Order before it’s too late!

Make your own organic face masks. It’s quick and easy and cheap!

Organic Face Masks

If you haven’t visited Absolutely Gorgeous recently then you are missing out. Not only have they updated their website but all their products too. They have really streamlined the products they offer which now fit into 3 distinct categories:

Absolutely Gorgeous Skin Care

This range covers most of your day to day facial skin care needs. Cleanser, face cream, and their pink clay exfoliating mask are the mainstays of this range but you can also find organic rosehip oil here and a handy travel or starter kit. 

Absolutely Gorgeous Essentials

The Essentials range includes body wash, body moisturising cream, massage oil, and the relaxing bath milk which would be perfect as a gift or just to treat yourself.

Absolutely Gorgeous Baby

This is their newest range of products designed specifically for the special needs of your baby. Baby wash, baby balm, massage oil, and more can be found here.

All of the products at Absolutely Gorgeous contain natural and organic ingredients whenever possible. All the ingredients are listed on their website so you can check it out for yourself and, naturally, none of the products have been tested on animals.

Visit Absolutely Gorgeous for more information.

Thexton has a large range of top quality skin care products and are having a sale where you can get 25% off the regular price.

Now’s the time to stock up on your favourite natural and organic skin care and hair care products or to try some new products and brands.

Click here to visit their site and enter the code SKIN to get your discount.

Available at Thexton:

• Sanctum Organic
• Kosmea Australia
• Mukti – Naturally Organic Skincare
• Natio – Natural Australian Beauty
• Giovanni – Pure Organic Technology
• GAIA – Made for Men
• Botani – Pure Plant Skin Solutions
• Bod

Don’t forget to enter the code SKIN.

Visit Thexton while stocks last.