A little background before I detail all the drama - a few days ago I learned about the Oil Cleansing Method (OCM) thanks to Fran over at High On Health, an interesting (and simple) way of cleansing the skin by using certain oils to counteract and breakdown the existing oil that clogs up pores. I’m surprised I’ve never heard of it before, especially as it has quite a good following and the majority of users find it works extremely well. I’ll be going into more detail on this in a future post.

The key ingredient is castor oil, a basic and cheap product which has been used topically and internally for all sorts of ailments over the years. So yesterday, I headed down to a nearby pharmacy to grab a bottle and try it out. Except they didn’t have any, and they’ve never stocked it in the past.

Undeterred, I decided to stop off at Tesco’s on the way home. They didn’t have any either - not in the cooking oils section or the pharmacy. The lady behind the counter wanted to sell me a zinc and castor oil cream instead, until I explained what it was for.

At this point, I started wondering what was going on. How is it that a large, modern pharmacy and a national supermarket don’t have this most basic item? Perhaps it was just a coincidence, so I had a look in my local Sainsbury’s too. Nope, nothing there either.

It was a little after 6pm, so too late to check any other pharmacies. I went back home and did a little research and discovered that castor oil is often taken by pregnant women wanting to induce labour. As this practice is questionable, it seems that stores don’t like to sell it.

There are two other supermarkets in my area, and I was getting more and more determined to find the darn oil, so I decided to check them out just in case. Nope, that’s Asda and Morrisons off the list as well.

Today, I got my husband to ring around a few pharmacies (I asked him to do it in case they assumed I was pregnant). He called five places in total - three independant stores and two national chain stores (Superdrug and Boots) and nobody had any. However, there is some good news - Boots have arranged to order some in and it should be ready for collection tomorrow.

Interestingly, one of the pharmacies we contacted said that castor oil isn’t readily available because no one currently holds the licence to distribute it in this country. I find that rather strange, especially as Boots are able to get some, but it would certainly explain things.

The other alternative is to buy online, Googling castor oil brings up several UK-based companies selling it in sizes from 50ml to 1 litre. Assuming I like the OCM, I think that’s how I’ll be buying my castor oil from now on. 

Update: My husband works for the NHS, so I asked him to look for castor oil in the British National Formulary (BNF) - this is the official guide to all licensed medications in the UK for health professionals. It seems that it was once available as a laxative, but has been replaced with other products and is now considered obsolete. Amazing, eh? He also nipped into Boots this afternoon and one of the bottles we’d ordered had come in - I say only one as that’s all their supplier had. Looks like I’ll definitely have to order online if I stick with the OCM…..

It’s rapidly approaching the time of the month I fondly know as payday and therefore it’s time to think about what I’ll be buying for my skin. I tend to spend the whole month beforehand researching products and discovering new things to try, then gradually make a final list. Even that is subject to change at the last minute as I have a (bad) habit of impulse buying.

This month, I’m going to ease up on those impulses and try to be more practical. Over the last year, I’ve amassed a lot of products, all of them lovely, but many not suitable for me. I’ve tried to use them in whatever way I can, but I’m realising that it’s just not good for me - if something doesn’t work, I can’t force it to.

To help me let go, I’ve decided to pass on a few things to my mum. I was intending to buy her a nice moisturiser for Mother’s Day on March 2nd, but instead I’m going to give her a few creams that I haven’t been able to use, including my Mother Earth Orange Flower Moisturiser. I’ve only ever used them after thoroughly cleaning my hands, so I’m not worried about them being secondhand. And if she doesn’t like any of them, then I’ll buy her something new instead, no biggie.

As for what I’m going to buy for myself, I’m being very strict. I’ve decided to go for Anita Grant’s Camellia Copaiba Bath & Body Oil and another of her lip butters (a girl can’t have too many of those ;) ) I think the lemon one sounds nice. I have also sent her an email today asking if the plain Camellia Kissi or the plain Copaiba Balsam would be better suited to my skin, so it’s possible my choice may change. But ultimately, I am only going to be buying the one oil.

I also need to put in an order at Pure Skincare for some more Liquid Black Soap as I’ve managed to use over half the bottle this month, and a refill for my Angel Face Scrub. I’m also debating trying a new (and cheaper) shampoo now that my dandruff has cleared up. If my mum doesn’t like the moisturisers I give her, I will need to buy her something as well.