Well well, after nearly a year of absence, the Online Goddess has made an appearance. Where on earth have I been? And what is to become of the site?

A lot has happened over the last 12 months, in short I have moved out of my teeny little terraced house in the busy town, relocated to the gorgeous Suffolk countryside and am currently 7 months pregnant with our first baby – whew!

Unfortunately, the seborrheic dermatitis on my face still has yet to disappear, hence my reluctance to try (and thus review) any new skin care products. In fact, it has sadly spread to both cheeks from nose to ears now and has made me quite self-conscious about my appearance. The (potentially) good news is that I’m currently using a soap called ZNP Bar I’ve imported from the US which seems to be really helping. I’ve had brief improvements in the past, so I’m not going to get too excited until it’s made a long-term impact.

So, onto the question of what to do with this site. Well, I still get a lot of visitors checking out past reviews and I’d like them to stay available for the benefit of consumers. I still want to do product reviews, but I’m not going to be able to do ones for facial products at the current time.

This doesn’t stop me from trying out body care goodies though, and thank goodness as I do enjoy a bit of pampering now and then. Plus, with baby on the way I want to get myself acquainted with the whole new category of natural and organic stuff that’s available for little ones and mums.

I’ve already been using some delicious products during my pregnancy, so look out for reviews of those starting within the next couple of days (maybe I’ll even get the first one up this evening!). I may also double-up with a bit of antenatal and postnatal blogging instead of the usual ranting about my dreadful skin lol.

I just had to write a quick blog to say how chuffed I am with this little company down in Dorset. At the weekend, I ordered some more Aubrey Organics’ Calaguala Fern shampoo and Facial Astringent from them. They arrived yesterday, but unfortunately the astringent seems to have come a cropper and was leaking slightly at the bottom.

Hubby gave Winton a ring to let them know. We weren’t really expecting anything, just wanted to let them know that it may have been because the goods were sent in a jiffy bag rather than a cardboard box and thus they got squashed somewhere in transit. The chap he spoke to apologised and arranged to send out a replacement as soon as possible.

Well, with it being Easter this weekend, I expected it to arrive next week sometime. So I was pleasantly surprised to hear the postman knocking at our door at 10am this morning – the package had been sent Special Delivery! For those unfamiliar with UK mail services, this means guaranteed next day delivery before 1pm. What’s amazing is that this costs over £6 – the item itself was only £6.99!

There were a few Aubrey Organics samples in the package as well, including some aloe vera gel which I’ve used before and liked very much. It was all very securely wrapped along with a note to say that Aubrey Organics bottles would be checked in future. I doubt there is a design flaw in the bottles as I’ve used a great deal of Aubrey’s products in the last couple of years and never had a problem, so hopefully Winton and their customers will not experience any further issues.

So a big thank you to the staff at Winton Health Foods. It’s unusual to see a company go above and beyond at customer service these days. I heartily recommend giving them a look – Aubrey Organics is only one of a large selection of natural and organic brands they sell and the prices are better than many other stores too. You can buy from them online in two different ways:

Website: http://www.wintonhealthfoods.co.uk
eBay Store: http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/wintonhealthfoodsnaturalskincare

Or, if you happen to live in Winton, Bournemouth or the surrounding area, they are at 33 Withermoor Rd. I’d visit myself if I didn’t live 200 odd miles away. :D

Apologies for my absence in posting the last couple of months. I’ve had a few small (but annoying) bouts of ill health and have been a bit depressed about my skin. Feeling a lot more positive now though as I have a consultation with a private dermatologist next week.

I still have a rash on my right cheek, though it has changed due to some drastic intervention on my part. About three weeks ago, I was feeling really low and wondered about using my prescribed corticosteroid on it. I was worried the doctor would just throw another emollient at me, so I did some research online instead and found that five days was a safe maximum to use the stuff.

I applied a tiny amount in the morning and noticed an improvement after only one day. After the full five days, the rash was barely noticeable. I was chuffed to bits! I then switched back to a regular moisturiser and was thrilled to find it wasn’t getting worse again, however, the area was almost unnaturally smooth which was very weird.

About a week later (last Thursday) I woke up, looked in the bathroom mirror – and nearly fainted. The area was bright red and covered in pimples and had a horrible thick and scabby texture to it. I was intending to go into town that day, but no amount of makeup would cover it and I was too horrified to go out looking so awful. It was so bad that I even had a panic attack and my hubby decided to book  me an emergency appointment with the GP.

They could only fit me in at the end of the day and then I had to wait half an hour. This turned out to be a complete waste of time as the doctor was unsympathetic and chastised me for taking the corticosteroid. Turns out I have “Steroid-Induced Acne”. I then asked him for the referral to the private derm and he refused, telling me I needed to take tetracycline antibiotics for at least four weeks first and possibly up to six months!

So, I left the surgery and promptly had another panic attack in the car park. I didn’t bother collecting the prescription as I have no desire to go on long-term medication without a proper in-depth consultation. As the GP was very rushed and didn’t bother asking about my extensive history I was not comfortable with his treatment recommendation.

Anyway, fortunately the private derm has agreed to see me without a referral. I just need to remember as much of my medical history as possible when I attend. 

I’ve been using Sudocrem on the acne for the last three days now and it’s clearing up very nicely. Now there’s only a pale red patch, the pimples have gone. I’m using a natural moisturiser at night to (hopefully) prevent the eczema coming back. With any luck, by the time I see the derm my  face will have cleared up and I’ll only need to speak to him about my long-term eczema and seborrheic dermatitis.

I’ll keep the blog updated with my progress, in the meantime I have an overdue review coming up for you over the next few days. :)

Just a quick post to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a fantastic New Year! 

I received some lovely plant wax candles, neroli oil and an aromatherapy spa kit which I’m really chuffed with. 

I’d love to hear what readers got for Christmas, so feel free to comment and let me know. :)

So, I’m sitting here on the sofa and feeling thoroughly sick and tired of the sinus infection that has plagued me for the last week. I’ve been on antibiotics since Saturday and it would be nice to see some real improvement soon.

I’ve never had anything like this before. My hearing is muffled and the pressure behind my eardrums is extremely uncomfortable. Oddly enough, I’m fine in all other respects – no sore throat or blocked nose etc. 

To top it all off, that blasted rash has flared back up again. Maybe it’s because I’m under the weather, but I’m really upset as it was showing signs of finally clearing. I could go back to the GP, but I don’t feel very enthusiastic about that, largely because I’ll probably get fobbed off with yet another emollient. I would be extremely happy to never see another paraffin-based product ever again.

I’ve bought myself some more rose cream from Earthbound Organics as it’s been one of the most helpful products I’ve used for blemishes. It arrived on Saturday, but the postman couldn’t fit it through the letterbox and I haven’t had time to collect it today. I’ll get hubby to grab it on the way into town tomorrow.

A friend has recommended a good private dermatologist, but I won’t be able to afford that until at least February. It’s nice to know I have the option though. In the meantime, I’ll have to grit my teeth and bare it or, more likely, just not leave the house lol.

OK, not exactly flawless per se, but I’m relieved to say that, finally, this bothersome rash on my cheek is clearing up. I’ve been trying all sorts of things on it (and left it alone for as while as well) and I now seem to have found something that works.

I’ve no idea what the rash actually was in the end, but I noticed two stages to it’s disappearance. The first period when things started to improve was when I applied Maia’s Omnibalm several times a day. Though the rash didn’t get any smaller, it did stop feeling hot and tickly. I think my skin might actually have been broken underneath the surface and the Omnibalm helped it heal.

Still believing the rash to ultimately be an oily skin problem, I then switched to using my rosewater toner and Aubreys Oil-Balancing moisturiser on it. 24 hours later, the rash was less red and had started to dry up. As the moisturiser had not irritated me at all, I decided to try Aubreys matching “wet” clay mask just before bed. Amazingly, the rash looked even better still the morning after.

I now use the toner 2-3 times a day and the clay mask in the evening, which I leave on for up to an hour. The rash now looks like a couple of small red patches which will hopefully disappear entirely over the next couple of days.

Incidentally, although I say my skin isn’t flawless, it is looking the best it’s ever done as an adult. I currently have no acne at all and the few marks that were left from previous outbreaks are fading.

Now let’s just hope things stay this way. :)

I was stumbling through the ‘net as usual recently and got very excited over a natural toothpaste and mouthwash range that I’d not seen before from a company called Sarakan. I’ve used natural toothpastes in the past and haven’t been very impressed with them – they usually taste yucky and, more importantly, don’t seem to clean my teeth particularly well.

Even more exciting was that these products are available at my local Holland & Barrett. It’s not often I can just walk into a shop and pick up a truly natural product, so I was looking forward to popping into town and buying some.

However, one thing concerned me. The product page on the manufacturer’s website has the following statement:

SARAKAN Mouthrinse comprises the main ingredients of the toothpaste together with a well recognized anti-plaque bacterial agent.

Hmm… what could that be then? And why was the name of this ingredient not disclosed? I decide to look up the products on some other websites and finally found the full ingredient list:

Aqua, glycerine (vegetable), witch hazel, polysorbate 20, Salvadora persica, CPC, oils of peppermint, geranium and clove, chlorophyll.

After doing a little research, the “anti-plaque bacterial agent” appears to be CPC a.k.a Cetylpyridinium chloride - a chemical which is very toxic when swallowed or inhaled.

In addition to this, check out the ingredients for the toothpaste:

Glycerin (non-animal), aqua, calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, talc, Salvadora persica natural extract, Mentha piperita, Mentha arvensis, Eugenia caryophyllus, geranium, hydroxyethylcellulose, sodium phosphate, Methylparaben, CI 77491.

Oh dear, this one includes a paraben! That’s such a shame as the rest of the ingredients hold up well.

To be fair to Sarakan, their products are still a lot nicer than many of the common alternatives available on supermarket shelves and effective oral hygiene does require something with a bit of oomph. I would have felt a lot happier though if Sarakan had chosen to list the full ingredients on their own website – to exclude such information automatically generates suspicion on my part.

Last week, I decided to come off the pill and oh joy, my dandruff is back. It seems to have been under control these last few months, but over the last few days I’ve had the classic itchy scalp and flakes again. My apple cider vinegar and andiroba oil pre-rinse is preventing all-out disaster, but I may have to do a post-rinse as well.

Of course, it could be the sudden turn in the weather that’s doing it (boy is it nippy!), or the fact that most solutions I find stop working after a while. Looking back at my diary, I see that I used the vinegar with ylang-ylang to good effect earlier in the year, so perhaps I will switch back to that and see how it goes.

I’m off to the doctor later today to see about this rash on my face. While it sometimes calms down overnight, it’s just not going away. I intend to continue using natural products to treat it (the hydrocortisone wasn’t enough anyway), but I would like to get the doctor’s opinion on what it actually it.

Or maybe it’s caused by by spider bites. OK, I’m kidding, but I woke up to find one crawling up my neck last night. Have I ever mentioned that I hate spiders?

Answer: When it’s hazelnut oil.

Confused? All shall become clear soon. I stumbled across this disturbing article a few days ago and while it covers events starting almost two decades ago, the issues it discusses are undoubtably still current:

On August 10, 1991, a rusty tanker called the Mazal II docked at the industrial port of Ordu, in Turkey, and pumped twenty-two hundred tons of hazelnut oil into its hold. The ship then embarked on a meandering voyage through the Mediterranean and the North Sea. By September 21st, when the Mazal II reached Barletta, a port in Puglia, in southern Italy, its cargo had become, on the ship’s official documents, Greek olive oil. It slipped through customs, possibly with the connivance of an official, was piped into tanker trucks, and was delivered to the refinery of Riolio, an Italian olive-oil producer based in Barletta. There it was sold—in some instances blended with real olive oil—to Riolio customers.

Full article - Letter from Italy: Slippery Business

It’s worrying stuff and does nothing to ease the cloud of misinformation over what we put in and on our bodies. While it’s next to impossible to accurately determine if an oil is genuine, buying through smaller companies may be a safer bet. They are likely to have a closer, more personal relationship with their suppliers and thus be more confident of the origin of ingredients used within their products. Plus, you’re more likely to get an honest answer from a small company if you decide to query something. 

For a lot of people, this may ultimately not be a big deal. But where someone has a nut allergy or other important concerns over the oils used, it would be a good idea to ask before buying. If the company is unable (or unwilling) to clarify details, perhaps move on to something else intead.

Before I started using natural products, I never used anything on my face post-cleansing. After getting hooked on moisturisers, I gradually switched to using a toner in my routine as well. This was mainly because they looked so appealing and I simply can’t resist trying out new things, but over the last year I’ve been wondering about the necessity of this.

In a nutshell, toning isn’t an essential part of a routine. The main purpose is to remove final traces of dirt after cleansing but, unless your face gets incredibly dirty, that seems a bit pointless if you’ve cleansed properly. It’s also claimed that toners close pores after cleansing, but I’m not really sure they do this any better than simply splashing your face with cool water.

All that said however, the decision to use a toner is a personal one. I like how it makes my moisturiser go a bit further when if I apply it when my skin is still damp. I also think toners are great for spritzing onto a tired face throughout the day.

I think it’s important to take a look at what kind of toner you use as well. When you think of toner, an alcohol-based product with a variety of ingredients probably comes to mind. But a toner doesn’t have to be this complicated or harsh. Plain floral waters (or hydrosols) are a lovely alternative resulting from the distillation process of essential oils and are particularly good for people with sensitive skins. You can pick them up pretty cheap too!

I have a variety of toners to hand, which I switch between depending on how my skin is feeling. For regular use, I use a mild astringent to take care of my oiliness. I have a bottle of rosewater which I use for refreshment as needed. Finally, I have an alcohol-free mineral water and aloe based mist which is very soothing on hot, inflamed skin.   

So in conclusion, I personally like to use a toner, if not for the primary reason of being ultra-clean. It’s not a necessity and I don’t think my skin would care if I stopped using one, but it does enhance the use of my moisturiser and keeps me feeling fresh throughout the day.