Natural Beauty Products

In the past I was never much for natural beauty products. I used a lot of drugstore products, with a few splurge-worthy department store products mixed into my routine. Over the past little while though, I have been starting to use more and more natural products. I haven't totally tipped the scales towards natural products, but I find I've been adding a more and more into the mix, especially in terms of hair-care and body products.

I think it started when I was pregnant, and every night I would smear shea butter all over my big belly to prevent stretch marks. I know the scientific literature says that stretch marks are mostly genetic, and if you're going to get them, you're going to get them, but I thought at least trying to keep my skin nice and moist and supple could help mitigate them if I was going to get them. I'm happy to report that I didn't get any stretch marks (probably more down to lucky genes), but I did fall in love with shea butter along the way. I now use it as a hand and cuticle cream, and sometimes on my face as an under-eye cream, or to help an pesky dry spots clear up. My favourite shea butter is from L'Occitane but it is expensive! I've also had good luck with this that I ordered off of Well.ca. The packaging is not as pretty, but the texture and quality of the product is lovely.

I've also started using oils as body moisturizers. I started out with a jar of coconut oil, but wasn't really pleased with it. I find the texture of coconut oil too greasy and the smell, though nice, too over-powering. Now I use sweet almond oil. I buy a bottle from my local natural foods store, and I like that it absorbs quickly and leaves no real smell behind. I've also just bought my first bottle of pure argan oil. I've always been intrigued to try it, but the cost of the pure oil turned me off (and so many other products with it as an ingredient seemed to be full of silicones and other fillers). I discovered an amazing Canadian skincare line called The Ordinary and you can get a bottle of argan oil for $6.80. (More about this amazing company to come...) Now I use it mostly on my very dry hair, but I think I might start experimenting with oils as part of my facial skincare routine. I've always been reticent to use oil on my face as I have breakout-prone skin, but I know other people who have really seen an improvement in their skin using oils, so I think I might try.

Do you use any natural beauty products? Any good tips?

XOXO

P.S. I recently ordered this shampoo and this conditioner. And this leave-in conditioner too. I'm really happy with all three! (This post is not an ad for Well.ca, they are just one of my favourite sites for buying good quality beauty and skincare products.)