A blog dedicated to natural skin care, chemical facts, home made DIY recipes, product information & reviews and other interesting, healthy, good for you, tidbits. Enjoy!
Some of you may remember the above quote from the Castrol GTX commercial.
Well it's a true statement. Not all oils are the same.
Take essential and fragrant oils for example, there are higher quality oils than others.
Using the picture above for reference, let me begin by saying if the oil sinks to the bottom as it does in pic.a it's not a high quality essential oil. Oils should float for a start so if it sinks chances are there is not much 'oil' in the product. Pic.a is actually a quality fragrant oil, and you will find most fragrant oils don't float and many are much more gluggy than the one pictured - typically these cheap oils are made to be used in oil burners. If you have an oil that sinks and is really gluggy/vicous it is NOT a high quality essential or fragrant oil.
Pic.b is olive oil. This is to give you an idea of how gluggy you don't want your essential oil to be. While olive oil, and many other natural oils, are good for moisturising the skin you don't want your essential oil to be so thick it doesn't absorb into the skin well.
Pic.c is a great quality essential oil. The oil floats on the top, it is not gluggy and it has that nice fine spread that works exceptionally well for absorbing into the skin.
Pic.d is also another high quality essential oil and has much the same properties as pic.c. When looking for a great quality essential oil look for oils that behave similarly to pic.d & c.
Hope that helps with choosing your fragrant or essential oils.
After spending a couple of days in the country in the middle of a Melbourne heat wave I looked down at my feet and cringed. The skin on my feet and heels was looking very dry, my toenails were out of shape, the cuticles were also dry and in obvious need of a good tending to.
The only thing to do was to give myself a "homemade" pedicure using JOLI Natural Skin Care products - and a couple of other non-JOLI (not so natural... oops) products.
Home pedicure with JOLI Natural Skin Care
What you'll need is:
a bucket large enough to house your feet comfortably
two tissues rolled into a sausage shape or a couple of toe dividers
Trim and file toe nails before you begin.
Fill the bucket up with warm to moderately hot water and add a tablespoon of salts. Find a spot that is comfortable and relaxing. This could be in front of the TV, on an outside swing chair, in your favourite recliner while listening to music. Spread the bath towel out on the floor and place the bucket on top.
Soak you feet in the water for 10minutes, until you start to see a prominent whitish greyish layer of skin on your feet - primarily the heels, pads and around the toes. Use the pumice stone to scrub away this dead skin until it's all gone. Repeat, soaking your feet and using the pumice if necessary.
Remove feet from the water and apply a dab of cuticle remover cream to each toe (cuticle area). Rub in slightly and allow to sit for a couple of minutes.
Using the flat part of your cuticle stick push your cuticles up towards the skin and gently scrap and remove the cuticles with the flat edge of the stick. After applying the cream your cuticles should come away nicely and cleanly, as the cuticle cream gently dissolves the excess skin. NEVER cut your cuticles - this makes them grow back thicker.
Using a 5-10c size dollop of Enliven Facial & Body Scrub, apply the scrub to one foot at a time. Massage the scrub thoroughly all over feet, top and bottom, paying special attention to areas where your skin gets hard. The Enliven Facial & Body Scrub leaves your feet feeling soft and amazing. It exfoliates while moisturising and smells great.
Re-soak your feet for a minute or two to wash away the cuticle cream. Remove feet from water and dry them thoroughly, making sure you dry between the toes. Excess moisture between the toes causes tinea and cuts in the toe folds.
If you're wearing nail polish remove the old polish with nail polish remover and a cotton pad. Wedge the tissues in between your toes, or use toe dividers. Paint your toes as desired.
You should now have gorgeous looking tootsies ready to show off to the world.
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Also: read an independent review of JOLI's products
I'm not sure if you've noticed JOLI Natural Skin Care are in the process of creating a whole new look website.
After calling out for independent reviews of the current website and getting some informative and valuable feedback JOLI decided it was time for an upgrade.
One of the things that was mentioned, and that I personally didn't like about the previous website, is the shopping cart was created by a different developer than the main website. This meant that when you moved from the main area to the Shop you were taken to what looked like a completely different site. Although it was all under the jolinatural.com.au URL the different look might have left customers feeling apprehensive, wondering if they had been redirected to some other site.
The new look website will have the shop and all relevant pages under the one site so there will be no feeling of being redirected.
The new look website will be cleaner and easier on the eye with some vibrant colours and imagery, and will also offer Guest Checkout, i.e. customers won't have to login or create an account in order to place an order. A quicker way to shop. Of course, those who set up an account will benefit from our Customer Loyalty Rewards and receive discounts on subsequent orders (offered only to those with accounts) and they will have access to their order information.
On the flip side. If you had an account on the previous JOLI website you will no longer have access to your old account. Though, rest assured, at JOLI we keep a record of what Customer Loyalties you're up to so you won't lose out in that regard. Those who are VIP's will still enjoy their VIP benefits and we will be introducing a NEW VIP Club where you'll be eligible for considerable discounts when you sign up.
As of 1pm 6th March 2013 the website is still parked while we wait for security to be installed, and should be viewable with in a few hours (so we're told). After which it will take a little while for the store to be up and running, still lots to implement behind the scenes. You will see a notification that the website is not taking sales. In the meantime orders can be placed via email and our Facebook Shop.
That is our exciting news for now. We thank you for being part of our journey and would love to hear your thoughts on our new website.
5. SHARE the comp on Facebook to earn extra entry points
Please Note: JOLI only ships nationally - within Australia.
COMPETITION NOW CLOSED. Thank you ALL who took part in this awesome comp. We thank you for your support. A Winner has been randomly chosen and announced on our Facebook pages.
Thanks again xo
If I say words like triclosan, triclocarban and triethanolamine [TEA or TEOA] are you familiar with them? Have you heard of them before? Do you know what they do?
Ttriclosan, triclocarban and triethanolamine are ingredients you'll find in antibacterial products that claim to kill 99% of germs. They are in germ killing liquid soaps, hand sanitizer lotions and the like. Go NOW and check your germ killing products to see if these ingredients are in them!
Aside from being harmful / hazardous chemicals to begin with... these, and other, germ killing agents annihilate your bodies own defense mechanisms.
Each person has their own germ killing agents all over their body and particularly on their hands. What your own natural germ killing agents do is stop things like flu and cold germs (and other viruses) invading your body. They fight invisible battles on your behalf to stop you getting sick. It is the same for your children, babies, husband, wife, mother, son... everyone!
When you use products that kill 99% of germs you are also killing off your bodies own natural defense mechanism (your minature knights in shining armour if you will) which leaves you and your family OPEN to virus invasion. You are more likely to get sick if you use products that kill 99% of germs than you are if you use plain soap and water and allow your body to build up it's own defense mechanisms.
You are unprotected when you kill off 99% of germs ~ image by JOLI
This is where the super-bug stems from. Man has created so many germ killing agents that germs are continually mutating to avoid being killed off. Germs are very adaptable like that. They want to live as so they change and alter themselves so they can live through doses of 99% germ killing agents. The thing is: Your own natural germs die once they come in contact with these ingredients! Leaving you defenseless against the onslaught of germs.
KEEP this in mind when reaching for the Detol, Pine O Cleen, Hand Sanitizer, Palmolive Antibacterial Defence Liquid, other antibacterial hand washes, germ killing wipes and ALL THOSE other products that claim to "Kill 99% of germs".
Subscribe to JOLI's *Indulgence* [Australian Residents]
Usually I don't write a lot about cancer even though it is one of the main reasons behind the creation of JOLI Natural Skin Care (avoiding carcinogenic ingredients). However, three people I know have recently had surgery to remove basal-cell carcinoma (skin cancer).
This got me wondering what is basal-cell carcinoma [BCC]?
Basal-cell carcinoma is one of the most common forms of cancer and most often occurs in fair skinned people with a family history of this type of cancer. Scary for me since both my Aunt and my mum (sisters with fair skin and freckles), have had BCC's removed.
Most experts attribute sun exposure and/or getting sun burnt to be one of the main causes of skin cancer and believe prevention is the best cure. That is: no getting burnt, no spending excess time exposing your skin to the sun and using SPF sun creams [slip, slop, slap].
I, personally tend to be wary of the use of sunscreens since many contain carcinogenic ingredients and nano technology to help those ingredients get deeper into our blood stream. I feel like I'm damned if I do damned if I don't. And what do I do with my children? Use sun block on them and risk them getting cancer or don't use it and risk them getting basal-cell carcinoma? Urgh!
Note some interesting Skin Cancer Facts:
* 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer during their life time.
* 2-4% of Asians will develop skin cancer.
* 1-2% African Americans will develop skin cancer (note the darker the skin the less likelihood of developing skin cancer)
* While Asians and African's do not develop skin cancer as often as fair skinned people their cancer is more likely to result in death. [This probably has a lot to do with their health care (or lack thereof) in general.]
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Have you or someone you know experienced basal-cell carcinoma? Was fair skin a factor? Was sun worship a factor? Was applying sun cream or lack thereof a factor?
Does your face have lots of smile lines? Serious frown lines? Furrows from your nose down to your mouth? Pursed lines around your mouth? Lines wiggling across your forehead (a trait I share with actor Matt Dillon)? Every face tells a story…
fine lines around the eye area
When I was a teenager I saw an elderly lady who had serious frown lines and looked like she’d been angry and frowning just about all her life (must be a mother... lol). Another elderly lady’s face broke into a web of
happy lines when she smiled.
At the time I was thinking I’d like to end up like the second lady, though it’s far more likely I’ll end up like the first. I am constantly frowning:
when my computer plays up, when I’m vacuuming and the curtains get sucked up
into the vacuum, when my children aren't doing as I ask, when the sun is in my eyes, when I’m concentrating - and I concentrate a LOT! What do my wrinkles say about me??
Whatever story your face tells it is inevitable the story will be written on your face in a network of lines that will become more prominent as you age. The aim of the game is NOT to stop aging altogether, since we all know this is impossible. The aim of the game is to tell the story as gracefully as YOU can.
Gorgeous products such as Rich Cream and Whipped Cream Moisturiser, Skin Serum and Light Moisturiser will help soften the furrows, keep your skin supple and stop your
skin from drying out – one of the MAIN cause of premature ageing. The more hydrated you keep your skin (by drinking plenty of water and applying hydrating creams) the more
likely your skin will continue to spring back. The longer you keep your skin hydrated over the years the longer you ward off those serious wrinkles, you know... the ones that make you look a little older than you really are.
Another thing to do to help, though you might find this a little kooky, is smile when ever you feel yourself frowning. Not a big cheesy grin where all the crows feet come out to play. Just a slight smile on your mouth to help remove the furrow on your brows. You will notice It is almost impossible to smile and frown at the same time. Try it :-)
I've heard of some women going to great lengths never to pull any serious facial expressions and to never show any serious emotions to ward off wrinkles. Though I can't imagine what character building this would show on their faces? I've heard of people sleeping on satin pillows because this reduces creases on our faces while we sleep.
What tactics do you employ to reduce lines on your face (aside from using JOLI’s gorgeous products of course)?
Deluxe Bath Serum - Contemplation ~ 125ml
Soothing, enticing and moisturising while you soak… Naturally.
With a slight bubbling lotion (more so if you have a jet stream or
spa bath) this deluxe serum contains essential oils to promote a relaxed
contemplative mental state. The perfect state of mind when enjoying a
warm bath.
Also moisturising and sensual Deluxe Bath Serum is a must have product for your bathroom.
WIN a gorgeous bottle of JOLI's Deluxe Bath Serum, a seriously divinely decadent bath product you'll simply fall in LOVE with.
Condition of entry: you must be a LIKER of our JOLI page to be eligible to win. Open to Australian residents only.
Share the comp to win extra entry points to increase your chances of winning.
