Summer Natural Beauty Routine

Last time I shared my natural non-toxic beauty routine was in October 2018…?! Can you believe it?! A lot of what I shared in that post is still very much true and current.

I believe beauty starts from within, what you put inside your body reflects on the outside, whether you like it or not. I eat a varied whole foods plant-based diet (I also do indulge in some processed foods here and there, I’m not a saint, and we love to eat out, I just try and keep it as close to whole foods as possible most days) I make sure I drink lots of water, I don’t have that much-processed sugar, I try and eat organic when I can, and I look after my gut health which is directly linked to your skin health (and overall health and immunity for that matter) - I will write a separate blog post about this soon, I’ve got a lot to say about it!

I’m in the middle of reading the book “Fibre Fueled” which I want EVERYONE to read, the secret to great health is all laid out in there and in a nutshell it’s pretty simple and goes like this : Plant Diversity. Eat the rainbow, eat a wide variety of plants! But I’ll let you read it for yourself because it debunks a lot, and it’s full of truth bombs. No diets, just an abundance of beautiful colourful plants for optimal health.

So if you haven’t read my “Back to Basics | Natural and Vegan Skincare” post, then definitely have a look as I stand by all the tips and products I shared in there, but as with everything I like to change it up and try new ones, which is where this post comes in.

Below are the few products I’m using exclusively at the moment - this is my summer routine, it’s lighter than what I would maybe need in the Winter in London (maybe I’d add a cream, or use my rosehip oil, because London winters can be very drying) I’m in the sun and I swim a lot recently, and I generally find that in the summer my skin needs very little.

I | CLEANSE

The first step in my routine is cleansing. If I’m in the countryside like right now, I really only cleanse my skin at night to get rid of any dirt, sweat and sunscreen from the day. However, in the morning, I find that just splashing my face with cold water is enough - I have very sensitive skin and it does best when I do less to it!

I still love to oil cleanse, and I mostly do so when I’ve been wearing makeup or feel like I need a deeper clean (see step by step in this post) I’ve been using the “Everyday Oil” (which by the way I use on EVERYTHING, more on that later) and a cotton cloth.

But most days, I just like to use a little natural soap made of plant oils and water - nothing fancy. I feel like it doesn’t strip my skin of its natural oils, it’s incredibly gentle. My new favourite is this one from this new local brand called “Les Inspyrees” I found at a little market the other day… It’s made of Olive oil, Babassu oil and Shea butter (organic, responsibly sourced and 100% biodegradable)

If not I’d just recommend finding locally made vegetable oil soaps, the least ingredients the better. This one also has no scent with no essential oils which is great for very sensitive skin and the whole family including babies.

I like to wash my face with lukewarm to cold water, and always end of very cold to freshen and tighten the skin. Then I pat dry (no rubbing!) with a clean towel.

II | TONE

Next step in the process is to tone the skin.

Again I fell in love with the toner from “Les Inspyrees” - it’s a floral water made with fresh lavender flowers and has many healing properties. It’s calming, purifying, healing (great for acne-prone and sensitive skin for example) and incredibly hydrating.

It smells so so good, I love anything lavender. I’ve also shared what I use as a toner in my other blog post, you can make your own!

I’ve also shared in a recent collaboration, I often just use this thermal spring water spray (I’m not sponsored to add this into a blog post, I genuinely use this all the time and have done so for years!) to tone the skin. It’s full of minerals and microorganisms which calms the skin, it also has many healing properties and it’s simply just thermal spring water. As a matter of fact I mainly have used this to tone and prep my skin until recently when I got this new lavender one a few days ago.. I still use the spray through the day, it’s so refreshing!

III | MOISTURISE

In the summer as I mentioned above, I like to keep it simple and I feel like my skin needs a lot less. It’s not as dry and it feels much more balanced than in the cold winters. I think being in the countryside in the sunshine and swimming in open water also had a lot to do with it (my skin is always less happy in London with the air polution, and incredibly hard water) all those beneficial bacteria and sun rays are great for the skin (sun of course in moderation)

I have been using hyaluronic acid for the better part of the year and have loved the gentle hydrating effect it has. It’s a naturally occurring molecule in your skin, which acts like a sponge to help the skin retain all it’s water and hydration. Naturally, as our skin ages it is depleted in hyaluronic acid which makes the skin look less plump.

I was told the KEY to using hyaluronic acid is to use it on damp skin (otherwise it might have an opposite effect and suck up the moisture from your skin..which you don’t want!) So you want to basically ‘sandwich’ it between moisture.

So Step 1 : spritz the face with a facial mist (I simply just use my toner step above with the lavender water spray or the Avene spring water spray!) Step 2: apply the product and Step 3: spritz once more with moisture on top! The secret to plump hydrated skin. Adding water to this step is essential.

Once I’ve added the hyaluronic acid, I have started using an eye cream.. because 30 is fast approaching, and I was always told my mum if you do one thing and one thing only, get a good eye cream! Mum is always right, so I did just that and I absolutely adore this one by Mad Hippie (love this brand - another product by them that I use maybe once a week or more is this Exfoliating serum, makes my skin feel silky smooth)

Following this, I like to add an oil, at the moment I really love using plant-based Squalane which comes from Olive oil. (very important to make sure it’s a plant-based sourced, spelt SqualAne and not SqualEne) again squalEne is an oil that’s naturally produced by your sebaceous glands, which means it’s very easily absorbed into your skin and locks moisture in (I’m ALL about locking that moisture in as you can tell!) I’ve had a history of reacting to certain oils sometimes which can give me tiny little bumps on my forehead. I’m not sure if it’s linked to the oil or something else to be honest - I think it’s called malassezia folliculitis, it comes and goes BUT Squalane oil is one of the only oils that I know doesn’t make me react or make it worse, but that’s a story for another day perhaps.

IV. BODY

Final step is to hydrate the rest of my body, and to do so I just love using oils. Again, oils are amazing and generally much cleaner and natural that a cream (creams tend have a lot of things added to them to give them texture and keep them as such) with natural oils, you just can’t go wrong.

A little tip : apply your oils straight out of the shower on damp/wet skin, it will apply much easier, it will emulsify with the water and soak in very fast.

My two favourites are : the Everyday Oil - smells absolutely divine, palo santo/sage/lavender goodness, as I mentioned I like to use it on my face and hair too, and I can’t fault it. I love the beautiful amber glass bottle and everything about it.

My second favourite is the Liha Idan oil, I met the girls behind Ilia last year and fell in love, I love their ethos and the products they produce are just so natural and beautiful. This oil is a naturally scented coconut oil (which hardens depending on the temperature but I just simply warm it up to apply it easier) it’s scented with a tuberose flower which you can see in the glass bottle. Incredibly hydrating, it’s great for the tips of my hair too. Smells like summer, I sometimes apply a little to my neck as a perfume!

I also just like to apply these two to everywhere, body, nails and hair!

Simple but effective! I truly believe we do not need a 36 step beauty routine, I believe our skin knows what to do if you give it half the chance. The less crap I put on it the better it does, I just focus on hydration - and remember it all starts from within! No cream or oil is going to help if you’re parched from within, so drink up, eat the rainbow and save yourself some expensive creams! I’ll be back with a Winter routine later this year, or when I’ve got new products I’ve found and love. What are some of your favourite natural products?