Seven Wonders Natural Haircare

Seven Wonders is an Australian brand which has recently (within the last few months) shown up at Health 2000 in Lower Hutt. The products are:

Sulphate-free Cleansing Shampoo 250ml $21.99
Sulphate-free Moisturising Shampoo 250ml $21.99
Natural Volumising Conditioner 250ml $21.99
Natural Moisturising Conditioner 250ml $21.99
Detangling Moisture Spray 250ml $22.99
Natural Protein Treatment 125ml $21.99
Leave-in Moisturiser 125ml $19.99
Thermal Protectant Spray 250ml $27.90
Anti-Frizz Creme 125ml $25.50
Gloss Serum 50ml $33.50
Styling Gel - $22.95
Sculpting Wax - $33.50

Favourite product of winter

I’m a bit late in posting this (winter ended nearly a month ago), but the best beauty product I tried in winter is Trilogy Botanical Moisture Masque for dry hair. It’s wonderfully moisturising, and it has a gorgeous coconut scent. It contains nourishing ingredients such as marshmallow extract, coconut oil, avocado oil, and olive oil, and it costs $29.95 for 95ml.

Stuff that smells like coconut

Coconut smells yummy, and makes me think of tropical islands! Try these products for a scent of the tropics.

Trilogy Botanical Moisture Masque for Dry Hair 95ml $29.95 – A thick moisturising hair treatment with a divine coconut scent.


Ecostore Coconut Soap 80g $3.70 – A gentle soap with natural coconut fragrance.



Alba Botanica Hawaiian Coconut Cream Lip Balm 4.2g $8 – A yummy-tasting vegan lip balm.

Product reviews: Products from Ikigai

I previously mentioned Ikigai, a great online organic skincare boutique. The people at Ikigai sent me some products to review. Here is what I got:

- Pangea Organics Egyptian Geranium with Adzuki Bean & Cranberry Facial Scrub (full size)
- Two 10ml sachets of John Masters Organics Lavender & Avocado Intensive Conditioner
- Two 10ml sachets of John Masters Organics Honey & Hibiscus Hair Reconstructor
- Two 10ml sachets of John Masters Organics Citrus & Neroli Detangler

I have heard good things about Pangea and John Masters products, so it was great to be able to try these products out. Here are the reviews:


Pangea Organics Egyptian Geranium with Adzuki Bean & Cranberry Facial Scrub

Packaging: A squeezy recyclable plastic tube with a flip-top cap in a cardboard box embedded with seeds – You can plant the box!
Price: AUD$39.95
Size: 110ml
Suitable for: All skin types
Available at: Ikigai website
Pros: Gentle, smells nice, generous size, plantable box!
Cons: None

Verdict: I have been using this weekly, and it is nice and gentle, but also effective. It leaves my skin feeling soft and smooth, and it smells good too. I think it is very cool that the box can be planted. I haven’t done this; I’ll have to get onto it. When it is planted, medicinal herbs will grow (the same herbs which are used in the product). Nice!


Note: The reviews for the haircare products give details of the price and packaging of the full size products; I tried the sample sachets.


John Masters Organics Lavender & Avocado Intensive Conditioner

Packaging: A squeezy recyclable plastic tube with a flip-top cap
Price: AUD$40.50
Size: 207ml
Suitable for: Dry hair
Available at: Ikigai website
Pros: Moisturising, non-greasy
Cons: None

Verdict: I have dry hair which tends to get frizzy, so this was really good for my hair. It says to leave it in for 1 – 5 minutes, and I left it in for about 2, which worked well.


John Masters Organics Honey & Hibiscus Hair Reconstructor

Packaging: A squeezy recyclable plastic tube with a flip-top cap
Price: AUD$51.60
Size: 118ml
Suitable for: Very dry, damaged or colour-treated hair
Available at: Ikigai website
Pros: Very moisturising, nice smell
Cons: None

Verdict: My hair is not colour-treated, but it is pretty dry, so using this helped give it some much-needed moisture. It is supposed to be left in for 2 – 4 minutes, and I usually left it in for around 2 minutes.

John Masters Organics Citrus & Neroli Detangler

Packaging: A recyclable plastic bottle
Price: AUD$29.99
Size: 236ml
Suitable for: Dry or fine hair
Pros: Very thick and moisturising, amazing smell
Cons: None

Verdict: The instructions say that this is to be left in for 1 – 3 minutes, but also that it makes an excellent leave-in conditioner. I used it as a leave-in conditioner. It is very thick, adds a lot of moisture to the hair, and smells very yummy!


Thanks to the people at Ikigai for sending me these great products! They came at just the right time, because I was almost out of face scrub, and my hair had been getting very dry, so using the John Masters products helped with that.

Teen products

When you're a teenager, your skin can really start acting up. Oiliness, blackheads, pimples, clogged pores...not fun. Not all teenagers get acne, but it is pretty common. A lot of teens are also on a tight budget, so I'm focusing on affordable skincare, bodycare, and makeup.

A foaming cleanser is best for acne-prone, oily or combination skin types. Try Sukin Fomaing Facial Cleanser, $12 for 125ml, or Natural Instinct Foaming Facial Cleanser, also $12 for 125ml.

A good ingredient for oily skin is witch hazel, which can be found in both of the above cleansers, as well as in a lot of toners, such as Natural Instinct Toner, $12 for 125ml.

Natural Instinct Aloe Vera Gel ($12 for 125ml, and $19 for 250ml) works well as a moisturiser, and Weleda Iris Moisture Cream, $23.50 for 30ml, is also good, as it contains witch hazel.

Exfoliating two or three times a week helps get rid of dead skin cells which might otherwise clog your pores. Try Skinfood Exfoliating Scrub, $9.99 for 100ml, or Sukin Facial Scrub, $12 for 125ml.

Once or twice a week, after exfoliating, use a clay or mud face mask to draw out impurities. Skinfood Mud Masque, $9.99 for 100ml contains clay, and Rotorua mud. Clear as Mud Face Mud contains bentonite mud from Parehaka. It's $4 per sachet, or $24.99 for a box of ten sachets.

Some teens have dry skin. A creamy cleanser is better for dry skin. Try Skinfood Cleans All Cleanser, $9.99 for 100ml, Sukin Cream Cleanser, $12 for 125ml, or Natural Instinct Cream Cleanser, $12 for 12ml. For moisturiser, try Skinfood Nourishing Moisturiser, $9.99 for 100ml, Sukin Moisturiser, $12 for 125ml, or Natural Instinct Moisturiser, $12 for 125ml.

There are a lot of great natural body washes out there. One of the most affordable ones is Pure Innosenses Shower Gel, $11 for 375 ml, available in Reviving (Chamomile and Feijoa), Relaxing (Lavender and Iris), Energising (Rosemary and Citrus), and Hydrating (Peach). Also great is Sukin Botanical Body Wash, $12.99 for 250ml, $16.99 for 500ml, and $24.99 for 1 litre.

Pure Innosense Body Lotion is also pretty good. It's $12 for 375ml, and is available in Reviving (Chamomile and Feijoa), Relaxing (Lavender and Iris), Summer Skin (a gradual tanning lotion, scented with vanilla and mandarin), and Sensitive Skin (fragrance free). I like Sukin Hydrating Body Lotion, $12.99 for 250ml, and $21.99 for 500ml.

Not all natural makeup is expensive, so for teens on a budget, here are some options:

Foundation: Natio Mineral Loose Foundation (available in Beach Sand, Desert Sand, and Sunset) 10g $23

Blusher: Natio Mineral Blusher (available in Sweet Petal) $16 , Natio Mineral Brush N Blush (available in Rose) 3.1g $15

Eyeshadow: Natio Mineral Sparkle Dust Eyeshadow Compact (colours are Pink, Aubergine, Copper, and White) 0.3g $18 , Natio Mineral Eye Shimmer (available in Silver, Rose, Lilac, and Gold) 1.5g $15, SHE Australia Dusting Powders (not specifically for eyes, but could be used as eyeshadows. Available in quite a few shades, not sure what they all are.) $12.95

Bronzer: Natio Mineral Pressed Powder Bronzer (available in Sunswept) 18.1g $23

Lip colour: Alba Terratints Lip Balm (available in Blaze, Bloom, Dawn, Garnet, Sienna, and Sunset, although I've only seen it in Blaze, Bloom, and Sienna) 4.2g $8.9

Nail Polish: SHE Australia Nail Varnish (available in fourteen colours, not sure what they are) $14.90

I haven't yet come across any particularly low-cost natural concealers, eyeliners or mascaras.

Stockists

Sukin: Commonsense Organics, Health 2000, Farmers

Natural Instinct: Homestead Health, various pharmacies

Skinfood: Woolworths, Foodtown, Countdown, New World

Natio: Farmers, various pharmacies

SHE Australia: Various pharmacies

Alba Botanica: Commonsense Organics, Homestead Health

Pure Innosense: Various Pharmacies

Hair masks

Once a week I use a hair mask - Giovanni Nutrafix Hair Reconstructer -instead of a conditioner. It's $22.50 for 200g. It is intended for hair that has been colour treated, and heat styled a lot, which mine isn't, but it is quite dry with a tendency to get frizzy, so the mask helps with that.

Some other options:

$20 and under: A'kin Ginkgo & Jojoba Intensive Moisture Vitamin Mask 150ml $15.30

$30 and under: Trilogy Botanical Moisture Mask for dry hair 95ml $29.95

$40 and under: MOP Extreme Moisture Treatment 200ml $32, MOP C-System Reconstructive Treatment 200ml $37