Thought i’d share a little of what I learnt on Saturday 13th May, when the lovely Suzie from Soothe-Me hosted her wonderful Skincare Workshop in London Fields. I love getting back to nature wherever possible when it comes to beauty (because why not?).  I adore the products and love the philosophy of this East-End natural skincare brand.

“[Soothe-Me was] Created as a ‘natural alternative to big brand, mass-produced skincare. Soothe-me is designed to act like ’natural health food for the skin.”

We spent the morning learning about some of the beautiful ingredients that are used in Suzie’s award winning products.  After swatting up on a variety of clays and essential oils we were let loose to have a go at conjuring up our own bespoke face masks and hydrosols. SO much fun.

So what does a Clay mask do?

They are brilliant at cleansing and improving the texture of skin by gently polishing away dead and dull skin cells. It’s best to leave a clay mask on for about 4- 6 mins.

What is a Hydrosol?

They are a flower water and more specifically, a bi-product of the process used to make an essential oil. Therefore, a hydrosol contains a small amount of the essential oil (as well as the properties of that essential oil) benefitting your skin! You can spritz a hydrosol on your face after cleansing to hydrate and prep skin for moisturiser. You can also add hydrosols to clay and turn it into a lovely face mask!

I mix 1 heaped tsp of clay with approx 1/2tsp hydrosol to make a face mask

(add water until it looks like a paste)

WHAT CLAY IS GOOD FOR MY SKIN?

PINK CLAY – A gentle clay that re-balances the skin. Perfect for delicate and sensitive skin. The minerals in this clay help to refine and reduce the appearance of pores.

YELLOW CLAY – Another gentle clay, this is very smooth in texture and has wonderful healing properties. Excellent for dry skin and helping to ease symptoms of psoriasis and eczema.

GREEN CLAY – Really good at drawing out those pesky impurities! The most ‘absorbant’ and ‘drawing’ of all the clays. Tightens and lifts the skin (a mini face lift – hello!) Perfect for skin prone to breakouts and oily complexions.

RHASSOUL CLAY – Has a creamy texture and is great for dry skin. It can help draw out impurities and is known to tone skin and improve its resilience.

HERBS AND HERBS: TOP 3 ESSENTIAL OILS

So we also looked at selection of essential oils and hydrosols, discussing their benefits for the skin. Here are my favs! These are particularly perfect for reactive and sensitive skin types like me (Hi Rosacea peeps!)

GERANIUM – Suits all skin ‘types’. Rejuvenating and ant-inflammatory properties. Balances the skin and has a lovely uplifting aroma.

LAVENDER – Helps to balance the skin’s oil production levels. Soothes redness and irritation. Contains ant-septic properties. Has a lovely calming aroma.

ROSE – Calms redness, hydrates, soothes and balances the skin’s PH levels. Has a beautiful sweet, floral aroma.

WHAT DID I MAKE?

ON THE DAY

So on the day I blended 1tsp Yellow Clay with 1tsp of Rhassoul and added some geranium hydrosol to turn it into a paste. Skin felt soft and glowy! I was slightly red for about ten mins but was told this is completely normal as the Rhassoul boosts circulation and brings the blood to the surface of the skin.

FACE MASK & HYDROSOL TO GO

We then got to mix some clays together to take home, so i thought i’d mix 1 part Pink Clay, 1 part Yellow clay and 1 Part Rhassoul to get the most of all three worlds! I thought this blend would be good at balancing, soothing and purifying my skin in one go.

My hydrosol was made up of my 3 favs…Geranium, Lavender & Rose. I spritz it onto my skin most nights before bed. It has a lovely floral aroma and my skin feels soft and happy whenever I use it.

Thanks for reading – Hope this was useful!

Herbs and Herbs x

Suzie has another workshop coming up on 4th June 2017 in London! If you want to learn more in depth about natural skincare and make some fun products I highly recommend popping along.

There’s more information on her website www.soothe-me.com