Friday, January 21, 2011

Mama Loves, Baby Loves

There is such a variety of products on the market aimed at Mums, mums to be and babies… I of course get bedazzled by them all. One thing I did want though was something more natural. I became very mindful about what I put on my skin. Skin is the largest organ that we have, and everything we put on it gets absorbed in to our blood stream. I didn't want to add something to my skin that may possibly get in to my little bundle of love.

MAMA TARA LOVES: One of the best products I can recommend is almond oil. It is great at preventing stretch marks and for keeping your body lovely and hydrated. Also Vitamin E oil is great. Most pharmacies carry these. For my face I use Dr Haushka, their mud mask was great at keeping my skin clear. It can be a little pricey but I pick it up on e-bay at half the price. I also use their cleanser and their moisturizer quince day cream. Any eye cream with light reflecting particles in it will be a god sent for those days where you are running on no sleep. I use Nivea light reflecting eye cream. My make-up bag is very small, but I have a few key items I could never live without. I can put my make up on in the morning in 5mins flat.
If I have had a partially bad night I will use a dab of tinted moisturizer (Olay do a great one). I use it around my nose chin and forehead. I use YSL touché de clat under my eyes. Hoola bronzer by benefit applied with a big brush to the temples, under the cheek bones and the jaw line. I also sweep it down my neck. Curling your eye lashes makes your eyes look more awake. I usually add a dark navy eye liner to the top of my eyes. The blue brings out the whites in your eyes. Lastly mascara.
I always feel better with a tan, but so many of them are so full of chemicals so I searched everywhere and found a great one called True Bronze by Hamilton. It’s an Australian brand but again you can get it on the internet. It has walnut extract in it, which is a natural food dye. I found it had a pleasant smell and gave a natural even looking tan. One thing I would advise against is perfume (at least for the first 6 months of your little one’s life). They know us by our scent so by putting perfume on they are going to get confused. I even use a deodorant that is scent free.


BABY DYLAN LOVES: Ooh I just love baby products they look so cute and I wanted to buy everything for him. However DJ has very dry skin and is very sensitive. For the first 6 weeks of his life I used warm water and cotton wool for wiping his bum. I only stopped because his nappies got decidedly worse, and we needed to move on to something more heavy duty. So I use pampers sensitive. Almond oil again is just amazing and he loves it when I massage him before bed time with it. It’s also great for cradle cap. You just brush it out in the morning. Silcox base is also good for their dry skin. Vaseline is a great protector to put on their sensitive bums as a barrier. Sudocrem is good for nappy rash. Hamilton also does a great sunblock for a baby that’s good for sensitive baby skin. That’s about all I use on him. I had to change our washing powder too. He was getting very itchy and I couldn't understand why, until the Dr recommended changing our washing powder. There are some great eco-friendly ones that are very kind to the skin as well as the environment. Fairy non bio is also very good for sensitive skin. Just use half the amount you would usually use.

 
MAMA ANGI LOVES: Tara has taught me a huge amount about products for my face and body. Before I met her I did not really think about what I used all that much (which is strange because I am extremely conscious about the ingredients that go into my food, where those ingredients come from and how eco-friendly those ingredients, I point blank refuse to buy things with too much packaging) I was amazed that I had over-looked this area in my life, I only bought what I needed that was in budget. Needless to say I have been experimenting with new products trying to find more natural, ethical products that work on my skin. In some area’s I’ve had luck in others the search continues…  I love the Simple range and use a lot of their products. Wherever possible they exclude parabens, petrochemicals, alcohol, perfume and colours which are some of the biggest causes of skin irritation for Mothers and Babies. It seems they put in the bare minimum and still manage to achieve great results. I use the ‘Kind to skin facial wipes,’ and the ‘Deep cleansing face mask.’ I love the body shop for so many reasons. They do a rebate on packaging so you get product for recycling which means you can feel good you are doing a little something for mother earth every time you use their products. The have an amazing cleansing shower gel which I am hooked on. It is Divine Calm, made with French lavender, community trade camomile and essential oils. It is so relaxing and refreshing, it helps me wash away any anxieties I might be having about what I am going to try to get done that day along with any worries and concerns so I can start each day fresh and relaxed… if you ask me that’s good for Mamma and good for Bubby!

BABY AMELIE LOVES
I had a wonderful midwife in Holles Street Hospital. Amelie was born five days late with extremely cracked and dry skin, it was quite distressing for me. The midwife advised me that it was quite common for babies born late to have this problem. She kept me calm and gave me a few tips on helping Amelie’s skin recover.  Firstly she asked me to discard all the gallons of products we had been given as gifts or bought ourselves thinking it is what we would need when Amelie arrived. Secondly she recommended that we bath Amelie using only water for as long as possible and add a little chamomile tea to the water. This alternated with a little silcox base worked wonders for clearing up her dry skin and was also very calming. After her bath each night we massage her body with organic olive oil. When she is teething and has a nappy rash I put a dab of Sudocrem to clear it up but otherwise I only use Vaseline. I try to avoid wipes wherever possible and use cotton wool and water, if I have to use wipes for outings or very dirty nappies I like the Huggies Pure wipes with no purfumes petrochemicals or alcohol.


Hope this helps a little,

Tara, Angi and the Jetsetting Babies
xoxo


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