Bloom & Bliss- celebrating Nature in skincare

As far as skincare goes, I do love active ingredients, which may or may not be natural, depending on the brand, but this month I decided to go the au naturel way, as i came across a local manufacturer of 100% natural skin and hair care products. In fact, I was gifted their charcoal face soap by a friend six months ago and then I recently received a beautiful Bloom & Bliss frankincense aura and room spray which decided me to go and visit the boutique design house and explore the products further.

Owner and producer Sandra Anderson always had a passion for healthy living, and went through her own journey towards health by a process of elimination- mainly taking away sugars from her diet, as well as inflammatory and harsh ingredients from any products that she used on her skin and hair. She started with making cold-pressed soaps using carefully selected natural and organic ingredients and then ventured into body butters and face lotions and creams. As the ingredients are all natural and there are no preservatives added, the products do have a shelf life, but if you keep them in a cool, dark place, they should keep well, and in any case, you'll probably use them up as they are so gorgeous.

I tried the Argan Oil moisturising body bar (I actually even washed my face with this) and loved it- the Body Butter in this range is rich with organic cocoa butter, shea butter, coconut and jojoba oils, beeswax, wheatgerm, lavender and ylang ylang essential oil. My skin loved this and I think R138 for 250mls is so reasonable for such a superior product.

I also tested the Face Lotion, which I mixed with a few drops of Collagen Boost Night Serum (organic Rosehip, apricot kernel organic argan, pomegranate, jojoba, tamanu, neem, frankincense and sandalwood essential oil- this is like Nature's Retin A). I loved using this combination after a good cleanse- which I obtained from using the Charcoal Face Wash (R135 for 150ml). My skin felt really smooth and soft the next morning - good for our dry winter months. There are other oils addressing various skin issues, i.e. the Anti-Acne oil, Barrier repair or SPF Day oil- all can be used with the basic face lotion.

The whole range is packaged beautifully- you'll love displaying any of these products in your bathroom- elegant, understated and recyclable packaging- Sandra also offers refills if you bring in your bottles.

Keeping up with the latest skincare trends, Bloom & Bliss also offer an Anti-ageing Mist with frankincense and Rose hydrasol. It can be used a s a toner to stimulate the skin, before applying face oils, but I have also misted it over foundation or BB cream. Love it. (R145 for 100ml)