Thursday 18 June 2015

The Mermaid hour.




No matter how much I love nature, I'm not a country girl. Sure it's therapeutic to spend a weekend or even a week in the country, surrounded by fields and never ending rows of trees. However, most of my favourite shoes would get completely ruined by grass, not to mention hidden mudslides patiently waiting for the inexperienced. No, I truly am a city girl, that runs through fields of flowers strictly during morning meditation.
Being near the Ocean on the other hand is something that flips the switch, my shoes are completely forgotten and I don't even care if the salty water ruins my pretty blouse. Ever since I was a kid, before I could even swim, you couldn't get me out of the water, even when my lips would start turning blue I would insist that I was not cold. It wasn't a summer holiday if it wasn't spent by the sea. After the holidays were over, every bath time I would spend playing with my toy mermaid (no rubber duckies for this girl).
One of my favourite stories was 'little mermaid' by Hans Christian Andersen, not the Disney version, but the one where the ending is melancholy, the mermaid turns into sea foam. Every time I see a frothy wave I think of mermaids. It has been many years, and by all accounts I am a grown up, yet the idea of mermaids and secrets of the ocean still have not lost their appeal, I'm still mesmerised by the folklore. I can no longer spend every summer by the sea. It's more like a few days here and there. So I just cheat, I no longer have my toy mermaid, now I have a whole bunch of mermaid beauty products instead (and sounds of the ocean on my iPod).






Bulles et Mollecules sea salt soap. This soap looks like a slice of sea foam cake topped with spruce needles. The scent instantly brings back memories of a beach in Bodrum, with majestic pines providing coveted escape from the burning sun and clear cool water of Aegean sea. Bulles et Mollecules Sea salt soap has as much salt in it as it does oils, it is not as moisturising and doesn't lather the same way their other soaps do. Lather feels quiet creamy, yet the soap felt quiet scrubby the first few uses. It somehow feels more solid than their other soaps. I absolutely love using it, the scent and the texture are very refreshing, making my skin feel extra smooth. Salt helps soften hard water, so while this soap won't have quiet the same effect as soaking with bath salts, I find that my skin has been feeling really nice after using this salty bar. I find it is a really great choice for summer, on hot and sticky days showering with this bar feels like a lovely refreshing treat.




Leahlani Mermaid mask. Opening a pot of this superfood for your skin can be a tricky affair. In fact I had to wait until a pair of strong manly hands was available. There is a perfectly good reason for this, as it travels all the way from Hawaii (the land of summer), Leah tightens the pots extra tight to avoid this treasure spilling before it reaches you. When you do manage to open it, be prepared for your senses to play tricks on you. It smells a bit like a speciality marmalade with cardamom or something else to give it a little spice, but it looks like a handful of emeralds has been ground up and mixed with honey, and if you catch the light in the right way you can see them sparkle. The consistency of the mask will change somewhat depending on the weather, on this island it stays mostly solid, at the moment with slightly warmer temperatures it seems to have a consistency of wet mud, not quiet solid but not liquid either. To use it you need to scoop out a little from the pot with a spatula and mix with a little water before applying to your face, keep for 3-5 minutes and wash off. I find that I get pretty messy with this mask and always manage to get some on my hair, for that reason I use it just before a shower or while I am taking a bath. I like to imagine myself to be a mermaid masking with nourishing emerald green seaweed, Mr. RF on the other hand calls me the Hulk every time I am using it. I find this mask to be a great all rounder, it evens out the skin tone and clears my pores, while still leaving my skin feeling pretty well hydrated (I don't consider this to be a hydrating mask however, more a clarifying one that doesn't dry out the skin). This mask is pretty concentrated, I do find that my skin tingles sometimes, so I make sure to dilute with a little more water and scoop out only about a pea sized amount.





Mungo Murphy seaweed bag.* I must confess I was extremely intrigued by these sea-bags for quiet a few moths before taking the plunge. It has been a very interesting experience. Before you pop your bag into the bath you need to activate it so to speak. You need to put your bag into a pot of hot/boiling water and let it sit their for ten minutes, this rehydrates the seaweed and releases its natural oils, then you pour the contents of the pot (water, bag and all) into your bath water. Squeeze the bag to release extra oils and voila. Seaweed in the bath apparently can be used to treat skin imperfections, cellulite, and soften stiff muscles. I can honestly say that my muscles felt very relaxed, but I would need to use a few more bags before I can comment on the other claims. The smell is well like pretty strong seaweed ( a tad fishy), but only if you put your nose right next to the bag, mixed with all that water it was just vaguely reminiscent of the ocean, but honestly pretty much like taking a bath with no products. Water on the other hand felt so much softer, I wasn't expecting to enjoy it so much. I also gave my self a little rub down with the bag, it is just a muslin bag so it felt mildly exfoliating yet nourishing thanks to the seaweed oils that kept coming out. My skin felt pretty darn soft and there was no need for moisturiser. Apparently you can let the contents air dry and than use them as a body scrub, but in our tiny flat it didn't dry over night and it was becoming just a little too stinky, so it had to go before I could try it out.



Captain blankenship mermaid sea salt hair spray. I always find that my hair looks its best on a beach holiday, my natural waves are more pronounced, overall it looks more bouncy and full. Naturally, when I first came across a salt spray I figured that it would be a perfect solution and it would give me that holiday hair. The truth is while it did give me 'beach babe' hair, it was more of a 'hair just after a dip in the ocean' kind of look. While there is a time and a place for that sort of look, and I do like it in the summer on a relaxed lazying about in the park day, it was not exactly what I was longing for. Truth be told I was expecting Captain Blankenship spray to be similar to those other salt sprays, but it had a little trick up its sleeve. It actually delivered on those bouncy locks, even a little volume at the roots (if you choose to spray it there), without any stickiness. I can run my fingers through my hair with ease. As a cherry on top it actually smells pretty amazing, when I read that it contains essential oils of palmarosa and rose geranium, I was not all that sure (I have never liked any other products with palmarosa), but it has quickly become my favourite smelling hair product. The ingredients are pretty simple: water, pacific sea salt, aloe vera gel, organic sea kelp extract and those two essential oils. It is pretty much what you would expect from a sea salt spray with the exception of sea kelp extract, I am guessing the addition of this ingredient and how everything is combined together, is what makes this spray extra special and why it works so well.





Fig + Yarrow sea scrub. I am a little obsessed with body scrubs at the moment, this scrub in particular has been making me pretty happy. It has a fairly long list of ingredients, there is a lot going on in here but it feels like every ingredient has a purpose, they are not here just to bulk up the numbers. Here you will find salt from the Dead sea (the mineral composition of this salt differs from your normal sea salt and is considered to be more therapeutic for the skin), sea clay as well as coconut oil, shea butter and even Irish moss. It also contains rosemary leaf extract and five essential oils, including juniper and cypress. It is a real treat for your skin and your senses. The scent is mild yet distinctive, I find it very uplifting. The 170g jar seems pretty small for a body scrub but if you follow the directions, you are only supposed to extract a modest amount, and it has lasted pretty well. My skin really loves this stuff, it is like a scrub and a mudpack two in one, and even though the salt particles do seem a bit bigger than in some other scrubs, it never feels abrasive.

What do you guys think of my mermaid themed rituals? Anyone else get the calling of the ocean? Please share in the comments.

*affiliate link, it doesn't affect you in anyway, all it means is that if you do decide to purchase the product a small percentage will trickle down to me to help with the costs of the blog, we are not talking big bucks here but you never know I may become a millionaire! Oh just imagine how good the blog would look then!

14 comments:

  1. What a delightful post! I to love mermaids, my favourite are from Peter Pan and then the bright haired mermaid from HOOK. Also, how could I forget SPLASH. Anyway, I want to try all of this above. I love themed posts like this, and your writing is beautiful. I need to dip my toes in the see , right now! x

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  2. I wrote a mermaid-themed on my post recently as well! I'd love to try the Leahlani Skincare Mermaid Mask and the Captain Blankenship Mermaid Sea Salt Hair Spray.

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  3. Lovely post! I love spending time by the seaside - it's so refreshing and calming. All of these products sound lovely. xxx
    www.justemma.co.uk - natural beauty, affordable fashion, everyday life

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  4. Lovely mermaid post! I really want to try the Mermaid Mask from Leahlani, been on my wishlist so long!

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  5. Beautiful. Aside from the amazing selection of products you showcased, I loved learning more about you and the symbolic of the mermaid to you. I tried seaweed bath salts but the scent and yes it definitely brings a "fishy" scent in the air haha. I'm out of the mermaid mask, but it's only because I'm waiting for her new releases to place a new order. For some reasons, RMS Beauty's eye polish "Inspire" reminds me of mermaids too, with that blue metallic sheen. xx

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  6. Manchester Flik Chik25 June 2015 at 19:03

    All of these products sound wonderful and some even sound fun! I'd love to try some emerald coloured face scrubby goodness. I'm impressed with the sea salt spray. I used one once and although I loved that it activated and held my curls, I couldn't even my fingers through it! It's a shame we don't live somewhere that's really sunny to dry out our bath bags. Mine (from another company) also became too stinky in the flat - gah!

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  7. Thank you Liz! I admit I like Aquamarina even though it's a kiddy one, also you should see A girl in the water! So good. Xx

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  8. Will try and check it out! Both of these are real good, you should definitely give them a go.

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  9. My dream holidays are by the see, I always feel restored after. With city hols, sometimes I feel like I need a holiday to recover from my holiday :)

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  10. You still haven't tried it ? Shocking! You will like it, it has honey and spirulina xx

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  11. Thank you Liz! I feel the same way about inspire! Also waiting on thos Leahlani releases, pretty much out of my honey love :(

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  12. Yes bath bags would probably work in a big airy space, just not here! That is exactly how a lot of salt sprays seemed to work, I have been trying one other that is also really good and doesn't glue hair together. Maybe it's the new gen formula?

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  13. Manchester Flik Chik29 June 2015 at 13:17

    Ooh which one is that?

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  14. It's olivine love+salt ;)

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