Stacey is the blush-enthusiast editor of Add to Cart. Behind the cheeky name referring to her frequent online beauty purchases, Add to Cart is full of reviews that are as entertaining as they are informative. It’s hands down one of the blogs with the most personality we’ve come across and is riotous fun to read. Stacey’s blog is like a sweet and witty friend that helps you decide what products to get your hands on stat – and looks good in a puffy dress. You can and should follow Stacey on Twitter and catch her on Instagram at addtocartblog.

(Image from here)

While you’re scratching your head thinking a) What have I done to deserve this? and b) How did this happen?, it’s always helpful to remember that your skin isn’t an island: if you’ve been eating less than well, not getting enough sleep, feeling stressed out, it’s going to show inside and out – and out means on your face and body.

The more products you use as part of your skin care routine, the harder it will be to pinpoint the culprit when things go bad – and it may in fact not be a single product that your skin disagrees with, but a combination of ingredients from different products. Bah! What to do?

If you’re having a skin emergency, this list from Well + Good will be helpful. Retrace your steps. Think: what have you changed (skin care, diet, etc…), what’s going on in your life?

And to start fixing it you ask? Here’s what we would do: first, look honestly at your routine and see if you can simplify it – your skin needs a cleanser, toner, moisturiser and ideally sunblock. Are you doing more than this? Do you really need to be doing more? The more products you use, the higher the chances you are over processing your skin (and you don’t want to do that – it can lead to irritation, dullness, and ultimately premature cell ageing as your skin struggles to balance itself).

After your long honest look at your routine, you could try to take one product out and replace it with an all natural product – keep using the newbie for at least 1 week, ideally 2 so your skin can give you some feedback. Once you have a pretty good idea of how your skin is reacting try to substitute another product – what we’re doing here is trying to remove offending harsh ingredients out of your routine and give your skin a chance to calm down. It doesn’t hurt while you’re in recovery to pilfer your kitchen for some avocado and give yourself a fruity masque, or raw honey if you have it.

By the time you’ve cycled through every product in your routine and tried a more natural alternative, you will see some changes – natural skin care is more effective and nutritious for your skin because it contains no fillers, no colours etc… You will also have tackled the problem one step at a time – instead of trying to impulsively solve the problem by changing everything. Skin can be a riddle but by keeping your routine simple and the number of ingredients you use as low as you can, you’re increasing the odds towards enjoying healthy and glowing skin, daily.

Remember to feed your skin from the inside as well by eating plenty of fresh fruit & veg (green smoothies!), and drinking water or herbal tea regularly – but you knew that already clever you!

If your skin is zen, predictable and well-behaved then you’re obviously not a human you didn’t need to read all this. And we’re very jealous of you right now.

Do you have any tricks to keep your skin gorgeous day in day out? Or do you tend to make it up as you go along?

(Image from here)

This week we’ve got something else for you: a tasty list of extra bits and pieces to throw into your smoothies to change them around and make them special. Sometimes slight tinkering can make a big difference in taste! Read on…

Have you tried…?

Fresh herbs/sprouts

• Coriander
• Mint
• Parsley
• Alfalfa
• Broccoli

Spices

• Vanilla
• Nutmeg
• Anise
• Cinnamon
• Cardamom
• Ginger

A little sweetness

• Dates
• Honey
• Stevia

A splash of fruit juice

• Lemon
• Lime
• Pineapple
• Apple
• Orange

Or fruit chunks

• Mango
• Berries
• Watermelon
• Apple
• Melon
• Peach

Varying your base

• Oat milk
• Almond milk
• Soy milk
• Coconut water
• Yoghurt and ice

Adding some good fats

• Flaxseed oil
• Coconut oil
• Peanut butter
• Almond butter
• Olive oil (go easy)

Super foods

• Raw cacao
• Maca
• Protein powder
• Chia seeds

Some fun snippets from last week:

This time the boldness award goes to Miss Lexi for adding raw broccoli into her green smoothies – the ingenious little lady also used coconut water instead of plain filtered.

Dee still puts yours truly to shame with her blending skills and the beautiful shades of green she creates – check in her week 1 and week 2 summaries for her thoughts on the challenge so far.

Busy mums Jade and Anissa also joined in the fun and hopefully enjoyed renewed energy to care for their little cherubs.

Julie coined the phrase ‘wine glass irony’ (achieved by drinking a green smoothie in a wine glass) and managed to get her husband on board.

Mira’s Hand photos of her green smoothies in doubled wall glasses are worthy of framing and hanging on the wall (healthy is beautiful!).

When the challenge finishes in two days, we’re thinking of keeping going – we’re feeling so good! What about you? Are those eyes sparkling yet? Have you noticed any changes in your energy levels or otherwise?

(Image from here)

What are your favourite things to do to keep well during the hot months?

I feel like most people would say ‘GO TO THE BEACH!’ during this question, but since I grew up about 4.5 hours inland, I rarely had the luxury of doing so!

I make sure I drink a lot of water, and I tend to ramp up my fresh juices and smoothies in this time too. One of my favourite things to do is spray a facial mist all over my face and body and stand in front of a fan. Blisssss. I like the Echolife Lavender mist, the Sodashi Balancing face mist and the Be Genki Serenity Mist.

A healthy and balanced summer recipe you’re loving?

I’m a real creature of habit, so green smoothies of course. I’ve been cooking up some quinoa with pumpkin seeds and having that with blueberries and strawberries. The great thing is you can have it for breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert. It’s really yummy and versatile, I’ve had it at all times of the day!

Have you changed around your skincare routine to cope with the heat?

Hmmm not a lot! I’ve just made sure to use sunscreen, drink heaps of water and eat more antioxidant rich foods (which help prevent skin damage from the sun – true story!)

What products are you loving for your skin in summer?

The mists as mentioned, Serenade Organic Restore eye cream – I’ve just started doing some work for this company and the eye cream is amazing. It’s 100% certified organic and I’m loving it.

My daily morning skincare routine at the moment consists of:

• Floradix liquid iron supplement
• Vitamin c and zinc powder
• Oil cleansing (either Dermalogica or Bloom)
• Clay based cleanser (Ren, from Mecca Cosmetica)
• Clarisonic – best skin cleansing device… EVER
• Rosehip oil pressed onto skin afterwards

And it’s working quite well for me

Thanks so much Annette! Have you tried any of the products Annette mentioned? What works for you in the hot months?

(Image from here)

Annette is the gorgeous energetic creator/editor of Wellness WA. She practices extreme yoga, is a regular green-smoothie drinker and her enthusiasm for well-being and healthy living is contagious. Wellness WA is a regular read of ours for product reviews and healthful tips – and the reviews of spa treatments have made us want to head west to Perth more than once! You can also connect with Wellness WA on Facebook and follow on Twitter.

Some foods on her list seem common sense – the kind of watery fruit or veg your would happily turn to on a hot summer day. Some are a little more surprising (carrot!):

• Watermelon
• Cucumber
• Carrot
• Cabbage
• Berries
• Lettuce

See the whole list on Kimberly’s blog, including a run-down of why each food is so brilliant when the heat hits. Try saying that fast!

And for those of you who struggle drinking plain water, have you tried:

• Lemon water with stevia?
• Cucumber water?
• Water with slices of Granny Smith apple?
• Water with mint leaves?

What’s your favourite way to stay hydrated in summer? Do you struggle to drink water or does it come easy to you? Do you add anything to your water? We’d love to know!

(Image from here)

We thought we’d ask Annette where to start if you’re looking for some products to add to your next soak – read on!

‘There’s not much I love more than a good bath, and I make it a priority to get at least two long soaks in each week to keep me relaxed and happy.

When I was younger I loved baths too, but would use products filled with heaps of chemicals to get mounds and mounds of bubbles (think Mr. Matey and even shampoo sometimes!).

These days I’m happy to forego the bubbles in order to have a more therapeutic and healing experience, so today I’d like to share with you some of my favourite bath treats, and maybe inspire you to put in the plug, turn on the tap and bliss out for half an hour… or more.

1. Echolife Magnesium Bath Crystals

If you’ve never had a magnesium crystal bath, you’re in for a treat. Pour a cup into your bath while it’s filling, sink in and feel the waves of relaxation wash over you as your body soaks in the magnesium. Before I came across the Echolife crystals (100% natural), I used to use the trusty old blue box of Epsom Salts that you can pick up at almost any supermarket or chemist. While this was good and I still got the relaxing benefits, Epsom Salts are a by-product of chemical industry and as such aren’t naturally occurring. In the interest of being as natural and safe as possible I much prefer the Echolife crystals – plus they’re prettier!

2. Weleda Relaxing Lavender Bath Milk*

This soothing blue bottle is filled with almost medicinal-strength lavender liquid. Upon opening the lid and taking a sniff, you may be surprised by how strong it smells, never fear though! You only need a couple of capfuls and it lasts for AGES. If I’m having trouble sleeping I make sure to schedule one of these in, you will feel like you’re dissolving into a field of lavender, and emerge from the bath a lot less stressed. Love it!

3. Be Genki Tranquility Bath & Shower Oil

This one has a similar effect to the lavender bath milk, but with a bunch of other delicious scents mixed in to provide an array of benefits from the different essential oils. Lavender, roman chamomile, sweet orange and sandalwood will all get to work on your senses and leave you feeling relaxed, refreshed and ready to join the human race again.

4. Lush: The Comforter Bubble Bar

While not as 100% natural as some of the other products mentioned, this one IS vegan, and smells damn good.

Described as “being hugged by a jolly blackcurrant”, this bubble bar lives up to it’s name, producing heapppppppps of fluffy pink clouds in your tub if you crumble it under the right pressure water. It smells so fruity and sweet and yummy, though I do tend to find it a little drying on my skin, so make sure you moisturise afterwards! A real treat when you need a bit of extra sweetness in your life.

5. Echolife Mojave Green Clay Powder

I’ve had three baths so far with this clay powder, and have really enjoyed them all. It’s too early to say whether I’ve noticed and signs of ‘detoxing’, but I quite like relaxing in the slightly murky water and thinking about what possible good things it’s doing for me. I found it easiest to sprinkle the powder into the empty bath, then turn on the water and stir it up with your hands or feet once there’s a bit of water in there.

Hopefully you enjoyed my top 5 bath products right now, I’m sure they will chop and change as I discover new products, but for now… go forth and try these out for yourself, I’m off back to the bath!’

Annette xo

*Annette has reviewed the Weleda Relaxing Lavender Bath Milk here.

Annette is the gorgeous energetic creator/editor of Wellness WA. She practices extreme yoga, is a regular green-smoothie drinker and her enthusiasm for well-being and healthy living is contagious. Wellness WA is a regular read of ours for product reviews and healthful tips – and the reviews of spa treatments have made us want to head west to Perth more than once! You can also connect with Wellness WA on Facebook and follow on Twitter.

We’re in Day 7 of the 21 Day Green Smoothie Challenge, and by gosh everyone is doing so amazingly well… Some of you are even going for 2 smoothies a day – in another 14 days we forecast sparkly eyes, glowing skin and bouncy energy aplenty.

Because you are all fantastic you’ve been sharing pictures and recipes for your green concoctions – especially helpful since to get maximum benefit out of the green drinks, we should be rotating our ingredients and greens daily. So behold a compendium of everyone’s recipes thus far, and a few other bonus links for inspiration!

From Me my Best and I (who has some serious food styling skills):

• Pineapple, carrot, celery, beetroot, ginger
• Cucumber, kale, apple, mint, lemon, ginger
• Orange, carrot, kale, ginger, fennel leaves
• Beetroot, parsley, kale, carrot, apple
• Kale, almond milk, banana, raw cacao
• Spinach, cucumber, apple, mint, lemon
• Raw cacao, frozen banana, spinach, almond milk
• Berries, banana, spinach, soy milk, honey

From Jade Musing (who gets the bravery award for throwing some cabbage in!):

• Cocoa, chia seeds, baby spinach, strawberries, vanilla protein powder, ice, water
• Baby spinach, mixed berries, vanilla protein powder, yogurt, milk, water, ice, almond butter, ginger
• Apple, carrot, ginger, celery, cinnamon, water, ice
• Red cabbage, lettuce, carrot, strawberries, ice, water
• Coriander, mint, watermelon, greens

From Miss Lexi (who deserves a medal for suggesting kiwi fruit and drinks her smoothies from the most photogenic places!):

• Baby spinach, orange, lime, ginger, cucumber
• English spinach, kiwi, cucumber, mint
• Spinach, cucumber, mint, kiwi, celery
• English spinach, LSA, celery, broccoli, carrot, ginger
• Baby spinach, kiwi, carrot, ginger, celery, broccoli, apple, mango, banana

From Dee (who makes the smoothest looking smoothies and has a nice Hershey glass):

• Soy milk, yoghurt, banana, butter lettuce, parsley, flaxmeal, wheatgrass powder, spirulina, ice
• Soy milk, flaxmeal, banana, lettuce, wheatgrass powder, spirulina
• Soy milk, yoghurt, banana, chia seeds, flaxmeal, parsley, English spinach
• Apple, lettuce, cucumber, water and ice
• Soy milk, yoghurt, flaxmeal, banana, ice, spinach and parsley
• organic soy milk, plain yoghurt, chia seeds, flax meal, banana, frozen blueberries, baby spinach, vanilla extract

From Mira’s Hand (who knows what’s good and must have amazing hair, skin and nails!):

• Kale, cucumber, spinach, ginger
• Kale, cucumber, spinach, coconut oil, chia seeds

From yours truly (put to shame by Dee for how bravely she embraced the green smoothie):

• Banana, melon, kiwi fruit, maca powder, cucumber, barley grass, coconut oil and teeny bit of peanut butter, water
• Banana, spinach, kale, celery, brazil nuts, water
• Frozen banana, silver beet, cucumber, spinach, date, peanut butter, coconut oil, maca powder, barley grass, water
• Banana, lettuce, mint, barley grass, strawberry, teeny bit peanut butter, chia seeds, water
• Lettuce, spinach, 1 small cucumber, almonds, 1 date, coconut oil, teeny bit of peanut butter, chia seeds, water
• Silver beet, 1 small cucumber, chia seeds, brazil nuts, coconut oil, barley grass, dash strawberry powder, water

Annette also contributed this recipe a while ago (when we attempted 5 green smoothies in 1 week - so scary back then!!):

Organic green apple, handful of baby spinach, filtered water, flaxseed oil, pepitas, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, the frozen fruit of your choice (blueberries, mango, raspberries, strawberries)

And bonus links from She Knows, and (where else!) Wellness WA (one, and two).

Come and join the fun, we’re also talking about our green smoothies over on Twitter (search for the #greensmoothie tag)! And remember, there’s prizes to be won if you drink 10 smoothies or more over the course of the 21 days!

(Image credits from She Knows and the lovely Me, my Best and I, Jade Musing, Miss Lexi and Dee)

No matter your skin type, you should be misting your face – it’s refreshing for one, and very good for your skin. Think of what it has to endure in the hot months… a confusing yo-yo of alternating air conditioning and sweltering heat! A natural face mist contains one or more plant extracts blended to look after your skin by giving it nutrients and keeping it balanced. So beat the summer heat and pick from our favourite mists below!

Echolife Lavender Calming Facial Mist: all the goodness of lavender in a bottle! Lavender has anti-inflammatory properties and is ideal for skin that doesn’t handle the heat well and turns a beetroot colour quite easily.

Botáni Soothing Face Mist: one smart product formulated for all skin types, but very nurturing to the most sensitive and irritated skin. It contains rose, chamomile and aloe vera, giving your skin plenty of replenishing nutrients. Jessica guest-reviewed it for us, you can read her thoughts here (spoiler, she liked it).

Weleda Refining Toner: containing lemon juice, witch hazel and rose hip extract, this is your go-to if you want to tamper your skin’s overzealous oil production and refine your pores. Dilute half half with distilled or filtered water in a spray bottle*, and mist your face liberally throughout the day.

Echolife Tea-tree Purifying Facial Mist (pictured up top): an absolute summer favourite of ours, we spray it generously after a run to refresh our skin – bonus, it banishes bacteria with its antiseptic properties.

Do you have a favourite natural face mist for summer?

* Recipe from the Weleda blog!

As we’re bracing ourselves for the hot season and wondering how we will survive, Jessica kindly agreed to answer a few questions – lucky us!

Can you describe your current summer routine, and how it may be different from other seasons?

When it comes to skin care, in summer I try to keep things as simple as possible. It takes a while for my skin to adjust to the warmer temperature, but once it settles down it is happiest with a steady routine. At the moment, I am using Dermalogica Precleanser, Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel, Echolife Floral Facial Mist* and Dermalogica Active Moist as a daily moisturiser. I also use the Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant 1-2 times a week, the Busby Pure Tissue Oil as an occasional night treatment. I also use a face mask once a week, currently I’m using the Astara Blue Flame Mask, which is one of Liv Tyler’s favourite products.

As for hair care, I switch it up in the warmer months and wash my hair at night so that I can let it air-dry naturally. This means heat styling is kept to a minimum, because there is nothing worse than having to blow dry your hair when it’s already warming up at 7 oclock in the morning! I don’t have a set routine for hair care during the summer, but lately I’ve been loving Herbal Essences Tousle Me Softly Flexible Hold Hairspray to tame my newly cut side fringe. I also use a couple of drops of the Original & Mineral Frizzy Logic Shine Serum in my hair at night to help tame the tangled mess that my hair can become in humid weather.

I use different body products throughout the year and don’t really have any firm favourites, but in Spring and Summer I opt for lighter, and fruitier scents than the ones that I lean towards in the cold weather months. I do have a soft spot for Bath + Body Works Exotic Coconut range, and my go-to Summer fragrance this year has been Flourish Bath + Body’s Sugar Perfume Oil.

Is there one product you can’t be without at the moment?

I recently purchased a bottle of the Mario Badescu drying lotion, and I now understand what all the fuss is about. Amazing!

Any tips on how to help your skin survive the heat graciously?

Keep it simple! There is nothing worse than piling product after product on your skin in hot weather, only to have it all melt off.  I also keep my facial mist in the fridge for a nice cool skin-treat on a hot afternoon. And of course, slip-slop-slap! There is no such thing as a ‘healthy tan’.

Thank you so much to Jessica for sharing her routine and some fantastic summer survival tips – and don’t forget to enter her current Burt’s Bees hand cream giveaway!

*We’re thrilled to bits Jessica currently uses Echolife’s Rose Floral Facial Mist, and you can see it here.

Jessica is the fair-skinned beauty behind the Belle Lumière. She cannot live without Kosmea Organic Rose Hip Oil and her deep-seated love and interest in skin care started with sound moisturising advice from her great-grandmother. A favourite of ours, the Belle Lumière is full of informative, witty and honest product reviews and other thoroughly enjoyable snippets from Jessica’s life. You can also follow Jessica on Twitter.

(Image credits: The Belle Lumière)

Admittedly, it gets a bit boring and tedious to dry brush EVERY SINGLE DAY – so to change it up a bit, you can add 2 or 3 drops of essential oil to your body brush. Neat, sweet-smelling and invigorating. But more to the point, you’ll be making your dry brushing even better for you!

Choose a diuretic essential oil to stimulate and detox, a cellulite-buster like geranium, or simply tailor the blend to your mood: relaxing, energising,…

And how about this amazing-looking recipe for a dry massage powder*? Applied to the skin before dry brushing, it nourishes, tones and can help draw toxins out.

We’ll be trying our hand and making our own on the weekend – from a blend of ground almonds and oats, a tiny bit of organic brown sugar, a dollop of yoghurt and a drop or two of geranium (cellulite, be gone!). Our skin should be nicely silky and deliciously fragrant after – at least that’s the plan.

Care to join us? Have you tried a dry massage powder before?

*Take care not to use on irritated, cut or sunburnt skin, or skin suffering from eczema or another inflammatory condition. Other than that, go for it!

(Image credit Reveal Beauty Lounge)