The thing is, I have not so fond memories of playing cricket at school. We had to play with the boys, and they knew what a googly was and a boundary and I didn't. Plus they could quote from Wisden ad nauseum. (If you don't know, don't ask. Particularly don't ask a cricketer.) That was fine, as long as you were interested in cricket. I can't remember any of the girls being keen; we generally prefered rounders.
It's not cricket
My other main memory of school cricket is a red nose. Because in those days, they didn't insist on children being smothered in sun-cream, before being allowed out, under an umbrella and sunhat. (Nowadays, it's virtually classed as child abuse, to let a child outside, without lathering it in white stuff.)
A Quest...
Since that time, I suppose I have been on a quest for the perfect sun cream. Not all the time, you understand. I do have a life. However, now and again, I would wonder which sun-cream to use, pick up a shiny bottle and look at the ingredients listed on the back. At which point, it was promptly returned to the shelf, as being unsuitable for human use and detrimental to the ozone layer/coral reefs etc.
Smells like unclean spirit
This is because the majority of sun protection products contain artificial fragrances, colours and various assorted synthetic chemicals which claim to absorb the rays of the sun. Brands which claim to be natural, usually use minerals (such as titanium dioxide or zinc oxide) which sit on the skin reflecting them. Some studies suggest that chemical sunscreens are more likely to cause allergic reactions than mineral sun blocks. Plus many of the ingredients are really unpleasant. After all, if they can bleach and kill the coral reefs, what are they doing to you and your skin?
Dr Hauschka used to make a rather lovely suncream, but then stopped, as they were not convinced that they could use natural ingredients and still achieve the ratio of UVA/UVB protection mandated by EU regulations, so that was a pain.
Over the years, I've used the Dr Hauschka normalising day oil on my face and made a mixture of oils and butters for the rest of me. But, I am quite cautious to avoid too much sun and wear a hat, because I am not partial to a burned nose.
However, I did burn my nose once, when surfing (or falling off a board and semi -drowning, which is my version). It was horrid (the burning bit, not the falling off the board - I've perfected that) and I would like to avoid that in future. But you can't surf/swim/run/do stuff under an umbrella all the time, can you? You need something, sometimes.
'Shady' ladies!
Now, I have recently found a sun cream called Shade, which is mostly organic (Zinc oxide can't be organic) and only has four ingredients, so is unlikely to cause problems, even on the most delicate flower/child. I've been testing it for a couple of days, until it started to rain (again) and it seems very nice. My clients seem to agree, too, as it has been whizzing out of the clinic.
At the moment, I only have a limited amount of handbag-sized testers, but if there is enough interest, I'll stock it permanently, in larger sizes. So do let me know if you'd like to try one. They are £3.75 for a 15 ml tin. As I said, I've been putting it on for the last few days and I like it! You might too. But you won't know unless you try it, will you?
www.theorganicbeautician.com
