Mayday! M'aidez!

Maypole Crown. Beltaine 2011. Photo by Sable Aradia

   Looking out of the window, it is clear why May is called May. 

   It's nothing to do with poles, ribbons and flowers really, it's more that...

     You may need an umbrella.
     You may need wellies.
     You may need to cancel your barbecue
     You may wear a summer dress, but you will freeze. (That's me, and I am freezing.)

     Take your pick. All a bit depressing really. Let's hope it clears up for the Royal Wedding!

    This is probably why Mayday is the signal of distress. It's actually nothing to do with the Anglicisation of the French "M'aidez!", but more of a fact that May will be a bit soggy and your boat may sink.

     That's enough of that. I'm going to find some woolly tights, as I'm freezing. The frock may have been a mistake.      

     Have a radiant day! (It might clear up!)


     You may find yourself in need of some Dr Hauschka goodies to cheer you up. 

     Text the Mayday helpline: 07961224560. 

Happy Birthday, Mr Shakespeare!

    Today, being St George's Day, is also generally celebrated as the birth-date (in 1564) of the world's greatest playwright and general Good Egg, one Wm. Shakespeare (or Shakspear - he never seems particularly wedded to one spelling, but ranged about a bit. And, why not? You can't tie genius down with spelling. Teachers might disagree...)  

Modern recreation by Vanny Sok

     As I've just been to a Dr Hauschka Makeup training day, it seemed apposite to link the two if possible, hence this wee look at what sort of makeup was worn during the time of the Bard of Avon, both on- and off-stage.

     Back in the day, there was no such thing as 'safe' cosmetics and H&S legislation. Most people put really dodgy stuff on their faces to gain the requisite shade of white. Including Her Maj - Elizabeth I, who probably started the trend.

     The ideal beauty was a very fair woman, with blonde or red hair (like Liz), an exceptionally pale complexion and red lips. As well as being tall and slim, Queen Elizabeth had pale skin and light red-gold hair. She made the most of this, and all the noblewomen tried to emulate her style and looks. (The poor probably didn't bother, being more concerned with scratching a living and not getting arrested for poaching.)

    Probably the point of showing of an alabaster complexion was that it signified wealth - you couldn't be pale and interesting if you'd been labouring in the field 24/7, could you?

      This degree of pallidity wasn't always that easy to achieve, and like modern women, some help was required. Unlike us, though, they used seriously dodgy ingredients. Now, I am often heard making 'eugh' noises, when I peruse the ingredients lists on tubes of (non-Hauschka) cosmetics, but the stuff they painted themselves with was seriously gross. 

     " 'Tis beauty truly blent, whose red and white
     Nature's own sweet and cunning hand laid on"

     So said Will. Except it wasn't: it was mostly fake. Let's start with ceruse: a tasty mix of white lead and vinegar, which gave you a white complexion, initially at least. However, it also gave you blemishes, which you then had to cover up with more ceruse, until your face was ruined, your hair fell out and you died of lead poisoning. (Like Maria the Countess of Coventry, aged 27.) 

     If you wanted to lose your freckles, you had the delicious choice of sulphur, turpentine and mercury. On top of this, was painted a nice glaze of egg white. At least that wouldn't do any harm, although it might smell after a bit, but as hardly anyone bathed much, perhaps it was unnoticeable...

     Lipstick was very popular of course, and vermilion was the shade du jour. That, of course, is also known as mercuric sulphide. Nice! 

     To get that 'high brow' look, the hairline and the eyebrows were plucked to oblivion, proving that "il faut souffrir pour être belle" is not a modern invention,

     Let's not forget the eyes, those windows of the soul: to keep them bright, a tincture of belladonna was used. Hence the name presumably. Once the pupils were dilated, a nice line of antimony was painted along them. Antimony poisoning is very similar to lead poisoning, apparently. though I doubt that makes much of a difference, except to anyone doing an autopsy. 

     Actors often used prop paint for their faces, after painting the stage. There was also a pleasing mixture of powdered hogs bones mixed with poppy oil, which was used, especially by the young men who were playing the petticoat parts. All the actors wore face paint of some sort, though, to accentuate the character they were playing. Like Duncan with his "silver skin (laced with his golden blood)". Although, by most accounts, the real King Duncan was not the pleasant chap he seems. ("Seems,” madam? Nay, it is. I know not “seems...) A popular recipe was ceruse mixed with sublimate of mercury and ground orris. Sprinkle in some ground hogs’ bones, a pinch of borax, and beat in egg whites and lemon juice. Nice! 

     One of the few harmless ingredients used, and this is still used today, to create red lipstick, was cochineal. It was expensive, though, hence the vermilion being in more common use.  

     Thinking about that lot, I'm pretty relieved that we can paint our faces with Dr Hauschka. I'm not sure that lead and mercury have a great deal to recommend them, although you could of course say that they are 'natural'. Like cyanide and arsenic. Which just goes to show that you can't rely on the claims on packets of cosmetics to be 'natural' and assume that they are therefore beneficial. 

Death of a Star - RIP Stephen Hawking

 Whether or not you are interested in physics, Stephen Hawking is still an interesting and astonishing chap.

    Given only a few years to live at only 22, and then finally popping off at 79 is enough of an achievement for anyone, but he was so phenomenal in so many other ways, not least overcoming his physical symptoms to explore so much knowledge and expound upon it. 

     Not much point in my writing much about his discoveries, because I only have an 'O' level in Physics, but I still find it utterly fascinating.

     Of course, it was a total gift to journalists with 'gems' such as 'brightest star dies' and 'his death leaves a vacuum'. which I do hope he would have found amusing. But one of his quotes I liked the most was about the future, making sure that we would like it when we got there and to be sure of that, we needed to consider our current actions in the present. Absolutely right Prof! If only enough of us did!

     However, I also like the rather naff saying about the 'present being called that because it is a gift'. Which is far too inane for Stephen Hawking but true nonetheless. 

     Perhaps that is something to consider; giving yourself a gift for being in the present and enjoying it?

    The perfect gift is a Dr Hauschka treatment - for relaxation, sweet scents and gentle massage which results in radiant skin. It also gives you time out from your hectic existence to recover your equilibrium. You might even come up with brilliant ideas of your own! Many artists swear by regular treatments to help them remain creative.

New Year, New You? Why?

It's that depressing time of year when we all start to think soberly about our waistlines, skin and livers and resolve never to drink/smoke/eat chocolate or carbs ever again.

We are constantly reading about new year and new you, but, really, what's wrong with the old you? You've got this far, so well done you! Pat on the back time. Okay, some things could be done better, in future, but is January really the best time to think about it?

Why we do this during the most miserable time of year beats me entirely 

It would make more sense to wait until the mornings are lighter and we feel keener to get out of bed and fancy eating salads, when it's warmer. 

But no. We exit the Festive Season of food, booze and not enough exercise and feel the primeval need to chastise ourselves. 


Don't do it, is my advice

Be like the Elephant's Child and be kind to yourself. 

He was kind to his poor pulled nose, and many of us also have red noses at this time of year. Not pulled by a crocodile probably (although who knows? I'm not judging), but sore and red all the same. The mulled wine and cocktails don't exactly raise your vitamin C levels, and colds and coughs are boringly rife. 

Steam and soothing unguents are what you need, not self flagellation

Why not treat your skin to some TLC instead of beating yourself up about what's already been and gone? Give your face a steam, followed by a cooling clay mask and then a soothing cream mask. 

I do literally use a Soothing Mask, the one from Dr Hauschka, on myself and clients, at this time of year. It's also really great for sore chapped lips. Just apply a little and watch, as your lips start to feel soft and moist.


As for the New Year's resolutions, why not leave those to February? 

Give yourself a little time and space to reflect on what you really want and need, rather than leaping into a new year with misplaced enthusiasm. 

About ten years ago I made my last ever resolution - the only one I ever kept, and it was not to make any more. Unusually, that one has been kept!

Happy New Year!

Do you need Gluten-free makeup?

     There are so many categories of makeup now, from organic, to vegan, to low allergen, and now we have added Gluten free to the already confusing and heady mix. Is this a step too far, or a necessary one?

Go to www.coeliac.org.uk for help

     If you are a coeliac, putting a product containing gluten on your skin shouldn't really be a problem, as wheat/grain sensitivities are generally located in the digestive tract, but if you've been advised to go gluten-free for health reasons, then you might want to consider using gluten free makeup, to avoid any possibility of accidentally ingesting something that might affect you adversely. 

     It makes sense to use a gluten-free lipstick, at the very minimum, as a certain amount will be absorbed. It's also a really good idea to make sure that you always wash your hands after applying makeup, so that you don't get anything allergenic in your mouth inadvertently.

     To be on the safe side, though, it is probably worth considering making the change, as it will be safer for you and your health, and there are some really great Gluten-free makeup ranges around nowadays, so you don't need to feel that you are missing out. I am an Organic Makeup artist, using Dr Hauschka makeup which is certified Gluten-free, so safe for anyone with wheat sensitivities.

Gluten-free Colour Correcting Powder
from Dr Hauschka

     If you are not a coeliac, or don't suffer from a wheat allergy or sensitivity, then you might think that there is no need for you to consider this subject, but if you live with a coeliac, then perhaps it might be as well to make the change, for their sake. 

     After all, lips are for kissing and you don't want to make anyone feel unwell after kissing them, do you? You want the people around you to feel comfortable, in which case, gluten free products are the way forward. 

Want a consultation? 

Contact The Organic Beautician 

Email: jane@theorganicbeautician.com

Text:   07961 224560

All women, but not all men...

      There's been a lot written about Harvey Weinstein, and his appallingly bad behaviour and bizarre sense of entitlement, and now it's beginning to turn on the women who knew: why didn't they say something?

     This is something that my husband, being an adult, and with no propensity to blame anyone for anything that is his fault (luckily) calls "How can I pin it on the missus?" after a friend of his, who, having pranged his car, was trying to work out if he could blame his wife. (Who wasn't even in the car at the time, and in fact, prefers horses.)

     Whether it is a universal male thing to try to pass the blame onto women, I don't know, but it does, of course, have Biblical precedent. "The woman did tempt me, Lord." So let's wrap her up in black shrouds, so that her propensity for 'tempting' is removed. Yeah, right. That'll do it. Not. How about trying to get all men to behave with common civility instead? A bridge too far?

     Anyway, Facebook, a thing of wondrous ability to steal your time, and will to live, has come up with a #metoo trope, and many women are posting things that have happened to them, most of which are no surprise to other women, because we've pretty much all had some entitled idiot thinking he has a free pass to the female anatomy. Some chaps are getting a little twitchy and saying #notallmen, which wasn't really the point; nobody ever said all men are total fruitloops, but pretty much all women have experienced the nastier side of entitled masculinity. To lighten the mood a little, I thought I would recount something that happened to me. Don't worry! No triggers!

     When I was 19 and living in London, I often got the late tube home to High Street Kensington and then had to walk for about 20 minutes to where I was living. Having done a little bit of karate, I wasn't terribly concerned and with the arrogance of a teenager, I thought I was invincible. Once, arriving after midnight, I was greeted by three young men, a little older than me. They were tall, strong and of a dusky complexion. One of them said that he would walk me home. I was slightly perturbed by this idea, so I fanned out my keys between my fingers and prepared to thump him hard.

     He walked me to my door, told me that I shouldn't be out late at night on my own because it was dangerous for girls at night. He waited till I'd unlocked the door, then said goodnight and left. A Gentleman!

     So I don't believe that all men are the problem, but I'm also aware that I was lucky in that instance. One of my Australian friends once found an unknown hand on her posterior, in a crowded tube. Lifting it in the air, she asked loudly

     "Whose is this hand, and why is it on my @rse?"

     She was in a full carriage, and with true British phlegm, everyone turned away and ignored her; nobody stepped up to help. Shocking behaviour, and presumably what goes on all over the place, not just in Hollywood.

     Let's hope it's getting better, but according to my daughters, it doesn't seem to be, although the youngest scowled so scarily at a group of catcalling lads recently, that they shut up. She wasn't prepared to put up with it, but her older sisters told her to ignore it. Plus ça change, eh?

     Ah well, plough on regardless, eh? Have a radiant day! 

Not just for Guacamole

Yummy skincare      Every once in a while, I look again at the ingredients of what I'm using on myself and my clients and have a muse on them. It's much easier to do this when they have friendly Latin plant names than when they are chemical ones like Methylisothiazolinone. (I may have misspelled that, but I don;t care, I'm not a big fan...)      One thing I suggest to people who've been on my Skincredible Journey is to chop an avocado over their Radiant Skin Salad at lunchtime, as it's an easy and delicious way to benefit from the oil, as well as the vitamins, minerals and trace elements contained in this creamy pear-shaped fruit. It's great to care for your skin from inside as well as outside, and easy when it's this tasty.      Avocado oil is prized as a skin care ingredient because it spreads really easily, so without pulling delicate skin, it also emulsifies with other ingredients and is quickly absorbed and well-tolerated by most skin types. As it makes skin supple and smooth, it's also great for hair and itchy scalps. So all pluses there.      Something bizarre...      Something you might not know about avocados is that the name derives from the Aztec word for 'testicle', as the fruit grow in pairs. (That's up there with Testament and testimony and the way the Ancient Hebrews used to swear oaths by putting their hands on each other's 'thighs', or that's what it says in the King James version. If you learned Latin you'll know different, and if you have nothing better to do, here's the explanation. We do learn something most days, don't we, though we might be happier to labour on in ignorance.)      Another equally unusual avocado fact which really makes it a 'fruit for today', is that it changes sex daily.  At least, the flowers do: half of the day the flower is ready to receive pollen, so acts 'female', while the other half of the day the flower sheds pollen making it 'male'. Whether this makes life easy or tricky for the pollinating insects, who knows? Possibly it was not a consideration.      Now, not only is avocado good for your skin, but also for your hair and nails having ludicrous amounts of potassium as well as the benefits listed above. Let's not forget the monounsaturated fatty acids, antioxidants, magnesium, and folate, shall we? Lucky it's delicious, then. And, don't believe people who tell you it's fattening. They often go off to eat chocolate and biscuits, which are not as beneficial and probably more fattening. Some fats are good for you and your skin;this is one of them.      If you have any left over, you can also rub it into your hands, though personally I prefer hand cream, as it is less likely to make one resemble the Incredible Hulk, but possibly that is being Greenist...?      With all those benefits, both internal and external you probably have guessed that Dr Hauschka use it liberally. So what's it in? Here's little list (and they really would be missed!)       All of the following have Avocado in: Daily Hydrating Eye Cream, Quince Day Cream, Rose Day Cream, Rose Day Cream light, Regenerating Day Cream, Firming Mask, Concealer, Light Reflecting Concealer, Lavender Sandalwood Calming Body Cream, Almond Soothing Body Cream, Lavender Sandalwood Calming Body Wash, Lemon Lemongrass Vitalising Body Wash, Almond Soothing Body Wash, Rose Nurturing Body Wash.      Of course the new Regenerating hand Cream contains avocado too. If you liked the normal hand cream, you'll love this and it smells a lot nicer than avocado. but, maybe don't eat it...        Have a radiant day! Contact me: jane@theorganicbeautician.com