Mairead Robinson suggests ways of brightening your beauty regime
One of the things some of us have missed so much during these months of lockdowns – besides hairdressers – is beauty salons and spas. For many of us the ultimate indulgent treat is a holistic massage, a rejuvenating facial and some top to toe pampering treatments. So the alternative is to invest in a good home-spa treatment, and you will be surprised how well that can work once you get the right products. I recently came across Ziaja’s Baltic Home Spa Collection, and besides being extremely affordable products, they are actually beautiful to use and to find – you can buy them in your local Dunnes Stores, several pharmacies and best of all, you can shop on-line and have them delivered to your door from www.originalbeauty.ie
Active ingredients in Ziaja products include skin hydrating fig extract and other nourishing items for skin firming and moisturizing, but it is the aromatic mango sent that really turned me on to these products. Start your treatment with a Mango micro-scrub to dissolve dead and dull skin cells leaving skin velvety soft and smooth. There is also a glycerine body scrub which targets rough, dehydrated skin, especially good for the feet. Then you can really pamper your skin with moisturising body mousse, serum, and my absolute favourite product, Anti-Cellulite & Firming Massage Oil. This is a richly – scented aromatic mango oil treatment that smells delicious and is full of Japanese ginkgo, caffeine and illipe butter to tone and eliminate toxins balancing and nourishing the skin for a more radiant appearance. Massage the oil all over the body after your shower or bath while the skin is still wet for maximum benefit. Check out their website above, prices are less than €10 for full 300ml and 400ml bottles, and shower gel and shampoo is just €4.99 Orders over €35 will qualify for free delivery within Ireland. This is certainly a lockdown treat that you can afford.
Luxury cosmetics brand Clarins have just launched some really exciting new products for those of us in the 50+ age bracket. Starting with the eyes – the first signs of aging appear here – the Total Eye Lift does exactly what it says on the tube. Application is simple, close your eyes and apply – its gel-cream texture enriched with Cassie wax smoothes the often tired skin of this fragile area. In sixty seconds your eyes look more open as it replenishes the skin around the eyelids and the eye contour for an open-eyed and visibly younger look. Special ingredient, organic Harungana extract is as powerful as retinol but gentler on skin. It is one of the most efficient active ingredients at Clarins when it comes to anti-ageing and maintains the skin’s lifted effect. Day after day you can see the effects of lifted replenished skin. This is a key product in our anti-ageing arsenal. It takes just five seconds to apply and sixty seconds to see the results. This lift-replenishing eye concentrate is one of my favourite new products, as good eye cream is so important to keeping a youthful and healthy appearance. Do remember also to wear sun glasses when out and about on bright days, even the winter and spring sunshine can make you squint your eyes, and this is only encouraging those wrinkles.
Clarins have also just launched the Nutri-Lumiere range of skin care for the ‘silver’ generation – that’s us – which includes four new products to provide a complete pro-ageing nutrition action. Clarins laboratories tested the effectiveness of the Nutri-Lumiere range by measuring the skin’s luminance index, a combination of the light reflected by the epidermis and re-emitted by the dermis. For the 60+ age group, this is key to the skin’s appearance. The range consists of four key skin care products: Nourishing Revitalizing Day Cream, a sensorial, melting, oil-infused cream that revitalizes and intensely nourishes to restore radiance to nutrient-depleted skin. Nourishing Revitalizing Day Emulsion, lightweight, non-greasy, oil infused emulsion that revitalizes, nourishes and restores radiance. Nourishing Rejuvenating Night Cream, a comforting meelting night cream that revitalizes and nourishes the skin by morning. And finally Renewing Treatment Essence which is the first essential daily skin care step for skin full of vitality. This smooth, gentle lotion is perfectly absorbed by the skin, preparing it to fully benefit from products applied afterwards. Use morning and evening after cleansing/makeup removal.
Along with their Total Eye Care, I have found their Double Serum (hydric + Lipidic system) to be wonderful for mature skin, as getting moisture into the face is the best barrier against the harsh wind, rain, sun and environmental impacts. Just put a little in your hands, then massage over the face and neck. Use morning and night time before applying your moisturiser for maximum benefit.
So as the days are becoming longer and brighter, and getting out to the garden is a welcome treat from our long winter, there are days to look forward to and things to enjoy. This includes the fact that there are a lot of new beauty products at every price point for pampering skin care and if ever there was a time to treat yourself – surely it is now!
Win a selection of Ziaja skincare products!
And if you would like to be in with a chance to win a selection of Ziaja skincare products, just email me your name and address to mairead.seniorbeauty@gmail.com