Burt's Bees is one of the first brands I discovered when I embarked on my green living journey a few years back. Widely available on the high street, it was the most accessible to me at the time and I fell hard for their extensive range of skin care and nourishing lip products.
I always love a good back story and the one behind this brand is a doozy. From humble beginnings to international success you really feel a sense of the homemade in each product. In this post I have picked a few of my all time favourites (and believe me, it wasn't easy) but I feel these are the ones I am forever re-purchasing and recommending to friends.
Burt's Bees is of course well known for their legendary Beeswax Lip Balm and the iconic yellow tin is a handbag staple. I honestly never leave the house without this product. No matter how many times I try and change it up I'm always reaching for the now slightly dented, paint chipped tin at the bottom of my bag. My lips hate the cold weather and often crack during the change in seasons, so I need something hardwearing and long lasting. I use this every morning after I've scrubbed away the dry skin, then apply lashing of this and let it do its magic. By the time I've drank a couple of cups of tea, just the right amount is left to act as a barrier before I apply my lipstick. Using it before helps prevent my lipstick get stuck to any dry bits and it helps keeps it on for longer.
As for a pop of colour, I love the Lip Shimmer stick in Cherry. The pigment isn't as scary as the it appears but it's a combination of lipstick and lip balm. It has a minty taste and leaves my lips feeling all tingly and lovely.
The daily struggle at the bus stop to school of casually trying to stop your ironed hair from getting stuck in my lipgloss was one I thought I'd left back in 2002. But this one the perfect balance of glossy but not sticky. The hint of colour is subtle but offers just enough for day to day wear.
Before getting pregnant I really hated my hands. I used to nibble away constantly at my nails and my stumpy little fingers resembled cocktail sausages. However during pregnancy a magical thing happens, a woman's body decides that for a whole nine months to give you the gift of strong hair and nails and for the first time in my life my nails grew. There was no stopping them so I looked to products that would help improve the look of my brand new hands. Two of my favourites are the Shea Butter Hand Repair Cream and the Almond & Milk Hand Cream.
I use both for different things and tend to carry the Shea Butter tube in my handbag, but only really use it a few times a week when my hands need a treat. I keep the Almond & Milk pot next to my bed and slather it on before I go to bed. It smells amazing.
And finally a pretty recent discovery is the Intense Hydration Cream Cleanser. Nothing works better for dry damaged skin than a luxuriously thick creamy cleanser. This one contains coconut, castor and olive oil. Instant hydration for the changing weather.
Do you have a favourite brand? One that stands out and offers a good range of products? Let me know your favourites in the comments.
Laurie Rose
