There’s more to cucumber than sandwiches

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100% natural, Absolute of Moroccan Rose, afternoon tea, Arnica, aromatherapy, bathroom cabinet, blemish prone complexions, caffeic acid, chamomile, comfort, cool, cucumber, cut, dehydration, delicate, dermalogica, Dermalogica Intensive Eye Repair, Dermalogica Overnight Treatment, diva, drift, dry, Elemis De-Stress Massage Oil, Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator, essential oils, exquisite, exquisite mix, fine lines, flesh, geranium, goodness, green tea, happy, hero, inflamed and irritated skin, irritated and stressed skin, lavender, Lecithin and Aloe Gel, little love, luxe, Mallow, marjoram, massaged, melissa, melting tension, morning and evening, nourish, oil, peel, picnic, radiant, refreshed, research, rosemary, sagging skin, satin smooth, Silica, silky soft, skin, sleep, smoothing, soft skin, soothe and hydrate, soothing the mind, ultra-rich cream, Vitamin C, water, young

While the humble cucumber is often only seen as an afternoon tea afterthought or an extra in a smoothie when the fridge is running low, it is actually jam-packed (excuse the pun) with natural goodness that can really benefit our skin.

The flesh might mainly be water, but it is also home to Vitamin C and caffeic acid, which both help reduce inflamed and irritated skin. The peel is often sliced away before being laid on top of ham for sandwiches, but this contains silica, which can firm sagging skin and because cucumbers are 100% natural, even people with the most sensitive skin can usually incorporate this into their beauty routine.

We did a little research and realised that quite a few of the products we sell here at Pure Beauty contain cucumber, so we thought we would let you know what’s what when it comes to this gorgeous green diva.

One of Dermalogica’s most popular products is their Skin Smoothing Cream and we know first hand that just a little goes a long way to smoothing the fine lines which are caused by dehydration. When applied to cleansed and toned normal to dry skin types, moisturising Lecithin and Aloe Gel nourishes while Extracts of Mallow, Cucumber and Arnica soothe and hydrate. Used morning and evening on a regular basis, the result will be happy, soft skin that radiates health.

Cucumber in oil might not be a match made in picnic heaven, but it works when it comes to the gorgeous Elemis De-Stress Massage Oil. Perfect for soothing the mind, melting tension and easing muscles, this exquisite mix of pure essential oils deserves a place in every bathroom cabinet. Chamomile, Cucumber, Melissa, Marjoram, Geranium, Rosemary and Lavender have been blended and is the perfect way to treat dry, irritated and stressed skin, leaving it satin smooth and silky soft. Thanks to the aromatherapy benefits of the oil, when massaged into the skin at bedtime, it offers comfort and can also help you drift off to sleep, now we didn’t know cucumber could help do that!

It’s not just aging skin that needs a little love; young, blemish-prone complexions do too and cucumber is a hero again here. The Dermalogica Overnight Treatment is a soothing, hydrating product that has been blended with Green Tea, Lavender, and Cucumber which all help to calm unhappy skin.

The Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator is a great way to achieve radiant, soft skin and we love it. Used weekly this luxe product is perfect for buffing away dirt and dead skin cells, leaving behind a glowing, youthful complexion. Absolute of Moroccan Rose hydrates the skin, while Jojoba Beads exfoliates it and thanks to Cucumber your whole face is tightened and left feeling cool and refreshed after the very first use. Seeing, and feeling, is believing, so give it a go.

Dermalogica Intensive Eye Repair is an ultra-rich cream that helps diminish dry lines and repair damage around the delicate eye area. Skin-replenishing phytonutrients and botanicals of Cucumber, Butcherbroom, and Arnica help achieve optimum skin health and restores suppleness. Wild Yam Extract and Pro-Vitamin B5 help repair prematurely ageing skin, while antioxidant Vitamins A, C, and E together with Grape Seed Extract protect the skin from harmful free radicals.

We can’t help you with a lunchtime buffet, but if it’s beauty products that come complete with a serving of cucumber you are looking for, get in touch and we will show you the way.

Team Pure Beauty

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Improve Your Skin in just Five Minutes

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Arnica, artificial colours, Bentonite, bright, clay. Relief, cool, cucumber, decleor, Decleor Energy Concentrate Youth Mask, Decleor Hydra Floral White Petal Skin Perfecting Hydrating Sleeping Mask, decongest, dermalogica, Dermalogica Skin Refining Masque, dewy, dull, Elemis, Elemis Dynamic Resurfacing Gel Mask, Elemis Herbal Lavender Repair Mask, excess, glow, glowing, hyperpigmentation, inflammation, Ivy, kaolin, lemon, luminous, lychee, Mallow, mask, men, mineral oils, oily skin, parabens, peony, recharged, refined texture, refining, rhodiola, sebum, shine, shine-free, skin, SLES, soothing, Watercress

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Having a daily skin routine is important, but sometimes we need an extra little boost to get our skin back to its best. Rather than going for expensive (and potentially painful!) non-invasive procedures, there are things you can use which can improve your skin dramatically in just five minutes – masks! We’ve trawled through our products to single out the best masks, and we thought we’d share our favourites with you:

Decleor Energy Concentrate Youth Mask

This mask is perfect for ageing skin which needs a boost and contains highly concentrated extracts of peony, lychee and rhodiola to re-energise the skin. It helps the skin to look firmer, plumper and younger and will imbue the skin with a luminous glow. It should be applied to the face once or twice a week after cleansing for best results.

Elemis Dynamic Resurfacing Gel Mask

This powerful gel mask from Elemis helps to completely resurface the skin, giving it a refined texture and ridding your complexion of excess sebum. The skin appears instantly smoother, shine free and more youthful and it’s formulated in line with the ELEMIS Promise, which means no parabens, no SLES, mineral oil or artificial colours.

Dermalogica Skin Refining Masque

This mask from Dermalogica is based on bentonite clay and contains kaolin and zinc oxide, which that remove impurities and refine the skin’s surface, helping to reduce oily-skin breakouts. It also contains mallow, arnica and cucumber which help reduce to inflammation, as well as purifying watercress, lemon and ivy which revive dull skin.

Decleor Hydra Floral White Petal Skin Perfecting Hydrating Sleeping Mask

Okay, so this one may take more than five minutes to work, but TECHNICALLY you only need five minutes to apply it before you go to sleep, so we think it still counts! It’s a refining mask which reduces the appearance of dark spots and hyperpigmentation and allows you to wake up with skin which is recharged, bright, glowing and fresh like dew.

Elemis Herbal Lavender Repair Mask

Skin which is over-sensitised and blemish-prone can really benefit from mask treatments and this one for Elemis is designed to soothe and repair such complexions. It contains rosemary, thyme and lavender, all in a kaolin clay base which is designed to give relief to skin, and cools and decongests oil rich skin. It’s non-setting and non-drying and also ideal for men who’s skin is irritated by shaving.

Say Goodbye to Puffiness Around Your Eyes

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ageing, circulation, collagen, cream, crows feet, dark circles, decleor, dehydration, delicate, dermalogica, Dermalogica Age Reversal Eye Complex, Dermalogica UltraSmoothing Eye Serum, Elemis, Elemis Absolute Eye Serum, Elemis Pro-Collagen Eye Renewal, eye, eye area, Eyes, fibres, fine lines, firm, firming, hydration, hyperpigmentation, lifting, nourish, nourishes, nourishment, particles, pearlescent, peptides, puffiness, puffy, renewal, sensitive, sensitive skin, skin, smooth, sodium laureht sulphate, spatula, tight, tighten, tightening, wrinkles

By Laitr Keiows (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

There are loads of reasons for puffiness around your eye area – tiredness, illness, stress and allergies are just a few of them. Puffiness around your eyes can make you look exhausted and far from your best, so finding a way to deal with it is a must. Fortunately, here at Pure Beauty, we have a whole load of products which can help to banish the puffiness around your eye area, and these are five of our favourites:

Dermalogica Age Reversal Eye Complex

This eye cream from Dermalogica is a real powerhouse of a product, tackling several different issues all at once. As well as dealing with puffiness, the complex also helps to remedy wrinkles, crow’s feet, dark circles due to hyperpigmentation and skin sensitivity due to dehydration. It’s ideal for drier skin or skin with is ageing prematurely and will totally revitalise the eye area.

Elemis Absolute Eye Serum

This eye serum from Elemis is all about the hydration, giving a wash of moisture around the eye area to decongest and tackle puffiness and dark circles. It conditions and nourishes the delicate eye contours, supports and tones the skin around the eyes and has a light texture that disappears immediately so that you can get on with applying your make up without having to wait for things to soak in.

Decleor Lift and Firm Eye Cream

As well as lifting and firming the area around the eyes, this cream from Decleor contains pearlescent particles which adds radiance to your skin. The peptides in the formula encourage circulation and re-energise the support fibres of your skin, which reduces puffiness and smooths wrinkles. It comes with a specially designed spatula to help you to apply the formula to the delicate eye area without causing ‘drag’, which can damage the delicate area.

Dermalogica UltraSmoothing Eye Serum

This eye serum comes from the Ultra Calming Dermalogica range, which means that it’s gentle on the skin and doesn’t contain any ingredients which might irritate the already-delicate eye area. It’s a potent but lightweight product which soaks evenly and quickly into the skin and gives immediate tightening and firming results. It’s perfect for those who suffer with sensitive skin but are trying to deal with the signs of premature ageing.

Elemis Pro-Collagen Eye Renewal

Elemis Pro-collagen products are notorious for their stunning effects and this eye renewal cream is no exception. It firms the area around the eyes, adding moisture and nourishment to the skin and obliterates dark circles and fine lines. It dramatically increases cell renewal and bears the Elemis Promise, so you can be sure that it doesn’t contain any sodium laureth sulphate or other nasties.

Hair Loss – What’s Causing it and How to Prevent It

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bald, baldness, conditioner, decleor, dermalogica, Elemis, Elemis Quiet Mind Temple Balm, female, female pattern baldness, follicles, hair, hair loss, heat, iron, Male Pattern Baldness, multivitamin, patches, polycystic ovarian syndrome, roots, shaft, stress, styling, supplement, thinning, vitamin A, Vitamin B12, weight, weight loss

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Hair loss is something that women rarely discuss and the taboo surrounding female hair loss can stop us from seeking proper help when it does happen. We’ve all heard of Male Pattern Baldness, but did you know there’s also Female Pattern Baldness? There are many things which can contribute to female baldness and hair thinning and we’ve put together a list of the main culprits:

Hormones

A woman’s hormones are a delicate balance which keep everything running smoothly, but when things get messed up it can have a lot of knock on effects, and hair loss is one of them. Pregnancy, menopause and even conditions like polycystic ovarian syndrome can cause hair loss. If you think a hormone imbalance might be contributing to your hair loss, ask your GP to perform a simple blood test to take a look at your levels.

Vitamin Deficiencies

There are a number of vitamins which can affect hair growth and if you’re lacking iron, vitamin B12 or vitamin A, you might have problems with hair loss. Try to eat a balanced diet with plenty of fresh fruit and veg and proteins, and take a multivitamin supplement to bolster your system.

Weight Loss

Losing too much weight too quickly can have a dramatic effect on your hair and it’s not unknown for a sudden drop in your weight to cause temporary baldness. If you’re planning to lose weight, try to do so healthily over a decent period of time rather than crash dieting as this can send your body into shock.

Too Much Heat Styling

We all know that heat styling can break your hair, but too much of it over time can weaken and damage hair follicles, destroying their ability to grown new hairs and this can equate to bald patches. If you must style your hair with heat, use a good conditioner, try not to pull too hard on the shaft of the hair and try not to let the heat styling implement get too close to the roots of your hair.

Stress

One of the single most common causes of hair loss is stress and the only way to halt the effects is to reduce the amount of stress in your life. Take a look at what the main sources of stress are in your life and ask a friend or partner to help you change them. Taking some time for yourself to de-stress is a good idea, so treat yourself to some Elemis Quiet Mind Temple Balm for rubbing on your temples when you feel overwhelmed.

5 Gifts to Buy Your Menopausal Friend

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abrasions, aching, ageing, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, Arnica, Australian teat tree oil, Birch, Camphor, Chinese hibiscus, dark circles, dermalogica, discomfort, Elemis, fatigue, gelm tired, healing, hormones, hot flush, hydration, inflammation, legs, lipid barrier, memory loss, Menopause, menthol, multivitamin, muscles, periods, skin, sleep, stem cells, sweet iris, thinning, tiredness, Toner, witch hazel, woman, women

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The menopause is something that happens to every woman at some point in their lives and while many of us are pretty grateful for the lack of periods each month, some of the accompanying side effects can make us feel truly lousy. Hot flushes, memory loss and sleep disturbances are just a few of the undesirable symptoms of the menopause and if you have a friend who’s going through it, you might want to buy them a gift to help them through this awkward time. We’ve put together a list of five gifts that we think would be perfect for your menopausal friend to make her feel a little better:

Elemis Anti-Fatigue Eye Gel

If your friend is struggling with sleep (insomnia and night time waking are super common during the early stages of the menopause), there’s a good chance she’ll have dark circles around her eyes, which will be reminding her of her issue every time she looks in the mirror. This gel from Elemis is designed to refresh and cool the delicate eye area, tightening the skin and reducing dark circles, making the perfect gift for someone who’s lacking sleep.

Dermalogica UltraCalming Mist

Hot flashes and dry skin are two of the most common symptoms of the menopause and this spray from Dermalogica can help to tackle both of them. This soothing toner that provides critical hydration while helping to relieve and defend against inflammation, whilst relieving inflammation and discomfort, helping skin recover from damage and lipid barrier breakdown.

Elemis Tea Tree S.O.S. Spray

As we get older, our skin thins which means that not only is it easier to get an injury, it often takes longer to heal. This spray from Elemis is make from purified water and Australian tea tree oil, which is a natural antiseptic, anti-fungal and antiviral and can be sprayed directly onto cuts and abrasions to help with the healing process.

Elemis Instant Refreshing Gel

Another common symptom that menopausal women report is aching muscles and joints, as well as muscle tension and fatigue. As well as recommending a menopause-specific multivitamin, we also suggest that you use this gel from Elemis on your achy areas. It contains soothing extracts of arnica, birch and witch hazel, with cooling camphor and menthol, which combine to relive tired legs and muscle tension and can even be applied over tights!

Elemis Pro-Definition Day Cream

Elemis created this day cream just for menopausal women – it helps support skin that has begun to sag and lose definition, and leaves skin feeling more dense and resilient. It contains stem cells from sweet irises and Chinese hibiscus which stimulate the production of collagen and restore the look of skin’s vitality. Skin feels moisturised and revived all day long.