Thursday, 9 October 2014

AHC magazine feature + handmade beauty gifts




Morning poppets ... I'm off the the Ally Pally knit and stitch show this morning! I'll tell you all about it soon, but before I go I just wanted to tell you, that this week A Handmade Cottage was featured in 'Make your own gifts' magazine! Remember when I gave you a sneak peak of my lavender and rose bath salts? well I made a 'Lavender and Rose beauty trio' for the magazine - which included Lavender & Rose bath salts, a moisturising Oatmeal body soother and an anti-aging Lavender & Rose facial cleanser ...
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Tuesday, 1 July 2014

Beautiful handmade beauty gifts + harvesting lavender


Would you like to make these little bathing beauties for yourself, or as a gift for loved ones? I made these to feature in a craft magazine that's due on the shelves in the autumn / winter. They're so easy and cheap to make, and make beautiful gifts. I can't tell you how to make them now, as the instructions are going to be published but what I can tell you is; harvest your Lavender when it's ready (about now - July) and dry it out! Or if you don't have any growing keep your eye out for dried lavender, so when the time comes in Autumn you can make these (and the pretty labels too) for loved ones at Christmas! though if you do make them I suggest you make a few as some won't be leaving your bathroom ... x




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Tuesday, 11 March 2014

Make your own cleanser: The oil cleansing method

  
So my soon-to-be babyfaced lovelies! Last week I showed you what I think are the best natural beauty cleansers available on the market. However, like a lot of women I don't always have the money to splash out on lovely posh cleansers. So today I want to show you how to make this excellent homemade cleanser. The 'Oil cleansing method' has been around for decades and it's just lovely. In fact I much prefer this recipe to the Liz Earle hot cloth cleanser (Shh I didn't say that!)

Here are the facts ...

* It only contains two oils so it's super easy to make *
(and takes all of two minutes to make ) 

* It removes the toughest of mascaras but is still ultra kind to your skin *
(stripping the skin of oils doesn't do our crows feet ANY good) 

* It 100% natural and organic *
(and makes you feel like a baby-faced Grecian goddess! 
and if it's good enough for Cleo it's good enough for us Oui?)




Akamuti's Castor oil is perfect for this. Just
make sure you get the balance for your skin type right.

Organic & cold pressed 

Castor oil


THEM: 'For thousands of years, castor oil has been revered for its therapeutic properties and has remarkable skin caring qualities.' 

AHC: This is the star of the show. It's a fantastic oil that dissolves dirt, impurities and make up and has a highly bacterial nature. This one is from Akamuti, I really like and trust their products.

COST: £5.50

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Thursday, 6 March 2014

The BEST natural cleansers I've found are ...


Don't be thinking I choose natural products just because I'm a bit of a
hippy (ok I am a bit of a hippy) but I choose them because they work!
Lets get one thing straight. While I am a bit of a hippy-esque earthmother, when it comes to my skin I'm just as vain as the rest of you. I want soft, smooth, blemish-free skin and since I'm not getting any younger I also want the BEST wrinkle-preventing ingredients drenching my face at all times. I have now tried most products under the sun. I thought a chemical-heavy cream would be the ticket to ironing out my crows feet, but after much trial and error it appears to be quite the opposite. My skin has never been better and it's all down to our lovely, very potent mother nature! Note: I'm not getting paid to say this ... I wish I was, but I'm not.


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Monday, 20 January 2014

The best natural beauty brands and where to find them


Ok folks, let's have a quick recap. So far, we've talked about the potential dangers of chemical-based products in Becoming a natural beauty and we learned how to really read labels in Chemicals to avoid and understanding the labels. So now it's time to get on to the fun stuff! Now the good news is natural beauty brands are well and truly on the rise. The bad news is they can be a little bit more pricey than your regular high products, and it's not because of their packaging. It's because when it comes to natural ingredients, you really do get what you pay for.


Neal's Yard remedies is a lovely brand and uses quality ingredients.

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Monday, 6 January 2014

Becoming a natural beauty


Laugh lines or wrinkles, call them what you like, we don't like them. Like most people I had tried all manner of things to prevent age showing on my face. I'd like to tell you I eat vast amounts of organic veg and drink kale juice but that would be a lie. I don't drink much water (unless there's milk and a teabag in it) and I eat cake. So like most women I try to make up for it with what goes on my face instead. When I gave up smoking (I was a young musician) I also gave up chemical products at the same time and became a natural beauty. As a result my outlook and way of life completely changed, as did my skin.


My wedding morning ... I even used natural products on my big day.
Photo by Binky Nixon

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Monday, 25 November 2013

How to make: Rose hip facial oil with Lavender & Rose - part 2

Morning all! So here are the instructions on how to make a basic anti-ageing

 * Rose Hip Oil - with Lavender and Rose *






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Wednesday, 20 November 2013

How to make Rose hip anti-aging moisturiser - Part 1

Hello lovelies, 

It's cold, our skin is dry and in need of a beauty-hug (?)
So I'm going to share one of my favourite beauty recipes of ALL time ... 
This is easy, cheap and VERY effective. The lovely, the luscious

 *** Rose hip Oil ***


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Saturday, 12 October 2013

AHC welcome video!! - feat special guest

Morning lovelies! 

I have a special treat today ... it's my FIRST video! It's a video of myself (and Ralphy of course) introducing A handmade cottage while giving viewers a bit of an insight into what AHC is all about. 

I hope you enjoy it! if you do feel free to comment and share with friends and other like-minded folk.

Have a lovely weekend,

JM & Ralphy the dog x

Please note: no Jack russells were harmed in the making of this film : )




If you don't see the video you can click here to view
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Thursday, 29 August 2013

Beauty & the egg - a natural face mask


Photograph by Binky Nixon

BEAUTY AND THE EGG
A natural beauty recipe

This remedy is a godsend and I've used it on countless occasions. It's especially good before a night out as it's a temporary facelift without the surgery. It works better than the countless creams I've tried and it's 100% natural. Botox in a shell (I kid you not.)

Tools required: 1 egg.
Prep time: none
Takes: 5 minutes

1.  For best result exfoliate before hand.

2. Take one egg, crack and separate the white from the yolk. (Dispose of yolk or keep for hair mask ... that's another post)  Give the white a quick whip (only for 10 secs or so) 

3. Slap it on ... pat it all over your face and let it dry. Soon you'll be transformed into a Barbi that's half your age! (err see disclaimer)

Note: Try NOT laugh when it's dry.  If you do it cracks and you'll get to see what you'll look like as an old woman. It's hideous ... but if you want to freak out your other half out then it's WELL worth doing.

4. Simply wash off. Feels just lovely.

For best results: If you have dry skin, follow with a 10 minute pure honey mask for ultimate moisturisation.

xx

Disclaimer: you won't look like Barbi and you won't really look half your age but you WILL look better and appear younger looking as it does smooth fine lines in my opinion. Also I can't take responsibility if you're allergic to egg white. I suggest a test patch. Bear in mind it does sting a little when it goes on but that's normal, however if it's too uncomfortable wash it off.
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