Tag Archives: dry brushing

Dry Skin Brushing with Bodecare Natural Bristle Brushes

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Hello natural beauties how are you? I’ve written about dry brushing before (dry brushing basics and dry brushing for your face) when I discovered some fabulous natural, vegan brushes from Bodecare – one for my face and one for my body. It took me ages to get into it and then after a couple of house moves they disappeared! I was very excited to run into Rebecca from Bodecare at the Sydney Mind Body Spirit Festival last month (before we all got sent inside by Mother Nature). Read on for some simple healthy techniques to make your skin look amazing!

 

Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here:

suzannerbanks.com.au

                     Digital downloads and paper backs of my book                              Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils here:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

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A selection of brushes at the Mind Body Spirit Festival

About Rebecca and Bodecare

Rebecca Gaspert, the owner of Bodecare, has been in the beauty industry for decades. She is a makeup artist and qualified Beauty Therapist who has owned 2 award-winning salons, and that is how her dry brushing journey commenced. Many of her clients had skin problems from dry skin to acne which started her on a trajectory that is now Bodecare. Rebecca started dry brushing in 2003 and has never looked back.

The beautiful Rebecca


What are the benefits of dry brushing?

According to Rebecca, dry brushing:

can improve venous blood circulation and lymphatic drainage, aid in the release of toxins, exfoliate dead skin and reduce ingrown hairs. It can also:

*  Reduce skin conditions such as Psoriasis, Keratosis Pilaris, Eczema and other dry skin conditions.

*  Reduce cellulite

*  Relief of arthritis

*  Increase circulation of scalp

*  Reduce stress

*  Remove bumpy skin

Use this code at checkout for a 10% discount:  SUZANNE10

My fave Bodcare brush is the one with the detachable handle called the TAMPICO FSC BODY BRUSH

6 Tips from Rebecca to Kick Start Your Body Brushing

1.  Always use a plant bristle skin brush. Try the tampico body brush with a removable handle for flexibility.


I love the detachable handle on the Tampico body brush. Give it a go if you’re in quiet Covid19 mode.

2.  Perform on dry skin only as this will provide the best stimulation and exfoliation.

3.  Generally stroke upward in one motion. Except for fingers and toes, you can brush back-and-forth between them.

4.  Ensure you use the jute brush for gentle face exfoliation.  Don’t ever use your body brush.  When brushing, use upside-down U-shape brush strokes, pressure on the upward stroke and lightly on the way down.

This is the wonderful jute face brush, I encourage you to try it, it’s really wonderful!


5.  Always use a good quality organic body cream and face moisturiser after your shower, to ensure your skin is kept hydrated and supple. 

6.  Always clean your brush after use. If you do not clean or allow your body brush to dry completely, you are susceptible to spreading bacteria back on your skin when dry body brushing. Simply use a tea tree hydrosol on the bristles after every use of your brush.

Hey while you’re immersed in natural bristles why not try the toothbrushes too? They have won an award!



Use this code at checkout for a 10% discount:  SUZANNE10

Let me know how you go with your dry brushing – good luck!

Spring and Autumn – Nourishing Body Oil Blend Recipes for Seasonal Change

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Hi natural beauties and natural scent lovers from all over the world! I hope you’re feeling wonderful and ready for some self-care and nourishment. It’s (almost) spring in Sydney and maybe you’re somewhere that’s starting to get a little chilly as the leaves are preparing to float away into the autumn breeze. Lets check out a few recipes to help your skin stay hydrated, plump and elastic.

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Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here: suzannerbanks.com.au

Digital downloads of my book Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

A classic Australian native – wattle – spotted in the park yesterday

 

From Winter into Spring

You may be experiencing dry, flaky skin from being covered up all winter. Hot showers and indoor heating add extra dryness and you could even seem to have crocodile skin too! Especially on your legs.

Prepare your skin properly before smothering it in an oil blend. This could include

  1. dry brushing – which is fantastic for your skin and circulation too. Check out my article To Dry Brush or Not?
  2. skin scrub in the shower or bath made from natural ingredients like coffee, ground nuts and seeds and some oil
  3. body puff – rather than a loofah – see my article To Loofah or To Body Puff?
  4. have a shower to rid yourself of any skin floating around and get ready to oil up baby!

 

The best dry brushes are made from plant fibres and have detachable arms – pic via amazon.com

 

Nourishing Body Oil Blend

For a coat of your body use 3 teaspoons of carrier oil in a little dish and, add 7 – 8 drops of essential oil. It’s always best to patch test first, before you apply all over.

***** Always put the drops of essential oil into the bottle or dish first, then add the carrier oil. It gives the scents time to create a synergistic fusion.

For a 50ml bottle of oil add 25 drops and see my articles “Ratios for Blending Essential Oils – A Reminder of the Basics” and  “Aromatherapy – It’s Easy as 1 2 3”

 

“Gator Be Gone”

in jojoba

Bergamot .            3 drops

Lavender              3 drops

Carrot seed          2 drops

 

“Smooth and Sexy”

in almond oil

Orange                 4 drops

Ylang Ylang           2 drops

Patchouli               2 drops

 

“Spring Into Action”

in sunflower and grape seed oil

Peru Balsam        2 drops

Palmarosa            2 drops

Lemon                 2 drops

Peppermint          1 drop

 

Divine jasmine!

 

From Summer into Autumn

Have you had a lot of sun this summer? Even if you don’t go to the beach or spend time outdoors, and even if you wear sunscreen on your face, your skin is still living in a warmer environment and will need a different type of care.

Be gentle with your skin, especially on your face and prepare your self with a very gentle body and face scrub made from natural ingredients, shower off and smother yourself in a beautiful oil blend you have made especially for you!

 

“Feel the Heat”

in sunflower oil

Rose in 3% jojoba         20 drops *  see my article for more info on 3% blends in jojoba

 

“Soothe and Soften”

in jojoba oil

Mandarin         4 drops

Lavender         3 drops

Geranium        1 drop

 

” Sunkissed”

in apricot oil

Indian rosewood     4 drops

Marjoram                3 drops

Vetiver                    1 drop

 

Rose is the Queen of oils

 

Changing seasons brings new hope and new energy. With that energy, nourish yourself with luxurious body oil blends, all natural and created by you. 

Do you have a favourite blend?

 

Dry Brushing for Your Face?

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Dry Brushing for Your Face? Is it a Thing? The Soft Supple Skin Series continues with Part 4 …

There are many motorised facial brushes on the market but what about dry brushing for your face? Just as dry brushing for your body is wonderful, dry brushing for your face has the same benefits!

 

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Please check out my new book REVELATION! – Reveal Your Destiny with Essential Oils

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

and many other stores worldwide as an ebook and paperback

***************************************************************************************************************

Dry brushing for your face - pic via www.skin-brushing.com

Dry brushing for your face – pic via http://www.skin-brushing.com

 

The advantages of dry brushing are exfoliation and lymphatic drainage. See my previous article To Dry Brush or Not? Yep … Another Question!.

As you can see by this diagram, your lymphatic drainage points for your face are behind your ears. Brush towards your ears so the excess fluid can be taken away by your lymphatic system.

It’s pretty simple really and easy to do. The most important thing to note is not to scrub too hard, just use soft gentle strokes, for two reasons:

1. Classic lymphatic drainage ALWAYS uses superficial strokes. Light sweeping strokes are the only way to move fluid to the nodes.

2. The skin on your face is more sensitive and you need to be more gentle while exfoliating.

Motorised brush- pic via www.beautylish.com

Motorised brush – pic via http://www.beautylish.com

 

There are many motorised brushes on the market but they often come as a cleaning system, with facial soaps and washes and various lotions. I’ve always wondered why some people need to clean their faces so rigourously? Surely your face can’t be so dirty you need to scrub it clean, every day? I realise if you wear makeup everyday, that can build up…… but do the same people scrub their bodies with brushes daily too? Maybe. I don’t.

Look this one is cute - from sephora.com

Look this one is cute – from sephora.com

Dry brush your face once or twice a week, just as you would your body, and if that’s too much for you make it once a week. Always moisturise afterwards – and try a light mist of a hydrosol or floral water after brushing and before moisturising.

And for the all natural person here's a cute soft natural jute brush by bodecare.com

And for the all natural person here’s a cute soft natural jute brush by bodecare.com

Now I’m totally psyched into dry brushing my entire body. The little face brush above is easily cleaned with any plain soap as the bristles are synthetic and slightly more gentle than natural bristles. The natural bristle body brushes are a bit harder to clean as it’s best not to get them too wet. You could use a comb with soap and water to pull through the bristles, and shake it out every time you use it.

I wonder if this cute little brush will help reduce the circles under my eyes? I’m going to try, and I’ll get back to you in a while. Stay tuned x

Remember to treat yourself first, then everyone will benefit.

Check out my YouTube channel too, thanks.

copryright SR Banks 2015

 

 

To Dry Brush or Not? Yep … Another Question!

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The Soft, Supple Skin Series Part 3 – Dry Brushing

The series continues with question about how effective dry brushing is.

 

***************************************************************************************************************

Please check out my new book REVELATION! – Reveal Your Destiny with Essential Oils

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

and many other stores worldwide as an ebook and paperback

***************************************************************************************************************

The best dry brushes are made from plant fibres and have detachable arms - pic via amazon.com

The best dry brushes are made from plant fibres and have detachable handles – pic via amazon.com

Dry brushing has been a health and beauty regime for many people over the past century. I have to admit I have had a dry skin brush in the past but found it hard to get into a routine with it. In summer I found I didn’t really need it and in winter I found it was too cold to dry brush before the shower. Having admitted my downfalls I am a proponent of the dry brush because of its simplicity and they way it can make you feel truly enlivened.

History

From my research into this topic it seems as though the dry brush (although probably used for hundreds of years if not more), sprang into modern culture via the Nordic countries in combination with the sauna. Dr Paavo Airola extolled the wonders of dry brushing in his book “How to Get Well”. He was born in 1918 and died in 1983, having written 14 books on health and wellness, he was definitely ahead of his time. Dr Airola talked about juicing, taking supplements, a raw diet without meat and many other health regimes we accept today as part of the norm. Looking back, his work on nutrition and biochemistry helped form the naturopathic way of life.

 

Feel fresh and enlivened with body brushing

Feel fresh and enlivened with body brushing

The Benefits of Dry Brushing

From his book, and what we know today, some of the benefits of dry brushing are:

* increase lymphatic drainage which is one of the detoxification systems of the body

* which in turn helps to remove cellulite

* and increase immunity

* remove dead skin cells

* gently massage internal organs and promote healthy digestion

* make you feel fresh and alive by tightening the skin, improving muscle tone and increasing circulation

 

How to Do It

The best way to brush is to be gentle and let the bristles do the work.

Brush toward the lymph nodes and I understand you might not know where they are so here’s an easy guide:

Easy dry brushing guide - pic via www.fengshuidana.com

Easy dry brushing guide – pic via http://www.fengshuidana.com

So basically you work up the legs to the groin.

Up the arms to the arm pits.

Downwards on your neck.

Upwards on your back.

Up and down on your stomach.

This is why its better to have a detachable arm as it easier to do the dry brushing with your hand on top of the brush and just add the arm for your back.

Have a shower after your brushing!

Detach the arm for most of your body as its easier to use - pic via www.athleticaesthetic.co

Detach the arm for most of your body as it’s easier to use – pic via http://www.athleticaesthetic.co

 

Why Can’t You Use the Brush In the Shower?

* the bristles are better when dry

* it doesn’t work as well with water, as the water can make the brush heavy, and you are working against the force of the water flow. This can lead to over scrubbing and very red raw skin – ouch!

* it’s generally less effective for improving skin tone

So yes dry brushing is probably the best way to exfoliate and make your skin feel great because it has many other health benefits that using a scrub does not. It even surpasses the body puff and gloves for this reason.

Do you dry brush?

Remember to treat yourself first, then everyone will benefit.

Check out my YouTube channel too, thanks.

copryright SR Banks 2015