Having well and truly exhausted my stocks of trusty Aldi moisturiser and finished my fabulous Bliss Triple O one, it was time to try a new product in my daily routine. Step forward Avalon Organics Lavender Daily Moisturiser.
Never mind the supposed organics credentials (it’s without artificial colours, synthetic fragrances or parabens and boasts bucketfuls of lovely natural ingredients), I was most attracted by the lavender smell. If you’re like me and love lavender scent, this is the range for you. It smells beautifully natural, not at all artificial, and turns putting on your daily slather of moisturiser into something you almost look forward to!
Now for the science bit (skip this if you aren’t interested in long words). It contains Organic Turmeric, Arnica and Calendula to soothe redness, Hyaluronic Acid and Organic Sunflower Oil to give ‘weightless hydration with a velvety finish’, Lipo-Filling Complex to enhance luminosity, clarity and tone and Organic Lavender and Grape Seed Polyphenols to reduce redness and defend against free radicals (however much I read on those little beggars, I still don’t totally understand what they do other than they’re bad!). There’s also chamomile, liquorice root, white tea and willow bark chucked in for good measure. Oh well, a little liquorice root never hurts, right?!
But all this bamboozlement with long words mean nothing if it doesn’t equal results… and I have to say, I’m really pleased with this moisturiser. It feels rich but still light, smoothes on and sinks in easily and acts as the perfect base for make-up. My face felt plumped and hydrated for the whole day and I don’t care how much of a hippy this makes me sound, but that heady lavender fragrance really does seem to have a soothing calming effect! It also handles sensitive skin really well, but without feeling oily. The packaging is pleasant (lots of purple, unsurprisingly), looks more expensive than it is and, at the current rate, I’d estimate that one tub will last at least 6 months with everyday use.
As for the organics stuff… I’ll have to confess that I’m not too bothered. Good thing too as Avalon Organics true organics credentials are a little cloudy, since describing something as ‘organic’ in the cosmetics world still seems to be a bit of a grey area. I guess you just have to put your faith in make-up brands and believe that the chemicals they’re making us put on our face are the good guys, and let the results speak for themselves. And in this case, the results are great. My skin feels softer, looks brighter and it really soothes the odd sensitive patches I get.
For a supermarket-bought reasonably-priced moisturiser, chalk me up as pretty impressed.
Avalon Organics Lavender Daily Moisturiser, $99.90, available from larger branches of Park N Shop/Taste/International
Through The Looking Glass 