We are spoiled with choices when comes to clay mask.  There are many type of clays : white clay, red clay, green clay, pink clay and yellow clay. These exceptional quality clays have a multitude of purposes and each one carries substantial quantities of minerals for general skin health.

Did you know that Green Clay works best on acne skin? Green Clay is the most absorbing of clays, and it is generally used as a facial mask for tissue repair, drawing toxins from the skin and to normalise excessive secretions of oil or sweat. Green clay also firms, tones and refines the skin, promoting a smooth, supple, and clear complexion.

Green clay can be found at your local health food store or if you wish to purchase online, I recommend Mountain Rose Herbs. They stock all the various clays mentioned above.

To make your very own homemade green clay mask, you will need the following ingredients:

• 1 ounce green clay
• 3 tablespoons aloe vera gel
• 3- 1/2 teaspoons of water

Method

1. Combine the clay, aloe vera gel and water in a bowl and mix well.
2. Apply the paste to your face immediatiately, using gentle, upward strokes and avoiding the the areas around the eyes.
3. Let the mask sit on your skin for approximately 15 minutes or until it’s dry.
4. Rinse off well with warm water before applying a toner and moisturizer.

The aloe vera gel in this mask provides strong healing properties, and due to its soothing nature it can calm blotches, rediness and swelling to the skin.

Alternatively, you can also make  a Simple Yogurt and French Green Clay Mask.

The ingredients are

• 1 tablespoon of French Clay
• 2 tablespoon plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons distilled water

1. Mix together the yogurt and distilled water in a mixing bowl.
2. While stirring, slowly sprinkle in the french green clay
3. Apply the paste to your face immediately, using gentle, upward strokes and avoiding the the areas around the eyes.
4. Let the mask sit on your skin for approximately 15 minutes or until it’s dry.
5. Rinse off well with warm water before applying a toner and moisturizer.

Collagen has been the “buzz” word in the skin care industry. They’re often advertised as an anti-aging solution. At a glance, this makes sense because collagen is a type of fibrous protein that connects and supports bodily tissues.

Known as the glue that holds the body together, collagen works hand-in-hand with elastin to give body tissues form and provides firmness and strength.

Naturally, the production of collagen diminishes as we age, thus leading to wrinkles. As such, collagen is an important substance for those looking for ways to fight the visible effects fo aging on the skin.

While collagen can deliver benefits to skin, collagen creams are not as effective as what manufacturers have claimed. Collagen creams does not have the ability to rebuild or replace lost collagen.

The only sources of collagens are animal skins. The molescules are too large to be absorbed by the skin’s cells. Although collagen creams cannot penetrate the skin to build new fibers, they are highly effective moisturizers for dry skin.

If a collagen boost is what you are after, you need to saught for products that contains Vitamin C, soy, or retinol. These are agents that have been shown clinically to boost collagen production.

Nothing gives away your age like your hands. Our hands tend to age quicker and show their age more than most other parts of our bodies.

Why do hands age so fast? The skin on the backs of your hands has few oil glands so it shrivels and chaps easily uponexposure especially around the joints. Add to this the overall fragile structure of your handsand you can understand why the skin on our hands is especially vulnerable to aging.

Not only that, our hands are constantly exposed to the environment, the sun and sun damage, gravity, age, and daily abuse inflicted by us, not to mention neglect, again by us. So basically, our aging hands are self-inflicted to some degree.

Our hands do so much for us during the day, yet we seem to just forget about them when it comes to skin and body care.

Is it really possible to renew hands once they start the aging process? Yes, you can rejuvenate the skin somewhat, plump it up with product and prevent additional aging. The rule of thumb is to treat your hands like you do for your face.

You can however slow the aging process by protecting your skin with gloves and by using moisturizer and sunscreen all year round.

Here’s some useful tips to protect your hands from aging:

• Gloves. Get accustomed to using rubber gloves whenever you do housework or a little gardening.
• Soak hands in a bowl of warm water to which 1 tsp of corn starch has been added for 5 minutes daily after finishing the house-hold chores.
• Finger Massage. Using four fingers from the opposite hand, start at the top of the finger and knead your way down to the tip of each finger. Feels wonderfully relaxing.
• Hand Massage. To stimulate circulation, rub your palm over the back of the hand and repeat with other hand. This movement is very similar to washing your hands and not only stimulates circulation, it also warms the hands.
  Massage hands once a week with olive oil and a little table salt added to it.
• Nourishing Hand Cream. Keep your Hand Cream on the counter and get into the habit ofapplying the cream several times a day. And remember the nails. They can benefit too.
• Beauty Sleep. Before you go to bed, lavish on your hand cream and then put on a pair of cotton gloves. Hands will be incredibly soft by morning. For chapped hands in winters, wash with lukewarm water (before going to bed), apply milk-cream and put on a pair of gloves; wash hands the next morning.
• Exfoliate your hands once a week.
• Sunscreen. Remember that your hands is also exposed to sun damage. It is important to apply sunscreen 30 minutes before moving out in the sun.

Organic Passion products recommendations:

1. Miessence Nourishing Hand Cream – An ultra-rich and nourishing cream for dry, chapped hands with antioxidants that help protect the hands from environmental stress. Organic shea butter and phospholipids keep the hand soft, supple and smooth. Helps to refine the texture of the hands, and brings moisture to the skin. Absorbs quickly without leaving the skin greasy. Perfumed with divine organic rose essential oil. RRP – $19.25

2. Garnet Exfoliant - Polished alluvial garnet works effectively to clear congestion resulting from a build-up of dead, dry surface skin cells. The best scrub ever, with a fresh citrus blend of organic lemon, bergamot and orange. RRP – $32.35