I'd like to introduce you to a very handy iPhone and iPod touch app called BeautyCraft, a beauty product recipe book.
If you love organic and natural beauty and DIY recipes, you'll love this app.   
Making your own products is a great way to save money, as well as ensuring that you aren't using dangerous chemicals.

Full of skin care recipes such as bath bombs, facial scrubs, foot treatments and many more.
The ingredients used are very affordable and easy to find, most of which you will probably already have in your own kitchen and nothing too bizarre, which will leave you wondering where on earth you're going to find them from.  

As well as a recipe book, BeautyCraft also contains a very detailed A-Z list of all of the ingredients and equipment used in the recipes, with explanations of what they do and how they work.
Each ingredient listed contains very interesting facts - Did you know that apple cider vinegar has been used in beauty products since Roman Times? Or that coffee is thought to fight cellulite, and that honey and thyme have great antibacterial properties? 


Below is an example of the type of recipes contained in the app and how easy they are - 

This is a very well thought out app, easy to use and navigate and well worth the low price.

The BeautyCraft App is available for $1.99 from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore. 
Visit www.herbhedgerow.co.uk/app.html for more information.

Thanks to Chiiki, I have received some wonderful organic perfumes to try by Aura-soma.   The fragrance range is called Pegasus.

The range consists of eight different fragrances in numbered bottles in an assortment of stunning colours, presented in beautiful unique vintage style bottles. 
The bottle numbers are- 

No 11 "Pink Lotus"
No 30 "Oudh Incense"
No 39 "Liquid Elixir"
No 44 "Iris Florentina"
No 56 "Violet Powder"
No 58 "Aquatic Flowers"
No 75 "Frangipani"
No 80 "Datura"

The fragrances are created using the purest of essential oils, so you can be assured that you are wearing a fragrance completely natural and free from chemicals.  Aura-soma states that you are encouraged to choose the one that suits you personally.  You choose the perfume based on the colour of the bottle rather than the smell and through your colour choice you’re naturally drawn to the scent that likely suits you best. Although I did it the other way around and chose the fragrance first, the fragrance still matched up with the colours I would have chosen.    
I was really impressed with these perfumes, they don't smell cheap and the scent lasts for a very long time, something which can be difficult to find in organic perfumes.  
Eco-friendly, cruelty free and against animal testing.    
Whether you like soft florals or earthy scents, I think you are bound to find a perfume in this range which you will be attracted to.   
When I changed to organic skin care,  perfumes were what I missed the most, I have tried some natural perfumes whose scent lingered for around one hour at the most, but pegasus are quite the opposite.   I've decided to review - 

 
No 30 "Oudh Incense"

As a patchouli and incense lover, I was drawn to this scent.   An exquisite blend of Woody and Oriental oils and herbal extracts.
The patchouli isn't the strong 60's style of patchouli (although I love that type of patchouli too) . This is a gentle, soft patchouli layered underneath Amber, Musk (vegan friendly), Vanilla and Jasmine.
These were the scents which stood out as I first applied it.  As the day wore on and it settled onto my skin, the scents of cedarwood and vetiver started coming through.   
This perfume is connected with spirituality and peace of mind.  It gave me a very relaxed feeling, similar to when you burn incense.  It's warm and sensual and I found it lasted a very long time on my skin.   Knowing that this is all natural and free of synthetics makes this even better.   The dark red and blue glass perfume bottle is my favourite bottle out of the pegasus range, a thoughtful and deep colour which I think resonates well with the oudh incense perfume.  
The patchouli isn't the strong 60's style of patchouli (although I love that type of patchouli too) . This is a gentle, soft patchouli layered underneath Amber, Musk (vegan friendly), Vanilla and Jasmine,
As the day wore on and it settled onto my skin, the scents of cedarwood and vetiver started coming through.   
This perfume is connected with spirituality and peace of mind.  It gave me a very relaxed feeling, similar to when you burn incense.  It's warm and sensual and I found it lasted a very long time on my skin.   Knowing that this is all natural and free of synthetics makes this even better.   The dark red and blue glass perfume bottle is my favourite bottle out of the pegasus range, a thoughtful and deep colour which I think resonates well with the oudh incense perfume.   

Pegasus perfumes can be purchased at Chiiki.

Intro to Pegasus perfumes/ Samantha Sample
 and 
GUEST BLOG /Annette Christy/Chikii 

Words  from Samantha Sample founder of Be Genki 
“Many years ago when starting my deep dive in to the world of natural skincare, personal care and all-things-organic, the first thing I threw out from my bathroom cabinet was the bottle of perfume, vowing never to use conventional fragrances ever again. Reason being, I was horrified by the effect that synthetic fragrances and fixatives had on my health, and wondered how on earth it was possible for companies to legally sell such poison and why it wasn’t common knowledge.

The Environmental Working Group’s SKIN DEEP Cosmetic Safety Database is recognized as a world authority on ingredient listings and state that many synthetic fragrances pose a wide range of immediate and long-term health hazards, with links to:

 ~ immunotoxicity, or harm to the immune system, a class of health problems that manifest as allergic reactions or an impaired capacity to fight disease and repair damaged tissues in the body

 ~ neurotoxicity, or harm to the brain and nervous system, a class of health problems that can range from subtle developmental delays to chronic nerve degeneration diseases.

 Doesn’t sound like much fun does it?!

So, I am now jumping with joy to be able to use and make available to you the new Pegasus Parfum range, made with love and intention by Aura-Soma®, and created using only natural and organic essential oils extracted from plants and flowers. The alcohol, which is used as the fragrance carrier, is certified organic by the Soil Association and fermented from pure organic grain. By using organic grade materials you can be sure that the ingredients are not exposed to pollution or pesticides.

 Hooray!!! Perfume guaranteed free from petrochemicals, synthetic fragrances and preservatives!!! and just in time for the party season!!! “

Guest post Annette Christy at chikii.com.au

At Chikii, we are very aware of what the dangers of Synthetic Fragrances and Phthalates are to our health and our babies, and we only look for pure therapeutic and certified organic essential oils in our perfumes and body products.

We know that the sweet, smelling air fresheners, reed diffusers, body sprays, scented shampoos are made with synthetic fragrances and yes they are bad for you…. especially children and pregnant women. These contain phthalates which are chemicals known to cause hormonal abnormalities, birth defects and reproductive problems. There is a lot of evidence also that artificially scented products may also trigger migraine headaches, allergies and asthma attacks. When synthetic fragrances are burned, they produce toxic fluoro-carbons and other polluting by-products. . Fragrances that are synthetically-derived are, for the most part, derived from petroleum sources. The chief motive for using synthetic fragrances is the price, which means bigger profits! According to the EWG, there are potentially hundreds of chemicals in a single product’s secret fragrance mixture.

Anyway, we are not going to bore you with endless information on the list of dangers, instead we are going to list a few points on how to protect yourself from these nasties and provide useful information to help you evaluate products in order for you to choose safe alternatives.

1. Avoid air fresheners. They are made with synthetic fragrances, containing phthalates.

2. Watch for any product that lists “fragrance” or “parfum” on the label.

3. Products that claim to be “fragrance free” or “unscented” could contain masking agents that give off a neutral odour, so it is best if the word “fragrance” does not appear on the label at all.

4. Look for scents that are naturally derived or are plant-based or labelled as 100% pure or therapeutic essential oils. These are not the same thing as fragrance oils which are artificially created and contain synthetic chemicals.

5. If a product says “Made with…” it can mean as little as 1 percent of the ingredients in the bottle.

6. For scented candles, try those made from soy, coconut, olive or beeswax, and make sure their fragrance is made from 100% therapeutic essential oils.

7. To clear the air use a non-aerosol citrus spray containing only citrus peel extracts, which are effective at dissolving airborne odours, instead of scented aerosol sprays, liquids that emit a continuous scent, or solid air fresheners.

8. Labels that claim a product is “natural” or “biodegradable” do not mean that it is necessarily free of synthetic fragrances or other chemicals

9. Certified Organic products do not contain synthetic fragrances.

It just makes sense to educate yourself and the people you care about….who wants to be breathing in synthetic chemicals and petroleum….YUCK!