Swipe and go

Swiping is second nature... iPad, iPhone, iPod, it's also nothing new in beauty, except they're called wipes or pads. One swipe and everything disappears - nail polish, stale make-up, germ ridden hands and the latest from Origins dead skin cells. Modern friction Instant brightening pads by-pass the laborious physical scrubbing step of exfoliation. These textured one-swipe-super-easy-to-use pads are specifically formulated to significantly improve skin's texture tone and clarity. Non jarring to the skin, they loosen cling on surface cells, helping to restore fresh and breezy vibrancy. Just gently swipe the infused pad of Rice Exfoliating Complex comprised of fruit acids across the skin twice a week. I like to use on the back of my hands too. Simply swipe, throw and go!

Origins Modern Friction Instant brightening pads costs £31 for 40 pads are available from May at selected department stores and www.origins.co.uk

Origins puts the zing in your skin

By golly, just looking at this GinZing Refreshing Scrub Cleanser from Origins sets my skin all a tingle. In a get-up-and-go-go bright orange tube, this gentle daily exfoliating cleanser buffs and preens skin to silky smoothness. The natural exfoliating scrubbing beads whisks away dead skin cells in a jiffy –  without mimicking the actions of sandpaper, whilst an essential oil blend of grapefruit, lemon and spearmint acts as a fragrant alarm call in your shower. You can't help but feel top of the morning after this beauty treat! Put it on your daily essentials list.

Origins GinZing costs £18.50 and launches at Selfridges in May. Nationwide in June.

www.origins.co.uk

Lip smacking delicious

When not busy being kissed, lips can be in for a hard time. Their protective covering – the stratum corneum is far thinner than the rest of your skin, plus lips are minus any sebaceous glands that help keep skin moisturised. This all adds up to a poorly pout, one which can feel and look dry and not so kissable. Not so lip smacking good.

The new Drink Up Hydrating lip balms from Origins can't help but pack a beautiful pout in their diddy 15ml tubes which are incredibly purse pop friendly. With super hydrating natural ingredients – orange peel wax and wheat germ extract are in the mix, that form a protective barrier over the lips, a cocktail of oils help to simultaneously hydrate. A hint of a tint is left on the lips, making them look sunshine sexy and flake free. Available in 8 delicious colours and with kooky names such as Watermelon Wow and Nude Nectarine, they make for a must try and buy. Slick and kiss!

Origins Drink Up Hydraing Lip balm, £16 each

www.origins.co.uk

Origins eye stealer

No Puffery from Origins isn’t new, but what is new is their genius cooling roll-on upgrade. This is one must-have when in the sun, or even for those who never remove their eyes from their desk top or iPad screens!

Teeny, tiny enough to pop into your purse, I whip out whenever my peepers are in need of a quick pep-me-up. So what are the eye enlivening ingredients? Hoelen Mushroom helps prevent redness, yeast extract de-puffs and brightens, and Aloe leaf and cucumber go about their beauty business by hydrating and soothing. The combination of the super light gel formula and the cooling metal roll-on doesn’t make for an eye lift, but certainly a tonic that leaves them looking brighter and smarter. My new eye addiction!

Origins No Puffery roll-on for puffy eyes, £21.00

www.origins.co.uk

Origins new brightening act

I really like waking up to this cleanser from Dr Andrew Weil for Origins. Call it skin psychology, but with a distinct lack of sunshine around at the moment, the thought of lathering on something called Mega-Bright Skin illuminating cleanser is very appealing. A gentle foaming cleanser – be warned a very little goes a long way. On my first outing with it,  I squeezed a generous amount into my hands and let’s just say there was more foam than face! But once I dialled down the application it cleansed like a dream, leaving skin feeling cleansed, refreshed, hydrated and yes, subtly brightened.

The cleanser is just the first step in a Mega-Bright illuminating collection, I’m trialling the serum too, all of which helps the skin in two ways. They help keep irritation at bay, so melanin production isn't triggered, which in turn helps stop discolouration and an uneven skin tone. Meanwhile, at the same time, it focuses on the existing signs, so they appear less visible to the naked eye, making the skin appear more youthful. Remember, it's dark splodges that make our skin appear older rather than lines.

Harvard-trained medial doctor, Andrew Weil is a know-it-all botanist (in the best possible way!) and word-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine, and certainly knows his stuff when it comes to ingredients that make a difference. Key ones for this line include rosa roxburghii – a flowering bush that grows wild throughout Asia, containing ingredients that help quell melanin triggering stress, along with liquorice root extract and peony that are both known to brighten and improve the appearance of skin.  In a 12 week clinical study on women with all skin types, 92% showed a brighter, more even skin tone in just four weeks.

The Mega-Bright Skin Illuminating Collection isn’t available until June this year, where hopefully there will be a little more sunshine around, but for any skin that’s sensitive to dark spots, discolouration, irritation or for those just seeking a more radiant look to their complexion, then add to your summer must-buy list.

Dr Andrew Weil for Origins Mega-Bright Skin illuminating collection starts at £25 for the cleanser.

www.origins.co.uk

Stockists: 0800 731 4039

Origins puts back the bounce

According to experts, skin has become ever grubbier thanks to the environment becoming dirtier. For skin to able to function properly , and therefore to look its best, layers of pollution, long-lasting make-up and the skin’s own sebum needs to be removed in order for those expensive anti-ageing products you splash out on to work at their optimum.

I believe good skin hygiene is your secret youth inducer. Sloppy cleansing makes for a grey skin tone, blemishes and blackheads. My cleansing ‘wardrobe’ is bigger than my make-up collection. Why? Because the more dewy your skin looks, the more you can down-play your make-up if you so wish.

Two products I’ve added to my cleansing arsenal is Origins Plantscription Anti-ageing cleanser and treatment lotion. In true Origins style they use plant extracts as their modern day pharmacy, and both contain the tongue twister, angoeissus. A scared tree found in West Africa, they’ve discovered that the extract of the bark has an excellent ability to protect collagen and help boost skin’s natural production levels of a glycoprotein called fibrillin. Cutting through the science, all you need to know is it results in a firmer, more resilient, younger looking complexion.

I don’t normally use toner, but I find the treatment lotion used post cleanser gives my skin a nice clean sweep. When used together, they’ve been clinically proven to preserve skin’s moisture barrier – and it’s true, my skin does look and feel more hydrated, and therefore looks a little more bouncy and radiant. And who doesn’t want to bank a bit of bounce? Remember, it’s something your cleansing routine that needs to be addressed, not another layer of ‘miracle’ cream to make that small skin difference.

Origins Plantscription Anti-aging cleanser and treatment lotion, both £25.

www.origins.co.uk