Hey Gorgeous - A female Owned Beauty Company that is the (Bath) Bomb

My husband is a mechanical engineer by trade, but he is a team leader for a group of engineers that travel the world to his employer's many facilities to troubleshoot things that make my brain tired.

He always brings me back a gift, sometimes something delightfully tacky from an airport gift shop (sucker with a scorpion inside an example) but very often bath and beauty products as I just LOVE them. (You know your husband loves you when he'll drive 100 miles to find a Boots store in London to get you the skin lotion you can't find in the States any longer).

This was a wonderful surprise from South Africa, where his company has a large production facility, and after trying some of their products I made my first online order.

The company is called Hey Gorgeous.

I had to say I was impressed with their online presence, verified customer reviews., and how quickly and safely the products got here, traveling many thousands of miles.

"All of our products are formulated by real women for real women and are made with the highest quality organic and natural ingredients that are completely beneficial for the skin. From organic essential oils to bio-dynamically grown botanicals and fruit and nut oils, these ingredients are individually and carefully selected from local suppliers (wherever possible) for their ability to heal and nurture the skin naturally. Seekers of more natural cosmetics and skin care alternatives can now try our gorgeous products and experience the difference of completely natural skin care. The benefits will reveal a complexion that is soft, supple, and glowing."

Hey Gorgeous.  They use all natural products, lots of essential oils, all carefully crafted for the best in skincare without being a lab experiment.  Don't panic when you look at the online prices - they are listed in the "Rand", the countries currency which is about 7 U.S. cents for each of their dollars, so the prices were quite reasonable, including the shipping. More than drugstore but much less than department store brands.

But hey, they had me at cupcake bath bombs (photo is from their website).

https://hey-gorgeous.co.za/

I won't review them compared to my husband's DIY bath bombs that looked like pink sticks of dynamite. (and came with their own antique "blaster's handbook")

I also ordered the  Hey Gorgeous Gogi Berry Face Mask, and a Marshmallow body wash (it's the little kid in me but I LOVE the scent of marshmallow).

The products arrived within 10 days, very well wrapped and in great condition.They shipped the body wash with a different cap than the one you use to dispense (which was enclosed) to avoid leakage which was a great idea.

I LOVE the smell and feel of the products.  The Rosehip night cream had a wonderful smell and texture.  I'm not sure it was as  moisturinzng as the shea butter cream I normally use for for normal, normal/dry skin I think it would be excellent.

 The mask was listed as follows:

The most exciting benefit from Goji berries is its anti-aging potential. Goji berries contain 11 of the 22 essential dietary trace minerals, including calcium, potassium, iron, zinc, and selenium. Though each performs different functions in skin, they all help fight off the damaging effects of free radicals, and many encourage the production of collagen and elastin, helping to maintain tautness and flexibility. Many minerals also are essential to the skin’s ability to heal and regenerate itself. Our gorgeous Goji Berry Face Mask will smooth and hydrate the skin, plump up fine lines and leave your skin feeling incredible.

I have to agree, with just a few minutes of application my face was plump and soft and smooth, with a light gentle fragrance and unlike 90% of the over the counter products I try (I have rosacea and its resultant acne) - it didn't irritate my skin or cause any new breakouts. After just one use of the mask  my skin was calm and soothed.

The body gel, I added to my evening bath water for an all-natural bubble bath and it left my skin soft and smooth and smelling so good. (Never underestimate the spouse that smells like a Rice Crispies Treat).  I can't wait to use it in the shower tomorrow when I do my every other day hair wash.

Hey Gorgeous is female owned and operated and so far I love the products I've tried and I've already placed another order for more bath products and hair care.

Click on photo to enlarge and read the ingredient list.

You can see the natural ingredients listed on the jars.

Note:  Since this is a foreign company the first time I tried to order my credit card declined it with a fraud alert. This is NOT unusual for ordering from overseas.  A quick phone call to my credit card company cleared that up and was so worth it and I was able to re-place the order within minutes. The online ordering site is an internet secure one but my credit card company just saw the continent and flagged it.

Food Sensitivity Test Results - Surprise!

Well, I got my results from the EveryWell Food Sensitivity Test.

There were a couple of surprises.  I have always known I'm sensitive to wheat if I eat a bunch of it, but it only showed as moderate as far as a food trigger.  Yet, every time I eat breakfast cereal (with the exception of Rice Chex or the specifically labeled Gluten Free Rice Crispies) my IBS goes nuts.  I figured it was the dairy, but switching to almond milk didn't help.

That made a quick breakfast problematic as a couple of eggs with even gluten-free toast would set me off as well.  The only thing I'll eat before the drive to the office or church/Bible study is my Go Macro Bar (assorted flavors), with gluten-free, no soy, no GMO ingredients, just oats, raisins, coconut, brown rice, natural sweeteners, and nut butter. It literally is the ONLY quick to eat packaged food that I like for breakfast that doesn't trigger an IBS flare-up (and all the flavors of the bars are really filling and tasty though the coconut granola is my favorite!)

My biggest food sensitivities? (those the test said I have a "high reactivity to)

Soy (Nor surprised as many people are sensitive to it, and I knew if I ate too much meat-free soy-based products my IBS flared up big-time

But the big surprise?

Malt

Yup, an ingredient in almost all breakfast cereals and prepackaged breads (not to mention the single malt scotch I sip on weekend evenings). It's in my breakfast cereal, it's in my packaged cookies, it's in my beer with pizza, it's in the Vitamin C powder I take every single day. It's no wonder I live 10 feet from a bathroom.

Malt is hard to spot in packaging -  it's usually listed as:

Malted barley (or corn, etc)
Malt Extract
Malt Vinegar
Maltodextrin (technically not a malt but may be made from wheat so I'm including it)
Maltose
Malt Syrup
Ethyl Maltitol
Isomalt
Hydrogenated Isomaltitol
Isomaltitol
Maltitol
Maltol
Malt Sugar

It looks like I'm going to be eliminating a TON of processed food and my occasional nightcap is going to have to be brandy  (which is distilled from wine) instead of single malt Scotch.  I also checked my favorite frozen pizza brand Connie's and it has BOTH malt and soy.  On the plus side, the runner-up favorite pizza, Chicago's Home Run, is malt and soy free, so as an occasional treat (as it has wheat) I'm good.

On the moderate food sensitivity, some things I"ll have to watch out for are:

Dairy  - except for mozzarella (I knew this already just from experience)
Apples - I LOVE apples :-(
Barley (which includes some brown rice syrups)
Wheat Bran (oat bran appears to be OK)
Gluten
Wheat
Chicken Eggs
Avocado (not a huge fan anyway)
Sweet Potato (regular potato OK)
Mushrooms

Moderate means I can probably have them on a special occasion but not as a regular part of my diet.

On the plus side - there are 80+ foods that are NOT triggers for me including almost all fruits, nuts, veggies, meat, honey, cocoa, tea, and coffee.

I am so glad I spent $199 for this easy at home test.  Yes, it is NOT a true allergy test but it explains some of the foods I thought were "safe" were actually likely triggering my chronic IBS.