Hello there!
Just before Christmas I was invited to an event in Miskin Manor for the relaunch of Honey Bee Beautiful, a local company in Wales who sustain their own bees and make beautiful artisan products from them.
HBB was founded by Catherine, who previously had a successful career in law which she gave up to pursue her love of beekeeping. If you didn't know, bees are EXTREMELY important. They have a massive job in the ecosystem for pollination and it is said that 1 in every 3 bites of food comes from pollinators like bees (I don't know the source of this but I've seen it many times!) so we really need to appreciate them and look after them more.
Catherine has her own apiary (collection of bees) and uses the raw honey to make her own range of products such as body and skincare. She uses as much of the natural properties as possible to create them and this was the part that I personally found very interesting.
There are three main products used from the bee hive and I will describe them all below in more detail:
Raw honey: the raw honey retains all of the natural enzymes, vitamins and pollen as it isn't altered in any way by heat or filtering, and so it is great for the skin.
The Propolis : this is the part made up from buds and sap of trees and also a whole load of minerals such as magnesium and zinc. It is used as an anti-septic and anti-inflammatory, and the bees themselves use it to sterilise their own hives so it's obviously good enough for them!
The last item is the Beeswax Cappings. The cappings are the wax used to seal the honey stores, and is the purest form of beeswax. It has absolutely no chemical residues at all so is great for use as a natural barrier on the skin against environmental factors such as pollution, sunlight and dryness.
HBB was founded by Catherine, who previously had a successful career in law which she gave up to pursue her love of beekeeping. If you didn't know, bees are EXTREMELY important. They have a massive job in the ecosystem for pollination and it is said that 1 in every 3 bites of food comes from pollinators like bees (I don't know the source of this but I've seen it many times!) so we really need to appreciate them and look after them more.
Catherine has her own apiary (collection of bees) and uses the raw honey to make her own range of products such as body and skincare. She uses as much of the natural properties as possible to create them and this was the part that I personally found very interesting.
There are three main products used from the bee hive and I will describe them all below in more detail:
Raw honey: the raw honey retains all of the natural enzymes, vitamins and pollen as it isn't altered in any way by heat or filtering, and so it is great for the skin.
The Propolis : this is the part made up from buds and sap of trees and also a whole load of minerals such as magnesium and zinc. It is used as an anti-septic and anti-inflammatory, and the bees themselves use it to sterilise their own hives so it's obviously good enough for them!
The last item is the Beeswax Cappings. The cappings are the wax used to seal the honey stores, and is the purest form of beeswax. It has absolutely no chemical residues at all so is great for use as a natural barrier on the skin against environmental factors such as pollution, sunlight and dryness.
The combination of the three products requires no use of any harsh chemicals or synthetic ingredients so they are great for sensitive skin and problems such as eczema and psoriasis.
So what products do they have?????
HBB have a great range of skin and body care and I have got my eye on trying quite a few of them!
The Face range includes cleansing balms, facial spritz, oils and creams, scrubs, masks and an under eye serum treatment. There really is something for everyone and after leaving with a cleansing balm, spritz and oil for my skin type and I can 100% recommend them.
In addition to this they have a range of lip balms and lip scrubs, and specific creams and scrubs for hands, feet and body individually plus cuticle oil, a general purpose balm as well as bath oils and soaps,
If you're a honey lover like me then you won't find it hard to find a product you want to try and the range is really impressive. What impressed me even more was they even have a pet range with a soap for dogs and I can see this range expanding further as I know many pet owners (including myself) who try to use natural products on our furry friends too.
You can see some of packaging above, and the names of some of the ranges. Based on bees we have the Queen Bee, Worker Bee, Honey Bee, Baby Bee, Garden Bee and Summer Bee (I might have missed some!) and I love these names! They're perfect for the different ranges they represent and make it easier to find a few products in the same set that would be ideal to give as gifts.
Having tried a few of them during the event, I have a few that I would instantly recommend.
The first was Busy Bee Cleansing Balm:
I came away with a sample size of this one and really enjoyed using it. It smells of citrus and lavender and is a balm that melts onto your skin, melts all of the impurities and then washes them all away. It's an evening kind of cleanser and I regularly use it in the bath to dissolve all of my make up after a long day.
The Summer Bee sugar body scrub was another favourite, containing orange, lemon and lime oils it was always going to be an instant hit but after testing it with a hand and arm scrub at the event I was sold. The coconut and macadamia oils left my skin feeling fabulous and the smell sent me to my happy place, I need to get a pot of this!
My last recommendation is the Queen Bee clay and honey face mask treatment, containing rose petals and rose geranium this one is another I'd recommend at bath time for the full effect. I haven't tried it myself but all you need to do is add a few drops of water (or rumour has it some raw honey) to make the mask and apply onto skin to leave it feeling clean and smooth.
The smell of this one plus the name would really be a treat and as soon as I've run down my current fresh face masks (because I just can't be wasteful!) I would love to try this out. Who doesn't want to be a Queen Bee for a little while??
The event was really fun and i learned a lot about bees and the various products you can get from a bee hive as well as what you can do with them.
We love supporting brands who produce all natural products such as these and especially Welsh brands as we are just a little proud and patriotic! If you are looking to try something new or maybe buy a gift for a friend then these will be the perfect idea and you'd be supporting local bees rather than purchasing from elsewhere in the world.
HBB also offer workshops that sound really fun, you can go and make your own soaps and balms, scrubs and perfumes or hold a full experience day which would be perfect for a hen party!
What do you think about supporting local brands? Are you a big fan of honey?
Which of the products above take your fancy the most???
I'm definitely going to get the Queen Bee mask and Summer Bee body scrub and see what else slips into the basket accidentally too!
L xxx
