Summer is back...some natural ways to soothe sunburn.

Hi guys!

I don't know what the weather is like with you, but here in Morocco it has been lovely and sunny for the last month or so. Some days were even a bit too hot!

Time to get the bikinis and surf boards out and hit the beach!!

Hermes, our adorable Argentine dogo, is 1 years old now! He's getting big (I'm wearing 10cm heals on the photo, so you can imagine what a beast he is becoming!), but he's still a real cutie!

I love the summer season. Great weather. I love the sun and the heat. I love the beach, the warm sand and cool breeze. Plus I love the waves. I can spend hours in the water surfing or bodyboarding.

But the summer sun over here does have some bad sides... Sunburn.

The sun is vicious over here in africa. 

Of course it's the same sun as all around the world, the same sun as where I used to live in england or france, but it just seems more 'powerful'. 

Being and english girl I must say that I am lucky that I don't have very pale white skin that burns quickly. After day under the sun my skin turns to a nice golden color. I think the last time I got sunburnt in France was when I was about 9 or 10 years old.

The sun in Morocco is a whole different thing. It scorches your skin. It kind of feels like you're being roasted on the spot! Even covered in 50+ sunscreen and staying in the shade, it still manages to get you.

Last week I got burn by the sun. Bad sunburn on my shoulders. Not at the beach, but following the guys around a golf course. I had put sun screen on, but as I said sunscreen cannot beat the sun here! We played golf from 10am till 2pm. 4 hours under the red hot sun. There was no shade on the course. 

That evening my shoulders were red. Bright red. 

At home I had no 'after sun relieve' (or whatever you call them) lotions. I'm not used to getting burnt!

Luckily I have a book with loads of natural remedies for all different types of problems.

For sunburn it advised potato or yogurt. One of the two you surely have in your kitchen! (Aloe gel is also great if you have it!).

For the yogurt remedy: applie the yogurt to your burnt skin, let it dry, then rinse it all off gently in the shower.

For the potatoes remedy : cut a potatoe in half and rub gently all over where you have sunburn. You can also make a sort of paste out of poatoes, but I didn't find it necessary.

For me, the potatoes were the best. They really soothed my burnt skin, plus it just felt so fresh and cool.

And belive it or not, that potatoes thing worked! 

The next day no pain, no blisters or peeling. 

(BTW , if you do start peeling after being sunburnt, or even if you just have really dry skin, Shea butter is a must! I use it all the time! On my skin and hair! It's really nourishing! It smells kind of weird but I have never found any other product that can work the same kind of miracles as it does)

So there's a couple of natural tips to sooth sunburn! 

Of course it's best not to get burnt to begin with, always use sunscreen and stay out of the sun when it's really hot (between 11am and 2pm) ... easier said than done, if you're like me, you love the warm weather and outdoor sports and activities!

You know you can also help your skin get ready for the sunny days! 

You must have heard about all those different pills you can take, that are supposed to prepare your skin for the sun, and let you get a nice tan without getting burnt. 

Well, I did try some of those pills. They did not work, well for me anyway. They were damn expensive and I did not see or feel a difference on my skin.

One thing that does help my skin get a natural tan is carrot juice.

Researches have found fruits and vegetables that contain carotenoids give a tan-like glow. Carotenoids are antioxidants that help soak up damaging compounds by the stresses and strains of everyday living. It's responsible for the red colorizing in fruit and veggies such as carrots or tomatoes...

So, carotenoids are good for your skin. And the vegetable that has the most is the carrot (carrot - carotednoid... sounds similar!)

Only problem is, I don't like the taste of carrots... yep,I'm not often picky on foods (I mean I eat snails and other wierd stuff), but i just don't like eating or drinking carrots. 

So I came up with a tasty mixture! 

I steam cook (or boil) the carrots to get them soft, then put them in the mixer, pour some freshly squeezed orange juice in, plus a bit of vanilla yogurt, mix them all together to make a sort of purée...and there you go! 

I haven't given precise quantities of each product because you can put what you want in depending on your likes. For example, I put hardly any yogurt in because dairy products have bad side effects on me, hehe! ;)

So now I'm back in Europe. Terrible weather, rain and wind all day long! 

So these littles tips arn't much good as there is no sun... 

So too cheer things up, and add a bit of color against the dark grey sky, I've dyed my hair...dyed it some very bright colors...but that's another subject for another blog post!

Take care!

x