Gear manufacturers have realised that lots of women like the outdoors and they're different shapes from men. Here's what's out there, and where you can buy it.
The Body Shop
I’ve never been much of a one for lying around with cucumbers stuck to my eyes or other beauty treatments - in fact, my parents’ prematurely balding poodle has far more expensive shampoo than I do. However, with the amount of time I spent in the outdoors exposing myself to sun, wind, rain, dust, etc, etc, it’s a wonder I’m not starting to resemble a wrinkled old hag complete with festering skin cancers, frizzy grey hair and arthritic, old, liver spotted hands. It must be a bit of good genetics coupled with a healthy lifestyle that keeps me looking more or less my age, along with my rare purchase of a good bottle of moisturiser or hair conditioner that I end up keeping for months longer than it recommends on the packaging.
A little while ago, when Mum and I visited Tasmania’s Female Lifestyle Expo (and were not particularly impressed, you can read the blog article), we came across a stall with products from The Body Shop. The lady there took one look at our hands, tut-tutted to herself and then reached into the depths of her stall for the best and most effective hand lotion she had available - Hemp Hand Protector - and squeezed a generous dollop onto our poor, tired, somewhat scaly hands.
For the test I decided that I would spend a more or less typical weekend doing what I liked doing, then apply the products at the end. So off I went with a few friends - kayaking on the ocean (sun combined with salt water and sand exfoliation), mountain biking (mud splash masque with added, wind-applied dust, more sun and partial dehydration) and rock climbing (a light chalk dusting followed by removal by rope chafe and an application of rope dirt, as well as more sun and wind). By the end my hands and face were looking pretty sorry for themselves - even by my standards. And so on to the application of product.
The next product we tried out was the Hemp Face Protector (RRP $25.95 AUD), which is simply described as “an intense moisturiser to soothe and protect very dry skin”. Nothing flowery, just down to business! Just like the Hemp Hand Protector, the Hemp Face Protector went on smoothly, didn’t feel greasy, was easy to rub in and left our battered faces feeling much better afterwards. Better still, we discovered that a little bit goes a long way, so don’t be put off by the size of the tub - it will last a long time.
As for the expense - because in my opinion it is fairly significant paying almost $30 for a daily sunscreen moisturiser - I can only say that with the products I tried out, a little went a long way. I can see the products lasting me a long time, and not just because I’m usually too slack to put them on. They feel great, look after your skin and hopefully help to prevent you from becoming a wizened, old, skin cancer ridden hag who scares off little kids with her appearance, despite all her amazing photos and stories from outdoor adventures all over the world. Look after yourself, stick around to inspire future generations and consider supporting The Body Shop (who do, after all, put a portion of their profits back into worthy projects - see the website for details). If only they had something to revitalise ageing back packs
The Australian website for The Body Shop can be found here. If you're elsewhere on the planet, try here and then pick your own country.