Jamaican staycation!

Money tight? Want an off the beaten path adventure? Tired of sun sea and sand? (not!!!) Here are some pictures from our 2012 Jamaica 50 adventures - friends and 4 wheel drive recommended!

Waterfall at Holywell National Park, St. Andrew

St. Thomas

Serge Island "Waterfall" , St. Thomas

Firefly, St. Mary

The "Last Resort", Windsor, Trelawny

St. Ann

White Bay, Trelawny

Cinchona Botanical Gardens, St. Andrew

Cinchona Botanical Gardens, St. Andrew

 

Face stuff

If you have skin like mine then you know how hard it is to find products that do anything at all for your skin. To find out what kind of skin you have I strongly recommend "The skin typing solution" a book by Dr. Leslie Baumann. (Not a Jamaican book, but exceptionally helpful in figuring out your skin type and needs). PLEASE note that this blog is strictly to "big up" products I use and like. Do not take this as medical advice!

For me, I have the lethal combination of:

• oily - aka shiny, greasy, large pores, acne prone
• resistant - aka the complete opposite of sensitive
• pigmented - aka dark spots, easy to tan
• wrinkled - as in you are either genetically predisposed or you grew up in the sun and MADE yourself predisposed ( for lighter skinned people)

People with this type of skin often need very strong, or even prescription skin products to manage the many problems it brings. So here are two of my favourite Jamaican made products I use everyday:

1. Irie Rock's Tea Tree and Witch Hazel Rejuvenating Facial Scrub. This is the product that actually gave me the light bulb moment for my blog. I only discovered this about 2 weeks ago. Here's why I love it:

• gives a thorough clean and gentle exfoliation
• no parabens, no colourants, no alcohol, no artificial fragrance
• price is good at $600 + tax for 8oz    

2. Sali-Res Acne Solution. There are a few of these on the market, the main ingredient being salicylic acid 1% or 2%. I usually use 2% because my skin is so oily. I find that regular toners are ineffective for my skin - especially when having  a bad acne breakout! I also use it on my arms, back and chest. I definitely would not recommend this for sensitive skin without your doctor's guidance. Price is about $450 +tax for 200ml.
     

We are finally at the beginning!

Hello and welcome! This has been YEARS in the "making", and I'm really excited to start my blogging journey :). The purpose of my blog is mainly to promote Jamaican products, places, people, etc. As our little island celebrated 50 years as an independent state in 2012, I really felt a desire to support our economy and help it grow. I gave myself a personal challenge of only buying Jamaican in the supermarket for the month of August - since that's when we first raised our flag - and it highlighted to me the presence and absence of everyday and also unusual Jamaican products on the shelves. Many Jamaicans have been raised in a culture of shopping abroad, or at least buying "foreign goods", believing that this is the best way to ensure a quality buy. And we all know that this is often a fact. Unfortunately many Jamaican products are of low quality, or simply outdated in their style/design/packaging, and therefore are poor competition for imported goods. But there are many great, reasonably priced local products - and I would like to share my favourites with you. So read on, enjoy, comment and share!