Life with Bees

When your hair is waist length, you start to notice if a shampoo or conditioner works. And you really notice if it doesn't - try combing four feet of prickly dry strands, or struggling to find a scarf big enough to hide it all on a bad day (a tight bun helps or alternatively adopt purdah). Thus begins the never-ending quest to find the perfect product for extremely long hair.

In this case, the quest is complicated by the fact that I'm trying to use shampoo and conditioners without dodgy chemicals. There are hundreds of organic or natural beauty products on the market - sadly, many of them simply don't work. For the last year I've been treading the fine line between icky synthetic goo that makes my hair beautiful and pure organic crap that leaves it ugly. Here are some of the things I've tried.

Aesop advertises itself as a beauty company with high organic standards - and a price tag to match. The Gentle Scalp Cleansing Shampoo (pictured - $40) is quite a good shampoo, very mild and seems to be effective even on dandruff-prone scalps. It doesn't froth up orgiastically in an effort to show how well it's working. Instead it's more like a gel cleanser, it stays matte to the scalp and a little goes a long way. I might get it as my main shampoo if I'm feeling rich. The Revitalising Hair Sealing Conditioner ($42 from www.aesop.net.au) was very disappointing. It left my hair nearly crackling with dryness and seemed to help create tangles. Very poor form and definitely not a good option for long hair. It was meant to be used in conjunction with the Rose Hair and Scalp Moisturing Masque ($100 - yes, $100) - described as a weekly botanical treat for hair. You apply the masque to freshly washed hair, wrap in a shower cap or clingfilm and leave on for half an hour before rinsing out. Sadly, it did nothing for my hair. I got the masque as a free sample with a purchase so wasn't out of pocket, but if I can save just one long-haired lady $100 - then all the pain has been worth it. :-|

Kiehl's Olive Fruit Oil Nourishing Conditioner (about $40 from Mecca Cosmetica). A rich conditioner that really softened my hair. More importantly, it didn't wear off and kept hair soft for days. Ends were still a little dry but I've never found anything that cured dry ends. Left a good gloss on the hair and helped detangle. I got compliments for how shiny the hair looked. A favourite. It's not chemical free and doesn't use organic ingredients but there are no parabens or SLS and none of the more obviously questionable ingredients. A good compromise between the two.

The flu - it gives you a special appetite. You want nurturing, slightly lambent soft food. In my case, I ate red- and orange-flavoured jelly cups like thirsty man at an oasis, in wobbling gulps. I even enjoyed wielding the little plastic spoon that came embedded in the jelly.

TK generously made me a whole fridge shelf full of raspberry Aeroplane jelly, somewhat incongruously set in fancy-pants Le Creuset crockery. As the flu appetite departed, the jelly became less a soothing panacea to my ills and more a boring batch of wobbly red.

Enter Maggie Beer. A scoopful of her burnt fig, caramel and honeycomb ice cream tipped onto the smooth face of the red jelly and you have a luscious, wobbly faux trifle. The ribbons of figgy caramel running through the ice cream are offset by the unpretentious tartness of the Aeroplane raspberry. Let the ice cream melt a little and it clings sweetly to the blobs of light jelly.

The Maggie Aeroplane Trifle is bizarre but it works for me. More bizarre is the fact that TK's favourite Aeroplane flavour is quandong - but they don't make it anymore! If you know where to find some, he is very keen.

We saw this on Nigella Feasts or Nigella Summer (or perhaps Nigella Eats, Shoots and Leaves). The cake is very dark but the sticky honey gives it a strong, earthy sweetness. I'd cut down on the honey next time. The bees are made from yellow-coloured marzipan with almond flakes for wings. The stripes are drawn on with the point of a skewer dipped in the chocolate glaze. TK even gave them little almond stingers in their tiny marzipan butts. It just looked far too cute to eat - but we managed, somehow.

I can't quite be bothered altering Nigella's recipe for the joy of being able to post it here. Besides, credit where credit's due.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/honey-bee-cake-recipe/index.html