From The Vault: alva Baked Bronzer

This month rummage through the archives brings to light the first bronzer which really turned my head...

alva Baked Bronzer

I was kindly sent the Bronzer to try by alva UK and I am so pleased I was, After losing my much loved Madara Tinting Fluid on a recent trip to the West Midlands, I turned to this to give myself a little much needed colour and have been hooked ever since.

alva Baked Bronzer is, as it says on the tin, Baked. 'But why is it Baked?' I hear you cry... Well. What was once a liquid product has been cooked into a solid marbled powder - the product you see in the compact. Being a baked product the final texture is much lighter than traditional powder products and therefore much more blendable, plus they usually contain more pigment, so the payoff can be much stronger.

Traditional products have been pressed into the compact pan and so therefore are generally more likely to crack and break up than baked ones, which of course have made the transition from liquid to solid within the same pan, so if like me, you have a slight tendency towards clumsiness, a baked product is preferable (and easier on the wallets!).

This fabulous Baked Bronzer is a showstopper. Light on skin, it gives really subtle, barely there coverage, however build it up with a Kabuki or large powder or blusher brush and the payoff is stunning. The bronzer give the skin a beautiful, radiant luminosity and a completely natural looking sun kissed glow.

The Bronzer is available in three shades; Beige Rose (a slightly pinker toned Bronzer), Beige Medium and, the darkest of the trio, Beige Brown. All are packaged in robust piano black compacts and come with a sponge - although I suggest using a brush for better results.

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This bronzer has actually fallen by the wayside but not through any real fault of its own. I have of late been favouring We Evade Bronzer from Studio 78 Paris, not because I necessarily prefer it but because it is a newer addition to my kit and it's use has become a bit of a habit. 

alva baked bronzer is a beautiful product and I do feel a little guilty that it has been overlooked in recent months. The advantage of doing these From the Vault posts is that I am at times reminded of products lost and this post has very much prompted me that the alva baked bronzer is in my kit and that I loved it. I will make a concerted effort to re-introduce it into regular use.

Priced at £17.85 for 9g of product, it may not be the cheapest on the market but I do think it is worth the spend, especially if you like a delicate and more natural bronzed look. Available online from alva Natural Skincare and in many good health food stores.

alva Naturkosmetik first made its appearance in Germany in 1988, created by Martin Plassonke from organic ingredients including tea tree from his own private Australian plantation. alva was introduced to the UK (and still solely distributed by) in 2007 by Nic White, who discovered the brand whilst at a trade fair. The brand has gone from strength to strength in Britain and has won numerous awards, including Nic's own inclusion in the Natural Beauty Yearbook Top 20 Personalities two years running!

www.alvanaturalskincare.co.uk

Ingredients:

(*denotes certified organic ingredients)

Mica, Zea Mays, Decyl Oilve Esters (And) Squalene, Zinc Stearate, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate (Kaolin Clay), Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil, Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) Oil, Zinc Oxide, Parfum (Natural), Chamomilla Recutita Extract, Vitis Vinifera (Grape), Yeast Polysaccharide, Potassium Sorbate, Cl 77891, Cl 77492, Cl 77491, Cl 77499

Images courtesy of alva Natural Skincare