Meet an Inspiring Mum + Win Your Mum a Gift Pack!

May 5

Meet the woman who wants to look after your skin, your health – and your mum!These days, unless you’re a chemist, it’s hard to figure out which food and beauty products are actually good for you and which are just throwing healthy-sounding words into their marketing to throw you off the scent!When Jo Lam found out how many ‘natural’ skincare products were actually not very natural at all, she set out on a mission to create change. What began as a hunt for truly organic, natural products that would nourish her body rather than filling it with chemicals, ended in the creation of Orli – The Natural Beauty Co.Read all about Jo’s story here, then make sure you check out our instagram @bufgirls from tomorrow to win your mum a luxe Orli gift pack, just in time for her special day!Our chat with Jo went a little like this…

The Quick 5

jo-orli1 What’s inspired you this weekReading about Sseko Designs in Uganda and how they empower women through dignified employment, enabling them to continue on to University. It’s strengthened my resolve to find a way for Orli to contribute more to kind causes.First 3 words that come to mind when you think about your body?Healthy, lean, imperfectHow do you take your coffee or tea?Coffee – Strong with a dash of milk (picollo)Tea – herbal and blackGuilty pleasure?Gin and champagne equallySomething people wouldn’t know about you?I cry every time I watch a movie on a plane.

What's your favourite...

Brunch order?I can’t go past a good smashed avocado and ricottaInstagram account?@pfeffersal as it has both substance and form. It combines gorgeous imagery with solid informative on skin care.Book and/or movie?So many books! I’d simply have to pick my latest… The Emperor Waltz by Philip Hensher.Exercise (e.g burpees/running/weights)?Hilly runs & pilatesSentimental item?My grandmother’s rice cooker that I inherited – it’s still going strong after 23 years!

All about Orli

When was Orli ‘born’?Orli came into the world quietly and without public fanfare in December 2015. Its joyful birth was celebrated with close friends and family and the site is currently going through its official launch phase.What does the word ‘Orli’ mean?It’s ORganic LIving combined.How did the brand come about?When I decided to switch to natural skincare for my own wellbeing and the health of my family, I didn’t expect to encounter so much green washing in the industry. I was quite overwhelmed by the vast number of brands purporting to be natural and began doing more research on ingredients and products.In the process I came across a few gorgeous brands that were true to their word of being natural, pure and without harsh preservatives. Most of their products are small batch, handmade and genuinely focused on clean beauty and sustainability. I decided to curate an online boutique to showcase these gems so they could shine and not be lost in the ‘ocean’ of natural (but not really natural) products.I wanted to offer a beautiful shopping experience without overwhelming the women who visited my site. I personally love websites that offer a small number of high quality well-researched products and that was my objective for Orli; to make natural skincare shopping both simple and pleasurable and to earn the respect of customers.What do you love most about your brand and what it stands for?The vision for Orli is to spread the message of kind beauty. Our aim revolves around empowering women and girls to accept their own individual beauty. I want women to love the skin they are born with regardless of age and focus on being healthy and intelligent and acknowledging their inner beauty.Our philosophy revolves around using safer, kinder and greener products every day. We are aware that consumers are increasingly gaining consciousness about how their purchasing decisions impact the community and the environment, and we think it’s important to create something bigger than just profitability. A business must have heart.We believe in using only recycled, biodegradable packaging and spend time meticulously packing all orders no matter how big or small, as we think you can’t put a value on delivering beautifully packaged products to show appreciation for customers. When the packaging and its contents are true to natural, this experience provides customers with a stronger connection to honest products.On top of that, we are serious about contributing. Orli now gives 10% of all full priced sale proceeds to a kind cause. This month we are giving to the 1millionwomen foundation and we have many more exciting ventures in store around giving back so watch this space!Is it really that important that we go organic? Why?Sometimes we need to slow down and consider using less, living more. I support organic for the ripple effect it creates. It not only benefits my health and the health of my family but the wider impact is more important. Choosing organic helps creates cleaner farms, fewer pesticides, happier wildlife and cleaner waterways. In a world that is dominated by bigger, faster and cheaper in almost every industry, choosing organic means sometimes we are taking the ‘slow’ road. In my opinion, that’s a good road to be on.What beauty products are most critical to choose organic for?I‘d say the product that’s used the most has the greatest impact. Shampoos, hand and body washes are a good place to start as every member of the household uses a wash a few times every day. Look out for washes that are formulated with fragrance, harsh sulfates and parabens. This melting pot of synthetic chemicals can have a cumulatively adverse impact on health, soil and waterways.Sunscreen is another major culprit. We are conditioned to slip, slop, slap mostly chemical sunscreens on our skin and on our kids. I would definitely recommend switching to a more natural zinc alternative that works by blocking not absorbing the UV rays and has far less synthetic chemical content.Favourite product on the site now?I honestly love them all!

Let’s talk about your mum

Mothers Day Gift Tell us about your relationship with your mum?My mum and I are very proud of each other. She is super classy, smart and practical. She has taught me so much about resilience and strength by simply being an example of those virtues. Her loyalty to her family is something that stays with me. No matter where or how old I am, I know mum (and dad!) will always be my biggest cheerleader.What do you love most about your mum’s body or face? A feature, a curve, a scar…Her skin! At 66, Mum has better skin than anyone half her age, myself included. She has hardly any wrinkles and her skin is super smooth and creamy.What’s her favourite Orli product?It’s definitely essential oils. Mum is very sensible, practical and health focused. She doesn’t wear a lot of makeup but she always stays on top of health and natural remedies.

Help us choose a gift for our own mums!

Saltie Cass What are your top 5 Orli products or gift box choices for Mother’s Day and what kind of mums will they suit?Practical mums: soaps that are gentle and kind on the whole familyMums that love to entertain: simple and pure candles that suit any space, with zero artificial fragrances and a hint of essential oils.Active, outdoorsy mums: full-body moisturisers or nourishing shampoos to keep skin and hair soft.Beauty loving mums who love a bit of luxe: Orli FacePacks. These are our mix n match packs combining different brands to provide maximum nourishment from a broad range of botanicals. Each brand has their own unique formulations. We have put these packs together to make it easy to get started on a nourishing, natural product journey.Environmental warrior mums: one of our safer, kinder and greener gift boxes