Not to be sniffed at

AT FIRST I thought he'd bitten into something extremely bitter. A pickled onion, maybe. Or had he perhaps knocked back a shot of tequila? It was a bit early in the day for that, but you never know. There had to be a simple explanation for the bulldog-chewing-a-wasp look on my husband's face. Then he began leaning in and sniffing me, like the creepy main character in Perfume. "What?" I snapped.

"You smell funny," he said, screwing up his face like a contender in a gurning competition.

"Funny?" I replied, haughtily. "I smell of the new Origins Organics range, actually."

"It stinks," he said, before wandering back to his cave.

When the postman delivered the box of sample products from Origins, my pulse had quickened. Which one to try first? The nourishing face lotion? The soothing lip balm? They all came with National Organic Programme certification, the US version of the Soil Association stamp. Could this be a sign that the chemical defences of department-store beauty counters were about to tumble and embrace organic ingredients?

Perhaps we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves. Back in 2003, Marks & Spencer launched a skincare range called Organic Extracts, whose products contained at least 70% organic ingredients. It sank without trace. That's not entirely surprising – the facial scrub would easily have removed the hardest skin from the soles of your feet. As for the packaging (a tip to marketing people everywhere): just because it's organic doesn't mean it has to be ugly.

The Origins Organics products come in white plastic containers with green writing – functional, but hardly glamorous. I dived right in with the face-wash, toner and moisturiser. Within minutes, my skin was clean and soft, but also beetroot-red and tingling all over. To be fair, I have very sensitive skin, but a quick glance at the toner ingredients list revealed alcohol and vinegar. Organic or not, if you're a sensitive soul, I can't imagine they're the best things to swab your face with.

The body products fared far better – the hydrating body lotion was packed with lots of lovely natural ingredients and genuinely left my skin feeling silky smooth.

This organic fairytale might even have had a happy ending if it were not for the 'fragrance' used in most of the products. The blend of essential oils features rose, lavender, clove and, wait for it, patchouli. I'd be proud to be called a hippy, but smelling like one is another matter. Patchouli is so evocative of free love, muddy festivals and people who don't wash that I reckon Origins has taken a big risk by including it.

Still, you've got to applaud Origins, even if the products need a bit of refining. Last year, around 200 new organic and 'all natural' products were launched in the UK. Their sales only account for 1% of the global beauty industry, but the market is growing by 15-20% each year. I'm sure the big beauty companies are getting involved because they care, not just because they've caught a whiff of a growing market.

Meanwhile, there are plenty of nice little organic brands to choose from: Neal's Yard Remedies, Green People, Spiezia, Balm Balm and Dr Hauschka are just a few. My latest brainwave is to blend my own. Add a few drops of lavender and rose essential oils to a bottle of organic jojoba oil, and you've got an excellent moisturiser. Decant into a fancy bottle and you've got something you could flog in a high-end boutique. Now there's a thought.

BE GREENER

• Local produce Try to find locally made cosmetics. Eco-friendly Scottish brands include Herbaria (www.hedgerowherbals.com), from Broxburn; Lavera (www.lavera.co.uk), from Kirkcudbright; and The Caurnie Soapery (www.caurnie.com), of Kirkintilloch, near Glasgow.

• Recycle wrapping Check that the pretty packaging on your cosmetics is recyclable. Aveda, Origins and Body Shop fit the bill, while many Lush products have no packaging whatsoever.

Well-worn excuses

ORGANIC clothing ranges are springing up all the time, aimed at easing our environmental conscience the next time we fancy a fashion fix. But are they as virtuous as they claim?

A post at www.greendaily.com thinks not: "Creating fabric out of raw fibres is a nasty business. Even if the fibres start out organic, there are several steps along the way for not-so-environmentally friendly chemicals to be injected into the process."

Scepticism continues at ecostreet.com/blog: "Organic is just organic – it doesn't mean the workers in the factories are treated any better."

Manufacturing issues aside, how about not buying new clothes in the first place. A blogger at www.frugal families.com shares tips on new uses for old jeans and towels, while www.greenfibres.com endorses 'make do and mend', and posts a 'how to darn a sock' video at www.youtube.com.

Plus, there's always the recycling route. A post at www.naturemoms. com/blog suggests: "Local clothing swaps are a great idea. Get together with your friends and neighbours and all the clothing you would usually toss out or donate and let them take their pick." And vice versa.

If online is easier, try www.whatsmineisyours.com or good old uk.freecycle.org. Charity shops will always gratefully receive donations and at Oxfam your endeavours could be rewarded with M&S vouchers for a trial period (www.oxfam.org.uk/ donate/shops/marksandspencer).

Healthy planet

DEBENHAMS has teamed up with Sir Steve Redgrave's company FiveG to produce a menswear range made from fair-trade cotton. It features T-shirts, polo shirts, trousers, shorts, shirts and chinos. No skintight lycra rowing gear, though. (Short-sleeved check shirt, £20, www.debenhams.com)