Excellent Exfoliators - Friday Favourites

Exfoliation is a necessity in any facial skincare routine, but with so many options to choose from it can be slightly daunting. We at The Amazing Blog are here to share some of our favourite methods. No doubt you'll be left with a glowing, baby-soft, smooth face; the perfect canvas for makeup to glide over.

We started off with the first of our handy helpers, The Konjac Facial Puff Sponge. Made with 100% natural products this palm-sized sponge is the answer to all of your exfoliation prayers. The Konjac Sponge Co. graciously sent us two of their signature sponges: the Bamboo Charcoal Konjac Facial Puff Sponge and the Chamomile Konjac Facial Puff Sponge. Each with specific healing properties, both of these sponges will balance your skin’s pH levels while gently exfoliating and deeply cleansing your skin. They stimulate blood circulation and cell turnover, so you'll be left with supple and vibrant skin. The best part is it is safe to use on your eye area and is entirely suitable for sensitive skin.

The Bamboo Charcoal Sponge is specifically designed for oily and spot prone skin. The activated charcoal in this sponge works to eliminate excess oils, clear blackheads and kill acne-causing bacteria. This sponge even removes water-based make-up. The Chamomile Sponge is ideal for those with hypersensitive skin. The Chamomile is hypoallergenic and calms the skin while purifying, soothing, and plumping the skin.  All of their sponges are vegan, animal cruelty-free and made with 100% natural materials.

These sponges are the original Konjac Sponges and are multi award winning. Purchase The Konjac Bamboo Charcoal Facial Puff Sponge here for £8.99 and the Konjac Camomile Facial Puff Sponge here for £8.99.  

Our next little wonder product is the Exfolia Microexfoliation Beauty Cloth. This cloth is safe to use for all ages and on all skin types and will, in a few minutes,  leave your skin feeling smoother and looking radiant. Made without any chemicals or additives, the hypoallergenic cloth removes the dead skin cells from the skin’s surface. This allows following serums and moisturisers to soak deeper into the skin and work more efficiently. 

This cloth is very soft to the touch and is gentle enough to use on baby skin. The Exfolia Beauty Cloth aids in repairing sun damage through skin regeneration and increases the elasticity of the skin for younger looking and healthier skin. This beauty cloth is washable and reusable and can be used 60-80 times before it needs to be replaced. To use just run under warm water and use with your facial cleanser for softer, cleaner and more radiant looking skin. It is our ideal product for a quick face wash in the morning.

Purchase your own Exfolia Microexfoliation Beauty Cloth here for £10.35. 

Next up, we have one of our favourite exfoliation cleansers, Caudalie Deep Cleansing Exfoliator. This creamy cleanser is perfect for all skin types but works particularly well for oily and combination skin. This cleanser is formulated with 97% all natural products and is filled with micro-grains, derived from corn, to gently scrub away dead skin cells without being too abrasive or irritating. Infused with grapefruit, mint and sweet orange to give the skin a burst of freshness and clarity while exfoliating, you will feel rejuvenated and refreshed.

Caudalie recommends only using this cleanser 1-2 times a week for a truly deep clean. When using the product, wet your face and neck with water before gently working the cleanser into your skin. As it scrubs away the skin’s impurities, the fresh scent of citrus and mint awaken your senses, transporting you to your own little spa in the comfort of your home.

Purchase the Caudalie Deep Cleansing Exfoliator here for £20.00. 

Our final exfoliator is a chemical exfoliant, but don't let the word 'chemical' scare you. Chemical exfoliants are a staple in any skincare guru's stash, and we never skip this in our routine. Murad's AHA/BHA Exfoliating Cleanser contains Salicylic, Lactic and Glycolic acids which work to dissolve dead skin cells that are just sitting on the skin's surface. The result is skin clarity, brightness and improved cell turnover, unveiling a radiant complexion. This cleanser also incorporates physical exfoliants, and the Jojoba Beads gently polish, exfoliate and nourish the skin. A weekly beauty rendezvous with Murad’s exfoliating cleanser will result in unblemished smooth skin, making common issues like pores and uneven skin tone history. Murad is a pioneer in chemical exfoliants and was actually the first brand to use Alpha Hydroxy Acids (AHAs) in topical skincare, and this little gem is still one of the best.

Purchase Murad’s award winning exfoliating cleanser is here for £34 with free UK delivery.

We hope we've inspired you to get on the exfoliating bandwagon, or perhaps inspired you exfoliating experts for your next venture. If you haven't been able to tell, we are very into exfoliating and this concoction of methods keeps our complexions smooth and radiant.

Deep Cleansing Exfoliator, Gentle Buffing Cream and Resveratrol Lift Cream - Caudalie

A light skincare product that deeply cleanses the face can be difficult to find, but here at The Amazing Blog, we have found it. Caudalie, have an excellent range of skincare products that we were lucky enough to try. We sampled three of their products, the Gentle Buffing Cream, the Deep Cleansing Exfoliator and the Resveratrol Face Lifting Soft Cream, and we were not disappointed!

Let’s start with the Resveratrol Face Lifting Soft Cream which is unlike any anti-aging cream we’ve seen; As you massage the product into the skin, it develops a whipped texture making it feel wonderfully light. The whipped texture means that it leaves a matte finish on the skin so unlike other heavier anti-aging creams, this will leave your skin sheen-free. You might expect an anti-aging cream to be heavy so it will  deeply absorb into the skin, the problem with this though is that this can leave your skin feeling heavy and clogged. This cream remains light and feels luxurious both because it is oil free, and because of the resveratrol it contains. The science behind resveratrol comes from esteemed scientist Dr David Sinclair (who famously said that the first person to live to 150 had already been born) Another plus side to the matt finish is that it acts as an excellent makeup primer, making it the great base for layering makeup on! Just apply to damp skin twice a week, then rinse off with water.

The Deep Cleansing Exfoliator was brilliant at deeply cleaning the skin and pores. Its deep clean feel along with its citrus scent (grapefruit, mint and orange blossom) will leave you feeling refreshed, and your skin looking bright. Made with natural micro-grains, it left the skin feeling smoother and reduced impurities. Just apply once or twice a week to damp skin, gently massage and then rinse off with water. We would recommend this for oily to combination skin. If you have sensitive skin we would recommend the Gentle Buffing Cream as an exfoliator, as it’s far milder than the deep cleansing exfoliator, so would be less likely to irritate delicate and overly sensitive skin. With a creamy texture, it gently cleanses and purifies the skin while stimulating cell renewal, so your face is left feeling cleaner, softer and brighter. Apply to a damp face twice a week, gently massaging in circular motions before rinsing off with water.

You can purchase the Resveratrol Face Lifting Soft Cream here for £42.00, the Deep Cleansing Exfoliator here for £20.00, and the Gentle Buffing Cream for £20.00

Fridays Favourites - Tanning Feature

Here at The Amazing Blog, we know important staying safe in the sun is. However, we also don’t want to spend summer hiding in the shade and not getting that tan that makes all our friends a tiny bit jealous. So when a couple of products came to light which offered us super safe sun protection but also enhanced that healthy glow we all love and crave, we were so excited to try them out.

First of was the Green People Tan Accelerator. We love Green People here at The Amazing Blog, having featured them a few months ago here. Green People never test on animals, use no harsh chemicals (82% of ingredients are organic) and 10% of all profits are donated to charity, making them an ethical powerhouse. The Tan Accelerator is kind on skin, and is ideal for sensitive skin as it is suitable for eczema and psoriasis sufferers. It only has a 15 spf factor and a medium coverage rating, but it's wide UV spectrum allows for a healthy tan whilst blocking the super strong rays. At only £18.95 from the Green People website it’s a reasonable price compared to some alternatives and does a whole lot of good at the same time!

Do you, like us at The Amazing Blog, struggle with the beauty myth that is self tan? We have tried nearly every powder, mousse and liquid under the sun. Some have given us the flawless fresh of the beach look we desire. Others, however, have left us with carrot coloured legs that bring us to tears. When we heard about Caudalie, and the Bazaar Top 100 and Beauty Insiders Choice awards it won, we had to give it a try. The perfect solution for a ‘sun-free’ tan, the light, silky fluid sweeps on easy for a streak-less, sun kissed glow,which complemented my skin’s natural tanning tone. When applied to dry, clean skin, the one-tint suits all lotion melts on the skin and dries in a flash. The tan rinses off with water, so is perfect for one off events, or when in a hurry and the 92.8% natural origin ingredients make it super kind to skin and good for the environment! Caudalie is available here for £26.

Do you want that effortless, LA tan? Well, thanks to Madame LA LA you can now get it in a bottle. The Madame La La Tan provides an instant LA glow that develops in only 3 hours, making it one of the fastest acting tans on the market. The lightweight tinted mousse is a quick-dry ‘DD’ (dynamic do-all) Tan Perfector which infused with hydrating skincare benefits such as Coco Water, Aloe, Green Tea and Vitamin E. Coming in a ‘light’ shade as well as the standard tan, the innovative colour customising technology ensures your tan looks natural whilst adapting to your individual skin tone. Madame LA LA Tan Light lasts for up to 10 days meaning that constant re-application isn’t needed, and we felt like we had spent 2 weeks on Malibu Beach! Madame LaLa is available here from Feel Unique at £36 for 200ml.

We love finding new bronzers to complement our summer tans. When we received the Sun-Kissed powder from Couler Caramel we were immediately blown away by the super cute embossed floral pattern on the powder itself. This kind of thing is mainly only seen on high high end designer brands so it was lovely to see an organic brand doing the same. The powder’s unique texture ensures easy application, delivers a silky finish as well as long-lasting hold. It is designed to be blended as desired with the powder brush to create beautiful depth. Its iridescent and matte multi-shades deliver an instant healthy glow effect. The different tones in the powder itself make it multipurpose, and can be used as a bronzer, a blusher or a highlighter. With all the ingredients being from natural origin and 10% of the total ingredients are from Organic Farming, the chemicals and processed elements of other cosmetics just aren’t present here. Available in six shades, the Couleur Caramel’s Sun-Kissed Powder can be purchased here.

Skeyndor Tanning Control Cream

A new product type we are seeing in suncare, the ‘sun protection/tanning product’ has been adopted by Skeyndor as they present their Tanning Control Cream. It is an spf product which also has a medium protection SPF 20. Fresh from its Sun Expertise line, the cream is made with the best knowledge and expert ideas to create a powerful tanning cream that still protects the skin, especially in the face area to the overall aging.

The Sun Expertise by Skeyndor a range of specific sun protection products allows you to enjoy your daily dose of Vitamin D without fear of invisible consequences. With a combination of classical filters built in, Sun Expertise products protect you without burdening your skin with the slick, sticky feel of commercially available sunscreens & lotions.