Skin Dewi – Ginkgo Biloba Firming Facial Cream

No matter how old you are, it’s always good to have a product that is anti-ageing – or a lot (The Amazing Blog isn’t a place to judge). In addition to products that fight off fine lines and wrinkles, it’s a bonus when they firm skin. So, we were very excited to try Skin Dewy’s line of natural and organic skin care products, especially their Gingko Biloba Firming Facial Cream.

The Indonesian-based brand was founded by Dewi Kauw, a mother who found it difficult to find organic and non-toxic products for her baby with allergies and atopic eczema. Kauw became highly educated in natural preservation and essential oils as well as chemical engineering, which has her approaching skin care scientifically and creating products that are effective at a cellular level. However, the fact that she is motivated by her children is seen in the all-natural ingredients of products like the Gingko Biloba Firming Facial Cream.

The gingko biloba and green tea extracts are what really set this anti-ageing cream apart from others on the market. These two ingredients work together to boost collagen production and prevent skin water loss, which results in more radiant and firm skin after only a few uses. The face cream is part of the Skin Dewi Brightening series and uses rosehip oil to brighten your complexion for a more youthful glow as well as protect skin cells from the sun. The formula has ingredients like botanical extracts and omega-rich oils for extra hydration, but the moisturiser itself is lightweight, sinks in quickly, and leaves your face feeling fresh rather than greasy. Did we mention it’s also recommended for sensitive and dry skin? This face cream is truly able to do it all in terms of making your skin look soft and supple whether you’re 25 or 45.

You can purchase the moisturiser (30g) here for 65.85€.

Friday Favourites – Eye Feature

With the Easter holiday fast approaching, what better time is there to try out new eye products? The colourful blossoming flowers and leafy trees have inspired us at The Amazing Blog to explore new hues for our eye products. Ideally we prefer it when our products are organic, knowing that what we put onto our skin also goes into our bodies. We’ve found some great organic and natural products which all pack the same punch of colour as traditionally made beauty items. So, whether you are spending the holiday abroad or strolling the streets of London, we have some great recommendations that will make your eyes pop.

The first eye product we have for you is from Fat and the Moon. The California-based company was started in 2014 by Rachel Budde a herbalist who wanted to take her knowledge and provide an alternative to chemical-filled products. At the core of the brand is the creation of products with non-toxic, plant-based ingredients as well as the message of empowering yourself through self-care.

We requested to try their Eye Coals in Black, Lapis (a bright marine) and Leaf (a mossy green). Handmade with all-natural and organic ingredients, Eye Coal does not irritate your eyes and has sunflower oil to help your skin absorb the pigments while beeswax holds the product in place all day. Leaf particularly enhances hazel-coloured eyes while Lapis can make any eye colour pop. The soft waxy product is easy to use, with a brush for a defined line along your eyelashes or with your finger for a smudged look, and comes in a small tin that is easy to travel with. We also had the chance to try the Ruby Red Tinted Lip Balm. It comes in a similar tin meant to be reused or recycled once finished and leaves a light orange tint while moisturising and protecting your lips.

Both products are available from UK retail stockists listed here. Or you can go online, the prices are in US Dollars, but they do ship to the UK. $18 for the Eye Coal here and $12 for the Tinted Lip Balm here. Although the prices are quite high, we have to say that a little goes a very long way.

This eye shadow palette that we’ve found for you is a little bit different from Fat and the Moon. ZOEVA is a German brand that was founded by Zoe Boikou, who originally sold makeup brushes on eBay before she turned her passion into a company that advocates for women’s lives. We are fans of the ZOEVA ethos, which is built on supporting and celebrating women’s individual beauty with high quality and reasonably priced products.

So, let us introduce you to their latest collection that will help you create a unique and individual look. The Eclectic Eyes Eyeshadow Palette markets itself as a way to ‘let your eyes say what your lips can't’. This is a strong statement that perhaps rings true. The palette has 10 diverse, intense, and fashion-led shades ranging from ‘Limitless Motions’ (a matte mauve rose) to ‘Dimensional Play’ (a shimmery teal with gold flecks). The different finishes offered (matte, metallic, glitter, shimmer, and duo chrome) are also versatile for everyday use or an evening out. The colours are highly pigmented and easily blendable.

They recommend using an eye primer first to keep the blended shadows in place, we didn’t but found the colours still to be long-lasting. The palette comes in a stylish flat purple, red, teal, and gold box that will look chic on a dressing table or in a handbag. Perfect for every skin tone and guaranteed to give you hours of fun mixing and matching. Purchase it here for £17.50. 

The next up is a trusty liquid liner. Not any old liner is like ZAO ’s Refillable Liquid Eyeliner. It comes in a delicious plum that suits just about every eye colour! The eyeliner has a total of five shades, but we want to talk about the Plum shade. It’s not typical like Intense Black or Dark Brown and not too bright like Electric Blue or Emerald Green. Plum is a perfect rich purple shade that actually enhances the eye colour and is particularly popular among celebrity make-up artists. We also like that it lasts throughout the day without smudging. The thin brush tip applicator allows for high control over the thickness of the line, which is useful for different eye shapes.

We've been well-acquainted with ZAO, a UK-based company dedicated to making organic-certified products, after loving their Light Touch Complexion foundation. All of their products have an all-natural formula and organic ingredients, and this is reflected in the Refillable Liquid Eyeliner. It has key ingredients like aloe vera juice, bamboo water, and shea butter to soothe and moisturise even the most sensitive eyes. The products also have sustainability in mind, and the liner comes in a sturdy and recyclable bamboo packaging as well as has available refills that cost £11.75 (£7.20 less than the product's original price).

If liquid eyeliners are not your thing, they also do a refillable felt tip version, which is vegan, gluten free, and cruelty free as well. You can purchase the Refillable Liquid Eyeliner here for £18.95.



Finally, the pièce de résistance for us to have a completed look is mascara. This is where we discovered another great product from one of our favourite brands: PHB Ethical Beauty. After trying many of their skin care products from the 2-in-1 Hand & Body Moisturiser to the Skin Brighten Gel and Rosehip & Chamomile Gentle Face Wash, we were very excited to see what PHB's makeup line has to offer with their recently launched All-in-One Natural Mascara. It's safe to say we were not disappointed.  

The mascara is truly all-encompassing. The formula's organic olive oil strengthens and conditions your eyelashes with one coat, plant oil lengthens and volumises with the next, and acacia gum ensures the results last. It is also water resistant and pH balanced, making it suitable for sensitive eyes. But what really makes this a #amazingfind is that PHB's All-in-One Natural Mascara is vegan, gluten free, halal certified, paraben free, and cruelty free.  

After a day of use and no flaking or smudging in sight, we can see why this mascara got lots of love in 2018 from the Natural Health International Beauty Awards, the Free From Skincare Awards, and Vogue. Want to see what all the beauty awards are talking about for yourself? You can buy it here in Black or Brown for £15.95. Twenty percent of the company's net profits also go to helping people and animals in the UK and globally.

We hope we’ve given you a little inspiration to help put back a little colour into your lives. After all, spring has sprung and we think that it’s time to hatch into a colourful bird of paradise and not a grey London pigeon!

A Body Oil That’s Good Enough to Eat

It's so refreshing to review a beauty product that has just one ingredient – yes, just one: Organic Golden Camellia oil. And let me tell you that this one ingredient has a myriad of uses - in my view it’s truly a wonder oil! Seven years ago whilst travelling in Japan, I was wowed by their home grown camellia oil. For the uninitiated, camellia oil (also commonly known as tsubaki or tea seed oil) is a non-toxic and non-allergenic oil that is also edible. Manufactured by hand using a traditional cold press technique, it is a pure unscented oil that has been used to protect, nourish and moisturise skin and hair for as long as the oil has existed. Think  Sumo wrestlers with their glossy black manes pulled tightly into a topknot (set with Camellia oil); or the Samurai warriors wielding their elegant shiny swords who used this oil to protect their blades without damaging the wooden scabbards.

However, back to the present, when Organic Golden Camellia arrived at The Amazing Blog I was excited to introduce it to my fellow work mates.  They loved it. It has little to no fragrance; it applies with ease onto the skin and is instantly absorbed - like butter melting into a crumpet! It feels light and moisturising leaving only the slightest shimmery residue and a little goes a long way – so perfect for enhancing that hard earned British suntan.  What I must add about this particular Organic Golden Camellia oil is that it's so pure – you can actually eat it! It is recommended for both mother and baby as along with its high nutrient and non-pore blocking composition it makes it ideal for use as a baby massage oil. Also not forgetting to mention that it has no added Vitamin E (be warned others do…!)

This oil is made exclusively from the Camellia Oleifera (the highest grade camellia seed) which is reflected in its price point of £24.99 We are obviously in good company thinking that this Organic Golden Camellia oil is very special as Natural Health Magazine recently quoted it as their ‘Must Buy’. So what are you waiting for, pick up some Organic Golden Camellia!

Nail It!

Gone are the days when a French manicure was the height of sophistication and pillar-box red nails were considered daring; these days with snake skin manicures, nail wraps galore and new nail trends every season, having the latest ‘must have’ nails has become as important as carrying the latest designer handbag (not to mention a LOT more affordable). Nailgirls London was founded by former fashion editor Lynda-Louise Burrell and her sister Jo as a reaction to the nasty, toxic, nail wrecking polishes and salons that were saturating the beauty market. On her return from New York where weekly manicures were a must, Lynda and her sister noticed that London was seriously falling short on clean, affordable and friendly walk-in nail salons so set about creating the Nailgirls Spa to fill the void. The sisters also wanted to offer their own collection of nail polishes incorporating the very latest fashion colours hot off the catwalk as well as the classic hues that we all know and love. Nailgirls launch a new limited edition range to match the fashion catwalk collections each season; their unique shades were seen on the nails of a host of London Fashion Week shows last season including Erdem, Pringle and Hannah Marshall. What’s more all of the colours are free from any harmful chemicals (so no nasty odours), are not tested on animals are suitable for vegans and the packaging is recyclable. Talk about saintly!

Visit the website to see the full collection or pop into the Nailgirls Spa for a New Year's treat.