Friday Feature: Bodycare

We at The Amazing Blog are here to bring you some body products that incorporate the best that nature has to offer. Whether you fancy some donkey’s milk, some aloe vera, nut oils or shea butter, we have something for you. You only get given one body in your life, so treat it with care!

The first treat for your skin is Mathilde B’s Donkey’s Milk Shower Gel. Mathilde B is a cosmetics company with a unique star ingredient; donkey’s milk. With products ranging from shampoos, face creams, hand and feet creams and body lotion, your entire body can be pampered with some donkey’s milk. We were lucky enough to receive the shower gel.

Mrs Léon was inspired by Cleopatra’s beauty rituals, in which the notorious queen famously bathed in donkey’s milk. Bringing this historical trend back, Mathilde B’s Donkey Milk range is soothing and softening on the skin. Donkey milk is famous for its regenerative powers, and is extremely gentle on the skin, even for those with particularly sensitive skin. This is because donkey’s milk is close to breast milk and is therefore tolerated by sensitive skins. This star ingredient is packed with vitamins, including A, B1, B2, B6, C, D and E. Vitamin A and C both help to nourish the skin and prevent wrinkles, vitamin B softens the skin while D is extremely effective against eczema and dry skin and vitamin E protects the skin from harmful external factors.

What is especially impressive to us, is that the milk comes from Mathilde B’s local production, and is therefore guaranteed to be pure and of high quality. The products are not tested on animals, and are free-from parabens and GMOs. Mathilde B, a French brand, based near the Pays Basque renowned for their unique black cherries incorporates this ingredient into all of Mathilde B’s products for a fruity and sensual scent.

Mathilde B only sells via their French website, but you can order the Shower Gel (Gel Douche) here for around £7.

If you are concerned about a spot of cellulite here and there, we’ve got you. GÍÍLinea-Bio’s Cellulite Creme tackles this issue but in an organic way. GÍÍLinea-Bio takes the utmost pride and care in the sourcing of their ingredients, using only active ingredients, such as 100% pure Aloe Vera Gel, which is hand-harvested and processed immediately afterwards. It is these preserved vitamins and minerals that have such an impact on your skin, making it appear vibrant and healthy.

Their Cellulite Creme harnesses a host of active ingredients to improve the appearance of skin, helping to make it smooth. The product only contains natural active ingredients including Aloe Vera, Ant Tree peel extract, Tiger Weed extract, Buckeye Extract, Common Ivy, Algae Extract, and Peppermint. Although it has simple ingredients, when combined they create a miracle-formula to eliminate the appearance of skin imperfections.

Purchase the Cellulite Creme here for £27

We love a multi-use oil here, as nothing is more convenient. What’s perfect, is that Tan Organic’s Moisturising Multi-Use Dry Oil is vegan, contains 100% plant and nut oil, has a fresh citrus scent, and has an incredibly weightless formula. It combats surface hydration while locking in moisture. The oil has many uses – it could be used for intense hydration, as an after-sun, a non-greasy cuticle oil, a hair treatment oil or to give a glowy and dewy finish to your foundation. It also prolongs a tan, whether real or fake!

Tan Organic is a cruelty-free brand, and their products are made with high-quality ingredients. As Noelle O’Connor, Tan Organic creator puts it; ‘I only want to use the highest quality, natural and organic ingredients'. Tan Organic has been officially certified by EcoCert, The Ethical Company Organisation and PETA.

Purchase the Multi-Use Dry Oil here for £26.20.

If you suffer from chronically dry skin, a rich cream is what you’re after. Lavera’s Basis All Round Cream is a rich moisturising cream in a handy little (recyclable) tin, ideal for on-the-go. This cream is perfect for particularly dry areas of the body such as cracked heels, elbows and knees, but can be used all over the body if you so wish! The organic shea butter and almond leave skin intensely nourished and protected. This multi-use product can be used on all skin types and for the whole family, including those with especially sensitive skin. Although it is ultra-moisturising, it is easily absorbed into the skin, which is a bonus for us as we're not fond of that slippery feeling when your moisturiser just won't sink in. Creamy but non-greasy is the ultimate pairing.

This cream is vegan and is not tested on animals.

Purchase the All Round Cream here for £5.90.

This great range of bodycare products will allow you to pamper your skin in the most effective way. After all, isn't applying natural and beautifully scented moisturiser the simplest way to take care of your skin.

Friday Feature - Self-Tanners

We here at The Amazing Blog were getting sick of reading the artificial ingredients that many self-tanners contain. That's why we have gathered some of our favourite natural and organic self-tanners for you.

The first self-tan on our list is the NUXE Sun Self-Tanning Lotion. NUXE’s philosophy is to utilise the properties of plants to produce high-quality and effective beauty products, or as they put it, ‘When Nature’s brilliance meets glamour’. The company strives to promote sustainable development and create conscientious cosmetics. Lastly, but very importantly for us, all NUXE products are free from parabens, mineral oil and animal extracts. Although this self-tan is not 100% organic, Nuxe does prioritise ingredients with a natural origin.

NUXE has released a Sun range, to revive lacklustre and tired winter skin. Within the Self-Tanning range is a Lotion and a Facial Balm. We were lucky enough to test out the lotion, and it delivers an even and natural-looking tan after being left on for 1 hour. You can keep applying it daily to achieve a gradually darker tan. It not only leaves the skin sun-kissed and streak-free, but it also leaves behind an iridescent glow that even J-Lo would be jealous of.

Purhcase the NUXE Sun Self-Tanning Lotion here for £15.50.

The Invisible Tan from Eco By Sonya is award-winning for a reason. Having Won Best Fake Tan in the Natural Health International Beauty Awards 2016 and winner for Best Fake Tan at the Beauty Shortlist Awards 2017, we can see why. We all love a tan, but the fact that this one is made with entirely natural ingredients, including plant, fruit and flower extracts, is music to our ears.

This overnight 8-hour tan is easily buildable and easy to apply because it doesn't tan instantly and leave dark, unsightly streaks. Don't let that fool you though, you only need one application for a bronzed finish, but you can always apply more layers if you're after an even deeper tan. This self-tan is best suited for medium/olive skin tones, so bear that in mind! The lotion applies like a moisturiser as it is infused with aloe vera, rose geranium oil, avocado oil and chamomile that leave the skin soft and nourished, helping the tan appear smoother and more even. It is free from synthetic fragrance, artificial oranges dyes (that leave orange smudges wherever you go), parabens and GMOs, and it's cruelty-free. Eco indeed.

Purchase The Invisible Tan By Eco By Sonya here, for £28.

The next wholesome tanner that we have for you is TanOrganic's Self Tan Mousse. This is the world's first certified-organic self-tan mousse, which is a significant badge of honour. As far as TanOrganic are concerned, a bad fake tan is as indiscreet as an obvious toupee, and we couldn't agree more. The trade-off for a quick and easy self-tan in mousse form is that it is generally a little flakey and patchy. TanOrganic, however, have created the ideal formula that combines the fast application of a mousse with the nourishment of a lotion. The mousse fades gradually and evenly, so you are not left with orange patches, and doesn't have that potent and offensive fake-tan smell.

This self-tan mousse is ultra moisturising, owing to the hyaluronic acid, moisturizing ingredients and natural food colouring (artificial colourants are usually what dry out the skin). Organic Aloe Vera juice, which is extremely hydrating and calming, makes up 80% of the formula. Not only this, but the entire formula is 100% organic and natural, without any synthetic ingredients, colours, dyes, drying agents, parabens or toxins. Last, but not least, it is cruelty-free. Really, the list goes on and on.

Of course, a staple for every self-tanning addict is an application and exfoliator glove, and we love TanOrganic's. Their Luxury Application Glove is extremely soft, and therefore gentle on the skin. The soft texture and separate thumb hole (that tanning mitts don't usually have) produces an even, streak free tan. The Tan-Erase Ultimate Exfoliator Glove provides extreme exfoliation with its course texture, perfect for preparing the skin pre-tan and removing old tan. You will be left with baby-soft skin, the perfect canvas for your Self Tan Mousse!

Purchase TanOrganic's Self Tan Mousse here for £31, the Application Glove here for £8 and the Exfoliator Glove here for £15.

Our final product is a unique one. Although it isn't based around natural ingredients like the others, we just had to throw it in as it is too intriguing a product not to. Tancream™, a patent pending self-tan is a unique blend of sunscreen and sunless tanning agents. The result is a luxury face and body lotion offering SPF 50, that also provides a gradual bronze tan. It wasn't as easy as popping a sunscreen and a self-tan in a bottle and shaking it up though. Tancream is the result of two years of intensive research that has been endorsed by leading dermatologists. Your skin is definitely in safe hands, especially since the sun is no joke.

The sunscreen properties give this product Ultra UVA 5 star High Sun Protection and protects the skin against damaging and ageing UVA rays. You also don't have to worry about patchy orange skin, as the intensely hydrating lotion gives life to dry skin. Infused with instant bronzer, you achieve a healthy and lasting glow. Not only this, but the lotion also contains Tancream's unique anti-ageing formula. The formula is easy to apply, and streak- and fragrance-free.

Purchase Tancream here for £39.95.

We hope you'll join us on our venture for partly or wholly natural and organic self-tanners, as really, they don't need to contain all those nasties. Be bronzed and glowy whilst treating and protecting your skin!

TanOrganic Self Tanning

Winter's here and at The Amazing Blog we feel like a bit of tanning is the perfect treat to cheer us up and the TanOrganic range is ideal. It’s the first eco-certified self tanning brand made from 95% certified organic ingredients. The TanOrganic range includes the Tanning Oil, TanOrganic Original, Oil Arganic and the Tan Erase.

This TanOrganic Tanning Oil works just as well as other self tans but without the chemicals. The natural and organic formula contains no synthetic ingredients, parabens, colours or fragrances. So this tanning brand is great for mature or sensitive skin as there are no harmful chemicals. It is an excellent facial and body tan with ultra moisturising ingredients which include a unique blend of plant oils such as Borage seed oil, Argan oil and Orange peel oil. The well-known ‘fake tan’ smell is not an issue as it smells amazing, we think a bit like a chocolate orange! Also not forgetting to mention that this Tanning Oil was voted the best Facial Tan in 2013 by RSVP Magazine.

The tanning range also has the TanOrganic Original which is their other tanning product. This tans main ingredient is Aloe Vera which makes it super moisturising and easy to apply; and when it’s used frequently you can be sure that your skin will never dry out, making it a great product for winter time. What I particularly like about this product is that it delivers a great colour with a gradual fade which never leaves you patchy or blotchy, perhaps due to its 84% Aloe Vera based hydrating formula. If like me, you have more sensitive skin then either of these tanning oils are a good alternative to some other high street mousse tanning products. To me they offer two products in one - a nourishing body oil and a gentle tanning formula - what more could you ask for?

The TanOrganic Oil Arganic  is multi use Dry Oil is a completely natural moisturising oil just right for using alongside the tan to help it wear evenly and prolong the glow of the tan. The oil can help with scars and stretch marks too. It has a wonderful citrus aroma, which is far more appealing than usual natural oil fragrances. A little goes a long way and with the 100ml bottle you can make sure it lasts for the whole summer. I particularly like how it quickly absorbs and leaves the skin feeling soft. Once it has been absorbed, the fragrance is gentle and not overpowering which is always important to me as some products give me an awful headache after use because they include too many chemical ingredients. TanOrganic suggest some beauty secrets on the back of the bottle like mixing with foundation to glide smoothly on skin, pouring into your bath or ruffling into your hair for a beach-swept look.

The TanOrganic Tan Eraser is for those who forget about the importance of a good tan remover, which happens to all of us once in a while...  The exfoliating mitt is quick and easy to use for pre and post tanning and it can be used both dry and wet. The coarse texture of the mitt is not too harsh for the skin so it will comfortably give you good exfoliation. You can find all the products on the website here. The Tanning Oil is priced at £24,99, the TanOrganic Original is £19.95, and the Oil Arganic is £24.99.