Pit- Tastic! - Rose & Ylang-Ylang and Orris & Sandalwood Zero Waste Deodorant

If there’s one thing all of our morning routines have in common — it’s the use of deodorant! And if everyone used a deodorant that was wrapped in paper, like the one today, there’d be a lot less plastic w­­aste in the world. Luckily, there are companies like Pit-Tastic! that sell plastic-free and biodegradable deodorant bars. If you’re familiar with The Amazing Blog, then you’ll know we are all about trying to be sustainable, and by using these solid Deodorant Bars, we think it’s a great way to help both yourself and the Earth!

Pit-Tastic!, which sells natural solid Deodorant Bars, was created by Alice Bardwell after she had a stroke in 2019. The stroke took her speech, understanding, reading, and writing — but by mixing, stirring, and creating the perfect solid deodorant bar, really helped her rebuild her mind and body. Because of the joy she received from hand-making Pit-Tastic! bars, Bardwell plans to launch a group called “Causing a Stir” to provide mental health support and bring people together to mix, chat, and talk through anything. Pit-Tastic’s deodorant bars are natural, biodegradable, and free of plastics, parabens, and aluminium. The aluminium salts in commercial deodorants, help plug pores, to stop the sweat. However, plugged sweat ducts prevent the body from ridding itself of toxins, and some even believe that using aluminium containing deodorant could lead to breast cancer. That’s why Pit-Tastic! was formulated to reduce sweating and eliminate odour naturally, all without aluminium. The company’s bars come in a paper wrapper to keep the bars fresh — and yes, the wrapper is biodegradable too! There’s also the option of purchasing a reusable hand-embossed travel tin, to keep it in. Pit-Tastic’s deodorant bars are formulated and created in Devon UK with vegan and sensitive alternative too. They and are recommended by a whole host of people, including athletes, breastfeeding mothers, menopausal women, travellers, and those who don’t want nasty ingredients on their body. Bardwell said, “I love my deodorant and use it everyday. I hope you do too!” 

All of Pit-Tastic’s Deodorant Bars are zero waste and as we mentioned earlier, they come in standard, vegan, sensitive, and vegan/sensitive. The standard deodorant bars contain the ingredients of coconut oil, shea butter, beeswax, bicarbonate of soda, and distilled natural essential oils. The sensitive deodorant bars contain all the same ingredients as the standard, except have arrowroot in place of bicarbonate of soda. The vegan deodorant bars contain all the same ingredients as the standard, except have sunflower wax in place of beeswax. And lastly, the vegan/sensitive bars contain coconut oil, shea butter, sunflower wax, arrowroot, and distilled natural essential oils. The coconut oil helps the deodorant bar glide, moisturizes, and helps kill the fungi, yeast, and bacteria that contribute to underarm odour. The shea butter improves the glide of the deodorant and helps eliminate odour. The beeswax protects the skin and helps keep the bar solid — the vegan alternative for this is sunflower wax. The bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) helps control the odour causing bacteria that grows in our underarms — the sensitive skin alternative is arrowroot. And lastly, the distilled natural essential oils add fragrance to the bar. All of Pit-Tastic’s ingredients are sustainable and ethically sourced. The first deodorant bar we tried is the Rose and Ylang-Ylang Zero Waste Deodorant, which is described as a “Beautifully floral aromatic fragrance to uplift your day.” The second deodorant bar we tried is the Orris and Sandalwood Zero Waste Deodorant, which is described as “Tangy, zesty mouth-watering that make your underarm smell and feel clean.” We loved how both of these Deodorant Bars kept us feeling fresh and smelling fantastic all day long! They look and feel like a white smooth pebble, and are very tactile. Neither one had an overpowering fragrance, and both were easy to wear, and didn’t compete when we had an on-the-go quick spritz of our favourite Eau de parfum. It is recommended to keep the Deodorant Bars in a cool spot (out of direct sunlight) or even in the fridge. We keep ours in the bathroom cupboard in a tin. To apply, gently stroke the bar onto the armpits a few moments before you dress and re-apply as required. Pit-Tastic! says their Deodorant Bar should last up to four months, and we still have some left, on month three… Ooh and they recommend keeping it in a container — they sell a convenient Travel Tin here for £4.50. Another of our #amazingfinds, and so if you’re looking to help the environment and yourself, you can find the Rose and Ylang-Ylang Zero Waste Deodorant here for £10.00, the Orris and Sandalwood Zero Waste Deodorant here for £10.00. They also offer a subscription service for £40 a year which offers customers one bar per quarter, a free travel tin and free postage here.

Dr.K CBD: Nano Emulsified Joint Relief Balm

Do your muscles or joints ache? Are pharmaceutical pain relievers not doing the trick for your headache?  If the answer is yes, then we at The Amazing Blog think that Dr.K CBD’s Nano Emulsified Joint Relief Balm  may be just what you need!  As regular readers will know, we’re already big fans of Dr.K CBD with their Nano Emulsified Hand Cream, which we recently wrote about here.

Dr.K CBD  is a British company founded by Dr Ruchira Karunadasa and Manish Patel, who are longtime friends. They created Dr. K CBD to be a brand that respects its customers, behave ethically, and committed to putting quality above everything else. The CBD  they use is extracted using a proprietary supercritical CO2 extraction technique and is purified through the winterization technique. This process is clean and safe and produces an extract that contains 85% active broad-spectrum CBD and no THC. This broad-spectrum CBD extract contains phytocannabinoids and terpenes from the hemp plant, which give the human endocannabinoid system optimum support. The hemp plants that the brand use are grown organically without herbicides or pesticides.  As we mentioned previously with the brand, what sets them apart is the nanotechnology in their topicals. They claim that their Nano Emulsions are 5 x times more effective than similar creams due to the particles being much smaller and thus absorbing more easily. This turns active cannabinoids into nano-sized droplets; which causes high bioavailability of the CBD in the balm or cream. The brand is keen to flag up that this technology, as it allows the users to get more out of their products. Dr K CBD has oils, face and hand cream, rubs and balms that use CBD to help with sleep, pain, stress, anxiety and wellbeing. To ensure they are of the highest standard and consistency, the company’s CBD products undergo rigorous cannabinoid lab testing. The brand motto says, “Your choice, your body. CBD, done the right way!” 

The product we tried is the Nano Emulsified Joint Relief Balm, 60ml jar which contains 300 mg of broad-spectrum CBD. Among its other benefits, when topically applied, CBD is good for muscle health. It helps anti-inflammatory issues and relieves muscle tension, and some say that it can even help MS-induced muscle spasticity. We use CBD balms as pain relief (soreness from arthritis and overdoing it in the gym) and for headaches or migraines relief (an occurrence from too much blue light/screen time). We’ve been using CBD topicals for pain relief and nerve inflammatory issues for quite a while now. As we find in its topical form, the phytocompounds and compounds such as terpenes and flavonoids, are strong enough to provide almost instant relief when massaged into the area of pain. The CBD works in tandem with the endocannabinoid system (see here for a simple explanation) where it springs into action when it senses that the body is out of kilter and promptly stimulates a hormonal release, thus reducing the pain or inflammation.  

What we also like about this Nano Emulsified Joint Relief Balm is that it’s completely natural. In addition to broad-spectrum CBD, it has coconut oil, cocoa seed butter, beeswax, sweet almond oil, lavender essential oil and a few emulsifiers. Unlike other CBD Balms, that we have used, this has little or no scent (which we prefer). When these are combined with the CBD, they enhance its soothing qualities. This Joint Relief Balm is one to keep at hand for fast action to soothe aching limbs and joints and, more uncommonly, for combatting headaches or migraines – which is highly effective for us. This product is plastic-free, vegan-friendly, cruelty-free, natural and contains no heavy metals, pesticides, or GMO. To use this balm, simply warm up some of the balm in the palms of your hands, before massaging it into the area of pain. It is recommended to store this product at room temperature, out of reach of children, and away from UV light.  If you think you could benefit from DrK CBD’s 60ml jar of Nano Emulsified Joint Relief Balm, you can buy the product here for £29.99.

Holistic Highland Hemp: Organic Acacia Hemp Honey

On The Amazing Blog, we love to search out lots of new and different products that incorporate CBD, due to all the good benefits that it offers.  Today we’d like to introduce Organic Acacia Honey here which has been blended with a full-spectrum hemp paste extract, which has cannabinoids, terpenes and flavonoids from Holistic Highland Hemp.

Holistic Highland Hemp is one of Scotland's leading suppliers of full-spectrum CBD oils, capsules, pastes, chocolates and honey. Founded by Kyle Esplin in 2012, Holistic Highland Hemp is a member of the Scottish Hemp Association (where Esplin in chairman), their aim is to work with all hemp and CBD providers, to help support the growth and development of the industry. Esplin started Holistic Highland Hemp after an illness caused him to turn to natural alternatives when conventional medications failed to treat and bring relief to his condition. Esplin now works with clients looking to optimise their health and wellbeing through natural methods, such as CBD. Esplin is passionate about sharing his knowledge and experience to help others take a more holistic approach to self-care and self-improvement. Holistic Highland Hemp prides itself on the integrity of their CBD which they put into their products. Esplin said, "All of our CBD products are regularly tested to the highest quality laboratory standards, allowing us to make sure we offer only the highest-grade CBD." This is an award-winning brand where in 2019 they won a Silver in the category of ‘Best Edibles’ at the Hemp & CBD Expo. All products compliant with the UK regulations and contain less than 0.01% of THC. 

Organic Acacia CBD Honey is blended with Holistic Highland's hemp paste, where both ingredients are sourced from the EU, but all blending, branding and packaging is done in Scotland. The mixing of the raw honey and the 8% full-spectrum (CBD) hemp extract is combined at low temperatures in order to help preserve the benefits of both the CBD and raw honey.  Full-spectrum CBD, we often talked about previously, with all for all it’s glorious cannabinoids that not only help to alleviate anxiety but can offer pain relief too. Honey itself is antibacterial and anti-fungal agent, a powerful prebiotic rich in antioxidants, and can even help to reduce bad LDL cholesterol. We tried the Hemp Honey with 250g of CBD (which has 1mg of CBD per gram of honey). The choice of an acacia honey here stems from its light and sweet taste, which complements the strong savoury hemp extract flavour. This Hemp Honey is intended to be taken straight and is particularly good for those who find the hemp extract's flavour alone too strong and earthy. It's versatile and easy to use, where you can simply spoon it straight from the jar. However, during this hot weather, we found it blended beautifully with vinegar, olive oil, and mustard as a simple salad dressing, or it paired rather well with toasted dark rye bread with lashings of butter! Watch this space, as Holistic Highland Hemp tells us that they hope to introduce Scottish honey soon to help reduce their carbon footprint. The 250ml Hemp Honey is available to purchase here in two CBD strengths: 25mg for £10.99, and a 250mg option available for £29.99. 

Skin Virtue: Future Advanced Serumist®

In the heat of the summer, there is nothing nicer than using cooling face mist to spritz from the beginning to the end of the day, keeping skin fresh and hydrated. Today at The Amazing Blog, we wanted to introduce a hydrating and anti-ageing mist, with this Future Advanced Serumist®, which is suitable for all skin types with a potent blend of highly concentrated actives from Skin Virtue.

Skin Virtue is an Australian result-driven premium cosmeceutical skincare range, which is also available to the consumer. Created in 2008 by skincare expert Nina Gajic, with a mission, “To bring beauty to life by crafting skincare regimes that are proven by science and enhanced by nature for clients who demand results and value. Our continuous research, development, and testing enable us to provide the most clinically advanced skincare technology available on the market today.” Gajic had been suffering from sensitive and problem-prone skin, which lead her onto several years of study for formulation science and clinical research. This enabled her to understand the skin layers and its complexity, including her own sensitive skin. Skin Virtue was formulated in association with an experienced team of biochemists and dermatologists in an Italian laboratory, using a synergy of clean beauty with cutting-edge skin science. The brand combines advanced science with high-quality ingredients with complex natural actives along with potent vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and soothing marine and botanical extracts in three multifunctional and targeted skincare collections: The Super Clear Collection is for skin concerns like breakouts, redness, clogged pores and inflammation. The Pure Anti-Ageing Collection is for dry skin. And the specialist Future Advanced Treatment Collection which is designed to work with the other two collections where it helps to address age-related concerns such as the appearance of discolouration, wrinkles, volume loss and sagging skin. Skin Virtue is committed to making all its products non-comedogenic, anti-irritating, anti-allergen, and free from any parabens and mineral oils, making it suitable for even sensitive skin types.

We’d heard so much about the Skin Virtue renowned Future Advanced Serumist® and we couldn’t wait to try it!  Hailed as a revolutionary potent anti-ageing serum which delivers as a mist - it has sixteen active ingredients to help nourish, rehydrate, tighten and tone. This serum is part of a six product collection in the Future Advanced range.  Quick and easy to use, it addresses numerous concerns such as ageing skin, moisture loss, dehydration, brightening, loss of luminosity, environmental damage, pigmentation, uneven skin tone and texture, blotchiness, fine lines and skin barrier function - what a list! It also promotes elasticity and suppleness to make the skin look younger, all thanks to its active ingredients. Among these top ingredients are glycine soja protein derived from the soya bean; this has numerous fatty acids such as palmitic, stearic, oleic, and linoleic, that have anti-ageing and soothing properties. There is also rose water to tone and refresh and niacinamide (B3), ideal for increasing the skins resiliency and improving texture by making pores look smaller. The sodium hyaluronate is hydrophilic, meaning it easily mixes with water; this reduces dryness and flaking by increasing skin hydration and attracts moisture to the skin cells. Another of these key ingredients is methylsilanol mennuronate, a seaweed derivative that binds moisture in the epidermis helping skin regenerate by increasing collagen production, therefore, preventing fine lines. And finally, worth mentioning is another of our firm favourites found here is the aloe vera extract, a rich source of antioxidants and vitamins that have shown to neutralise the effects of UV rays, repair skin from existing UV damage. The Serumist® has a mild floral fragrance that won’t conflict with any other skincare used. We applied first thing in the morning after cleansing, and followed it with our regular serum or face cream. We found it energising and uplifting and also great for spritzing on face and décolletage during the day to keep skin feeling fresh and hydrated. We noticed skin looked dewier and plumper after use, and yes, it made a great addition to our skincare routine; although with this hefty price tag, it does make it a considered purchase. We think to see excellent results; it probably needs to be used in conjunction with the rest of the range as they make a formidable team when tackling volume loss, dehydration and skin discolouration. See here to buy the Future Advanced Serumist® 150ml for £73.00.

Hempura: Hemp Tea in Natural Raspberry

As regular readers will know, at The Amazing Blog, we’re big fans of CBD (see here) mainly because of the numerous benefits it provides, especially the calming effect, which is much needed during these uncertain times. We always try to seek out new and more unusual CBD products to introduce you to, and today we’re featuring another CBD infused tea, but this time it’s Hempura’s Hemp Tea in Natural Raspberry, which has no THC and a more summery and fruitier flavour. 

Hempura is a British brand launched in 2016 by Lewis Hadaway.  Passionate about CBD, he quit his job in nuclear project management to set up this CBD brand, Hempura, where even today, he is still very much hands-on. In this over-crowded and confusing world of CBD, Lewis wants to help inform and educate the consumer, providing us with high-quality authentic hemp extract CBD products, which are 100% traceable from seed to shelf. Hempura imports their raw cannabidiol from organic farms in Eastern Europe, where they use an advanced ethanol extraction method, for Hempura, they feel that this ensures the preservation of the naturally occurring terpenes, flavonoids, cannabinoids, nutrients and minerals present. Every batch produced is automatically sent to an approved third-party laboratory for complete analysis. Lewis recently commented, “We build relationships with our customers because CBD is a lifelong product.” He went on to say, “We empower our customers to make informed decisions. This reduces concerns and fears, especially for seniors.” The Hempura range consists of vapes, topicals, edibles and CBD Oils. The Original (full-spectrum) and the Refined (broad-spectrum) CBD oils contain the same amount of CBD. However, the Original contains all the natural hemp components (including the accepted amount of less than 0.05% THC) without the refinement of the broad-spectrum. There 10ml CBD Oil bottles with approximately 200 drops in each, and a strength starting from 250ml (2.5%) cannabidiol up to 1000mg (10%). The brand has been members of the Vegan Society since July 2019 (except the chocolates due to dairy) and all products are GMO free.

We originally wanted to try their CBD infused chocolate but, alas, these were out of stock. So, as it’s now summer, we thought trying this Hemp Tea in Natural Raspberry instead. Although THC-free, it’s still rich in natural terpenes and all-natural ingredients found in hemp and has 5% or 5mg of CBD (we think…from lab report) per tea bag. Let’s look at the ingredients. This has 100% organically grown hemp made with hemp leaves with no herbicides or pesticides. They say it’s free of additives (or not as the case may be!) We couldn’t quite understand why there is a ‘trace of propylene glycol’ here?! There are also dried raspberries with the addition of natural raspberry flavouring. Raspberries, themselves provide vitamin C with a small amount of vitamin A, thiamine (B1) and riboflavin (B2). Moving onto the potent terpenes found in this hemp CBD tea. With limonene, A-pinene, B-pinene and citral these have a hugely beneficial effect on the gut, intestine and also help to regulate blood pressure, see here. These combined are also known to help sleep and inflammation and studies have also shown that these terpenes can produce an antidepressant-like effect. We prepared the tea using one tea bag in the cup, and let it steep for about 5 minutes, until the tea was a glorious berry colour (see above photo). What we liked was that this had a robust and fruity taste, a far more complex and in-depth flavour than that of a regular fruit tea or plain hemp CBD tea. We think it’s ideal for the caffeine sensitive, or for those wanting a warming and fruity drink at night to help them relax and sleep. With 20 tea bags, weighing in at 11g, you can purchase the Hempura Hemp Tea in Natural Raspberry here for £9.99.