Moksa: Damask Rose & Vetiver Bath Salts

Calling all bathtime junkies - it's now the season of self-care after all those overindulgent festivities. At The Amazing Blog, we think that simple pleasures are always the best; and for us, there's nothing better than to grab a book and unwind in a steamy bath with some fragrant and relaxing bath salts. That's why we couldn't resist trying these Damask Rose & Vetiver Bath Salts from British indie skincare brand Moksa that made an excellent addition to our bathing ritual.

Moksa a Devon-based natural skincare brand which all began from the inspiration that founder Chloe Osborn's found during her travels. The unusual brand name Mokṣa is a Sanskrit word meaning liberation, bliss and inner peace; Chloe said, "The word Moksa really resonates with me in so many ways. With my travel came a great sense of freedom and a definite sense of inner peace, so it just felt so apt; with that Mokṣa was born." In an interview with The Green Parent, Chloe explained, "I spent some time in an Ashram learning all things yogic, which was a huge inspiration. The idea that I could actually create my own business filled me with anticipation and excitement. The name Moksa came to me the day we returned to the UK, it sounds silly, but it really was one of those magical lightning bolt moments." Established in 2018, Moksa has gone from strength to strength and developed products ranging from skincare to bath products, candles and even teas. Each product embodies the brand's core values as 100% natural, handcrafted, environmentally friendly, vegan, cruelty-free, and ethically sourced. They also use UK-based suppliers who farm ethically and are sustainable and fair trade, sharing similar values. These artisan products have organic ingredients and contain no parabens, petrochemical (mineral oils), sulphates, alcohol or fillers. Moksa is an award-winning brand that has received awards from the Beauty Shortlist, FreeFrom awards, and The Green Parent Natural Beauty Awards; they were also shortlisted for the International Beauty Awards in 2019.

One of the most important aspects of taking a bath is the 'feel-good factor' inspired by relaxation and the heady aromas emanating from the steamy, fragrant vapours. This is where Moksa's Damask Rose & Vetiver Himalayan Bath Salts scores a whooping 10/10, with us for its plethora of relaxing and natural ingredients.

The seven key ingredients in the bath salts are: Himalayan pink salt, Fleur de Sel de Guerande, Epsom salts, rose absolute, vetiver and geranium essential oils, and dried rose petals. The Himalayan pink salt is a detoxifier harvested from the Punjab region in Pakistan, where the rock salt gets its pinkish hue. They are anti-microbial premium grade pure, unrefined and considered the purest in the world as they contain upwards of 84 minerals and trace elements, including calcium, iron, potassium and magnesium. The Fleur de Sel de Guerande, is hand-harvested French sea salt; it works to remineralise the body, which in turn helps regulate fluid balance and blood pressure. Epsom salts (AKA magnesium sulphate) are a naturally occurring mineral known to ease pain and relieve inflammation. Magnesium plays a number of roles in the body regulating the activity of over 325 enzymes helping muscle and nerve function, together with preventing the arteries from hardening.

These bath salts get their soothing scent from a combination of essential oils. The rose absolute is derived from the damask rose and introduces a light and floral aroma; it's hydrating and ideal for dry and sensitive skin types. The vetiver essential oil promotes skin regeneration, and the geranium adds another uplifting sweet floral note to the fragrance and is also known for its anti-anxiety and depression properties. Finally, the dried rose petals, besides emitting a warm scent, detox the body and help with better sleep.

As Chloe says, "You'll feel transported to the gorgeous flower baths of Bali with this sensuous blend." With its unique scent and texture, what better way to soak away stress at the end of the week? We held a couple of scoops (bamboo scoop provided) under a warm running tap to help them dissolve, et voila, a wonderful at-home spa, which left skin feeling soft, fresh and infused with rose. Best of all, they felt like they removed built-up toxins, and cleansed and relaxed both mind and body. Tempted to try?

Moksa offers this product in three sizes: A jar of bath salts at 250g with a glass jar with a bamboo scoop and lid at for £18. Or if a refill pouch is more your style, there’s a 100g refill priced at £10, or a 400g refill at £21. The Damask Rose & Vetiver Himalayan Bath Salts can be purchased here.  

Sxollie - Cripps Pink Cider

Hustling is not something we would normally advocate here at The Amazing Blog, however when an advertising campaign comes in which is structured around the very essence of a jolly good hustle, we sit up, keyboards poised and channel the inner opportunist. Sxollie is the brand, and their delicious cider is the product which takes no prisoners and proudly promotes a good down to earth hustle.

Now ‘sxollie’ is derived from the english word scallywag, the afrikaans word skorrie-morrie, the dutch word schoelje meaning rascal, and the yiddish word meaning jackal. Quite a heady mix to get our teeth into, but also a highly effective marketing tool to ensure we are sitting up and taking notice, especially since it forms the basis for the philosophy behind Sxollie Cider. ‘In a nutshell’, as they decree, the term Sxollie means ‘hustler’, and its composition is a barrelful of single varietal cider, backed up by the company’s rousing chorus that this is the best cider to come out of Africa.

The interesting part of this approach is that actually the taste of Sxollie is rather refined - elegant almost, which must derive from the Champagne yeasts which are used to ferment their carefully chosen apples from the Elgin orchards of Cape Town. Perhaps the harder edge synopsis of this drink comes from the urban jungle itself which forms an integral ingredient to the finished product? However, that final product is certainly one to take a chance on, as it celebrates with all it’s might it’s African heritage, right down to the pottery design mosaic ‘X’ sprawled across the bottle. We discovered the brand as they were the winners of the International Cider Challenge 2019. There is a trio in the range to try, although we were ONLY sent one bottle Cripps Pink (Pink Lady) - ahem, Sxollie we would have like to have tried more!

Sxollie is available from our high street supermarkets, Waitrose and Sainsburys across the country have them on their shelves, as well as many good independent outlets. Waitrose currently have a 330ml bottle on at £1.85, but if you get your skates on, Sainsbury's have an offer running with bottles priced at £1.60. As the ‘Sxollie philosophy’ tells us - “Pursue that glint in your eye … a little hustle goes a long way”!

Bili Beauty – Eyes of India Eyeshadow Palette

India is well known for its bright colour palette, diverse culture and unique beauty. Bili Beauty is a brand that creates makeup inspired by India’s evident diversity and celebrated explosion of various different shades and tints. All their products are made in California, vegan, cruelty-free and made with natural and organic ingredients. Bili Beauty brings together Indian beauty trends and presents it to a spectrum of individuals to all different corners of the world.

The founder of Bili Beauty, Sarah began the company with an underlying political motive. Although many of the major stores have an array of different cosmetic brands and products, they are often unable to cater to all the different skin tones. This is where Bili Beauty sets itself apart from others as it is highly pigmented and adapts to suit all given skin shades, textures and tones.  With the combination of her love for Indian culture and her passion for makeup, Sarah was able to create a cosmetics brand with clean ingredients and high pigmentation that celebrated and educated people about the beautiful diversity of Indian culture.

The Eyes of India Eyeshadow Palette is one of our #amazingfinds and our new favourite here at The Amazing Blog. The palette features ten matte as well as glittery shades of pink, gold, red, green and various others that will make your eyes pop. While the palette will enhance your eyes with their vibrant shades, its fragrance will also take you on an olfactory journey all the way to the hidden roads of Jaipur and the magical wonders of Agra. This eyeshadow palette takes you on a cultural beauty that walks you through the enchanting beauty of India, all from the convenience of your blending brush and creativity. The key natural and organic ingredients in these pigments are vitamin E, sunflower and moringa oils, rosemary leaf, Indian gooseberry terminalia chebula and bellerica, caesalpinia sappan bark and bamboo extract. It’s 100% vegan with no animal byproducts and almost 70% of these eyeshadows are made up of pure pigment. We also applaud Bili Beauty who donate a percentage of their annual sales to Destiny Rescue a non-profit organisation to help end child sex trafficking all over the world.

We think that this special eyeshadow palette is not only perfect as a Chrismas gift but as a present to yourself! To embark on this cultural experience, simply visit here to get your very own The Eyes of India Eyeshadow Palette is $49.00.

Holly Golightly Cider from Celtic Marches

Today we unashamedly revisit our friends over in Herefordshire at Celtic Marches in fact The Amazing Blog previously featured their delicious Thundering Molly Cider way back in 2014! Today they have now come up with another hugely tempting bottle, only this time with one of the most iconic images of cinematic history: Holly Golightly. 

Any fans of Breakfast at Tiffany’s, brace yourselves for something very special indeed, today we are focusing on the heroine of that movie herself - the fabulously complicated and utterly beguiling Holly Golightly. The image is unmistakeable - perfect undo coiffed to perfection, the long black gloves, little black dress and the Audrey Hepburn pout jumps out at you from the label, making a beeline for our shopping basket. 

Standing alongside such diverse characters as Loubi Lou, and Nell Gwynne, Holly Golightly is no doubt going to make her mark in the drinks cabinet, just as she did on screen, but at just 0.5%ABV, her low alcohol content comes out as far more virtuous! Having said that, this is no wishy-washy concoction, but rather a full-flavoured medium cider, as you would expect from 100% pressed cider apples - suitable for vegans and no gluten makes this a sure fire winner across the board. Available in bottles, and cans, cases of 12 can be purchased for just £22.99 here, where the complete range and all the other characters that Celtic Marches have created, are just waiting to be discovered. Now all we need is our wrought iron fire escape, ‘Cat’ to brush past us and ‘Moon River’ playing in the background, and we can have ourselves an evening of unadulterated movie nostalgia … relax and enjoy!

War Paint Makeup For Men - Concealer/ Tinted Moisturiser

Stand by your beds troops, we are about to be brought to attention - or is that ‘TEN-SHUN’? Well, whichever is besides the point, just so long as our skin is primed and ready for action… if not, the very exciting range from Warpaint Makeup For Men that has been lined up with military precision on this desk at The Amazing Blog is just what you need. Brace yourselves boys, we have got to pull our socks up and focus on bringing our grooming regime up to scratch, or accept defeat in the face of … well the face really!

Warpaint Makeup For Men, was launch by Daniel Gray who shares with us his struggle with body dysmorphic disorder, which propelled him on his journey starting the brand and helping other, he tells us: “I still struggle every single day with how I look but every day I’m learning how to handle it and I wouldn’t have progressed and come as far as I have if it hadn’t of been for makeup”. He also went on to say, “I’m in no way saying that makeup is a cure for bullies, or a miracle serum for low self-esteem and lack of confidence. But using makeup has really helped me manage my BDD and by creating War Paint, I hope it opens a door for men to also get the support they need from makeup.” The brand has broken the stigma that makeup is just for women by creating this masculine looking range of vegan and cruelty-free cosmetics. Apparently, there is a difference between men and women’s skin, men’s skin ranges from nearly 25% thicker due to the testosterone production which in turn creates more sebum and increases the oil produced.

Taking care of our skin is nothing new, in fact unless we have been cowering under a stone for the past 20 years, then each of us will have to some extent a daily routine of keeping our skin in as perky a condition as possible - the fact we are here tapping away merrily on the laptop at all is evidence of that. However, the inevitable has become mainstream, and now simply maintaining what Mother Nature gave us, is not enough - now we have to be making the very best of what we have with the help of Warpaint- great name to help recruitment, and great product for those of us who have already signed up and are now committed to showing ourselves at our best on the frontline!

The Tinted Moisturiser  is three products in one - a foundation, moisturiser and concealer. Light and easily absorbed, the tint just gives an extra depth to your skin tone, and if you need help choosing what skin type you are, then head over to here to see all the options to discover. For heavier blemishes or scars, we have the Warpaint Concealer in our arsenal to help cover those up, containing tea tree oil to boost the epidermis whilst in action. As a tip, we found using the handy shaped Face Sponge to apply the concealer which is available as part of the full range, made life a lot easier, but both products can be applied with the fingers if unarmed combat is more your thing. Costing £22 for 30ml of the Tinted Moisturiser here and £18 for a 5g pot of Concealer here, funding this weaponry for the daily battle ahead isn’t going to break the bank. All products are available through their website  here. BTW with every one their Concealers that you buy, War Paint will donate 50p from each concealer sale to CALM Campaign Against Living Miserably. This charity promotes the freedom of talking about the burdens that men face and the positive affect that a simple chat can have, when you’re just not feeling quite yourself. So remember troops - YOUR skin needs YOU!