Bodycare

U Glow - Anti-Ageing Tanning Water

I think you’ll agree, that one feels happier and healthier when you’ve got a little bit of a tan. As we’ve mentioned before at The Amazing Blog we’re not sun worshippers. Therefore we’re always on the look-out for new self-tanning products, particularly if they are fragrance-free and offer no mess and. This is when we came across U Glow at the showcase for the CEW awards earlier this year. This self-tanning water is a mist poised to give an even glow from just a light misting application.

U Glow has just launched this year with their clear anti-ageing tanning water. First of all say goodbye to tanning products staining your clothes, and secondly, we like that it’s anti-ageing. Formulated with hyaluronic acid, this tanning water will give you not only a natural summer glow but also a deeply moisturised and nourished skin. Thirdly, it’s tanning water, so forget about creams, foams and oils, tanning water is even easier to apply and absorbs quickly into the skin. Finally, it’s a fragrance-free self-tanning product which as they claim leaves no marks, no mess, or sticky feeling.

What we love the most, is that it is hassle-free. To apply the tanning water, simply place the spray at arms length and lightly mist the water over the desired area you want to tan. With the mitt, buff the area gently covering all areas to ensure a streak-free tan. The tan will fully develop within 6-8 hours, being dry to the touch in 60 seconds. It is specifically formulated so you can shower just three hours after applying the tanning water and will continue to develop after showering. The mitt is very durable, giving for months of wear (pop into the washing machine). We recommend waxing or shaving at least 24 hours before using the product to achieve a long-lasting effect, as well as ensuring your skin is exfoliated and free from any other products. When applying the mist to your face and hands,  they say it’s suitable for contouring (we suggest blending the mist with a makeup brush). An easy, clean, practical way to achieve a flawless natural all over body tan, which adapts to your individual skin tone.

Purchase your U Glow mitt and Tanning Water here , for the mitt £4.95 and U Glow £19.50 for the 100ml.  It’s so good that it’s also now available as a professional range for salons.  Say hello to a reduced odour, fast acting solution with clear application. U Glow, U Go!

Aussie Bronze - Body Bronzer

Getting a tan in the UK is almost impossible. When it’s not raining it’s overcast, and of course when the sun shines, it’s midweek and we’re all inside working at our desks! At The Amazing Blog we wistfully long for that healthy looking tan, however with the erratic weather here, it’s highly unlikely we’ll get one. So, our search for summer sunless tanning products began. We recently met and got chatting to instant tanning brand Aussie Bronze at the NOPE exhibition, and couldn’t wait to try their Body Bronzer.

Aussie Bronze as the name suggests, hails from Australia. Sacha Roberts the founder, has developed a high-quality, toxin and DHA free instant organic fake tan. She couldn’t find any good safe chemical-free instant tanning products for her daughter’s young skin. Thus, the journey began and she set about creating her own instant tan. Aussie Bronze will guarantee you a natural glow and adapts to any skin tone. All made with water, sunflower oil, avocado oil, almond oil, vitamin E, Shea butter, titanium oxide, and other organic ingredients. We particularly liked the way it applies with the ease of a tinted moisturiser and is gentle enough for both face and body. This is definitely one of the better instant tans that we’ve used and will keep using! What better way to get a quick tan and avoiding all the drama and downtime waiting for one to develop.

We love that it is an ‘instant tan’, it’s just perfect for quickly applying to legs or face just when the sun comes out - this bank holiday weekend?. The product is vegan, and also cruelty, paraben, sulphate, petrochemical and PEGs free, keeping our skin healthy from the inside out. Aussie Bronze is 100% Australian and made with only natural ingredients.  All you have to do is shake the bottle, apply the product smoothing it over your body. Best of all is that it washes off at the end of the day.  Get your Aussie Bronze here 125ml for just £34.95.

soapNskin - Skin Cashmere Face & Body Mask

Most of us have long perfected the art of our regular skincare routine. At The Amazing Blog, we love to put our best face forward, but then often end up forgetting about the rest of our body. It’s time to start developing a proper daily body care regimen too, it’s as important to take care of the skin on your body, as it is the skin on your face. One of our favourite brands soapNskin, who recently launched a very special mask that we’ve been waiting to try with anticipation! Regular readers may recall how much we love this brand, when we featured their Argan & Orange Blossom Elixir here .

Founded based on friendship and heritage, soapNskin was created to empower women to change the way they see beauty. Beauty has been a part of culture for thousands of years and soapNskin pulled from some of that ancient beauty wisdom. Drawing inspiration from the mystical Silk Roads of the East, founders Rabia & Samar learned that nature, when harnessed correctly, offers interesting alternatives to chemical-based products. Every product from soapNskin is hand-bottled on demand, in their London studio. Freshness and quality is not something they’re prepared to compromise on when it comes to beauty, and they certainly prove this. We love how everything is made in Britain, cruelty-free, natural and that they support empowerment and gender-quality, providing a fair wage for workers where their ingredients are sourced.

Today we decided to pay homage to the more neglected parts of our skin with the Skin Cashmere Face & Body Mask. After cleansing your skin, simply combine the Skin Cashmere with your favourite floral water (we used rose water) and mix it into a thick paste. It’s quite fun to mix the Skin Cashmere yourself and apply it to the skin. Leave it on for 5-7 minutes, allowing the ingredients to soak into the skin, then remove with a warm damp cloth before the mask dries. It left our skin feeling fragrant, cleansed, hydrated and smooth, after rinsing off the mask we followed with applying our regular body moisturiser. The Skin Cashmere Mask is inspired by the ancient bridal rituals of the region of Kashmir, the mask contains rose petal, turmeric and sandalwood powders to protect the skin from ageing and pollutants. It also contains yoghurt and chickpea powders which exfoliate nicely and leave your skin glowing and silky. Kashmiri brides have practiced this tradition for hundreds of years to achieve cashmere-like skin and now you can, too. We urge you to discover a true test of time, with the soapNskin’s Skin Cashmere Face & Body Mask, a pot of 100g can be purchased here for £55.

SLIXIR - Hand & Polish Cream

We love treating ourselves to an hour of timeout at the nail bar or just putting on the radio and doing a quick home mani pedi. At The Amazing Blog our biggest gripe with regular nail polish is that it always seems to chip after only a few days of wear. That’s why we were thrilled to try the Hand & Polish Cream from SLIXIR that we heard makes nail polish last longer, nourishes cuticles, and acts as an anti-ageing hand cream.

Helen Gilmore founded the British brand after having worked in the nail industry since 2002. She was previously the UK and ROI Head of Marketing for CND (Creative Nail Design, Inc), the company that made the popular gel manicure CND Shellac. Having had experience with consumers all over the world in nails and nail care, Gilmore found that the general feedback and biggest moan was about wanting a long-lasting nail polish. Having seen a niche in the market, she began her journey in creating a unique hand and nail product, Helen commented:  “Each day I focus on creating effective and luxurious ways to make this happen; solutions that fit easily into women’s lives and make great hands and nails a readily understood science.”

What stood out to us about SLIXIR is that it eliminates the need for both a hand cream and a cuticle oil with its unique blend of natural plant oils while improving the appearance of your nails and nail polish. We love multi-taskers! It doesn’t make your hands feel greasy and leaves them feeling heavenly soft. Honestly? Our hands felt smooth and hydrated, almost as though we ‘d put a primer on. For this kind of hydration, the formula includes avocado oil and jojoba oil as well as copper active, which specifically soothes and targets the nail beds. Colloidal oats further protects your hands from dryness and environmental stresses.

We cannot emphasise enough about the importance of giving your hands extra care. This is because the dermal layers are thinner, more exposed to the elements, which in turn reveals ageing faster than the face. SLIXIR is one step ahead and equipped with anti-ageing ingredients. This cream is packed full of  antioxidants and multivitamins which neutralise free radicals, helping to hold back visible age-related changes on your hands such as wrinkles and lack of elasticity. We also like that this cream doesn’t have any parabens, mineral oils, or animal cruelty. You can use it on all skin types and nail polishes and they recommend applying it twice a day, paying careful attention to nails. SLIXIR Hand & Polish Cream (75ml) is available here for £21.95 and offers free shipping within the UK. This all-in-one cream now has pride of place by our desks!

The Kind Planet Company – Power Balm

To keep up with our minimalism goals this spring at The Amazing Blog, that also means using less products that currently clutter in our dressing tables. Besides doing a bit of tidying up around your flat, fewer beauty products mean fewer minutes spent getting ready and more time enjoying the gorgeous warm weather. We have found the perfect product that to do just that. The Power Balm is an all-in-one organic product that will clear your counters of masks, moisturisers, and lip balms.

One of the nine ‘power ingredients’ in the Power Balm is red palm oil, which is used for skin care and eaten as a superfood in West Africa. Palm oil has gotten negative press lately because it is in almost everything we consume (foods, cosmetics, cleaning products) and it causes devastating destruction to ecosystems. We know that, as does The Kind Planet Company, so they’ve come up with a sustainable and kind solution. Working with Sierra Leonean women, Kind Planet’s red palm oil is handpicked and certified by the Rainforest Alliance to ensure animal habitats are not destroyed in the collection process. The company’s shea butter ingredient follows a similar process in Ghana. At the core of Kind Planet and its Power Balm is giving power to its customers and female workers as well as kindness to the environment.

The Power Balm has a mix of red palm oil, other natural plant oils, shea butter, and vegan wax to nourish your body while providing protection and long-lasting moisture to your skin. Key ingredients in the formula in addition to red palm oil, which is rich in antioxidants and hydrates your skin, are jojoba oil (removes excess dirt and oil), mandarin essential oil (brightens and diminishes scars), and rosehip oil (reduces redness). These oils combine to create a fresh and aromatic scent. The balm is useful on all skin types as a cleansing tool, face or body moisturiser, face mask, lip or beard balm, and even a highlighter. Our personal favourite is using it as a hand moisturiser at night because it is incredibly soft and hydrating, great for nails and doesn’t leave your skin feeling greasy. Due to its versatility and 100 per cent organic formula, we predict the Power Balm could be the next multipurpose staple.

Power Balm also does not have any preservatives, parabens, synthetic fragrances, petrolatum, animal by-products, or animal testing. You can purchase the Power Balm (50ml) here for £19.50 (postage and packaging included in the price). Five per cent of the sales go to Planet + People Power charities.