PariQu - Rose & Cacay Hydrating Serum Cream and 24K Gold & Rosehip Rejuvenating Cream

We don’t know if it’s just us at The Amazing Blog, but we love the smell of roses in our skin care products. Roses smell so fresh and clean yet remind us of subtle elegance and rejuvenation. So, we were very excited to try two new PariQu products that are meant to revitalise skin and smell like a fresh garden.

PariQu  was founded in October 2018 by Henry Tianus, who suffered from sensitive skin and acne throughout his teenage years and early twenties. Tianus set out on a goal to create clean, effective, vegan, and cruelty-free products that ‘help people feel better about their skin regardless of their age’. All of the company’s products also contain 99 to 100 per cent natural ingredients and are all hand made in London.

The first product we tried was the Rose & Cacay Hydrating Serum Cream. It’s a 2-in-1 serum and moisturiser that hydrates skin and reduces the appearance of wrinkles. Bulgarian rose extract gives the cream a nice sweet smell while calming and protecting skin from premature ageing and environmental elements – ideal for London’s bus-filled roads. The formula also contains cacay oil (has the fatty acid linoleic acid which contributes to skin renewal) and saccharide isomerate (smooths wrinkles and rejuvenates skin as a vegan hyaluronic acid alternative). What we thought set this product apart and made it worthy of an Editor’s Beauty Choice at the 2019 Beauty Shortlist Awards . We found it fast-acting, you can feel the beneficial effects in the skin in a matter of minutes while the non-greasy formula absorbs nicely.

The second product we tested was the 24K Gold & Rosehip Rejuvenating Cream. This cream also diffuses into skin easily like the serum and contains antioxidant-rich ingredients that nourish and firm. The cream’s 24K colloidal gold is particularly well-suited for sensitive skin while shea butter and rosehip oil protect skin from UV damage and reduce signs of ageing. This product is perfect for everyday use to boost the appearance of your skin and a remedy for dry, mature, and sensitive skin. For severely dry skin, it is recommended to mix in 2-4 drops of their serum or face oil.  

You can purchase the Hydrating Serum Cream (50ml) here for £36 and the Rejuvenating Cream (60ml) here for £48. All orders have free global delivery.

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.

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€.