LUUV : Lip Gloss Balms

Now we’re officially in autumn, it’s time to protect our delicate lips and add a swipe of moisturising colour to complement the vibrant hues. At The Amazing Blog, we’d like to introduce another of our #amazingfinds LUUV, a brand new to the UK, with their vegetable-based natural Lip Gloss Balms.

LUUV is an Estonian cosmetics brand that was officially established in 2017. It all began four years ago with the co-founder Jüri Paltser, who ran a family-owned store in Estonian that stocked a range of over 50 cosmetic brands. Seeing a gap in the market, he decided to develop his own range of skincare and cosmetics, where he could bring all his ideas and innovations into production. Combining his background in marketing and advertising, and his interest in cosmetics, Jüri opened a small cosmetics factory in 2017, which has since grown to become the 6th biggest cosmetics manufacturer in Estonia. The LUUV brand is a big supporter of natural cosmetics, believing that cosmetics should be easy to use, with natural, clean and transparent ingredients. Their products are developed from scratch using only natural and vegan ingredients, all with the help of Estonian based bio-chemists. Products are COSMOS ECOCERT meaning that they’re eco-friendly, in recyclable packaging, and do not contain any GMOs, parabens, perfumes, synthetic colourants, or phenoxyethanol. This certification also means that LUUV uses natural resources responsibly, respects biodiversity through their production processes, and uses only green chemical alternatives. Within the Environmental Investment Centre's Circular Economy Program framework, they have acquired a modern reverse osmosis device, allowing them to use only the purest of water during production! By the end of the year, LUUV will have over 52 different cosmetic products to choose from, which range from skin and body care to cosmetics.

We were excited to be sent LUUV’s Lip Gloss Balms in four shades from their range of seven. They were recently awarded a silver medal for Best Vegan Makeup in The Global Green Beauty Awards 2021. We’d describe these as a hybrid of lip gloss and balm as they deeply moisturise, offer a dazzling shine, as well as a subtle hint of colour. Young LUUV is a pale pink,  Soft LUUV  is a nude, Fun LUUV is a light cherry red, and Perfect LUUV is rich juicy red. All of these colour shades are derived from plants, including beetroot, radishes, and potatoes. Packed with natural actives, they contain botanical ingredients such as plum seed oil, which is full of 13 different kinds of omega fatty acids and vitamins A and E that hydrate and heal. And the candelilla wax which acts as a binding agent for the ingredients, and conditions and protects chapped lips. All formulas are 100% natural and vegan, making these Lip Gloss Balms COSMOS ECOCERT certified. These Lip Gloss Balms are waterless, flavour and fragrance-free and free from synthetic chemicals or preservatives. Perfect for everyday wear as the colder season approaches; and best of all, the finish is lightweight, not too sticky, long-lasting with excellent staying power. Our favourite shade was the Perfect LUUV, it gave our lips a natural glow adding a little colour, without veering too far from the natural lip shade. To purchase the LUUV Lip Gloss Balms, visit here where all seven shades are available at €8.95 for each 10g tube. 

Khali Min: Rescue Oil & Clean Cream Conditioner

As we all have very different hair textures (and hair issues) here at The Amazing Blog, so we set about trying to find the latest natural haircare product to help to bring us stronger, tangle-free and glossy hair. We’d heard lots of good things about these two award-winning products by Khali Min, with The Rescue Oil, and the Clean Cream Conditioner which they very kindly sent to us to try.

Khali Min is a British haircare brand with its heritage roots in Egypt. This independent, women-led company began its journey in the challenging year of 2020 by founders Anda Marei and Vanessa Karlo. Anda grew up in Egypt, where beauty rituals are treated as occasions of social interaction. Anda has fond memories of rummaging through her mother's skincare fridge, reading the labels of her products, and testing them out on herself. Although she started in the editing and publishing industry, Anda has always been fascinated by different beauty ingredients and often found herself playing around with different oils, butters, and essences. Meanwhile, Vanessa's story began in New York, where she grew up. Vanessa felt influenced by her memories of her mother paying close attention to her magnificent head of hair. Vanessa's appreciation for craftsmanship played a significant role in her own interests in entrepreneurship, emerging markets, and sustainability. Both women took a leap of faith into the beauty industry to create an effective, sustainable, certified vegan, and cruelty-free brand. Their inspiration started when they met as magazine editors, then a few years later, Anda and Vanessa met again in London, where they discovered a passion for Egyptian beauty heritage and a fascination with Egyptian oils. They decided to combine British innovation with Egyptian roots to create a nourishing and revitalising haircare range, challenging the idea that haircare products should be categorised by type; as they believe that a hair formula should not be based soley on need, type or texture. The words ‘Khali Min’ mean 'free from' in Arabic, making this brand very appropriately named with their simple, natural, and transparent ingredients all of which are many harvested through renewable energy sources. All of Khali Min's products are sustainably packaged and supplied, this means that these are reusable, recyclable, or compostable. They also use FSC-certified paper stock and vegetable-based inks. Egypt’s limited water resources and arable land serve as a reminder for sustainability and motivates the brand’s ethos. Khali Min is proud to be awarded The Beauty Shortlist’s 2021 Wellbeing Editor’s Choice, Grazia’s Hair Award for Best Softening Oil, and recognised as a sustainable British brand with Selfridge’s Project Earth.

Khali Min’s debut product is the Rescue Oil, it’s a lightweight, multipurpose hair oil that works to repair and strengthen hair naturally. This hair oil can be used to help smooth hairs as a styling tool, revitalise the locks as a leave-in product to keep hair nourished all day, or used as an overnight treatment for the scalp and ends to be washed out in the morning. Any of these methods leave the hair feeling softer without the greasy texture that is sometimes associated with hair oils. The Rescue Oil uses many ingredients indigenous to Egypt to create its achieved results for dry and dull hair. A notable few include jojoba oil, macadamia oil, brocolli oil and avocado oil. Jojoba oil, which is harvested in the western desert of Egypt using solar energy, is rich in vitamins that nourish the hair, such as vitamin C, E, copper, and zinc. These vitamins help to strengthen and moisturise hair while promoting hair thickness and preventing dandruff. Macadamia oil is loaded with fatty acids and oleic acid oil, which are easily absorbable and perfect for dry hair. The macadamia oil is responsible for adding moisture back into dry and damaged hair. The broccoli seed oil here is for maximum hydration and silicone-free slip. Avocado oil has similar properties as macadamia oil, adding another dose of oleic acid, which helps retain hair moisture. However, avocado oil also has monounsaturated fats, which help to strengthen the hair shaft and prevent breakage. The Rescue Oil goes to work immediately to nourish the hair no matter whichever way it is used. We all agreed that our favourite way to use this was by massaging the oil into the scalp and ends, allowing it to be absorbed (they suggest 30 mins), and then washing our hair as usual. Using this as a pre-shampoo treatment left hair feeling glossy and bouncy. Our ends especially felt moisturised and looked remarkably healthy, and the slight scent of citrus was a lovely touch. On a personal note (I’m the one with fine long curl hair) this was brilliant to use with a few drops in the palms to smooth over to tame any stray flyaway hairs.

The second product we tried is their Clean Cream Conditioner. This leave-in conditioner aims to soften, hydrate, detangle, and protect against dryness and breakage without the use of silicone. The conditioner can be used in different ways depending on the condition of the hair. For dry hair, Khali Min recommends applying the cream from roots to tips while damp without rinsing (this is great for curly hair). For dull hair, they advise using a pea-sized amount from mid-lengths to ends without rinsing. For fine hair, they recommend applying from roots to ends, letting it sit to absorb and moisturise (we did this for about 5 mins), and then gently rinsing it out. Again what we loved about this Clean Cream with its unique formulas, is the versatility for all hair types. A few ingredients that assist in creating healthy hair are rosehip oil, aloe vera, and murumuru butter. Rosehip oil helps to nourish the hair through its fatty acid, lycopene, and vitamin C properties. The rosehip oil adds moisture to help strengthen the locks and prevent breakage. Aloe vera, known for centuries as the ‘plant of immortality’ in Egypt, helps to hydrate the hair. Aloe vera is full of fatty acids and amino acids that play a significant role in strengthening hair follicles. Murumuru butter is a unique ingredient that makes a great addition to hair conditioner, as it helps to lock in moisture given by other components and keeps hair looking shiny. Murumuru butter is known for restoring hair and maintaining elasticity, helping keep the hair smooth and bouncy. The leave-in conditioner absorbed in the hair without a trace and immediately left us with soft and shiny hair - we also found it gave weight to fine flyaway hair and offered protection against heated hair tools. We found that using the Rescue Oil as a pre-shampoo treatment and using the Clean Cream Conditioner as a post-shampoo nourishment, they worked beautifully together to revitalise the ends and left the scalp and roots hydrated and soft - plus suitable even on colour-treated hair. Did we have a favourite out of the two? Difficult to choose, but on balance I think it would have to be the Rescue Oil as it left our hair smelling beautifully fresh and fragrant with its zesty ingredients. What we particularly like about Khali Min is that they have a particular focus on scalp health, utilising these natural ingredients to address scalp concerns. If you’re looking for a luxurious, culturally diverse, and sustainable haircare range, that will take your hair care to the next level, then we think that these two Khali Min products will be for you. To purchase the Rescue Oil for £38, click here. To purchase the Clean Cream Conditioner for £25, click here. 

Eden's Gate: CBD English Breakfast Tea, and CBD Chamomile Tea

If you’re like us and reach out for a pick-me-up mid-afternoon, then keep reading on. This is when tea is our preferred drink of choice, and at The Amazing Blog, a comforting cuppa is just the ticket. Regular readers will know that we're big fans of all things hemp and CBD, and today, we're introducing to you another of our #amazingfinds with these refreshing and delicious CBD-infused teas from Eden's Gate.  

Eden's Gate is a family-run British business established by Tyler Woodward in 2018. Apart from their own brand, they are also an online store that supplies various CBD brands and products. Fueled by his love for nature and all of its remedies, Tyler launched Eden's Gate sharing his passion for effective and safe CBD products that provide all of nature's benefits without using any synthetic compounds. Tyler told us, "We strive for clarity, whether it's the CBD itself, production methods or the knowledge of our users. We're not hiding anything - transparency is key!" This is where Eden's Gate provides clear and detailed information on all of its products. They are also triple batch tested with lab test certification for each one. In addition, they pride themselves on being ‘from seed to shelf’ and are GMO and cruelty-free, and contain high-quality, broad-spectrum CBD sourced from the most reputable US hemp farms that have organic plants grown without pesticides. Eden's Gate uses CBD that is extracted through super-critical CO2 extraction. In this process, carbon dioxide (CO2) pressure and temperature are manipulated until it's in a liquid-gas form known as ‘super-critical liquid’. The method allows Eden's Gate to safely extract only the purest CBD while leaving behind bi-products such as THC, waxes, and chlorophylls. This resulting CBD is solvent-free, meaning that no extra compounds or chemicals are involved in the extraction process, making this CBD environmentally friendly too!  They are quick to point out that they use their own equipment and oversee every aspect of production without any 3rd party involvement.

We were sent two of Eden's Gate's CBD teas to try, the first being their CBD English Breakfast Tea with 300mg of CBD. Each tea bag contains 20mg of broad-spectrum CBD combined with black tea, resulting in a rich tea with a full-bodied English Breakfast black tea. Eden's Gate uses unbleached tea bags made from cellulose fibres, meaning that they don't contain chemicals like dioxin or microplastics like polypropylene that are harmful to both your body and the environment. Being  broad-spectrum CBD means that it has no detectable THC levels, but does have dozens of the different isolates and terpenes naturally found in the hemp. We imagine that the broad-spectrum CBD here will be a water-soluble CBD distillate (Eden’s Gate, please correct us if we’re wrong!) ideal for infusing into beverages. It also makes use of the "entourage effect", as these compounds help the CBD work better, so you're getting all the goodness of the hemp plant without the THC. The tea leaf becomes black tea and gets its dark colour from a lengthy oxidation and fermentation process. The tea leaves and picked, and then left to dry where they are either rolled and cut and left the oxidise. It’s a process that helps to develop the flavour and aroma changing the colour from green to brown. Let's not forget that black tea itself also has a long list of benefits; it contains antioxidants that decrease the risk of chronic disease, boost heart health, reduce blood pressure, and improve alertness and focus. So when combined together with the CBD it helps to provide reduced stress and anxiety and a whole host of other benefits too. The process of brewing CBD Tea also allows your body to ingest more of the CBD than other forms like drops so that you can get the same intense effects with a smaller dosage. All we did was place a teabag in freshly boiled water, brew for 3-6 minutes and added oat milk. it has a good rich flavour of English Breakfast tea, but it does take a little longer to infuse than a regular black tea, but well worth the wait! What does it taste like? Well, like black tea, but very mild with the slightest hint of fruitiness from the hemp. Delicious and great for keeping away those mid- afternoon blues! It is pricey compared to your everyday cuppa, so we tended to drink this as and when. To purchase the English Breakfast Tea 300mg here at £16.99 for 15 bags.

The second tea we tried was the CBD Chamomile Tea 300mg. Each unbleached tea bag contains chamomile sourced from the Nile River Valley in Egypt, lemon balm, and again 20mg of broad-spectrum CBD, so you're still getting the same complete CBD health benefits as the English Breakfast Tea mentioned above. Chamomile tea is thought to reduce inflammation and menstrual pain, slow down osteoporosis and lower blood sugar. We general drink chamomile tea to help with sleep and relaxation. So what could be better than getting the amplifying relaxation effect when the two are combined here! The chamomile flower is not alone; the lemon balm also has mood-boosting properties and improves cognitive function, turning this into quite a potent mix. Again, recommended brewing between 3-6 minutes like the CBD Black Tea. Since Chamomile tea doesn't become bitter if you leave the teabag in it for too long, we steeped it for up to 6 minutes to fully reap all the benefits and enjoy its sweet floral (no hemp taste) chamomile and lemon-y flavour. It’s the perfect choice for a nighttime cuppa, and sent us swiftly off into the land of nod. To purchase the CBD Chamomile Tea 300mg see here at £16.99 for 15 bags. 

The Soap Loaf Company: Cosmeti-Craft Solid Deodorant Making Kit,

Even in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, at The Amazing Blog, we always try to make time for fun ways to combine our creative and practical skills - showing off our handmade products to friends! This time, we thought we’d try our hand at making a DIY deodorant from one of The Soap Loaf Company’s Cosmetics-Craft enterprising options with their award-winning Solid Deodorant Making Kit.

Founder Natasha Green launched the British Sheffield based brand The Soap Loaf Company  n 2012, offering a wide array of soaps, solid shampoos, bath bombs and bath products. Natasha developed an interest in soap-making and wanted to express her creative side after working for 11 years as a finance broker. She followed her passion and created The Soap Loaf Company to bring to market her own handmade toiletries and cosmetics, which led her to the launch of her workshops. Through The Soap Loaf Company, she began to host soap-making parties for children's groups and organisations. As the parties expanded with new products and ideas, she decided that it was time to attract the adult customer audience. In 2018 Natasha launched a sister brand Cosmeti-Craft, which went on to increase the products and output for workshops and parties for adults. Today, they host regular workshops all over South and West Yorkshire; the participants can follow tutorials to create soaps, bath bombs, moisturisers, shampoo bars, solid perfumes, scrubs, and many more. Cosmeti-Craft also has funded and charity rates for special needs groups, schools, universities, or charities. They tailor each workshop to offer support and resources, allowing each individual to express their creativity and sense of achievement, by creating a unique self-care Cosmetic-Craft product. The positive feedback from these has been overwhelming, Natasha told us that they often have reported how the workshops have helped engage and bring back joy into the participants' lives, boosting both morale and mental health. In addition to helping others, The Soap Loaf Company and its sister brand Cosmeti-Craft are determined to have a positive impact the environment. They focus on offering fully compostable packaging, reusing and recycling all materials from their suppliers, and ordering materials in bulk to reduce shipping frequency and CO2 emissions. They also collect bottle tops for a specialist recycling group, offer paper bags in store for customers, and reward customers with a 20% discount for bringing refillable containers when making further purchases. Recently Cosmetic-Craft has gained the attention of Virgin, Living Social, Uniquely Local, BBC Radio Sheffield, and Channel 5. Natasha herself, can often be found demonstrating the kits on Craft Store Sky Channel 673. All products and kits are organic, vegan and cruelty-free. They recently won a Bronze award in the Global Green Beauty Awards for Most Innovative Green Product with their Solid Deodorant Making Kit (below). We’ve also heard whispers that they’ll be making another announcements about a new award later on in the year…

The Soap Loaf Company kindly sent us their Solid Deodorant Making Kit to try out here; this is where the kit brings the workshop to you! It’s a bit like doing elementary chemistry and such a fun and easy thing to create. This kit gives you one finished solid deodorant, there are four key ingredients, together with two essential oils, and a reusable/ compostable container, and a fool-proof tutorial to follow. We like how they keep it simple; we won’t go into the details of how we made it (rather long-winded). Instead we’ll talk about the ingredients and our finished product.

Interestingly, we thought they’d use beeswax, but no, the kit provides candelilla wax instead, it’s a plant oil that becomes a solid wax once extracted. It's the best out of all alternatives to beeswax as it spreads and absorbs more efficiently and also offers more hydration. The shea butter in the kit also boosts skin moisture and soothes irritated inflamed skin. Did you know that most commercial high street deodorants contain sodium bicarbonate (AKA baking soda)? it’s a cheap surfactant and is used in deodorants to absorbs moisture and destroy odour. However, it can cause irritation and discolouration or staining on the skin. Instead of sodium bicarbonate, The Soap Loaf Company uses kaolin clay and magnesium flakes, as these ingredients are gentle, absorb moisture and control odour without changing the skin tone. Magnesium also has calming effects on the body and promotes cell growth and repair. The last ingredient is the fragrances; there are two different essential oils, we had the peppermint and orange essential oils - but there are many others to chose from. Combining these two (25 drops max is recommended) gives a refreshing aroma plus it offers antibacterial and antifungal properties, with extra bonus that these oils help to elevate the mood! This newly made deodorant does not contain artificial preservatives, palm oil, or chemical foaming agents, and it has a "use by" date of 6 months.

The kit itself also comes with very self-explanatory instructions and advice for creating the deodorant. With the completed mixture you fill the product container up to the top. Then leave it to set for 60 minutes - they suggest putting it in the fridge to speed it up. Any left over can be poured into a tin or heat proof container to use separately. Once set, your deodorant is ready to use - push up from the base and raise the deodorant mixture 1 cm and you’re ready to go! It feels soothing, smells great and best of all it’s been made with your own fair hands! If you fancy creating your own custom deodorant, or perhaps purchasing this kit as a gift. You can purchase the Solid Deodorant Making Kit here for £19.99 (as we did, without the online workshop) or at £29.99 with the online workshop. It’s another of our #amazingfinds and we found making this very relaxing and therapeutic to do. Watch this space as we’ll be trying out another of their kits very soon.

Sakrid: Superfood Frenzy Organic Face Wash

At The Amazing Blog, we always try to feature skincare products with honest and straightforward ingredients - the ones that we know and trust. Today, we're introducing the clean beauty brand Sakrid, whose mission is “to lovingly remove harmful and questionable ingredients from everyday life” with their award-winning Superfood Frenzy Organic Face Wash.

A fierce supporter of clean beauty, Natalie Elliott is co-founder of Sakrid together with Nick Carlile. It’s a British beauty brand specialising in simple and natural ingredients for skin, body and hair care. As Natalie's mother fought breast cancer, she became aware of the toxic ingredients used within self-care brands. To her amazement, she realised that many harmful chemicals are approved for use in everyday products, so she began on her journey to reduce these ingredients in her, and her family's lives. Subsequently, Natalie went on to launched her own brand Sakrid, creating a skincare with naturally derived alternatives that she describes as ‘clean beauty’. For those not in the know, the clean beauty movement seeks to use ONLY naturally derived ingredients, which are deemed safe and cause no harm to health or wellbeing. This is where Sakrid skincare doesn’t compromise on quality and prides themselves on their handmade, organic, natural, vegan, halal, and cruelty-free products produced in the UK. Along the way, they’ve also learned a lot about packaging, recycling, ingredient sourcing, and supply chains; which is why Sakrid only partners with suppliers that share their philosophy by using only recycled plastics, chemical-free print materials, local providers, and sustainable supply chains. Not ones to settle, they're continually searching for ways to improve what they do for the environment and their communities. 

Sakrid kindly sent us their Superfood Frenzy Organic Face Wash, which recently won a Gold Award in the 2021 Global Green BeautyAwards for Best Vegan Skincare Product. They believe that the most important thing about a facewash is its "ability to deeply cleanse and also to enrich cell renewal to promote a natural, healthy glow," and Sakrid expresses this belief through the potent ingredients that they've added to this cleanser. The organic camellia sinensis (green tea) leaf extract is the first essential ingredient here (see our photo above). Full of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory benefits, it also helps soothe and calm the skin while protecting against collagen degradation and skin discolouration. anti-ageing, plus camellia sinensis aids in skin hydration. Other key ingredients include organic aloe vera for moisturising and calming; it has anti-inflammatory properties and can lighten up scarring because it contains a compound called aloesin. Next, there is kojic acid, which is sourced from different types of fungi. It inhibits the formation of an amino acid that is needed to produce melanin, the protein that creates pigment in our hair, skin, and eyes. Because of this function, kojic acid can also lighten the skin, minimising sun damage, age spots, and scars caused by injuries or acne. It also has antimicrobial and antifungal properties, which can help to prevent bacteria in the skin. That's not all, kojic acid acts as an antioxidant too, counteracting skin-damaging free radicals and helping prevent the ageing of the skin. The last of these key ingredients is vitamin C, which promotes collagen growth and reduces the appearance of ageing. Since it contains antioxidants, vitamin C helps fight against UV light damage, and it can lighten up hyperpigmentation like kojic acid and aloe vera. The stabilisers and preservatives in the face wash are naturally derived (but not organic), allowing the skin to reap the benefits of the ingredients without having its normal function disturbed. To use the face wash, simply dampen the face, massage onto the skin, and then rinse with warm water. We used this morning and night, the gel face wash gently lathers up as it mixes with the water and feels very soothing on the skin. There is a mild zesty scent (probably the neroli plus the grapefruit and orange peel) which leaves the skin feeling fresh and clean. We also like that the tube is made of recycled plastic, which of course can be recycled again. It’s certainly well-named as ‘Superfood’ with the plethora of organic ingredients, not something we often see in a cleanser, plus it’s very well priced at £17.00 for the 150ml tube - we’d recommend this cleanser and it’s another of our #amazingfinds. To purchase the Sakrid Superfood Frenzy Organic Face Wash, see here.