Salon Science - Thickening Serum

If you are anything like us at The Amazing Blog you are always looking for products to use on your hair for optimal care without a lot of chemicals. On our search for natural hair products, we stumbled across Salon Science, an innovative haircare collection which uses plant stem-cell technology. Salon Science’s mission is to treat your hair at a cellular level for long-term results. The brand puts years of scientific research in their products to find the best ingredients derived from rare plant extracts for your hair to benefit from.  

The star ingredient of the Salon Science Thickening Serum is their AnaGain Organic Pea Sprout. The Pea Sprout contains an enormous level of special phytonutrients, proteins, starch and fibres, which the Salon Science scientists found to initiate the growth of new hair in human follicles. Salon Science uses these high tech fibres in their lightweight Thickening Serum perfect for targeting hair loss and helping to restore the body and bounce of your hair. Visibly denser, thicker and fuller hair are the results – what more could you want? 

To see results just rub 2-5 pumps of the serum between your hands and work it into dry or towel dried hair. It’s a leave-in product so there is no need to wash it out, which makes for a super easy use. The Thickening Serum is part of a 3-step regime, which also includes a shampoo, conditioner and treatment. You can purchase the whole range from Boots. The Thickening Serum is £15 and you can buy it here.

‘Gameface’ Moisturiser by Triumph and Disaster

Who likes dry skin? Not us! We boys here at The Amazing Blog understand the importance of keeping skin moisturised at all times.  Thanks to our friends at Triumph & Disaster we have found this a real 'game changer' in the moisturiser world. There is a great story behind this brand with its sporting roots. Triumph & Disaster was founded in 2011 by Dion Nash, a former New Zealand international cricketer, who realised the toll sun, wind and sweat were having on his skin. This inspired Dion to create a naturally based skincare brand specifically for us boys, which not only protects our complexions from the environment but also utilises the latest technologies in green science. Previously we tried out Triumph & Disaster’s No Dice Sunscreen, and this product set the bar high for the rest of their products.

We are happy to report that Triumph & Disaster has done it again, and lived up to our expectations. We requested their latest Beauty Shortlist 2018 award-winning ‘Gameface’  Moisturiser to try. Three of the star ingredients in this moisturiser are ponga fern, horopito oil and jojoba extract. Ponga is fern found in New Zealand, it works to tighten skin making us look younger upon application to the face. Horopito is an antioxidant-rich plant that is also from New Zealand which conditions skin and leaves it with a healthy-looking appearance. Jojoba is a botanical extract that comes from the seed of the jojoba tree which is very similar to the oil that our skin naturally produces. This helps to balance your skin's oil production creating a more balanced skin.

When applied this moisturiser has the subtlest of woody fragrance undertones that are almost undetectable. What we love about this product is that it effortlessly melts into the skin absolutely leaving no residue and yet leaves the skin feeling soft and nurtured. Triumph & Disaster is known for combining science and nature to create the most effective products on the market and we were certainly 'bowled over' with this little gem. You can purchase the ‘Gameface’ Moisturiser by Triumph & Disaster here for £36.

Friday Favourites - New Haircare

Gorgeous, healthy hair will never go out of style and here at The Amazing Blog we're always on the hunt for the latest haircare products to suit each of our specific needs. If like us, you have anything from the frizzy and unruly to the sensitive scalps or have hair loss issues, then we’ve got you covered. Please read on, as we’ve got some new and exciting brands to share with you.

There is nothing worse than unruly and frizzy hair. Those of us on this boat understand the struggle of styling this type of hair and the frustration of having it frizz-up within moments of styling.  However, the smoothing system from the new Australian brand evo got our tresses on a sleek lock-down. The creators at evo are a no frills, professional hair and beauty brand that tells it like it is. They are 'saving ordinary humans from themselves' and we like their straightforward attitude and cheeky personality that bursts from their luxurious products.

Does your hair eat combs for breakfast? Then this Lockdown Smoothing Treatment will become your newest ally in this crazy world of the hair battle. This 150ml bottle of 'liquid tamer' is formulated specifically with colour-treated, medium to course texture haired individuals. What makes this one stand out amongst the crowd for us is that it gives you the shine and smoothness you desire, without any of the weight or grease. We’ve said goodbye to those pesky strays and hello to sleek hair simplicity. This leave-in treatment is the hero of the line-up, which also has the mane tamer shampoo and conditioner. We adore the light, refreshing and subtly sweet scent of the lime and the way our hair seems to get softer with each use. You can purchase the Lockdown Smoothing Treatment here for £29.95

Next up is a new discovery for us, so we’d like to formally introduce you to Halier, a new Polish brand that specialises in creating haircare products that promote growth and prevent hair loss. They use the latest scientific technologies to provide effective products. We asked to try out their Fortesse Shampoo and Conditioner and one of us in particularly has been enjoying using them to help build up the quality of her hair.

Fortesse Shampoo works to prevent excessive hair loss and promote healthy hair growth while cleansing and preventing split ends. The shampoo is able to do so because it contains the Advanced Hair Booster ™ Formula. This formula specifically works to condition hair follicles, improve hair elasticity and regenerate the scalp. The product also contains horsetail leaf extract, fatty acids esters from olive oil, saw palmetto extract, biotin, and vitamin B3. These unique ingredients help to create moisture-rich hair that is healthy and full of vitality. We found that our hair has been noticeably shinier and much easier to style. Fortesse Conditioner contains the Hair Vitality Complex ™ Formula which works to prevent excessive hair loss and boost hair growth. It also contains horsetail leaf extract, fatty acids esters from olive oil, saw palmetto extract, biotin, vitamin B3 and ricin oil. The combination of ingredients in this conditioner work to reduce hair loss, promote hair growth, balance oil production, and promote hydration.

After using the combination of these two products we noticed that not only did our hair smell great, but after a few washes we noticed our hair was healthier with less hair loss and giving us a fuller head of hair. The only caution we have to flag-up with this haircare system is that it is not a colour-safe, so if you colour your hair, please do a patch test first. You can purchase a 250ml bottle of Halier Fortesse Shampoo here for £29 and you can purchase a 150ml bottle of Halier Fortesse Conditioner here for £32.

Finally, we're featuring an organic and natural haircare which almost feels like it came from 'mother nature' herself. These products are particularly for those of you with super-sensitive scalps, and/or chemically coloured or treated hair too. Both these products are from the very special myrto naturalcosmetics where we tried the Bio Shampoo Sea Buckthorn Chia and Bio Antistatic Hair Oil which are sourced straight from plants to give the hair the best natural shine, volume and vibrancy.  myrto naturalcosmetics is a German skin and haircare brand by Eva Silvana Kruck, founded in 2012 myrto strives to produce products sourcing only the freshest and most natural ingredients wherever possible; which means small batches with no preservatives or chemicals. Eva was initially motivated to create her own product line due to the needs of her own children's skin disorders. She paired up with Prof. Dr. Peter Kruck to create a range of organic effective, nourishing and natural beauty products for everyone. 

This shampoo is perfect for dry, dull, damaged and chemically treated hair. The combination of sea buckthorn fruit oil and organic chia seed extract work to strengthen every hair fibre, add luminous shine and help to prevent hair breakage. Derived from plant amino acids, the gentle wash-active cleansers in this shampoo leave your hair clean but never stripped of the essential oils naturally produced on the scalp. We loved this shampoo with its invigorating sea buckthorn fruity fragrance. A little goes a long way with this one and you can even dilute it with a bit of water for extra sensitive scalps that still need a good cleanse. The Bio Shampoo Sea Buckthorn Chia is available to purchase here for €9.50. 

The Bio Antistatic Hair Oil has already found its way into our Executive Editor's bathroom! This magical hair oil is an intensive repair for fine and chemically treated hair, and extremely effective if you also happen to have fly-away/statically charged tresses. Containing organic cold-pressed seed oils from macadamia, jojoba and basbass it is a superb hair repair complex that smoothes the surface of the damaged hair fibres giving deep regeneration for split-ends.  You can purchase Bio Antistatic Hair Oil here for €16.50. What we love about all the myrto naturalcosmetics products is that they have no preservatives, alcohol, silicones, petroleum derivatives, synthetic colouring or artificial fragrances. These products are also without the genetic modification or nanoparticles and... are vegan!

La Sultane de Saba – Hammam Rituals Kit

Here at The Amazing Blog, we try to make time for relaxation - this is one of your top priorities; and recently we've been taking this routine to the next level, thanks to the luxurious spa brand La Sultane de Saba. This natural artisan French spa brand has established itself as spa and wellness experts, bringing unique globally inspired treatments to their 4 Parisian flagship spas and also to over 2,500 international spas. They pride themselves on developing products from the proven beauty traditions of past generations. Their products and treatments work on a holistic level and they understand how important it is for us all to find time for relaxation and downtime in our busy modern schedules. This amazing Moroccan inspired Hammam Rituals Kit is a home spa treatment and it's certainly helped us to let our stresses and strains fade away...

The Hammam Ritual Kit comes in an elegantly designed rich brown zippered pouch, it contains natural Rassoul Lava Clay, Black Soap, Shea Butter, a Kessa Glove and a spatula. The three products provide your hair, body and face with a variety of benefits that we'll go into more detail about below. You can use the included Kessa Glove with any of these three products to give skin a deep scrub that gets rid of dead skin cells. The included spatula allows you to use every last bit of these products.

First, we have the Rassoul Lava Clay which can be used on hair, body and face.  When applied to the hair this formula works to add volume and reduce oil. When used on the skin this spread is highly cleansing and works wonders for those with back acne. The star ingredients in this treatment are lava clay, rose and salicylic acid. The lava clay comes from the Atlas Mountains in Morocco and works to purify. The rose works to calm, sooth and tone. The Salicylic Acid helps to improve cellular growth, create a more even skin texture, and is highly cleansing.

Next, we have the Black Soap which is a face and body cleanser for all skin types. The soap cleanser contains organic black and green olives, eucalyptus and olive fruit oil.  The organic black and green olives work together to hydrate skin, leaving a refreshed feeling. The eucalyptus provides an anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, and decongesting effect.  And lastly, the olive fruit oil helps to regenerate and replenish skin. This Black Soap has made a great addition to our shower routine.  

Last but certainly not least, we have the Shea Butter. This body butter contains Shea which is nourishing, balancing, and healing. Shea naturally contains vitamins A, E & F providing skin with a variety of health benefits. The added orange blossom provides skin with a calm, soothing effect. In addition to being a body butter (which is our favourite use for the product), this product can be used to prevent/reduce stretch marks, fix chapped lips, as a moisturiser, massage balm or even as a hair mask.  You can purchase the Hammam Rituals Kit here for £52.95. We would also like to mention that The Spa at Dolphin Square in London uses La Sultane de Saba products, so if you are looking for an authentic full-on Hammam experience, we recommend booking in here.

White Glo – Charcoal Deep Stain Remover Toothpaste

Recently, we've seen charcoal being used in just about everything! We’ve seen charcoal in ice cream, face masks, and beverages etc. So when we heard about White Glo’s Charcoal Deep Stain Remover Toothpaste, we knew that we had to try it. Here at The Amazing Blog we're always looking for new ways to brighten our smile, and this toothpaste looked like a great solution. White Glo was founded in Australian in 1993 by Barros Laboratories Pty Ltd; they were the first brand to introduce consumer teeth whitening products into Australia. The brand prides itself on making highly effective products at an affordable price and this their Charcoal Deep Stain Remover Toothpaste is just one of many oral products that they market. 

As surprising as it may sound, putting black charcoal on your teeth actually helps to correct discolouration. One of the main ingredients used in the toothpaste is activated charcoal. Activated charcoal provides many benefits for the teeth; it is able to remove deep stains, prevent bad breath, and whiten tooth enamel. Stains and bacteria are drawn to the activated charcoal which removes them from the teeth and creates a whiter smile. This toothpaste has a low-abrasion formula that is a safe way to whiten teeth while still protecting against cavities and bad breath. We liked the fresh taste, this toothpaste left our mouths feeling clean, refreshed and our teeth looking brighter! 

A pack of White Glo Charcoal Deep Stain Remover Toothpaste also includes a toothbrush and a set of dental flosser toothpicks. We'd definitely recommend this product for not only performance but also the taste. You can buy a 150g tube of White Glo’s Charcoal Deep Stain Remover Toothpaste for yourself in person at Boots for £5 here or from ASDA or Tesco.