Acti-Labs - Vendome Eye Shadow Palette

We love to make new discoveries here at TheAmazingBlog particularly when they offer us an affordable price-point and great value for money. The British beauty brand Acti-Labs pride themselves in doing just this. They carefully select their high concentrate of botanical ingredients from the south of France, where they  create their state of the art and performance-led products. None of their products are tested on animals and their factory in France has even received a Government Environment Award for low carbon footprint. In having their own laboratory, it means that they can offer exceptional value products at laboratory direct prices.

We particularly like the Acti-Lab’s core philosophy of  ‘using science to get the best out of nature’ and ‘medically inspired products for home use’.  Although this brand is probably best known for their skincare, we decided to venture into exploring some of their makeup.  They very kindly sent us their Vendome Shimmer Palette that comprises of twelve shimmering and neutral shades of eye shadow. This glamorous Vendome Shimmer Palette is very easy to use to mix and match. What we liked best, is that like other Acti-Labs’ products, this palette is infused with completely natural ingredients like vitamin E, kaolin and jojoba. Not only do the shades apply smoothly, the added vitamin E  helps to protect and nourishes the skin. Also included in the palette are a mirror and a two-sided brush, which is perfect for application and blending.  

While everyone has different steps in their makeup routine, we recommend applying your primer first before applying your eye shadow to achieve a longer-lasting effect. After choosing your colours, Acti-Labs recommends starting with the lightest colour working up to the stronger shades, blending until you achieve your given look. To get this elegant and versatile Vendome Shimmer Palette buy here,  it’s a steal at only £15! We can’t wait to try more…

Skin Soul Drops - Rouge Bunny Rouge

Here at The Amazing Blog, we’re always on the hunt for new and innovative products. Lately we’ve been eyeing the craze over customisable foundations because they’re perfect for those of us who can’t find our exact shade or preferred coverage. Luckily, we've found that Rouge Bunny Rouge has recently launched a product called the Foundation Essence Skin Soul Drops.

This Foundation Essence has the texture of a serum but contains approximately 36% pigments so you can mix it with any moisturising or priming products to make a personalised foundation. This super-blendable fluid has a pore-minimising demi-matte finish that lasts all day! Rouge Bunny Rouge suggests mixing one drop with any base for a tinted moisturiser-like finish, and five drops for a concealer-like finish. We prefer using around 3-4 drops for a natural every day look. No matter how many drops you add, it still has a natural appearance due to the Jojoba, Mimosa, and Sunflower waxes that mimic skin texture. So far only three shades are available, but mixing them with coloured bases makes them easily adjustable to suit your skin tone. These drops are also perfect for lightening or darkening a foundation that you already have!

Try out the latest in personalised makeup here.

SoapNSkin - Rose and Sandalwood Collection

Who said that high quality and luxury body care is synonym for unaffordable? Here at The Amazing Blog we can show you it’s quite the opposite with SoapNSkin products. 

SoapNSkin's range includes soaps, body wash, hand wash, body butters and shampoos, all created using all natural, organic ingredients including Lavender, Sandalwood, Rose and Jojoba. Founded by best friends Rabia and Samar, every single product is created by hand in their very own kitchens. SoapNSkin want to spread the word that our skin and hair don’t need parabens or chemicals to look shiny and silky. We 100% agree, because we cannot stop using their creations since we’ve tried the Rose & Sandalwood line. 

We love how the Rejuvenate & Calm Anti-Dandruff Shampoo looks like liquid gold and left our hair feeling soft and cleansed. The Calming & Soothing Hand & Body Soap is a multi-purpose product that can be used on your face, hands and body. Its organic base, and chemical free components means that it delicately cleanses without leaving your skin tight and taut. We also think the rich Soothing Body Butter is a staple product to have this winter, with its rose, sandalwood and neem oils which smoothed the texture of our skin, as well as protecting it against environmental damage, and the harsh cold weather.

SoapNSkin's products can be purchased on their website; the Soothing Body Butter and Rejuvenate & Calm Anti-Dandruff Shampoo retails at £12, and the Soothing Hand & Body Soap for £3.50. Treat you as Mother Nature would do!

Pure Thoughts Whipped Shea Body Butter

 The weather is changing at the moment, and with the onset of the first autumn chill comes our least favourite thing: dry skin. At The Amazing Blog we know that it is important to maintain our skin care routine, despite our busy schedules, to prevent the weather from affecting our skin. So, we have been trying out the Whipped Shea Body Butter by Pure Thoughts to banish any dry skin and keep our skin supple and moisturised.

We tried out the Tangerine and Jojoba flavoured body butter and the smell is amazing. It is really citrusy and the scent lingers on your skin long after application. This citrus scent is warm and tangy which has a calming effect and lifts the spirits. The body butter also comes in Lavender and Jojoba and also an unscented version.

Pure Thoughts have an all natural philosophy, and believe that natural skin care should mean only the best ingredients. The butter itself is composed of 100% natural ingredients and contains Shea butter, jojoba oil, tangerine oil and limonene… and that’s it! It has no nasties, such as parabens or added chemicals that can irritate the skin, so this butter is perfect for those with sensitive and dry skin. This also means that the product is gentle enough to be used on the face and body on a regular basis.

Shea butter is a wonderful ingredient that is rich and luxurious on the skin. It is particularly helpful for soothing dry and damaged skin due to its repairing properties - perfect for this cold weather! The jojoba oil moisturises and also restores balance to neglected skin. Not only does the butter soothe dry skin, it can also be used to relieve sunburn, reduce the appearance of stretch marks and it can help those who suffer from eczema and psoriasis, making this an all-round great beauty buy.

The butter is almost balm like, so only a small amount of product is needed to nourish the skin. Despite being an oil based product, the butter does not feel greasy on the skin; instead the skin feels instantly softer and more hydrated. This would be a fantastic product to apply before bed time so you wake up with soft and supple skin.

The Whipped Shea Butter retails for £11.95 for an 85g, which we think is fantastic value for money for an all natural product, made of the finest quality ingredients. You can get yours from the Pure Thoughts website. Pure Thoughts have been very generous in offering a special 10% discount on the Whipped Shea Butters for one week only; you can redeem your discount by entering the code AMAZING at the checkout.

Puriskin

Here at  The Amazing Blog we’ve been discussing how we all seem to still  have the odd scar from wounds during childhood activities (mine are on both my knees – too many roller-skating mishaps).  And although the years have been kind and faded those scars, some of them never really disappear. However, recently I’ve also acquired a long thin scar on my left hand from burning myself on the oven grill (yes I know it’s just plain stupid!) it’s healed and is now turned whitish but it’s still very much in evidence. I’ve been looking to test out Puriskin so now I have the perfect area to try it out on.

Why I’m excited to be trying Puriskin is that it has no nasties i.e. parabens or a petroleum base. It feels gentle and smells very fragrant (although it can be quite overpowering when first applied). I first became Interesting in the brand after seeing a case study and then hearing an endorsement by the GP Dr Sharma about her patients.

It is a vitamin rich product full of active essential oils like the unusual Tigergrass and Comfrey plant base incorporating Vitamin E Acetate, Chamomile Tea and Oil, Jojoba, Evening Primrose and Borage Oil. It is recommended particularly for acne scars, blemishes and stretchmarks. I’m using it twice a day and I have noticed a small difference in the scar on my hand which seems to be fading – but it’s early days. It also claims to soften hardened blemishes and smooth and refine raised and depressed areas of skin. It is only £19.99 for a 50ml bottle which will be cheap at the price if it makes my burn scar disappear – let’s hope it also banishes those grazed knee scars too! To receive 40% off of your Puriskin purchase type in "amazingpr40" and you will get this fantastic cream for £11.99!