The Body Shop Moringa Hair Care Collection

I rave to anyone who will listen to me as to how good The Body Shop Ginger Hair Care Collection is, we adore it in this house and instead of now having to buy so many bottles of it a year, we take advantage of the refill station to stock up. Over the past few months, The Body Shop has launched five new and improved haircare routines for all hair needs - dry, dull, flaky, itchy, frizzy and even oily.

Made from Vegan Silk Protein, a 100% plant-based protein, it works to cleverly replicate the chemical structure of natural silk which is produced by the common European garden spider, so now because the entire range is fully plant-based and registered with the Vegan Society, no spiders or silkworms are harmed or disturbed to obtain it.   Plus all of the products within The Body Shop haircare range is now made with at least 90% ingredients of natural origin.

I was kindly sent the new Moringa Hair Care Collection which is made up of three products - a shampoo, a conditioner and a shine & protection hair mist as well as comb and very funky scrunchie, which has been very handy to have of late.

Get healthier-feeling, shinier hair and help protect it from daily pollution. Made with Community Fair Trade moringa seed oil and extract from Rwanda and Vegan Silk Protein. 

This routine visibly restores dull hair's radiance and shine. Expect softer, smoother and healthier looking hair that smells fragrantly floral.

The Moringa Shine & Protection Shampoo (250ml/£7.50) is designed to gently cleanse and leave your hair feeling fresh and looking both healthier and shinier. It also helps to protect the hair from daily pollution.

This shampoo is absolutely divine to use, it smells really fresh and lathers with very little help at all.  Whilst washing my hair with this shampoo, what I have noticed is that it doesn't irritate my scalp, an issue I have with some shampoo brands is the quickness to irritate the back of my head, usually within minutes of using the product, but not with this.  As you rinse the shampoo suds from your hair, you can feel just how smooth your hair is, almost like silk, to use a phrase.

The Moringa Shine & Protection Conditioner (250ml/£7.50) is a must have follow-up to using the shampoo above.  You need just the tiniest amount, a walnut sized dollop is what The Body Shop recommends, and then comb it through your lengths and ends with a good sized wide tooth detangling comb to ensure it is spread throughout you hair and then leave it to work it magic for a few minutes and then rinse out with warm water.  

Again, this conditioner is one which doesn't leave your hair feeling weighted down or greasy after using and it is one I have been using twice a week since it arrived and my hair loved it.

The third product within this range is the Moringa Shine & Protection Hair Mist (100ml/£10) and it was never a product I expected to like and use as much as I do, but the bottle shown within this post is actually my second! 

This lightweight mist is non-sticky and smells absolutely incredible.  Again, made with the Vegan Silk Protein which runs throughout the entire collection, this mist is designed to leave dull hair looking instantly shinier and more radiant and the best part is that it helps to protect it from daily pollution.  Without question, I use this more than I probably should, but I love how it makes my hair feel and it is even better for that second day after wash, when your hair won't be a fresh as it was the day before!

As well as the Moringa Hair Care Collection, the Body Shop also has the Tea Tree Purifying * Balancing range which features a shampoo, conditioner and a beautiful sounding scalp scrub, the much loved Ginger Collection, the Banana Truly Nourishing Collection which smells divine and the Shea Intense Repair Collection with an amazing sounding hair mask as part of trio of products.  All of these collections, which have been re-packaged and are made from 100% recycled plastic which includes Community Fair Trade Recycled Plastic which has been collected off the streets of Bengaluru in India.

*this post contains PR samples and/or Affiliate Links unless indicated otherwise - you can learn more on my Disclaimer page.

Boots No7 to launch 2 Beauty Advent Calendars 2021

For 2021, Boots have decided to launch not one but two No7 Advent Calendars and as previous years have shown, this is a quick sell-out Advent Calendar, a Waiting List sign up is a must if you want to grab it!

I have been lucky enough to get this Advent Calendar for the past two years as gifts for friends, so it is worth getting on the waiting list - which is open and right here.

We’ve heard amazing things come in pairs, so why not celebrate a little extra this season with our two exciting No7 Beauty Advent Calendars. Join the waiting list for 1-day pre-sale exclusive access to shop this year’s No7 Beauty Calendar and our new online only No7 Ultimate Beauty Calendar.

Want to know what the difference is between the two? Boots have said that their Beauty Calendar is the one you all know and love, the iconic calendar you wait all year for - this year, it is back again, better than ever and exclusive to Boots! But, for the first year ever, there is a second calendar to add to the line up - a brand new amazing No7 Ultimate Beauty Calendar offering even more sparkle, and treats for the festive season!

If that isn't tempting enough, there will also be 10 golden tickets hidden inside the No7 Beauty Calendar giving you the chance to win £1000 worth of No7 goodies.

Last year the No7 Advent Calendar was worth £172.50 but went on sale for just £45, so I am really intrigued to see what is on offer for 2021.

You can find the waiting lists right here and as more information becomes available, I will update this post.  In the meantime, I update my Advent Calendar Directory Daily with sneak previews and launch dates.

*this post contains PR samples and/or Affiliate Links unless indicated otherwise - you can learn more on my Disclaimer page.

REN Clean Skincare EverCalm Redness Relief Serum

One of my absolute favourite brands is REN Clean Skincare and every time they release a new product, you just know it is going to be fabulous, I am yet to find something I really dislike or even am on the fence over and have, in recent years repurchased over and over again the REN Magnesium Booster Bath Salts, The EverCalm Overnight Recovery Balm and the Anti-Fatigue Bath Oil which I adore.  Today however, sees the release of the EverCalm Redness Relief Serum, which has been a bit of a buzz all over social media and it is a product I have had for sometime now, but wanted to try it out before sharing my thoughts.

I was first introduced to the EverCalm range over 5 years ago with the Ultra Comforting Rescue Mask, which my skin still needs from time to time, the EverCalm range is described as being soothing skincare for sensitive and sensitised skin and it is completely free from known allergens and potentially detrimental ingredients.  Anyone can suffer with sensitive or sensitised skin, even if you are not prone to breakouts, don't have a pre-existing skin condition or don't suffer with reactions to certain ingredients, but when your skin does act up, there are signs to look out for such as:

• Redness
• Dryness
• Itchiness
• Flaking
• Discomfort
• Tightness
• Burning sensation

Whilst being alert for any of these problems and concerns, REN has released their new EverCalm Redness Relief Serum which helps manage the issues mention.  Described as being a 'Fast-acting Serum, clinically proven to visibly reduce redness after 30 minutes with continued improvement and sustained relief all day', which if like me you used a clay face mask and your skin did not thank you for, this serum is an absolute must have!

This serum uses a unique formula which is proven to strengthen skin's moisture barrier and help protect from pollution. Velvety smooth on the skin when applied, it uses bioactives such as White Mushroom Extract which helps comfort, calm, reduce the appearance of redness and alleviate the signs of sensitivity and REN's new Defence Complex, Beta-carotene & Biosaccharide which helps to combat potentially sensitising free radicals from environmental pollution.

REN never makes claims they cannot stand by when it comes to their products and this Redness Relief Serum has been tested. In a recent consumer study evaluation of 100 men and women, 76% said their skin appeared less red immediately after use; 83% said their skin appeared less red after 8 hours and 87% said their skin appeared less red after 24 hours.  I recently trialled a new skincare mask, it sounded absolutely wonderful from the description, but I should have read the list of ingredients a little better because it contained Kaolin Clay and my skin does not like it as an ingredient and I immediately felt a burning sensation on my cheeks and had to remove the mask very quickly. 

To use, the advice is to simply spread a hazelnut-sized amount between hands and press over clean skin till absorbed, starting with those areas of high sensitivity and then working outwards. The pressing motion helps reduce friction compared to massaging should your skin feel sensitive to the touch and better still, if your serum lives in the fridge like mine, then it feels ever better being applied to the skin.

On my skin, after using the facemask, it was an absolute delight to use. Usually I would be grabbing some Aloe Vera or even the Calamine Lotion to soothe my skin, but was able to use this serum and it did calm my skin right down and the redness did subside much quicker than I was expecting, plus it wasn't noticeable when wearing a tinted serum, when usually I am glowing like a Belisha Beacon after trying anything clay related.

The REN Clean Skincare EverCalm Redness Relief Serum is priced at £45 for 30ml and it is worth every single penny and more in my view!

*this post contains PR samples and/or Affiliate Links unless indicated otherwise - you can learn more on my Disclaimer page.

Aldi hair mask - is it a dupe?

I have shared a lot of the Aldi Lacura range on my blog and in recent months, more and more people message me and ask if I have tried this or have I tried that. The last product I shared was the Emma Hardie Cleansing Balm dupe, which I liked but didn’t love. Today is the turn of the Lacura Hair mask, some say it’s a dupe of the Coco and Eve Like A Virgin Mask - it isn’t a mask I have tried, but a good friend of mine swears they are pretty similar!

Aldi’s Lacura Hair Mask is priced at just £4.99, though I managed to grab it for just £1.99 in store and when compared to the Cocoa and Eve mask I previously mentioned, which costs £32.90, it isn’t hard to see why this Aldi hair mask is a constant sell out everytime it comes back into stock - which it has done between my purchasing it and writing my review.

The Aldi Lacura mask comes packaged in a floral box and inside the tub is bright pink, the Coco and Eve mask is sold in a similar looking tub but with a lighter pink base and green lid - so not quite the dupe at this stage. The one thing Aldi does well is similarities, you can usually tell what the product is there to dupe by looking at it, with this, it is not the case. However, when it comes to ingredients both feature coconut and fig on their list and both are designed to nourish dry, struggling hair which is in need of some TLC.

Aldi describes the mask as the ‘perfect addition to your beauty regime.’ For me, any hair care routine needs a hair mask. I try and apply one at least once a week!

Transform your hair with a Lacura Hair Mask,’ they write. ‘Deep treat your hair 2-3 times a week with this nourishing hair mask. You’ll be left feeling refreshed, revitalised and most importantly relaxed.

This mask is said to be a 5-in-1 mask that works to revive, restore, repair, tame, and deeply conditions as well as working to target frizz and help the appearance of split ends. Now this is quite the claim. Vegan and cruelty-free, this is a hair mask which smells absolutely delightful and reminds me of holidays, it is quite thick and luxurious, so it is a case of a little goes a long way and it is easy to use.

The Lacura Hair Mask states that you should apply a generous amount of the product to damp hair after washing it and then leaving it on your hair for up to ten minutes before rinsing it out with warm water. As an extra treat, you can also leave the hair mask in overnight if your hair is extra damaged and this gives you a deeper treatment for your hair, which you rinse out the following morning. My hair hasn’t seen a salon for the longest time I can remember, my local salon where I went regularly doesn’t have the same appeal since my stylist left the U.K. to go back to New Zealand, so whilst I decide what to do with my hair, I need all the help I can get because it is very unruly with a life of it’s own, not to mention that it is also half way down my back when usually it sits comfortably on and around my shoulders!

As I’ve said, this mask does have a luxurious feel to it and it does smell absolutely delightful. I have used it both as a weekly mask and have tried the option of using it overnight and I have to say, it has impressed me. My hair felt softer and smoother to the touch, not as much frizz as I expected to have and it didn’t weight my hair down or leave it feeling greasy - all of which has really impressed me and I can see why it gets the rave reviews it has been getting!

This mask has again currently sold out, but if you see it in the future, it is definitely one to try and it costs less than £5!

*this post contains PR samples and/or Affiliate Links unless indicated otherwise - you can learn more on my Disclaimer page.