MATIS - Reponse Corps Dry Oil

As the cold weather engulfs us in the festive season, yet again at The Amazing Blog we find ourselves dreaming about taking off to warmer climes. So, we’ve been tracking down multi-tasking products to share with you, to pack away for your travels. Regular readers may remember Simon reviewing the French salon brand Matis with their Vitality Roll’on Energ Eyes and  Reponse Homme Anti-Ageing Cream. This time it’s our turn to review one of their latest products Response Corps Dry Oil, which is perfect for nourishing both hair and body during this challenging weather.

Based in Paris, Matis is an established salon brand renowned for their scientific research with both their products and treatments. The Response Corps Dry Oil has a blend of 8 ‘Matispa’ active plant oils. The key actives are inca inchi, apricot kernel, marula, macadamia, sandalwood, cranberry and pomegranate. This combination of oils helps to provide protection and nutrition for all skin types. Let’s talk about the properties of these ingredients, the cranberry seed oil offers excellent anti-oxidant protection and enhances cellular functions, while the pomegranate oil has vitamins B and C help repair the skin. For those of you who have extremely dry and sensitive skin, the macadamia oil offers omega 9 which aids epidermal regeneration. What we particularly like is the delicious slightly sandalwood and nutty fragrance from the hemp seed oil, which also helps to calm the mind.

We think that this Dry Oil will make a very good travel companion as that it works on so many levels. It’s a brilliant multi-tasker with the added bonus of being full of replenishing oils. Ideal to add shimmer to the skin in the evening, and repairing hair after showering.  We recommend applying this Dry Oil after a hot bath or shower for an optimum effect. We also like that it absorbs quickly and does not leave any oily residue when applied. The hydration factors in this Dry Oil are ideal for helping repair split ends or replenishing moisture in the skin. If you would like to treat your body and hair to some TLC, then the Response Corps Dry Oil 50ml can be purchased here from £16.38 - offering great value for a 2-in-1 product.

Paw Paw & Quinoa Colour Radiance Shampoo and Conditioner by Natural World.

At The Amazing Blog, we know what a pain it can be when your hair colour begins to fade, especially if you go into considerable costs to have the colour added in the first place! It can feel pointless to fight this struggle at times as often nothing seems able to prevent the fading, and some hair care products even increase its progression. Therefore, searching for a product that will act as a remedy to this problem is a priority of ours. Thankfully, we came across Natural World in this quest to evade the bland. Their new organic Paw Paw and Quinoa Colour Radiance Shampoo and Conditioner is remarkable, it could not only keep our hair soft and smooth but it also helped to prolong the life of our hair colour all the way up to our next touch-up!

The organic Paw Paw Oil helps to both revive, re-live and maintain the gloss that colouring can strip away; while the protein packed Quinoa Extract is the star ingredient that helps maintain the colour – who knew there was another reason to love quinoa. The four essential oils (Rosemary, Lemongrass, Orange and Ylang Ylang) give the products a beautiful and fruity scent which you won't be able to get enough of. Our hair was visibly softer and shinier as the shampoo and conditioner aided in keeping hair hydrated. 95% of the product is made from naturally derived ingredients, and these gentle, but powerful ingredients allow the products to fight the ill-effects of dying without stripping the dye away! The products are free of parabens, phosphates, phthalates, dyes and gluten – so you know the high magnitude of safe and natural ingredients that your hair is in close contact with.

So if you are worried about the lifespan of your hair colour, you can purchase the shampoo here for £6.00 and the conditioner here for £6.00 which is a wise and worthy investment for treating and maintaining the colour and lustre of your hair. 

Eye of Horus – Baked Goddess Eyeshadow Palettes

Here at The Amazing Blog, we love to add a bit of sparkle to our eyes. Going into Autumn/Winter, we're always on the lookout for the perfect shades to compliment our wintry wardrobes. With this in mind, we are very glad to present you with our newfound love, the new Baked Goddess Eyeshadow Palettes from Eye of Horus.

If you can picture yourself wandering the streets of Ancient Egypt, then you'll certainly be able to get on board with the inspiration behind these palettes and the Eye of Horus brand. Four mysterious and charming palettes for cool and warmer styles, there's certainly something for every taste. The Sekhmet Smokey and Sheba Mystical Shadow Palettes have a hint of desert to them, and have us in the mind of night and day. The Sekhmet Smokey Shadow Palette has silver, pale moon and anthracite night colours, perfect for those of us in the office who favour a more sultry evening look. The Sheba Mystical Palette is a mesmerising reflection of a desert horizon and has a hint of sheen in each pan - this palette goes from a very pale champagne to a deeper plum and is a must have for an autumnal inspired style.

The Maat Sultry Shadow Palette offers a choice of warm, chocolaty shades. We’re talking about wonderfully pigmented matte hues from a light beige to a deep brown, the ideal palette for creating a warm smoky eye style that will give your glance an enigmatic look. Last but certainly not least, the Luminous Isis Shadow Palette is fantastic for an autumn, or indeed a Christmas party look. Express yourself like a true goddess with a vivid rose gold, a shimmering antique gold and a rusty bronze. Glowing with a golden undertone, the metallic finish of these shadows is absolutely enchanting.

Eye of Horus' formulas are pretty impressive. These velvety, long-lasting shadows are paraben-free, and are made with essential oils and natural waxes, making them a great discovery if you have sensitive eyes. Being cruelty-free doesn’t mean compromising on quality. These beautiful palettes have an amazing colour pay off, blending beautifully both wet and dry. And even without a primer, we found that the shadows didn't shift all day. Treat yourself to these beautiful shades here. They’re all available for £22.50. 

Festival of Heat

Here at The Amazing Blog, we have come across an event to spice up your weekend. The Festival of Heat is London’s leading Chilli Festival for the past 3 years, the work of Mercadito Productions. Heat-seekers everywhere join to celebrate various cultural uses for chilli, including the different eating, growing and cooking methods.

The Festival is attracting both aspiring and established talent; there will be producers, market traders and chefs from all over the UK. A few names you may recognise are hot pepper sauce brand Encona, Mushemi Fire, Zambian Chilli Products and Grim Reaper Foods Ltd. Encona will be this year’s sole sponsor of The Festival Kitchen, a fun and educational area with cooking demonstrations, food workshops and tasting activities for the whole family to enjoy. Whether its sweet and mild you’re after, or hot and fiery, Encona will have the sauce for you. They will also offer a range of delicious marinades to put life back into dull meal times; these are available in Korean BBQ, Jamaican Jerk BBQ and Moroccan Harissa. The exotic names are enough to make the mouth water.

Flavour Gurus from The World of Zing and Made in Hackney share their tips in master classes, workshops and demonstrations in the Festival Kitchen. In which you can learn ‘How to make a good curry’ and ‘Cooking with chilli to achieve the perfect heat’. For budding spice sellers, you can even pick up top tips on marketing your own hot sauce.

The Festival Kitchen Debate will hold several special guests, whom are to be announced. This is a hub of discussion around issues that affect us as consumers. You can have your own say on why we should buy from local producers and ask where it is our food comes from. If you want a break from all of this information, there will be DJs and bands providing music from across the world. There will surely be something to suit everyone as the music follows the multi-cultural theme, expect anything from live folk music to Bangladeshi dancing. In an ever growing multi-ethnic community it’s important to learn about different cultures, food and music are the social centres for most, making it the perfect place to start.

If you want a fun-filled and informative day out, make sure you attend the Festival of Heat  for just £7.50 per person, children under 16 go free if accompanied by an adult. The festival takes place on the 27th September 2015 in Red Market, London.​ 

The M’hencha Company - Moroccan Cake

Sometimes our body, soul and taste buds are in need of a holiday, and we here at The Amazing Blog  have found the perfect escape!  The M’hencha Company offers a range of spectacular treats, including our favourite Moroccan cake, has taken our taste buds on an exotic journey!

 With a passion for ‘awakening the senses’ through baking, The M’hencha Company founder, Sophie channelled her love for cake making into her specially designed M’hencha Cake.  Praise of her Moroccan delights from family and friends soon turned into recognition from colleagues like three-star awards at the Great Taste Awards, as well as at the Guild of Fine Foods.   Sophie and The M’hencha Company offer a variety of delicacies from bite-sized treats to celebration cakes, with both eating and serving suggestions. For the M'hencha Cake we received, it is best recommended to be eaten within five days of delivery, which we had no problem with that here in the office! This delicacy is a crunchy yet gooey coiled pastry cake made of almond frangipane, citrus zests, rosewater and perfectly topped with crumbled pistachios. Given that it was our first taste of Morroccan cake, it was a hit here in the office leaving us wanting more. After consumption however, there were a few guilty faces in the office, which I found amusing since calories are the least of my concerns. All the more to me I say!

The Moroccan cake is suitable for breakfast, lunch or dinner- personally we found the M’hencha Cake satisfied perfectly as a mid-afternoon snack. The M’hencha Company suggests pairing a slice of cake during breakfast with coffee, enjoying a piece during lunch with a Moroccan mint tea or indulging in a slice of cake for dessert following dinner.  Delight yourself with a classic 6” M’hencha cake, serving 3-4 guests, from The M’hencha Company for £16.95 here.