Wednesday 19 March 2014

Review: Odylique Tea Tree & Green Clay Cleansing Bar and Tea Tree & Herb Shampoo

Pre-warning - this has turned into a bit of a long post and I may yet turn it into two!

I was contacted by Essential Care at the beginning of February to see if I would like to try anything from their new Odylique range.
Essential Care have been going for about 30 years, creating a range of products based on natural ingredients that are loved by people all over! Over the last few months they have launched Odylique - an eco-luxe range of organic skincare. Some Essential Care products have been revisited and updated and others are completely new. 
I was kindly sent the Tea Tree & Green Clay Cleansing Bar and the Tea Tree & Herb Shampoo to see how I got on with.



I was keen on trying the Tea Tree & Green Clay Cleansing Bar* as you can 'use this on face and body for the ultimate deep cleanse. It also provides a silky shave experience'. A multi-purpose soap then! The soap's ingredients are very clean - with olive oil for hydration, coconut oil to create a rich lather and also to hydrate, green clay for purification, and tea tree and lemon grass for their antimicrobial properties.

The soap is an earthy green colour and you can really smell the tea tree & lemon grass which I love. I've been using it in the mornings to wash my face and I feel that it's done a good job. It cleanses and refreshes the skin without drying it out, which I always worry about with a bar. The tea tree and lemon grass work a treat on my oily/combination skin.

I have to say though, it really comes into it's own when using it to prepare the skin before shaving. I have incredibly sensitive skin under my arms and have historically found that mainstream shaving gels would only irritate it further.
I've found this Cleansing Bar lathers beautifully (thanks to the coconut) which allows a very smooth shave without pulling or snagging the skin. The skin gets added hydration and a bonus cleanse from the tea tree oils, without drying it out or further irritating it.

The one thing I will mention, and it may just be because of my tiny, steamy bathroom, is that the bar got bit slimy after the first few uses. This isn't a huge problem, it just means it sticks to the soap dish and requires a bit of effort to remove! 

Overall I'm really happy with this cleansing bar and I think for £6 it is a bargain. I would certainly buy this again.

The other product I was sent was the Tea Tree & Herb Shampoo*
If you are on a journey to use more natural products, then shampoo is generally considered to be a difficult one to master. I know I've tried about 5 different ones over the last couple of years and none of them have really wow'd me.
I've been using this shampoo for a few weeks now and to be honest I'm still trying to find a fault with it because so far it ticks all the boxes.
The shampoo lathers well, although I do still need to double wash due to the amount of hair I have. The scent is perhaps a little medicinal due to the ingredients, which might not suit all but wasn't really an issue for me.

The texture is a little funny and much thicker than conventional shampoos but I appreciated the pump action as I was able to get what I needed without using too much.

The idea with this shampoo is that is acts as a bit of a conditioner too. Once massaged into the scalp, leave the shampoo on for a few minuets and then rise it out. This ensures that the herbs and oils have chance to work their magic.
My scalp is free from flakes and feelings healthy again. My hair is not particularly any softer or shinier than my previous shampoo BUT what I have noticed is that my hair stays cleaner for longer. I usually wash my hair every third day - with this shampoo I'm washing it every four days and that is still without the need to dry shampoo on the last day. I suppose the tea tree and rosemary oils are combating my oily scalp?
Whatever the reason, I'm smitten with it. It costs £11 for a 200ml bottle which is perhaps a little steep, especially when my previous shampoo was about £8 and was for 400ml.

You can view the Odylique range on the Essential Care website here.

Have you tried anything from Odylique yet?

*PR Samples

13 comments

  1. I was waiting to read your thoughts on the cleansing bar and I think I will have to buy one, it sounds great. Also very interested in the shampoo as, like you, I have never found one that wows me. Great post Jen x

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    1. I've really enjoyed the bar and with the added coconut oil, my skin is in a much better condition :) x

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  2. The cleansing bar sounds lovely, I've recently got into using soap bars! The shampoo sounds amazing too....4 days without washing your hair?! That's ridiculously amazing! I have to wash mine after about two days...not good. Will definitely be putting this shampoo on my 'to try next' list! Great post Jen x

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    1. Thanks Amber! I was pretty amazed when I woke up after a few days and saw that my hair could go another day without being washed. Hopefully they'll bring out a conditioner too as I still need to use one x

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  3. Isn't that awesome about green beauty products for your hair? I haven't tried this brand yet, (now I totally want to!) but I have been using Acure shampoo with mint and and also greenbody greenplanet as well for shampoo and have noticed the same thing! My normally semi greasy hair is cleaner.... longer! Just another perk! Love it, great post! Kathryne @getunsullied

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    1. I've not tried either of the shampoos that you have mentioned but will have to look into them :) x

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  4. I'm a huge fan of Essential Care/Odylique, I'm sensitive to tea tree but I use so many of their other products and the other shampoo, Gentle Herb, is my all time favourite

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    1. I'll certainly be trying out more from the range after the success of these two!

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  5. I love their Gentle Herb Shampoo and really liked the Tea Tree version too. The Cleansing Bar sounds great! x

    Evelyn @ We Were Raised By Wolves

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    1. The shampoo is a real winner with me but the cleansing bar is like a cherry on top! x

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  6. I'm dying to try Odylique products! :)) They both sound lovely! :) x

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  7. Thanks for the review. I'm very interested in this brand now! Believe it or not I had never heard about this brand before. As nice as it is to see new green brands, it's also nice to see companies who have been around for a while!

    http://amber-allnaturallybeautiful.blogspot.ca/

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  8. I tried this shampoo for few days now and I have strange like dry scalp feeling. Is it possible that I have an allergy as I never heard anybody complain. And actually I have to wash my hair every day after that shampoo as next day my hair are very oily.

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