Faith in Nature Shampoo & Conditioner

I made an emergency trip to my local health foods shop a few weeks ago after running out of shampoo.

I picked up the Faith in Nature Neem & Propolis Shampoo and the Seaweed & Citrus Conditioner.

I have used them for the last three weeks or so and to be honest I have really mixed feelings about them.

The shampoo is (mostly) great - it lathers well so I get a good wash without having to do it twice. I like the smell, sort of like earthy floral, it doesn't weigh my hair down and it keeps my hair less oily for longer. Those are the positives. My negative? Scalp irritation.

My hair is really thick so rinsing shampoo out can sometimes be a struggle and very occasionally I don't get it all out so get a bit of a flaky scalp. These are usually on rushed days and it really doesn't happen that often.

I noticed that my hairline was a bit flaky the first time I used it so put it down to a rubbish rinse. The second, third and fourth time it happened I knew it wasn't me.

I tried to take a photo of my hairline but I just couldn't get one that showed it up well. I've said scalp irritation but it's not particularly itchy, just flaky. 

When I bought the shampoo I did a very quick scan of the ingredients and finding no SLS, I bought it. Looking at the ingredients now I can see that it has Ammonium Laueth Sulfate. After a bit of fishing on the internet, I found an article on The Green People's website which says that although ALS sound similar to SLS, their molecular structure is significantly different and do not have the same potential to irritate the skin. The molecules are larger than those of SLS and are therefore considered to be milder and safer alternatives. Read the full article here.

ALS may be a safer alternative but it still caused me a huge problem. This will be added to my list of ingredients to avoid.

Compared to the shampoo, the conditioner was really nice to use and I didn't have an problems with it. I found it a bit runny but it did appear to do a good job at conditioning my ends so I'm happy with it and will use it again. I still use my avocado oil as a pre-conditioner so I find that I don't need as much of an intensive conditioner as the oil works so well.

Which shampoo & conditioner do you use?

Some of my favourite minis from this month

Over the last month, I have been working my way through my trail and sample stash that all of a sudden went from manageable to out of control. I've not bought anything new and I'm trying to use up what I have rather than saving things up. 

It's been great going through and discovering new products and these have been some of my favourites.

Intelligent Nutrients Harmonic Shampoo & Conditioner - I have been loving using these two. The shampoo lathers really well and leaves my hair squeaky clean and the conditioner is thick enough to, well, condition my ends! The scent is incredible, a mix of spearmint, peppermint, rosemary, cinnamon and cardamom oils. I have really fallen in love with this duo.

VMV Hypoallergenics Know-It-Oil 100% Organic Virgin Coconut Oil - I have used the super oil for everything - from post-shave moisturiser to face balm and to help combat the dark skin under my arms. I have used coconut oil before but I have never had the same results (not even close) than I have with this brand. I will be buying a full size as soon as I have scooped out every last bit!

001 Precious Finds Pure Active Peel - I had to break this bad boy open after reading review after review of this; I'm so glad I did! The mixture is a little strange to apply, being more grainy than anything I have used before. Once lightly massaged across the skin though, it stays put. I have used this a few times now and my skin has never looked better. I've followed it each time with....

Indie Lee - 100% Squaline Oil - Another item that I had to open. I have loved using this wonderfully light oil after my face peel. I am sure they work fantastically on their own but together my skin has cleared up and my fine forehead wrinkles (shhhh, don't tell anyone) have noticeably reduced. 

Gwdihw Hand Balm - A deeply moisturising balm that has been a night-time saviour. Coconut oil, olive oil, beeswax, cocoa butter, calendula and lemon essential oil make this a really zesty treat. I have been applying this before bed and wake up with soft hands and nourished nails. 

What minis have you been using lately?

Autumn Beauty Swap - with Sandra from Beauty Balm

A few months ago, I saw on Twitter that Kat from Tales of a Pale Face was organising a Beauty Swap.  I headed over and put my name down straight away! Although I am new to writing my own blog I'm certainly not new to reading them and reading swap posts is something that I have always really enjoyed. Its great to see what two relative strangers have bought for each other and what they both thought of the products they received.

So, a couple of weeks ago I was sent an email from Kat pairing me up with Sandra from Beauty Balm. I honestly couldn't believe my luck! I have followed Sandra for AGES and have always really valued her reviews and opinions. I felt like a groupie and even did a (well, more than a few) little squeals when I found out we would be paired up. We agreed on a price limit and posting date and off to the shops we went!

I picked up my parcel from the Post Office today and LOOK AT THIS WONDERFUL ARRAY OF GOODIES! I'm not great at taking photos and the natural light was just fading but you can see just how beautifully everything was presented.

Sorry again about the photo quality, I had to use my phone as my camera is playing up and wouldn't do what I was telling it to do! As soon as it is working again, I will edit the photos with new ones.

I started opening things very calmly and very patiently - this lasted for about three things before I descended on the rest of them in a mad frenzy!

And this is what was inside:

Sandra gifted me some incredibly scented tea lights from St Eval Candle Company in Apple & Elderflower. I am in love with these already. They hold such a crisp, fresh fragrance and even my husband likes them.  I will be putting some more of these on my Christmas wishlist.

Something that has been on my wishlist for months is bodhi's Neroli Lucé Revitalising Face Oil-with Tunisian Neroli, Frankincense and Sea Buckthorn oils. Over the moon to have this at last!

A Bathing Beauty POP Fabulous Effervescent Foot Reviving Tablet - with Peppermint, Tea Tree, Witch Hazel and Peach Kernel oil to cleanse and nourish feet. I love anything effervescent; that magical fizzy noise it makes and the look of bubbles forming rapidly in water! 

Also from Bathing Beauty Sandra included a Super Lux Rose and Shea Butter Soap made with Fair Trade Shea Butter and crowned with 10 pink rose buds. This looks so pretty that I almost don't want to use it! I will though and I'll enjoy every moment.

From A'kin there was a Lavender & Anthyllis Leave in Conditioner.  My hair is going to love this, I can tell! A leave in conditioner for dry and frizzy hair, it can be used on either wet or dry hair to defrizz and protect. I've said before that I find natural hair care products that suit my hair difficult to find so I'm keen to get this on and try it out.

Sandra added a mascara from Avril - A girl can never have enough mascaras and I'm about to come to the end of one so very good timing!

Also a Wellgreen Lewes Lip Balm in Orange - this will be perfect for those cold Winter months that are just around the corner.

Something else to help balance the skin during the Winter is a Collagen Mask Pack by Naisture. Again, I've read lots of great reviews on this mask so pleased to have the chance to try it out myself.

Sandra added some samples along with everything (how lucky am I?!) - bodhi's Mint Thé shower gels, Dr Bronner's Magic Soap in Lavender (my favourite), Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence, Suti Fabulous Foot Balm, Vapour Multi Use Blush in Courtesan.

I'll be using the super cute Caroline Gardner mini notebook to do mini reviews and quite happily drink the gorgeous Brewhaha Rose Tea while I'm at it!

 I am incredibly happy with everything picked for this swap, thank you so much Sandra!

You can read what I picked for Sandra and what she thought of everything here.

Review: Lavera Shampoo & Trilogy Conditioner

I've probably mentioned before but I have a really difficult time finding an SLS free shampoo that I can use. I have thick, thick, thick hair which is also long and frizzy! 

After reading a few reviews, I decided to pick up the Lavera Basis Mild Shampoo (£6.45 - LoveLula.com) and I've been using it for about 5 weeks now. 

The shampoo feels very odd to me - I don't know how to describe it; it's very gloopy and kind of sqwadges out of the bottle into the hand. I found, like with the Neal's Yard Remedies shampoo in my empties post here, that I had to use a small amount on the roots of my hair and rinse first before shampooing properly. I think the hair must have to be very, very wet for the shampoo to be able to effectively spread around the hair without leaving unwashed bits. I quite liked using this shampoo, once I worked out how best to use it on my hair. I could really smell (and enjoyed) the organic wheat and rose essence and I suppose it did make my hair feel soft. 

I usually wash my hair every three days - day 1) wear it down, day 2) half-up and day 3) tied up with a bit of dry shampoo on the roots. 

However since using the Lavera Shampoo, I have to dry shampoo on DAY 2!! I don't know what it is, maybe the shampoo makes my hair heavier or something but this was just not good enough for me. It takes time and effort to wash and style my hair that I want to get as much use out of it before I have to go through the process again - I don't want to do this more often than I have to. I was really disappointed with this shampoo after reading so many good things about it.  I certainly wont be buying it again.

As for a conditioner, I haven't had such a problem with this as I have the shampoo. I guess because essentially it goes on the ends in a creamy layer rather than all over. I bought the Trilogy Clean + Balance Conditioner on sale at Lucyrose.biz for £5.50. Bargain, thought I - a conditioner for oily and combination hair that removes product build up! Again, I just wasn't impressed. It has a very runny formula, much more like a shampoo, that I didn't feel that it provided any real benefit to conditioning the roots. Another one that I wont repurchase.

What shampoo and conditioners do you use and recommend?