MuLondon Organic Rose Foaming Face Wash

The MuLondon Face washes have been on my radar since their launch but seeing as I had a load of cleansers I wanted to use up first I've only recently got round to giving them a go.

There are 3 different cleanser types:

Rose - dry, irritated or sensitive skin types

Lavender - all skin types, including dry and sensitive

Fragrance free - all skin types, especially sensitive

I am rather crazy for rose in skincare so naturally I went for the rose variant. MuLondon uses organic and steam distilled Rose Otto oil (30 roses are used to make one drop of oil). Rose is beautifully healing and soothing for the skin as well as giving the cleanser a wonderful fragrant rose scent.

Along with the Rose Otto, Rosehip extract is used which is a great repairer and helps with scarring and wrinkles as well as rehydrating the skin.

The base of this cleanser is an organic castile soap, free of synthetic detergents (like SLS) so it gently cleanses the skin without stripping it.

I've had a good experience using their Hemp moisturiser, but there was a part of me that was a little hesitant about this cleanser as (a) it is made from castille soap and I've used other cleansers with this as an ingredient and I wasn't particularly keen; and (b) it is foaming. But MuLondon is unlike those others and indeed these doubts were soon case aside after I used this cleanser, it feels unlike any cleanser I've used before.

Once you dispense some of the product in your hands it looks like a light foam but as soon as you start massaging it, it produces a light, creamy lather that feels lovely and soft on the skin, no soapy bubbles!

On the face of it this seems like a simple cleanser, but as I have found with their moisturiser, this still is remarkably effective. It leaves the skin feeling soft and has a little bit of a calming and clarifying effect. Initially it does have a little bit of a squeaky-clean feel once rinsed (which I'm not keen on in particular), but I found that if I've used nourishing products like oils and serums at night or during the day, then once I've cleansed my skin I get less of this sensation, and am left with more of a natural feel.

This makes a great morning cleanser but I think it works even better as part of a double cleanse. In the evenings I've been removing my makeup with organic jojoba oil and a warm washcloth (I always use a separate product to remove makeup) then following up with the MuLondon cleanser and it works a treat.

Ingredients:

Aqua (Water), Potassium Sunflowerate (Saponified Sunflower Oil)*, Potassium Cocoate (Saponified Coconut Oil)*, Glycerin (vegetable, naturally occurring)*, Potassium Chloride, Potassium Citrate (Potassium Salts), Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba Oil)*, Rosa Damascena (Rose Otto Essential Oil)*, Rosa Canina (Rosehip Extract)*, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary Extract)*    *Certified Organic Ingredients

The cleansers come in a trial size (50ml) and the full size (150ml).

I purchased this from mulondon.com

Shower Time Selection

When it comes to shower and bath products, I'm all about the scent and tend to go for products that are uplifting and refreshing for everyday use, with lovely textures so thought I'd share my current selection.

Intelligent Nutrients Harmonic Body Wash

I love Intelligent Nutrients, ever since I first used their Harmonic shampoo I was completely taken by them, so when they recently brought out the matching body wash, I did not hesitate to give it a whirl.

This has the same light, creamy texture as the shampoo and also the same beautifully refreshing scent from the peppermint, spearmint, rosemary and menthol.

Cleans well without stripping the skin of moisture. Wonderful stuff!

Ingredients:

Madara Fresh Mint Soap

This is my first foray into Madara and so far I am liking this lovely and gentle soap. Madara is a Latvian natural skincare brand, that uses ingredients from the Baltic region in it's products and is free from synthetic ingredients, perfumes and preservatives.

This one has a slightly lighter texture, sort a gel like soap but again it doesn't strip the skin and effectively cleans with a fresh mint scent. I don't think its as complex or aromatic as the Intelligent Nutrients, but it's honest in it's simplicity and does a good job. I use this one as a hand soap as well.

Ingredients:

Nourish Uplifting Shower Gel

When I saw this on online, I was taken by the cheery yellow packaging and by the 'uplifting' in the name, and this certainly lives up to that. This contains high omega shea butter to nourish the skin yet it doesn't overwhelm and washes cleanly. A good consistent gel texture with a wonderful sweet citrus scent, this just makes me happy when I use it, what more could I ask for?

What I'm liking about the Nourish range is that the price points are rather reasonable for the quality of the products with many of the formulas containing over 90% organic ingredients. For body products I have mostly converted to natural brands, but I probably don't venture as high price-wise as I would with my skincare so it's nice to have a brand that is a bit more purse-friendly.

Ingredients

Life NK Jump Start Sugar Scrub

This was a bit of an impulse buy from Space NK as I was taken in by their bold typographic packaging and the zingy grapefruit scent.

A lovely simple scrub which a good gel-like consistency that feels refreshing and rinses away easily without any greasiness.

The only gripe I have is with the packaging - the texture of the scrub is quite thick and the hole in the tube small so you have to really squeeze it - I'm taking the scissors to this as I find it a bit annoying!

Ingredients

*All products purchased by me*

The Body Shop Vitamin E Moisture Cream

In the past I have used several products from The Body Shop's Vitamin E range, although never the moisturiser so I was interested to see how I fared with this as I feel a bit more willing to experiment as my skin has improved on the acne front these past few months.

The Body Shop Vitamin E Moisture Cream is part of their range of skin products containing vitamins to help 'hydrate and protect' the skin and 'leave it soft and healthy-looking'.

The texture of the cream feels light and absorbs quickly so at first I wasn't exactly hopeful that this would provide adequate hydration as in the colder months I normally lean towards moisturisers for normal to dry or sensitive skin as even though I'm a little combo, I'm also dehydrated and apart from my t-zone, the rest of my face can feel a little dry in this changeable weather.

To my surprise this provides just the right amount of hydration without feeling I have much on my skin and I find that it works well when layering with other products as the formula is light.

Overall a good moisturiser, but it does leave me craving a little something extra in my skincare as now I'm in my late 20's (approaching 30 in July!) I have been taking a few more preventative measures skincare wise.

Ingredients:

Aqua (Solvent/Diluent), Isopropyl Palmitate (Emollient), Sorbitol (Humectant), Lanolin (Emollient), Glyceryl Stearate (Emulsifier), Cetyl Esters (Emollient), Steareth-2 (Emulsifier), PEG-100 Stearate (Surfactant), Ceresin (Stabiliser), Triethanolamine (pH Adjuster), Tocopheryl Acetate (Antioxidant), Steareth-20 (Emulsifier), Carbomer (Viscosity Modifier), Methylparaben (Preservative), Parfum (Fragrance), Benzyl Benzoate (Solvent), Butylparaben (Preservative), Ethylparaben (Preservative), Hydroxycitronellal (Fragrance Ingredient), Isobutylparaben (Preservative), Propylparaben (Preservative), Limonene (Fragrance Ingredient), Geraniol (Fragrance Ingredient), Linalool (Fragrance Ingredient), Citronellol (Fragrance Ingredient), Cinnamyl Alcohol (Fragrance Ingredient), Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone (Fragrance Ingredient), CI 14700 (Colour).

*PR sample*

GlamGlow Mud Mask

When it comes to facial masks, I am a bit of a devotee of Ren's fabulous face mask offerings, but I'm always on the look out for other effective masks, especially clay ones as many brands I've tried just don't cut the mustard. I want the ritual and the results!

Luckily this mask is much more than it's swanky packaging. GlamGlow mud mask is quite a potent concoction, it is clay based but has a fine pumice-y/earthy texture and also bits of green tea in it that give it an exfoliator feel. Because of this texture, I find that I have to be quite gentle when applying it so that I am not rubbing the skin.

The mask does dry and it goes tight so you can definitely feel it on the skin as it's a slightly cool, tingly and quite active sensation. The first time I used this it did feel a little stingy on the first few seconds but I had used another treatment product beforehand which I didn't need as this packs a punch on it's own. I would proceed with caution if you have sensitive or dry skin as this might feel like too much.

I leave on for around 10 minutes and it removes quite easily with water but as I'm removing I let the water soften the mask and then I massage it a little and then rinse off.

This makes my skin a bit brighter and much smoother, and I do not encounter any redness after use but because the mask is drying, I make sure to give it nourishment by following up with a hydrating serum and moisturiser.

Personally I don't think it's quite as effective for spots, although I've come to the conclusion that those buggers are best dealt with a 'kill them with kindness' approach so rather then trying to dry them out, I use oils and creams that have nourishing, anti-inflammatory ingredients.

The packaging has a nice, weighty feel and is a bit razzle-dazzle although I quite like that:)

Ingredients:

Aqua (Water), Montmorillonite (Volcanic Minerals), Kaolin (French Sea Clay), Magnesium Aluminum Silicate (Purified Clay), Polyethylene, Pumice (Micro Volcanic Rock), Camellia Sinensis Leaf (Green Tea Leaf), Camellia Oleifera Leaf Extract (Green Tea), Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract (Chamomile), Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract (Marigold), Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract (Cucumber), Hedara Helix Extract (Ivy), Symphytum Officinale Leaf Extract (Comfrey Herb), Lavandula Hybrida Oil (Lavender), Glycerin (Vegetable), Parfum, [Benzyl Benzoate, Hexyl Cinnamal, Limonene, Linalool], Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Butylparaben, Ethylparaben, Propylparaben, Isobutylparaben, Diazolidinyl Urea.