Coffee addiction: who’s guilty?
To fuel my daily fix, Hello Jo, a British born – Korean developed brand, brings caffeine as an active ingredient to my beauty regime. And I love it.
We know (some better than others) how great a stimulant caffeine in, so it sounds quite sensible to harvest its benefits in beauty. I also love the look of the branding and packaging!
Hard to pick a favourite from the products I tried. I’ll start with the amazing Bright Eyes Jelly Masks (£20). What’s amazing about them? Glad you asked.
First, it comes in a pot with 30 pairs. Yes, you heard it right: 30 pearlescent pink pairs swimming lovingly in an amazing caffeine, aloe vera and pomegranate serum which stimulates skin in the area to reduce puffiness, brighten dark circles, re-energise and revitalise. It also contains Acmella oleracea (toothache plant) to help soften lines.
It is cooling, soothing and super moisturising. The 15 minute-ritual is even more delightful if you keep the jar in the fridge.
I’ll move on to hair as I absolutely love the Stay Strong Volumising Caffeinated shampoo (RRP £12.50/200ml), which on top of caffeine, also contains walnut seed extract for growth stimulation and coix seed for scalp exfoliation.
The shampoo is so fresh and slightly tingly on application (which I love), foams well and leaves hair feeling squeaky clean and soft. Maybe the jar is come from needs to be made of slightly softer plastic and be more squeezable.
Follow up with the Stay Strong Volumising Caffeinated Conditioner (£12.50/200ml), with hydrating coconut oil to ensure smoothness. The conditioner is light but effective, making hair feel soft on application and after rinse, with no weight.
A new way of using hair masks was presented to me: a practical wrap for the length. This ensure the hair mask goes where it is needed and not on the roots, where it can actually cause damage.
The Pack of Power Hair Mask (£15 for 3) has active caffeine, of course, as well as argan, olive and moringa oils. Just make a ponytail and pop it in the mask bag for half an hour or even overnight for added support to hair growth and reduced damage, as well hydration and nourishment. So soft.
Moving on to lips. Kissable, right? No? No problem! The Speak Up Bubble Lip Mask (£12.50/30ml) is full of fruit enzymes and caffeine for super exfoliation.
Rub the gel formula, which also has vitamins A and C, on lips and watch it bubble up into foam to help remove dead skin to reveal smoother, more plumped and nourished lips. Really fun and quick to use!
All products are free of parabens and never tested on animals.
Hello Jo ethos is set on women supporting women, seen mainly through their partnership with Rosa, the UK-wide Fund for Women and Girls, where they donate 50p from each product to help the fund’s mission to mobilise resources for women equality.
Rosa does that by raising money and investing in grassroots women’s movements by offering grants, mentor-matching, training and networking. Makes me love them even more.
Hello Jo is available exclusively at FeelUnique – get in there!
You know the drill, but I’ll say again: this post contains GIFTED PR samples. This review, however, is based on my experience with the product and reflects my honest opinion on them.
Who doesn’t like mermaid hair? Somehow beach hair seems to fall beautifully into place with minimal effort.
Umberto Giannini to the rescue! The gorgeous Beach collection was designed to care for your hair and keep it looking amazing even when subjected to external aggressors. And the whole range is loaded with coconut oil goodness.
Most possibly the star of the range is the Pool Proof Leave-in hair Protection Cream (150ml, £8), dubbed the swim cap, it creates a barrier to protect hair against UV rays and chlorine/salt in the water.
A good spray is a must for beach hair – the Catch a Wave Coconut Oil Beach Texture Volumising Spray (200ml, £7)is just it. Different from other sprays I used, hair does not feel stiff – some may say it is due to the coconut oil . And it also has UVA and UVB filters to help protect hair and the uplifting scent across the range.
Finally, a product that is not really my thing: the Boho Beach Jelly – a Coconut Oil Scrunching Jelly (200ml, £7), it is great to enhance natural curls, shaping them and retaining softness and bounce.
At this time of the year my hair (and skin) are very tired: the wind is brutal, central heating has been acting on it for months… what better than some natural healing power to help restore my locks?
I discovered the range (and got my personalised bottle) at their fabulous The Blends’ Room pop-up in London. And if you are around Soho today and want to be amongst the first to try, pop down to 15 Bateman Street (W1D 3AQ) before 6pm to get free samples and other treats. Hurry, it’s the last day!
All addressing different hair needs and the even better, with a price tag that won’t break the bank.
A small amount of conditioner is very effective and the mask is thick and powerful. Hair feels clean and soft after use.
Now, a little away from hair… the Intense Repairer body lotion is divine, perfect for winter skin. It is rich but absorbs amazingly well; my skin cannot have enough of it.
Fine hair in desperate need of hydration, but worried about heavier products? Try the new Andrew Barton No Weight, Hydrate coconut hair range.
The Shampoo lathers well and leaves hair feeling pretty clean. The Conditioner feels a bit too light for me as I just use conditioner on the ends of my hair, but after rinsing hair feels soft and brushes well.
Combined with the Shine Spray, it delivers a great finish to hair dried naturally or blow-dried.
As the lovely Andrew Barton (I mean, he is too lovely and fun!) explained, the whole range has Moroccan argan oil as well as coconut milk in a light balancing formula to deliver hydration to dry ends and purification to oily scalps.
So Many Lovely Things 