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Plum Goodness Green Tea Face Mask Review

Beauty, General, Reviews, Skincare

Today I wanted to share with you all the third review of a series of reviews on some products that I ordered from Plum Goodness, it has been a little while since I did another post from this series. (This whole season has mainly been about skin care but I do have some different posts coming out soon.)

Are Plum cruelty free?

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Plum Goddness is an online-cosmetic brand, based in India, that was founded by Shankar Prasad in July 2014. The brand is one of the first 100% vegan brands in India that are completely committed to ensuring that their products are ‘safe and good’ – not only are the products cruelty-free but they are also free of parabens, phthalates and SLS.  The products all feature the ‘1% For The Planet’ logo, meaning that Plum Goodness give 1% of their sales to non-profit organizations that are dedicated to protecting the environment.

 

The Green Tea Clear Face Mask

The Green Tea Clearn Face Mask is made of kaolin and bentonite clays for a natural cleansing and exfoliation of the skin. The face mask also contains extracts of green tea, to stop the acne formation cycle in its tracks and the glycolic acid sweeps away skin debris and prepares the skin for self-renewal.

The face mask is priced at Rs. 490.00 (Indian rupees) for 60g, which is approximately £6.00 – please do bear in mind that the exchange rate does fluctuate but it shouldn’t make too much of a difference in the price for someone purchasing from abroad.

Review

My first thoughts about the face mask is that the smell of the green tea is very subtle and clean. The consistency of the face mask felt very smooth, creamy and almost mousse-like. Once I applied the face mask, my skin did tingle for 5 minutes and I felt like the mask was stretching and tightening my skin and as it dried. It’s important to bear in mind that I do have sensitive skin, so not everyone will have the same kind of reaction that I do.

As the mask had completely dried my skin stopped feeling as tight as it did before. The smell of the green tea mask was actually very soothing and although it’s recommended to leave on the mask for 30 minutes, I ended up keeping it on for (approximately) 45 minutes – I was watching a film and lost track of time.

After washing the face mask off my face, my skin felt incredibly smooth, I generally don’t really have big pores but they were barely visible after using the mask. The black heads and a little bit of oil that I normally get on my t-zone was gone and my skin had an amazing post-facial glow that I normally get after going to a salon. Despite not having acne-prone skin, the mask worked amazingly at clearing my skin.

I still have two more products left to review from this series, and I’d love to know what your thoughts are on it!

If you are from India, then you can order directly from the Plum Goodness website. If you live outside of India, then you can order the products by emailing hello@plumgoodness.com

I hope you all enjoyed my Plum Goodness Green Tea Face Mask review. For more skincare reviews, click here.

10 Vegan Indian Restaurants in London

General, London

Hello everyone!

Happy Diwali & Bandi Chhor Diwas to you all. 🎆🎇✨

One of my favourite things about celebrating Diwali has always been the amazing food and of course spending time with my family.

It’s interesting because India is known as having one of the largest vegetarian populations in the world, as there are such a diverse natural ingredients that are easily available across the nation. And yet, ironically, here in Britian the most famous Indian dishes are non-vegetarian. Each Indian sub-culture has a unique and distinct style of cooking each with their own specialities and of course there are plenty of vegetarian and vegan options – from street food, thalis and main dishes!

There are many Indian restaurants here in London, unfortunately they are not exclusively vegan, but they do cater to vegans. So here’s a list of vegan Indian restaurants in London to help you all celebrate Diwali the vegan way. 😉

10 Vegan Indian Restaurants in London 🍛🇮🇳🇬🇧

1 | Woodlands Restaurants Ⓥ – Are a vegetarian restaurant that mainly serve South Indian dishes, as well as some diverse pan-Indian vegetarian dishes. They cater to vegetarian, vegan, gluten free and Jain (no onion or garlic) diets and have restaurants in Marylebone, Piccadilly, and Hampstead. 

 

2 | Rani Restaurant Ⓥ – Are an authentic vegetarian Gujrati restaurant that cater to vegans and have clearly marked their menu to show dishes that contain dairy, sugar, peanuts, wheat, onions and garlic. Rani Restaurant are based in Finchley. 

 


3 | Dishoom – Although this Bombay Café is not exclusively vegetarian, they have a vegan menu, gluten-free and diary free menu, serving Bombay style cuisine as well as some famous regional dishes from India. Dishoom is has restaurants in Kensington, Shoreditch, King’s Cross, Carnaby and Covent Garden. 

 

 

4 | Sakonis Ⓥ – Are an exclusively vegetarian restaurant specialising in vegetarian dishes from across India with loads of vegan and gluten-free options on their menus. They currently have two restaurants in Wembley and Hatch End. 

 

5 | Sagar Ⓥ – Specialise in cooking traditional South Indian vegetarian food and label which dishes are suitable for vegans and which foods are onion & garlic free on all of their menu’s. Sagar have branches in Covent Garden, Hammersmith, West End and Harrow. 

 

 

6 | Shayona Ⓥ – Are an authentic all-round Indian vegetarian restaurant based in Neasden. It’s not clear from their website, but I’m sure that they are able to make adjustments for vegans.

 

7 | Rangrez – Offer Punjabi cuisine, although they are not a vegetarian restaurant, they offer dishes suitable for vegetarians, vegans and customers requiring gluten-free diet. Rangrez have restaurants in both Hammersmith and Ealing.

 

8 | Kricket – Combine British ingredients with Indian spices to create a modern blend. Kricket is based in Soho, they aren’t exclusively vegetarian or vegan, but they do make adjustments for vegetarians and vegans. On their menu they make it clear which foods are vegetarian and gluten-free.

 

9 | Jashan Ⓥ – Are a vegetarian restaurant based in Wembley, that specialise in South Indian cuisine. Their food does not contain meat or eggs and you can ask about having diary-free dishes to make it vegan.

 

10 | Rasa – Inspired by the traditional cuisine of Northern Kerela, Rasa has two restaurants, one of which serves only vegetarian food (in Stoke Newington) and one that serves meat dishes (in Mayfair).

I hope you all enjoyed my ’10 Vegan Indian Restaurants in London’ post. ☺

Plum Goodness Grape Seed Face Mask Review

Beauty, General, Reviews, Skincare

Today I wanted to share with you all the first review of a series of reviews on some products that I ordered from Plum Goodness.

Who are Plum Goodness?

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Plum Goddness is an online-cosmetic brand, based in India, that was founded by Shankar Prasad in July 2014. The brand is one of the first 100% vegan brands in India that are completely committed to ensuring that their products are ‘safe and good’ – not only are the products cruelty-free but they are also free of parabens, phthalates and SLS. The products are renowned for being both high-quality and affordable.

One of my favourite things that I like about the Plum Goodness brand is that they do not promote any skin whitening products, something that is unfortunately rife in India’s cosmetic industry, and they also keep all aspects of their line as ‘good’ as possible. The products all feature the ‘1% For The Planet’ logo, meaning that Plum Goodness give 1% of their sales to non-profit organizations that are dedicated to protecting the environment.

The Grape Seed & Sea Buckthorn Renaissance Face Mask

The mask is made of kaolin and bentonite clays for a natural cleansing and exfoliation of the skin. The grape seed oil is rich in polyphenols (anti-oxidants), Vitamins D, C, E, flavonoids and essential fatty acids, while the sea buckthorn oil heals skin damage naturally without skin irritation.

The face mask is priced at Rs. 450.00 (Indian rupees) for 75g, which is approximately £5.25 – please do bear in mind that the exchange rate does fluctuate but it shouldn’t make too much of a difference in the price for someone purchasing from abroad.

Review

The first thing that I noticed about the Grape Seed & Sea Buckthorn Renaissance Face Mask was how easy it was to apply. The texture of the face mask is very smooth and slightly creamy, it generally smells very clean and the colour is a natural looking nude peach.

When I applied the face mask I did feel a bit of a tingling sensation, I do have sensitive skin so that is quite a normal reaction for me. After a few moments, the mask felt and smelt quite gentle, I could smell the grape seed oil more than anything else but I must admit that the smell was not overbearing. As mentioned before the recommended time to leave the mask on for is 30 minutes, but surprisingly the mask dried within 10 minutes of application. I left it on for the recommended amount of time, my skin did feel tight once it dried.

After washing off the mask, my skin visibly looked softer and brighter – I felt like I was glowing. Not only had the face mask manage to fade some of my dark blemishes but it also made my skin feel firmer than normal.

So far, I am extremely impressed with the high quality of this face mask, it’s the perfect mask to use to keep your skin looking fresh throughout the autumn weather – I cannot wait to share my review of the other products by Plum Goodness. 😄👌🏽💆🏽‍♀️✨

If you are from India, then you can order directly from the Plum Goodness website. If you live outside of India, then you can order the products by emailing hello@plumgoodness.com

I hope you all enjoyed my Plum Goodness Grape Seed Face Mask review.

 

For more skincare reviews click here. 

Himalaya Herbals Neem Scrub + Wash Review

Beauty, General, Reviews, Skincare

Today I wanted to share another Neem post with you all, since I know that you all love my posts on Ayurveda.

What is Ayurveda?

For those of you that are new to my blog (welcome!), you can check out my previous Ayurvedic posts by clicking on the images below:

  

To quickly define what Ayurveda is; it is a traditional medical science that was created by the Vedas in India which covers a broad spectrum of health and well being (from beauty to yoga and so on). Today the remedies that are provided by Ayurveda are well established in the field of beauty and alternative medicine​, in fact, a lot of the foundations of modern-day mindfulness and holistic lifestyles are influenced by Ayurveda. Those of you that have been following my blog will be more than aware of my love of Ayurvedic Beauty products and how passionate I am to show you all​ brands that are ​both cruelty free and ​well established in the field of Ayurveda.

Are Himalaya Herbals cruelty free?

Himalaya Herbals are a cruelty free brand based in India that are committed to creating natural herbal products based on the ancient traditions of Ayurveda. The company create a variety of products from haircare, beauty, bath and body products to toiletries – they even have a baby care range.

To check the cruelty free status of Himalaya Herbals you can check by typing out ‘Organique by Himalaya’ on the Leaping Bunny product search by Cruelty free International. You can also check the back of the Himalaya Herbals products for the No Animal Testing/Cruelty Free logo.

Purifying Neem Scrub Review

The Purifying Neem Scrub is made with a blend of Neem as well as Apricot which has quite a cool and gentle touch to it. The Apricot is used to scrub away blackheads and dead skin while the Neem is used for its natural anti-bacterial properties, leaving the skin clean and smooth. When using the scrub I noticed that the little scrub granules are not at all harsh on the skin, so it generally works well for someone that has quite soft skin.

Purifying Neem Face Wash Review


The Neem Face Wash is a gel that’s made using Neem & Tumeric and I must say it was surprisingly gentle on my skin, considering how strong both the main ingredients can be (also, it looks like Flubber to me haha). The Tumeric works to naturally control acne and pimple outbreaks and again the Neem is used for its natural anti-bacterial properties. After using the face wash the skin is left with a natural glow and the skin stays quite soft during the day.
Overall, both products work well for my sensitive skin, but I would recommend those with extremely sensitive skin to consult a dermatologist before trying Neem products.​ Whenever I use these products, I end up using them together – but you can use them individually.
Good news for all of my readers based in U.K, most of the Himalaya Herbals range is available to buy at Beauty Base. The Purifying Neem Scrub costs £2.59 and the Purifying Neem Face Wash costs £2.99 at Beauty Base.
I hope you all enjoyed my Himalaya Herbals Neem Scrub + Wash review.
Don’t forget to comment, share & follow.
– Sonam x

Lotus Herbals Apriscrub Review

Bath & Body, Beauty, Reviews, Skincare

I had to take a break from blogging because of my final exams, but I am so glad that my final year is finally over. If anyone that has gone through this phase in their life tells you that university is a breeze, they are either a horrible liar, or extremely lazy – this last year was a real challenge and words cannot accurately describe how relieved I am that it is over.

During my revision and exam time I had pretty much neglected taking care of myself I like normally would do, and had pretty much turned into a slob, but one product that I had been continuously using was the apricot face scrub called Apriscrub by Lotus Herbals that I had bought from India. Despite the fact that I was under a lot of stress during this period I have to admit that I hardly broke out with any spots, in fact it kept my skin relatively clear.

About the brand

Apriscrub is made for all skin types and it’s specifically made to remove dead skin and keep your skin looking fresh, from my experience it has significantly reduced the amount of oil that I get on my T-zone (the forehead and nose). The best thing about this particular scrub is that its made with an ingredient that people are familiar with, as naturally people can become a little apprehensive when using trying different ayurvedic products and it also does not leave a lasting smell. It actually smells like a nice blend of apricot and musk.

Lotus Herbals leaping bunny and vegetarian logos.

Lotus Herbals is an Indian herbal cosmetic company that pride themselves in their innovative use of ayurvedic ingredients and their ongoing scientific research – they even have a make up range. What makes them even better is that they are a cruelty free company, and they actually have the leaping bunny logo and green dot logo to verify that they are both cruelty free and have vegetarian origins. One thing that I have noticed about ayurvedic and herbal cosmetic companies in general is that they do not test on animals but the only problem that I have with some of these companies is that they do not always verify this, which can make consumers sceptical of them. The companies seem to make the assumption that we would automatically understand that the products are not tested on animals but I personally think that they tend to forget that being cruelty free and organic is not mutually exclusive.

Are Lotus Herbals cruelty free?

Compulsory brown and green dots on packaging

In India, it is still legal to test on animals but in the past few years there have been active steps in the right direction to make changes to the law. Before I had mentioned that the Apriscrub packaging had a green dot on the back of it; for those of you who are not familiar with products made in India it was made mandatory by the Indian government in 2014 to have a green dot on the packaging of cosmetic products, food and household items to signify that the product has been made with vegetarian origins for the majority vegetarian population. For products that have been made from non-vegetarian origins there will be a brown dot, or in some cases red dot, which will make consumers aware of what type of product they are purchasing.

Where to get Apriscrub

I bought the scrub for 245 rupees for 180ml in India, which works out for roughly £2.48. However, I am not sure if it sold in any stores in the U.K but you can order it from Amazon for £5.48 with free delivery, which is a positive thing considering that it is £3 more than the price that I had originally paid for but it is  definitely worth buying.

I would love to know your thoughts on this piece, and whether you all think that I should continue to write more about Ayurvedic beauty. I hope you all enjoyed my Lotus Herbals Apriscrub review.

Click here to read more skincare reviews. 

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