Burt’s Bees All Natural Shave Cream Eco Product Review

Burt’s Bees All Natural Shave Cream combines sunflower oil, coconut oil and glycerin, and contains chamomile and calendula to create a 100% natural alternative to standard shaving products. The cream is pH balanced and free of sodium lauryl, parabens and phthalates.

My first shave with the cream sent to us by from Big Green Smile did not get off to the best start as I was a bit unsure when I applied it – the cream leaves a very thin layer on the face and I compensated this by using quite a fair amount. I think my doubts were based on the fact I am used to shaving foam that is very thick and lathers up well, which this cream does not.

Anyway, I massaged plenty in and it shaved surprisingly well and wasn’t too greasy. The cream certainly is kind to the skin and does feel every bit 100% natural. I find that leading brand gel, even the sensitive version, aggravates my skin on its own if left on the skin for a while (I am quite a slow shaver), but there was no such problems here.

The cream smells absolutely great, probably due to the vast array of oils from various fruits and plants in the ingredients and you do get plenty of pong whilst shaving. My face and hands smelt very nice afterwards and I felt ashamed when I sprayed on a bit of aftershave.

The cream is relatively expensive at around £9 RRP. So I guess the question is did I think it was good enough to warrant paying a fair bit more money than I normally would? The simple answer is yes – I can’t say that shaving is my favourite pastime – in fact I don’t like doing it at all (probably because I am not very good at it) but the experience is much more pleasant using the Burt’s Bees product.

Burt’s Bees All Natural Shave Cream costs £8.80 from Big Green Smile.

Green Store News: November

Another Green Store News update for you.

Doctor Shave
One of Life Goggles’ favourite shops has started selling shaving gel from one of Life Goggles’ favourite brands. Male Organics now stocks Dr Bronner Shaving Gel. It comes in three ‘flavours’ – spearmint and peppermint, tea tree, and lemongrass and lime. They cost £6.99 for a 7oz tube.

Save 10% at Big Green Smile
Head over to Big Green Smile and enter discount code: 10NOV16 for 10% off on your early Christmas shopping. Get in quick though, the code expires on 16 November.

A beautiful union
GreenUnion has launched its online Eco-Chic Boutique – an collection of green gifts.

The company says it is passionate about promoting gorgeous and ethically made British products with high value in terms of skill, content, design and beauty. GreenUnion’s founder Rosie Ames says: “GreenUnion has become an extremely popular and trusted shopping source for those seeking eco-inspiration and guidance. Now we can offer them even more choice from our Eco-Chic Boutique, especially bespoke or exclusive items that are difficult to find elsewhere.”

And it has a tents and tipis section – woo-hoo.

Stuff from rubbish
Eco Emporia is a new UK company selling eco-friendly handmade gifts from discarded objects. Jewellery, bags, accessories, homeware, artware, stationery etc are all made from what would have ended up in landfill. Vinyl records are turned into hand-painted fruit bowls; decommissioned fire hoses become a hot fashion accessory and worn out circuit boards are won again as cufflinks.

Founder, Anna Burns, said: “Eco Emporia is different because we only sell recycled crafts. Everything is lovingly handmade by skilled craftspeople and beautifully gift wrapped using reclaimed and recycled materials. Many of our items are one of a kind pieces you won’t find anywhere else.”

UPDATE: We just got a 10% off code at >Nigel’s Eco Store. Just enter ECONOV at the checkout, it’s valid until the 15th November.

Simply Soaps Herbal Deli Aftershave Balm Eco Product Review

My friend Jez loves a shave. To be fair he grows a beard in about 15 seconds so it’s either enjoying it or grow a beard. As I went down the route of growning a beard, he’s kindly agreed to test out this Simply Soaps Herbal Deli Aftershave Balm from Male Organics for me. After using the Green People Organic shave gel he set about soothing his newly-scraped chin:

” It’s great looking little pot that’s like the tardis. When I first picked this up, I thought it wouldn’t last five minutes but, as with the old adage, a little goes a long way. It’s smells great, feels really nice on your face and doesn’t feel like you’ve just been slimed.

“I’ve used aftershave balm before and can’t say I was blown away – it’s nice to have something refreshing after shaving but I haven’t rushed to buy it before. This product leaves your face feeling very clean, fresh and, after you’ve applied it, you don’t feel like you have to rush to find a cloth or the nearest pair of jeans to wipe any sticky residue or grease off your hands.

“The small, 15ml tub is acrually a handy size pot that travels well, it certainly won’t take up loads of room in your washbag. It’s nice to see a manufacturer producing something simple, without branding and plastic everywhere. Small and functional with minimal packaging is just what’s needed and, since it’s glass, easily recyclable.

“If you read this review, buy the product but don’t like it, well hell, send it to me!”

Simply Soaps Herbal Deli Aftershave Balm from Male Organics costs £3.95 for 15ml or £7.95 for 60ml.

Green People Organic Homme Shave Now Shaving Gel Eco Product Review

Being one of those no shaving people (see my picture), when Male Organics give me shaving products to test, I rope in Jez to give them a go. He was last seen enjoying the Trevarno shaving soap and when the (deep breath) Green People Organic Homme Shave Now shaving gel landed on my doorstep, I gave Jez a call. He loves free stuff does Jez, so off he went and reported back a few weeks later:

“OK, so it says it’s a gel but it’s really more like a cream. As with all gels, it’s a bit messy to apply, seems to get all over your hands and razor and, despite claims to the contrary, it really doesn’t lather up well – if at all. Unlike traditional shaving bowls and soap, you don’t get the feeling that it’s really sinking into the hair or getting in deep enough for a good shave but it’s really not bad at all.

“I deliberately didn’t shave for five days (and I get quite a beard in that time) to really test it out and it was a good, smooth shave with only one little nick which was probably more due to my lack of care than the razor or gel. I wouldn’t say it left me feeling particularly refreshed but then again, I wasn’t rushing to splash freezing cold water on my face.

“Due to the lack of lather, you’ll probably end up using more of this gel than you really need just to feel like you’ve got enough on but all in all, its not a bad shave and it’s enviro credentials are good so give it a try.”

Free from SLS/SLES, artificial fragrances, parabens, ethyl alcohol and unnecessary synthetic ingredients, Green People’s shave gel is full of organic ingredients – well 90% anyway, it’s a bit tricky to get them all certified so they say.

A 125ml tub costs £8.99 from Male Organics.

Solar Shaver Eco Product Review

I like the idea of a solar shaver, available from Nigel’s Eco Store. It’s clearly designed for traveling with a nice picture of an airplane on it. Leave it out in the sun for a few hours (or days if you forget about it like me), and it’s fully powered for your, er, shaving needs.

I use a razor usually and found changing to a shaver a little difficult. For a start this one just didn’t get that close, it was an effort to get a clean shave. I could have shaved my whole face by the time I had done one cheek with this. I’m not sure whether it was this shaver or electric ones in general. It is pretty handy, it’s small enough not to be cumbersome, either when carrying around or using. The only problem was when it ran out of juice (it lasts surprisingly long), you then have to put it in the sun for a while to recharge it. With half a shaved face.

With an intergrated cleaning brush in the cap, the solar shaver is available from Nigel’s Eco Store for £29.99.

Bulldog Natural Grooming Shave Gel Product Review

I try to shave as little as possible, but as I don’t want a beard (unlike Adam), and my wife complains, it means “as little as possible” is almost every day. I tend to think shave gels and creams are pretty much alike, some are cheap and some expensive but they all do the same job. Then we were sent some Bulldog Natural Grooming Shave Gel.

It didn’t change my world massively, but I was impressed. For example, as I was testing it for the first time, this is the conversation I had with my wife:

“Something smells good!?”
Me: “It’s me!”
“No, seriously, something smells new and different.”
Me: “I know, it’s ME!”

She was right to a degree, it wasn’t really me but the shave gel. Made with seven essential oils, paraban free with Aloe Vera (apparently for cooling and softening), Jojoba (a natural moisturiser) and Konjac Mannan (for, er, “slip”), there are a full list of ingredients plus a downloadable explanation to what each ingredient is, on the Bulldog website. The gel had an almost menthol flavour and tingled on my lips, and as I had a cold at the time, actually helped me .

Besides the product itself, I like the humour on the packaging, for example the back states “Unless you’re a geography teacher or a communist revolutionary [or Adam] you’ll have to shave sometime”. Besides that, there’s not much left to say. it’s nice to use a decent shave gel that has been naturally sourced. My face was fine afterwards, no more ugly than usual so I guess it works well.

Bulldog are a small company based in London. Currently their products are just available in the UK and through our new Life Goggles Reviews and Shop page.