Filed under: 1 | Tags: aromatherapy, blum naturals, cleansing cloth, convenient, hand cleanser, herban essentials, Jolene Hart, makeup removing cloth, natural cleanser, natural makeup remover, organic & natural beauty products, organic beauty view, organic wear, physicians formula, portable beauty
While I love the indulgence of spending lots of time on beauty as much as the next girl, there’s something to be said for convenience. Especially when said convenience is natural, and allows you to spend more time doing other things. So when I came across a few natural must-haves for anyone looking to save a little time, I had to share. Trust me, these portable products will be the heroes of your gym bag or travel case! If you haven’t already checked out the new Physicians Formula Organic Wear line of natural makeup removers, you’ll definitely want to wander toward the beauty aisle on your next trip to the drugstore. My favorite products are the biodegradable, alcohol-free makeup-removing towelettes and pads. They’re scented with a trace of lavender and are extremely gentle and mousturizing to skin and lashes. As a bonus, their sturdy aluminum packages are recyclable! In the same category falls the fabulous Blum Naturals line, which includes three types of organic cleansing cloths: Tea Tree for oily and combination skin, Chamomile for dry and sensitive skin and Orange Peel, a cleansing cloth with gently-exfoliating microbeads. All three cloths serve the dual purpose of cleansing and makeup-removing, so they’re amazing to use before a workout or whenever you can’t manage to cleanse. Finally, as a natural standby for every purse and pocket, check out Herban Essentials Essential Oil Towelettes. They’re indispensable at moments when you need to wash, wipe or simply sneak an aromatherapy break. You can find them in orange, lavender, eucalyptus, peppermint and lemon- and they stash invisibly just about anywhere. Writer :: Jolene Hart
Filed under: 1 | Tags: affordable, body wash, drugstore, ecotools, hand cream, heel cream, Jolene Hart, lotion spray, natural bath products, natural beauty products, natural body products, organic beauty view
Craving a few great-smelling, hard-working natural products that won’t break your beauty budget? Look no further than EcoTools. One of my go-to brands for natural beauty brushes and applicators is growing in leaps and bounds, with a just-launched bath and body collection and a line of Alicia Silverstone-designed makeup bags due out this winter. You’re going to love them all! The stars of the new collection, which also includes body wash, lotion and fragrance mist, are definitely the Intensive Hand and Heel Creams. Both only $8, they’ll inevitably be skin-savers as the weather gets colder. But I wouldn’t wait. With ultra-rich natural hydrators like jojoba, mango seed butter, cocoa seed butter, algae extract and olive oil, these creams will have your hands and heels at their silkiest at all temps. And it’s worth noting that 1% of the annual sales from EcoTools products now goes to 1% For The Planet, a business alliance (of which Eco Tools is a member) committed to maintaining a healthy environment. Giving back is indeed beautiful! Writer :: Jolene Hart
Filed under: 1 | Tags: argan oil, argan oil stick, aromatherapy, Josie Maran, lavender, moisturizing mist, organic beauty view
As a follow-up to our aromatherapy post yesterday, I thought you’d love this new video from Josie Maran- showing Josie’s recipe for a moisturizing lavender facial mist. This make-at-home mix requires only lavender flowers, distilled water and five drops of Josie Maran Argan Oil. It looks so refreshing- and simple! Maybe it’ll be a DIY project for the weekend? And while we’re mentioning argan oil, I just heard that Josie Maran’s argan oil is now available in stick form at sephora.com. Looks like an amazing multi-tasker to take on-the-go; I will be checking it out soon! Happy de-stressing… Writer :: Jolene Hart
Filed under: 1 | Tags: aromatherapy, dr. andrew weil, futurenatural, japan, john masters organics, Jolene Hart, lavender, linalool, matcha, moroccan rose otto, natural beauty products, organic beauty products, organic beauty view, Origins, Ren, stress-reducing
In case you needed another reason to invest in the prettiest-smelling natural products, a Japanese study just delivered the first scientific evidence of the stress-reducing, immune-strengthening power of aromatherapy. The study found that inhaling linalool, a natural chemical occurring in basil, tomatoes, oranges and teas- among other divinely-scented fruits and flowers, returned heightened levels of the immune cells neutrophils and lymphocytes back to their pre-stressed range. Yes, this proves that the lighter-than-air, put-the-world-on-pause feelings that come from deeply inhaling your favorite natural scents aren’t imagined. Of course, aromatherapy has always been an important element in beauty products; choosing (or rejecting) a product for its scent happens all the time. But now we know that when a product smells great, it’s benefiting you in multiple ways. I often think that finding a product that works well and smells addictive can be tricky- especially if you are looking for a natural product with no added fragrance. Some of my favorite fragrant products are John Masters Organics Lavender Hydrating Mist (refreshes hair and face; also an anti-inflammatory for skin), REN Moroccan Rose Otto Ultra-Nourishing Body Oil (a rich oil with my ideal incarnation of rose) and Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins Matcha Tea Body Lotion (antioxidant-rich, with a deeply herbal scent that makes me melt). All three are fragranced with essential oils, not perfume. I instantly slow down as I apply and inhale them, even if only for a minute. Keep these in mind (and at your desk) for your next stressful moment. Writer :: Jolene Hart
Filed under: 1 | Tags: ecocert, jojoba, Jolene Hart, macadamia, olive, organic beauty view, organic body products, organic scrub, sabon nyc, sabon organic, shea butter, www.futurenatural.com
If you’ve stepped into (or simply inhaled as you passed) a Sabon NYC store (unfortunately a NY/NJ/Chicago/Boston-only experience in the USA), you know how beckoning and utterly mesmerising the scent of their soaps can be. I’ll admit that I’ve been drawn inside on more than one occasion. Each Sabon soap bar is nothing short of a work of art, always richly scented of herbs or flowers. As if I needed any other reason to love Sabon, they’ve recently joined the ranks of companies producing organic product lines. Yes, there is now Sabon Organic! My intro to the Ecocert-approved line was their sea salt and olive oil Organic Body Scrub, which just turns skin into silk. It’s exactly the thing to use before a special night out- when you want your skin to look and feel amazing. I also liked the richness of their organic hand and foot creams, no doubt a result of a blend of shea butter with olive, macadamia nut and jojoba oils. One thing to note: while none of the Sabon Organic products are 100% organic (the scrub I tried was 20.5% organic and 100% natural and the hand and foot creams are 84% and 83% organic, respectively), the exact percentages, as well as ingredients, are clearly labeled on all packaging (even my mini samples!). So while we’d love for every product labeled ‘organic’ to be 100% organic, that’s rarely the case and it’s wonderful to see such clear info and full disclosure put out there for consumers to learn from. Keep this in mind as you do your organic shopping! If you’re interested in the Sabon Organic line, the above products, as well as a face serum, eye serum, day cream and body butter, are available online at sabonnyc.com. Writer :: Jolene Hart
