Green Options

Terri Bly, president of The Nature of Beauty, presents tips from makeup artist Jessa Blades on how to get the most out of rms beauty, the newly launched organic cosmetics line from celebrity makeup artist Rose Marie Swift.

The Sea Spa at Santa Monica’s Casa Del Mar encourages a regimen of wellness for the everyday traveler.

These hoteliers have given it some considerable thought and arrived at their  modern philosophy that, even though you’re a traveler, even though you’re away from home, you needn’t sacrifice your sense of well being nor suffer a disruption in your wellness regime.

“The owners of the hotel have me here as a liaison to help people remember how to take care of themselves,” Amber McMahon, Casa Del Mar’s Wellness Director, informs me.  She adds that the Sea Spa fully integrates the mind, body, spirit approach to wellness and services catering to all of these wellness needs are offered in their spa menu.

Terri Bly, founder of Natureofbeauty.com, conducts an investigation into just how “eco-friendly” Josie Maran’s cosmetics line actually is. Her results will surprise you. They certainly surprised Ms. Bly.

TerraCycle has done it again . . . Tom Szaky and his talented wife, Soyeon Lee have managed to make used Frito Lay bags into CD covers for Soyeon’s latest release, Reinvented.  

Soyeon is a classical concert pianist, with an impressive Julliard, Carnegie Hall performance history who may be the first to bring the eco-cause into the world of classical [...]

Terri Bly, president of The Nature of Beauty, interviews celebrity makeup artist Christy Coleman.

After my Bono and his eyeliner post last week, a member of a U2 fan club wrote in and mentioned Bono’s use of and hand in creating  Nude Skincare line (he and wife Ali Hewson are investors and she suggested the name to creator Bryan Meehan). Curiosity piqued, I contacted Nude directly to check it all out.

I do just love trying a new (to me, I realize Nude has been around for a while) line of nontoxic skin care and the customer service at Nude was speedy and courteous.  My samples were sent out right away and I had them in my hot little hands no more than a few days after my initial contact.

Three products arrived for review; Miracle Mask, Age Defence Moisturiser and Replenishing Night Oil.  The Miracle Mask warned those of us with sensitive skin that it was not suitable for our type.  Being the skin care guinea pig that I so willingly am, and after a quick inspection of the ingredients label for any common triggers, I gave it a whirl anyway but avoided the five minute leave-on directions and went for a mere one minute, maybe.  Designed to brighten and smooth skin, the mask contains natural AHAs and I noticed the scent of fruit acids right away.  My skin did look rosy afterward, as if I had exfoliated with a mild scrub.

As if Lavere anti-aging skin care line were not already terrific enough, they went and added more products to their anti-aging skin care line-up.  Created by Lavera, the BDIH certified natural cosmetics maker with a large celebrity following, Lavere is their answer to department store quality anti-aging skin care.

With several different products to choose from, including those for body and Classic Lavere, you are sure to find the perfect items to satisfy your particular skin care needs.  All Lavere anti-aging products are designed to soothe and strengthen the skin and contain cell stimulating and collagen production increasing ingredients, like chicory root extract, algae, and biodynes.

The products I tried are from the Intensive skin care line for dry and sensitive skin types.  I will say that Lavere products have always been a favorite and these are no exception.

Founder of Blades Natural Beauty, Jessa Blades is a natural makeup artist who works on photo shoots and fashion shows, helps brides looks their best on their big day and provides natural beauty consultation to a variety of clientele in New York City.  Last month she worked with celebrity makeup artist, Rose-Marie Swift at Fashion Week and is featured this month in Glamour magazine’s 70^th anniversary issue along with 69 other female eco-achievers.  She also works with Teens Turning Green and Project Green Prom. 

She believes we don’t have to sacrifice health for beauty and is intimately in-the-know about products that perform, yet won’t pollute our bodies.  “People are outraged when it comes to animal testing for cosmetics and I’m against it, but what about human testing?  Companies have been testing their products on women for years!!” 

We all know of Bono’s work on issues of the environment, poverty and AIDS.  With a hand in creating campaigns like ONE Campaign, DATA, (RED) and EDUN it is safe to say that the U2 frontman spends his fair share of time and effort on the greater good.

But does the rocker know about the importance of safety in cosmetics?  He has been spotted of late wearing a healthy dose of the black stuff on the covers of Rolling Stone, SPIN, Q Magazine and at the Grammys and the Brits. 

Well, Bono, if you have yet to discover the health benefits of using nontoxic makeup and skin care, let me point you in the right direction.

It’s beginning to become a perennial question I ask myself when a celebrity goes on an environmentally-themed speaking tour or does something “green” I’m supposed to appreciate.  Should I care?

This time, I woke up to read news about how today is the first day of Prince Charles’s South American environmental-themed tour. First country up: Chile. Among his activities he will participate in a round table discussion about global warming and also will attend a kick-off event for an energy efficiency campaign, all while along the side of conservation-credible Chilean President Michelle Bachelet. But the fun doesn’t end there.

On April 3, celebrated primatologist and conservationist Jane Goodall will turn 75.

These days, Jane Goodall spends most of her free time traveling the world to speak to youth about the importance of environmental conservation.

That is, if you can call it free time. She might be going on 75, but she keeps the tightly packed schedule of a woman less than half her age. From book tours promoting her most recent book on vegetarianism to college lectures (where she gladly demonstrates her famous chimpanzee greeting call) to a morning giving positive feedback to youth about a classroom nature or community project, Dr. Goodall, or Dr. Jane, as her many friends and fans call her, has dedicated her life to making the world a better, greener, happier place.