Green Options

Remember when eye shadow was fun?  It’s usually the first item girls grab when they start to play with make up.  The unabashed brightness swathed across their lids. 

But as we mature this teenage beauty staple often falls by the wayside.  Desire for a more “natural” look, a two- (or three-) in-one product or (usually) less time for primping all contribute to our displacement of this lid adornment. 

After not using eye shadow in years, a set came across my desk recently.  Even back when I did use shadow it was usually a light tannish, brown color not that far off from the natural color of lids.  This duo from Lavera came with a white shade and (here’s the fun part) a dark charcoal color.  The deep, sultriness of it was so super tempting that I could not wait to test it out.  Envisioning Angelina Jolie in Wanted I rounded up my brushes, sponges and assortment of applicators and plunged in.  My first attempt (done, thankfully, preshower) ended up a bit addict-y.  Not what I’m trying to represent.

After more experimentation I ended up with some cool results.  Here they are:

I’ve read with horror the stories of lead in lipstick and scary chemicals in cosmetics. I’ve stared into my bathroom bag and have wondered what I have been putting on my lips. After ditching any questionable lipsticks, I was looking for something else to put on my sleep deprived face.

Kiss My Face Lip Shimmers are just the thing. They come in a variety of colors, feel good on your lips, and are 91 percent organic. Made from minerals, they contain no:

*parabens
*SLS
*synthetic colors or fragrances or flavors
*and have no animal ingredients or testing.

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.

Looking to pass a little love along to your best friend, sister or co-worker this Valentine’s Day?  Alima has a perfect plan – send a collection of certified natural Alima Pure samples to a friend (for free)! For the next week when you place your order, just leave a note in the comments box with your friend’s name and address. They’ll send her three free samples of Alima colors chosen just for the occasion, along with a gorgeous card wishing her a Happy Valentine’s Day. If you like, let them know whether she’d prefer their light collection, or deep collection (both are quite wearable, so you can’t go wrong).

Using nontoxic organic beauty products should be a no-brainer by now, as we all know that what you put on is as important as what you put in.  Today you can effectively swap out any conventionally produced, toxin-laden product for a safer version that looks and acts just like its synthetic loaded counter-part.

Yet, many still opt for simpler skincare and go homemade.  While this is an easy and cost-effective route, there are certain products that need to be created, manufactured and packaged by professionals to provide the results and safety we all want and need.  Whipping up an exfoliant or cleanser is do-able and even fun.  Hair products and makeup are a completely different ballgame.

This is a guest post by Kelly Dunleavy, a writer living in Northern California.

While we may not be using arsenic as a cosmetic anymore, the make-up we put on (almost) every day can still have punishing and dangerous chemicals. Of course, there are organic and safer versions. But, why not demand an overhaul of the industry?

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics is working to get rid of dangerous chemicals in the cosmetics we use.

Propylene and butylene glycol are two of the worst toxic ingredients quietly slipped into almost all of our conventional beauty products. God knows how they ever got there in the first place! Well, actually I  have several opinions on that subject but another time… Just so you know, these petrochemicals are used for things like anti-freeze (in your car battery), polyurethane (plastics) and as an emollient in your [...]

I tend to worry more about what I put into my body than what goes on the outside. When in fact the chemicals found in lotions, makeup and hair dyes are something I need to consider when using these products on my body.   Recently I have been using the eyelash extensions from “Xtreme Lashes” and I began to wonder how safe this new affection with eyelash extensions really was and was it worth any risks involved?  After researching, I was able to find one of the ingredient’s in the adhesive, “formaldehyde” linked to cancer.

It could be that I’ve just returned from a holiday in the tropics but I LOVE these organic & natural Spray Lotion Mists from Ola Hawaii. The sweet, zingy, fresh smell of pineapple + lime is super delish but there are all kinds of scents to choose from if citrus isn’t your thing.

Keep it stashed in your bag during Summer heat to spritz

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Beauty in all forms has been a lifelong passion for me. With an appreciation for killer aesthetic combined with substance, it doesn’t matter to me if I’m looking at something vast and humbling as the ocean; the way someone’s face lights up when they smile; the solid, magnificent way in which a great tree anchors itself to the ground and stoically provides enough oxygen for two humans for a lifetime; or it could be the incredible lines of wear and character on the face of an old Tibetan woman, totally ravaged and laid bare as a proud road map of her lifetime and how she’s lived in it.

There isn’t an ideal or perfect beauty. We are all so completely and utterly different. You can have someone drop dead gorgeous who is shallow and mean and she’ll seem like the most unattractive person on the planet. Conversely, you might meet someone not so physically attractive but with a beautiful personality and radiance that can take your breath away. Beauty can’t be separated from the personality no matter how much spritzing, spraying, waxing and killing yourself on the treadmill you think will make you beautiful.

Hungry? It's said that women "eat" or ingest 6 pounds of lipstick over their lifetime. If that's the case, then we want to make sure that we are eating the best lipstick possible!

By checking out Skin Deep, the cosmetics database, it's obvious that there are a lot of lipsticks out there that are full of very questionable ingredients. Revlon's Moon Drops & Super Lustrous lines are among the worst offenders. But

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