Tag: organic skin care

Organic Travel Size Toiletries

Did I mention that I’m heading to Europe next week for vacation? Ok, so I probably have mentioned it once or twice. Like when I told you about carry-on only travel, or my meticulous planning of post vacation meals, or like when I’m just so giddy I can’t contain myself.  Yeah well, to be clear, I’m not just bragging, I actually hope that I’m giving you some useful information that you can apply in your own day to day, even if you don’t travel. I always use trips to take the opportunity to test out new skin care products.

There’s something just so darn cute and non-committal about those little travel size packages. Besides, my skin always goes crazy when I’m traveling anyway, so I like to experiment with different products just to see how my travel weary skin will react. If a skin care line can make my travel skin look and feel great, then imagine what it will do on the reg. I’ve probably tested out hundreds of beauty lines using the travel size/ sample size method. You can totally get a feel for the product without having to purchase the larger, more expensive version. Here are a few of my favorites, and by favorites, I mean the ones that I actually bought the full version of after trying them out!

Pai Skin Care

Camellia & Rose Gentle Hydrating Cleanser melts away make-up and impurities while nourishing skin with Omega 3 and Vitamins A, B & E. Together, the anti-inflammatory rich BioAffinity Tonic and Calming Day Cream instantly soothe reactive skin and provide the perfect level of hydration to keep skin comfortable and hydrated all day long. This kit even comes with an organic muslin cloth!

Laurel Whole Plant Organics

This travel set comes in a USA-made canvas zip bag that’s perfect for travel or gifting. For oily, problem, or combination skin. The set includes a facial cleanser, facial elixir, balancing serum, almond grain exfoliant, and citrus spice lip treatment.

Odacite

Odacite designed a kit specially for oily skin including 6 products enough for 10 days. All products are freshly made with certified organic ingredients. It includes a cleanser and 2 facial sponges, one mint toner, one day moisturizer, one night serum, one exfoliant, and one eye cream. This travel kit also comes in Mature/Dry skin and Combination skin versions.

Green Beauty Trends to Look for in 2018

Fact: Queen Elizabeth I wore lead based makeup that brought all the boys to the yard, but tragically turned her skin a very permanent and sickly shade of gray, and lead to blood poisoning that eventually contributed to her death. Fact: Today, the beauty industry, ignoring the newly discovered power of milkshakes, still uses a bunch of poisonous additives that over time have some awful side effects. Fortunately, the past few years have given rise to the green beauty movement. More and more companies are ditching the harmful chemicals and opting for a natural ingredient approach to cosmetics. That’s good news for us die-hard, natural beauty DIYers. So what can we expect to see more of in 2018?

Celestial Skin Care

It should come as no surprise after the unreal fascination with the Solar eclipse of 2017, but the beauty industry is tapping the heavens for the next big thing. Companies like Girl Undiscovered and Terra Luna Beauty are leading the pack with their cosmically inspired lines. Girl Undiscovered has launched a crystal-infused, three-piece facial collection that includes the aptly named Stars Aligning Organic Face Elixir. Meanwhile, Terra Luna Beauty has bath time covered with its range of tub soaks like the Moon, UFO, and Saturn Detox Baths.

Ayurvedic Beauty

I’ll be honest, I never really got into the whole K-beauty thing. For some reason I always thought that there was an emphasis on skin lightening which kind of freaked me out. This year, we can look forward to the next international beauty craze coming from the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Brands like Reshma Beauty and Ranavat Botanics each offer a line of skin care products that draw on the Ayurvedic tradition. Believe me when I say that Reshma’s affordable turmeric bar soap is a game changer, while Ranavat Botanic’s range of masques and toniques, though pricier, are well worth their weight in saffron.

Clean Make Up Finally Gets Bold

So if you’ve been on this natural skin care journey for a while, you know that the color variety and the staying power of a lot of these natural make up brands hasn’t really stacked up next to the more commercial brands. Well, that is sooo 2017. This year, the natural beauty industry is getting a bold make over (pun definitely intended). Bold colors that last is the name of the game. Luk Beautifood has literally taken our favorite smoothie ingredients and turned them into a colorful line of lipsticks. They even have a Toxin Free Starter Kit Bundle that includes lipstick, lip stain, mascara, and an eye pencil. What’s missing? Oh yeah! Eye shadow! Josephine Cosmetics continues to do some pretty amazing things with eye shadow as part of their organic make up line. To all my natural beauty fashionistas out there, we can finally say goodbye to sticking to earth tones! Go bold or go home!

Meanwhile, On the DIY Beauty Front…

As always, I will continue to experiment with natural beauty recipes throughout this year. I can’t wait to recreate some of these facials, masks, and toners in my kitchen and bring them to you! In the meantime, you can check out some of my favorites by following these links to some homemade, natural beauty recipes for your face, body, and hair.

Organic Skin Care---Spa Days at Home

One Love Organic Skin Care—Spa Days at Home

One Love Organic Skin Care---Spa Days at Home

Ok, I get it. Not everyone has the time or the patience for DIY beauty. Finding the right balance for your skin care routine can be challenging. I try my best to only use products on my skin that I have mixed up in my own kitchen, but sometimes I like to indulge in products that I know are free from GMOs, parabens, phenoxyethanol, nanoparticles, silicon, PEGs, synthetic perfumes and dyes.

So I’ve been using some of these products from Modcloth (or if you want to get technical about it I waited for my sister to order them and then I just used hers because you know…sisters).

You guys! This line of skin care products is amazing! So far I’ve tried these:

Smooth Move Skin Balm---Spa Days at Home

This stuff seriously lives up to the name ‘Skin Savior’! It’s chock full of goodies for your skin: Organic coconut oil, jojoba, chia, and a really nice citrus-y vanilla scent. This balm truly is a multi-tasking wonder balm.

Foaming Cleanser---Sppa Days at Home

I usually use raw honey as a facial cleanser because it leaves my skin feeling clean and moisturized. This foaming cleanser gives me that same feeling! It’s just perfect for washing off makeup, but it doesn’t leave your skin feeling totally dry and dull. Added bonus: It smells divine!

Gardenia + Tea Body Serum

Gardenia + Tea Body Serum---Spa Days at Home

I suppose I saved the best for last. I really, REALLY love this body serum. It’s an ultralight moisturizer and a little bit goes a long way. The fresh scent and the long lasting silky smooth feeling is what spa days at home are all about!

***Don’t forget to use the coupon code located in the side bar (if you’re on a mobile device the coupon code is located at the bottom of the home page)

***this post contains affiliate links

Image Credit: Modcloth

DIY Honey and Aloe Summer Face Wash

DIY Honey and Aloe Summer Face Wash—Spa Days at Home

This is one of my favorite facial cleansers for the Summer months. The addition of aloe vera into your skin care routine will help to cool and soothe your skin as the weather gets hotter! This is an incredibly simple DIY. Just mix your ingredients in a glass container and voila! You have a fresh and calming Summer facial cleanser!

DIY Honey and Aloe Summer Face WashDIY Honey and Aloe Summer Face Wash

DIY Honey and Aloe Summer Face Wash

Ingredients

Directions

  • Mix the aloe vera gel and honey until well combined.
  • Add coconut oil (it’s easier to mix coconut oil if it hasn’t solidified in the fridge!)
  • Give your mixture a quick shake before each use as the ingredients tend to separate.
  • Store at room temperature

***I prefer aloe vera gel for this recipe because fresh aloe needs to be stored in the fridge, and I am not too keen on having to get my face wash from the kitchen every time I want to shower. It’s totally your call though.

Images: Live Simply

Holiday Themed Sugar Scrubs: Spa Days at Home

Sugar Scrub

There are so many wonderful fragrances that remind me of the holiday season.  Peppermint, vanilla, brown sugar, cinnamon, and chocolate all get me in the holiday mood. So for this Spa Days at Home post, I thought I’d share some DIY Sugar Scrub recipes inspired by my favorite holiday!

Sugar scrubs are so easy to make and to customize. With one cup of sugar, 1/4 cup of oil, and a few drops of your favorite essential oils you’ll be well on your way to a relaxing spa day at home. They also make a perfect and thoughtful gift for the holidays.

I found this neat infographic on U-createcrafts.com that perfectly illustrates this very basic sugar scrub recipe.

DIY Sugar Scrubs

This sugar+oil formula is the foundation of every single sugar scrub you’ll ever make. Super simple! The real fun is in what you choose to add to it. Here are my top 3 holiday-themed sugar scrub recipes:

1 Peppermint Sugar Scrub

http://thefrugalgirls.com/2014/02/peppermint-sugar-scrub.html
Image Copyright: thefrugalgirls.com

Super Simple Recipe: Sugar+Oil+10 drops Peppermint Essential Oil

2 Cinnamon Vanilla Sugar Scrub

Image Copyright: theidearoom.net
Image Copyright: theidearoom.net

Super Simple Recipe: Sugar+Oil+3 drops Cinnamon Essential Oil+7 drops of Vanilla Essential Oil

3 Chocolate Mint Sugar Scrub

Image Copyright: sugarandcloth.com
Image Copyright: sugarandcloth.com

Super Simple Recipe: Sugar+Oil+2tbs Unsweetened Cocoa+10 drops Peppermint Essential Oil

These sugar scrubs smell divine and will leave your skin feeling super smooth. These are my top 3, but please feel free to share your favorites with me!