Get the tools made for a pro

These little paw tweezers and tiny files have the power to donate money to the Humane Society of the United States. You can contribute, $1 from every Paw Print Mini Slant Tweezer and 50 cents from every Paw Print Matchbox Itty Bitty Files sold will be donated and help celebrate animals and confront cruelty.

Image of Honey Jasmine Natural Perfume by Spa Goddess

My fascination with certain beauty products extends to their history. I want to know how they were made, who wore them and why.

Since solid perfumes have become such a beauty trend in recent years, I became curious. What exactly is the history of solid perfumes? How did they become to be a appreciated as beauty product in the past?

Burt’s Bees natural solid perfumes

As suspected, ancient Egypt and Rome seem to be the places where enhancing your beauty with innovative ideas was appreciated and even expected. It seems solid perfumes, more commonly known in the past as unguents, have been around for a very long time now. They were actually the earliest forms of a perfume and were mostly derived from nature. The earliest forms of solid perfumes came in a form of head cones. Women in ancient Egypt commonly wore rose cones made of fresh roses immersed in a fat base. They were worn in the hair or placed somewhere on the head. Their body heat would melt the fat and trickle the rose scented oil down their face and neck.

In later times, solid perfumes were made of different type of ingredients; amber, rose buds, musk, gum tragacanth and other fragrances. At even a later time, my favorite forms of the perfume came in jewelery balls, which were worn on a chain or hung from the ceiling. They were called pomanders, a word derived from the french language (‘pomme d’amber’). As you can imagine solid perfumes were not the only thing that came in a solid form in a jar, healing essential oils were also used for medical purposes.

There you have it. Solid perfumes were most definitely appreciated in the past and I am more than happy to appreciate them today.

Some of this information came from suite101.com

It would seem that we are waking up every day this week in a holiday shopping frenzy. We are approaching the holidays very fast and quickly. Most find this stressful, I find the last minute buzz of the holidays very exciting. Once it is over there is a peaceful calm and nothing left but to watch your loved ones open those well thought out presents. The reason for my calm could also be that I refuse to be caught off guard, I mostly do my shopping at least two or three weeks ahead of time. There are of course those last gifts I never seem to get to. You can see me eyeing ideas to the very last possible day.

If you do fall into the stressed out category have no fear. If you haven’t even started your Christmas shopping how do you make things a bit easier on yourself? The good news is that if you live in a city like New York there are plenty of places to go. No waiting on the mail man and no running from one part of town to the other. If you are a last minute shopper and happen to live in New York, the holiday markets located in the Columbus Circle and in Union Square are a great one stop destination for everyone on your list. Even if you do not live here, most of the same vendors that sell at these markets have websites. You are sure to find and please even the hardest and most spoiled person on your list. Whether they want vegan skincare, crave warm handmade knits, creative jewelry or a selfless kind of gift. The place has it all. All it takes is a simple walk through the market and you will walk out with bags in hand. You will be pleasantly surprised at what you will find, who needs high end designer when you can prove you are a lot more creative than that.

Browse my finds at the Columbus Circle holiday market:

Mineral and Vegan skin care and makeup from cnaturals, I love everything about this skincare. Pure and simple, the handmade soaps smell good enough to eat and more importantly the products work! 

Seeking Spirituality and expression in words? Not all t-shirts are created equal,Seeking Serenity t-shirts are soft to the touch and the modern cut aims to please. 

Tell time just a little differently than everyone else. Chose to give ECOWRIST watches made from bamboo, tagua nuts, wood and other exotic materials that are unique and all eco. The handcrafted watches are truly impressive.

I would consider myself somewhat of an expert on lip balms. My preferences might be personal however I have a good beauty idea of what a girl requires in a perfect lip helper. When purchasing your next lip balm to soothe those winter lips think natural, chemical free, packed with vitamins, hydrating, soft and of course swanky packaging counts. To me the overall package makes a difference, when a lip balm is presented to me in a creative way i love to keep it on hand at parties and I am not afraid to show it off. Of course there are exceptions to this, sometimes packaging is not all there is, however it does earns the extra points. A lip balm that has it all should put more than hydration on your lips, it should bring a smile to your face. 

Here are my top choices for the perfect cold weather lip balms you will want to use beyond the winter months. 

Lip balm smooth spheres by eos

H2O Lip Mender hydrating complex

Natural lip cocktails from Lip Elixirs

Bear Smooch lip balms in a tin from Mad Gabs

Weather Res-Q Lip balm from Burt’s Bees

Dr Hess  Udder Sticks

The cold has officially snuck up on us New Yorkers and it is time to get back to reality. Spoil yourself with these warm top picks for the chilly Fall-Winter season.

One Bath and Body products have been on the top of my list for a while now. They always seem to make me feel as if I can take a spa break just about any place. They have perfectly natural products that are great for both in and out of the shower. What makes One so appealing is that they are all recyclable and care about more than just selling those wonderful products. They care about the environment and community. My obsession has been the shea butter lip balms, I always make sure I have one on hand. You should also try their natural soaps, they are designed to wash the day away and soothe your body and soul. 

One of my pet peeves about the cold weather is that it lasts way too long and you have to cover up all that great fashion. This makes for a great excuse to give up caring, just because it is cold out there does not mean you have to wear sweatpants around the clock. I vote for almost never, however that is just me. On the top of my shopping list, or dare I say holiday list is the ethical brand Stewart+Brown. Cozy sweaters and coats that seem to tailor to your body can be worn in a brisk cold but you would never know it. The brands respect for nature and passion for design shows in each collection, no matter the item it never seems to loose its whimsical appeal. 

Keep your cheeks rosy with an Argan color stick from Josie Maran, not the offending brisk wind. Maybe you want an all in one stick that will moisturize your skin, lips and tames those pesky fly aways. Chose the Argan Oiil Moisturizing stick. Argan Oil has been proven to have nutritional benefits and the proof is in beauty. Taking care of your skin takes double the work in the winter time, make it simple. 

What is the best way to keep the cold out? A great scarf that acts as a hoodie. When you purchase your first winter scarf you want functionality, not just fashion. All products from Lento are hand crafted in Guatemala and are naturally dyed by Mayan women. What I love about the size and shape of this scarf/cloth is that you can use it in so many ways and feel good about it at the same time. “Lento” means slow in Spanish and reflects the brand’s mission of patience and dedication to hand crafting each piece with love, making it special and unique. 

For more on organic skin care and Eco fashion visit the Organic Spa Magazine

Ready to change up that almost non existent eye color? The colder months call for something a little dramatic and fun. Warm up with these shades from Larenim, fast becoming one of my favorite mineral make-up brands that care about your skin health.

Make-up is there to make you feel more beautiful, why would you want to enhance your beauty with something that drags and weights you down. At the end of the day it is all about feeling comfortable in your own skin and Larenim understands that. What I love about the brand is that there is so much to chose from, just because they care does not mean they skip on the trends. Natural and mineral make-up has gotten a bad reputation for being dull, not the case here. Makeup lovers everywhere can find any shade that is the ultimate accessory this season. I especially love the Gothic collection, but if you are a natural gal you will find that Larenim can provide you with a silky and almost invisible make-up that will allow you to be real. Let’s face it, we can all use a little beauty help. This Fall – Winter season is perfect for playing with a darker/smoky color, so don’t be afraid to cross over to something new and step out of your character.

I can go on about how great Larenim is. My suggestion is that you browse through the vast selection of anything you might need in your beauty drawer. Forget the skin irritating make-up and harsh chemicals, just welcome in a gorgeous glow of beautiful skin. You should be wearing the make-up, not let the make-up wear you down.

Learn more about Larenim and the benefits of using mineral makeup on their website.

image of eye via ehow.com

front page image of model via jill stuart collection

If you want to learn more about organic/natural beauty visit the Organic Spa Magazine

Facifica Natural Solid Perfumes – These great smelling pocket treats have permanently become part of my handbag “must haves”. Their old fashioned feel and genius purpose make a great low cost gift for yourself or a friend. They are $9 each, made with organic soy, coconut wax and each has a signature blend of essential & natural oils. The scents include blends such as Brazilian Mango Grapefruit, my personal favorite, and according to the creator can also be used to scent and tame your Summer hair. Being able to save space in your handbag is always appreciated!

Other Benefits – none of the chemicals, all the natural earth goodness, they are also 100% vegan and gluten-free.

The fragrance genius behind Pacifica is Brook-Harvey Taylor. Brook’s enthusiasm for her own products makes me want to sample them all.

“THE PACIFICA MANIFESTO.  LOVE WHAT YOU DO AND DO
WHAT YOU LOVE.  GREAT WAVES MAKE FOR GREAT DAYS.
DON’T FOLLOW TRENDS, FOLLOW YOUR HEART.  INVENT
A NEW WORLD AND KEEP TIES TO THE OLD ONE.”

to beautiful skin!

Need to infuse something new into your beauty routine that actually works? Introducing;

Tammy Fender Clarifying DermaGel – anything Tammy Fender creates will be a holistic treat! There is no need to go to the spa to get great skin, Tammy brings the spa to you. Let the custom blend of Myrrh, Thyme & Tea Tree help you sooth any redness or blemishes.

Skin2Skin has to be one of my favorite beauty brands. I am not seeing signs of wrinkles just yet however late 20s call for good prevention from premature aging.  The way your environment and lifestyle effect your skin are two important things to think about. This anti-wrinkle night recover cream has allowed my skin look its best and I am not letting it go.

There is always so much focus on the face that we forget every inch of our skin needs nourishment as well. Wake up smelling great and moisturized by your choice of body butter from Pure Fiji. Personally I can never have enough of my coconut moisturizer. Coconut body butter smells amazing and takes care of unwanted dry skin.

I have been searching for trendy natural eye shadow for months, finally Aromaleigh landed right in my hands. Their mineral eye shadows in loose powder are so light and true to their shade that I have used up every bit and currently need more. It is not every day that you fall in love with a beauty product, it takes trying a few before you find one that you refuse to give up. The best part is that you will never run out of options. Aromaleigh carries over 400 shades, you could say that is serious dedication to beauty. Today there is still not enough companies that are dedicated to providing you with quality mineral make up that is made of simple ingredients.

So who is behind this great beauty company? Aromaleigh was started by Kristen Leigh Bell. After doing a bit more research I knew right away that I liked the way Kristen ran her company. I absolutely love her personality. From the products that I have tried so far my favorite are the eye shadows, I want to try them all. I have to admit I tend to fall in the comfort of using the came colors over and over. The Aromaleigh color eye palette has inspired me to try different colors. I also really enjoyed using the aromatherapy lip balm. Unfortunately it seems to be out of stock on their website right now, I hope it is brought back. Even though the company is a small business I hope their inspiring products are given a fair shot at becoming huge. The world of beauty could use a larger color palette. 

If I have struck your curiousity about switching to a more natural option for your eyes, or whatever you may need visit the Aromaleigh website. They even provide you with samples. 

I have had the chance to try what La Falaise has to offer and my personal favorite is Organic Argan. Argan oil is known for its nutritive and regenerative properties.  The anti oxidant properties of Argan oil combat the signs of aging, providing you with gentle exfoliation and zero irritation.  Argan oil seems to have regenerative powers that help you feel restored and energized after your bath. You would be amazed at the difference natural products can make in how you take your bath.

Take a look at their line to find your personal favorite, http://www.savonlafalaise.com.