I came across this basic and easy to make scrub from the book "Secrets of the Spas" by Catherine Bardey. Slough off dead skin and leave your skin soft with a hint of apricot...
Mercedes Sullivan, Co-Founder/CEO, Aguacate & Co. (www.aguacateandco.com), and proud signer of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics.
If you haven’t read it, Stacy Malkan’s “Not Just A Pretty Face” is a fascinating book, a kind of “Fast Food Nation” for the cosmetic industry that lays bare some of this little regulated industry’s dirty secrets. Consider this: surveys show the average woman uses between 12 to 20 products per day containing about 160 chemicals, many of them untested and with unknown health risks. That’s in addition to the chemicals that have known health hazards and are still allowed in many products. The effects and total exposure resulting from the combination of the two is still widely unknown.
But for all the gloom about the toxins that are allowed into personal care products (and thus our bodies), the tone of the book is one of promise. For each toxic chemical and health detriment, Malkan traces the beginnings of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, catalogs progress and highlights the positive trends emerging in green science and business. In fact, in an interview, Malkan says, “My hope for the book is that readers will use it to launch their own investigations into the products we bring into our homes, the companies that make them, the government that is supposed to protect us, and the ways we can work together to create a green economy that is healthy for people and the planet."
For more information, visit:
www.NotJustaPrettyFace.org
www.SafeCosmetics.org
www.cosmeticdatabase.com
Being that Flawless Beauty features beauty products, solutions and quick fixes, it seemed fitting to share Trace with all of you, a magazine celebrating "true beauty". Always one of my favorite magazines, Trace does a great job of representing the talents and beauty of people from all over the world. Also, the very talented Marc Baptiste shot a lot of the spreads, he has an amazing ability to capture striking shots of women, showing their beauty inside and out. You actually can download the whole magazine on the Trace website here.
I recently reviewed the book, Don't Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me, by Paula Begoun. I have to say I was very impressed by the sheer amount of information on beauty products that the author covers! Most of the book is devoted to literally thousands of beauty product reviews. The products range from all markets and prices. Each product is broken down by content and bluntly explained how beneficial the ingredients are for your skin, or in most cases, how your skin can do without the listed ingredients. I'll admit I was a little disappointed to find that some of my favorite products did not rank very high. The book is very informational and extreme which makes for a great debate regarding what ingredients are beneficial for different skin types and what ingredients are a waste of money.
I still believe you should be your own judge, sample products and see how your skin reacts to it before ruling it out. Regardless, Don't Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me, is a great reference to have on hand. The concept of being acquainted with just how rare the "rare ingredients" you're paying for are, or what the "fantastic claims" companies make really do for the skin is frequently overlooked. You may save a few hundred dollars on your next trip to Sephora by doing a little self-educating. Treat what you put on your skin the same way you treat what you put into your body, be aware.
I was blog browsing this morning when I saw a post on the book Subtraction by Clinton Friedman. The images are amazing, a great way to view the beauty of nature and the source of where products come from! Then, to my surprise I browsed through more of this great blog housemartin and realized that is blogger is one of my past coworkers, Pam. I love when small world stuff like that happens! Thanks Pam for the wonderful post and I am so glad you are doing inspiring things!
Everyone wants a healthy start to the New Year so I decided to recommend some books with great advice on diet and lifestyle. The most important step to follow for flawless skin (aside from drinking enough water) is eating a healthy diet!
My friend Daisy gave me an adorable book called Wonderfoods by Natalie Savona. The book is broken into nine chapters ranging from energy to heart. In each chapter foods and recipes are listed that are recommended for that area of the body. In the skin portion, Natalie recommends almonds, strawberries, avocado, carrot, mango and sweet potato. Flawless Beauty has recommended some of these foods as topical treatments for the skin but I want to put emphasis on the fact that consuming these foods in your diet will give you the most direct results.
Another fabulous book on food and lifestyle change is The New Detox Diet by Elson M. Hass. This book is full of different types of meal plans and just good lifestyle advice in general. Earlier this year I did a seven day detox from this book and was very pleased with the recipes and advice given. I was trying to kick my love for sugar which is very bad for the skin!
My best friend introduced me to this amazing book, Awakening Beauty the Dr. Hauschka Way. Dr. Hauschka is one of my favorite product lines. This book is amazing because it places emphasis on the importance of beauty coming from the inside, beginning with how you feel on a day to day basis. Which as we know but do not always practice, all stems from what you put in your body & what kind of lifestyle you chose to live.
The book covers everything from skin care tips to recipes and food guides. I highly recommend to anyone who is looking for an informational read on healthy lifestyle and beauty!
