guest blogger Angelina...

Angelina, founder and buyer for Beklina speaks about her green boutique and her some of her favorite beauty finds. Visit Beklina the blog as well...

Beklina is a small family run boutique in Northern California. Comforted by nature, inspired by design, Beklina is passionate about living at the harmonious crossroads of the two. We hand select the best available in sustainable style. Our fashion is modern organic, reflecting Northern California's grace and beauty. Beklina believes clothing and design can be precious, radical, nurturing, healing and wonderful.

Here are some of my favorite beauty products:

The best sunscreen ever....

All of the products I love smell wonderful. I can't stand synthetic fragrance, only real plant oils for me. My nose always knows too!

Weleda has a wonderful line and their deodorants are amazing. The double as perfume, but all natural for sensitive noses.

I also love the Pangea Organic line. Their lip balm is always a nice treat anytime of day. Egyptian Fennell is my favorite.

Oh and we also recommend always having a hat on hand in Summer. Here's a great easy-to-pack carefree hat that we love. Available at Beklina.

a gift of green...

Search for the cause, a website dedicated to investigating how exposures in our daily lives increase the risk of cancer, offers a green beauty kit full of fabulous all natural beauty products. The website is great reading. It touches on many topics of importance, with their main purpose being,

• Investigate how exposures in our daily lives increase the risk of cancer
• Reduce harmful environmental conditions
• Educate communities on healthy lifestyle choices

Here are just a few of the items from the green beauty kit available online here...

• Jurlique Lavender Hand Creme
• Lafe's Natural Hemp Deodorant
• John Masters Organics Intensive Hair Conditioner
• Organic Apoteke Rejuvenating Eye Cream
  

Happy Valentines Day!

Celebrate with skin softening massage bars by Lush. The massage bars serve as a luxurious massage oil or an after-shower body moisturizer. Almost every ingredient is organic and all are safe for the skin. If you haven't been to a Lush store be sure to stop in. Honestly the shop is a little overwhelming at first glance, but the products are intriguing and the sales staff are very helpful and friendly.

Valentines Day is right around the corner...

Organic Bouquet offers a few great Valentines Day gifts that can be delivered to your loved ones. Pictured above is the organic lavender bath kit. Organic Bouquet also offers organic chocolate if you want to give something a little more traditional. And of course you will find a variety of organic roses, a few of my favorite are pictured below, the lavender are lovely! This is a good site to tag for future use. It's always nice to surprise someone with flowers, especially with they come sans pesticides!

for your eco-conscious shopping efforts...

Image from pangeaorganics.com.

I have a great last minute offer for all Flawless Beauty readers. The people at Pangea Organics ( The makers of the new "it" mask from the gift guide) are offering all friends of Pangea an opportunity to purchase Pangea Organics products at WHOLESALE Pricing -that's 50% OFF. Yes, 50% OFF. They do ask, however, that each order meets a MINIMUM of $200 (wholesale), plus shipping & handling. That is a lot of product, lol, but makes for great gifts and maybe a few people could go in on one order. Hurry! Offer expires December 20, 2007. So get your holiday orders today! This offer is limited to the first 500 Friends.

To take advantage of this special offer, you must email info@pangeaorganics.com with FRIENDS in the subject line. They will then email you the Wholesale Order Form with instructions on how to place your order. This offer is not available online at pangeaorganics.com or in stores. This offer is available via email only. The website is a great way to familiarize yourself with the product though (and know what to order).

And here is a message from Pangea, "With this very special offer, we encourage you to continue to be part of the solution by choosing to be a responsible consumer this holiday season. It is because of people like you that companies with the environmental and social ethics of Pangea Organics have found success in a very competitive market. With your help and in combination with the work you do in your own lives everyday, together, we will change the world. Happy Holidays!"

On that note, I am off to California again for the holidays but will try to do my best to keep up on posts...

still looking for holiday gifts?

The holidays are close to being over but if your like me, your probably still looking for last minute stocking stuffers or gift ideas. I've pulled together a few products below that are favorites of mine or that I bought for gifts this year. All products can be ordered online and most can be found at your local health food or beauty supply store.

(1) Multi-use palatte from Josie Marans organic makeup line, no parabans or fragrances and comes in a biodegradable compact!
(2) Jurlique rose hand creme, also available at Saffron Rouge in citrus and lavender scents.
(3) CO Bigelow lip gloss. A staple for my purse, desk, bedside table...this gloss comes in many amazing scents and has .1% Peppermint oil which gives an amazing scent and never leaves my lips dry or chapped (also you can get these 2 for 10$ at Bath and Body works).
(4)Pangea Organics Japanese Matcha Tea with Acai & Goji Berry mask. Now this I have not tried but is supposed to be one of the new "it" masks. One of my lucky friends is getting this for Christmas...and I need to pick one up for myself as well!
(5) Ren Morrocan Rose massage oil. Whats a sweeter gift than massage oil? And it doubles as a body oil or bath oil. Ren makes amazing products! Available at Whole Foods as well as online.
(6) Alba Kukui Nut organic body oil. I use this regularly, the scent is sweet and exotic and my skin never feels greasy afterwards. Also great for a massage or bath oil.

I've also pulled together some great gifts sets, aside from my favorite that I posted before, I also think these are wonderful options.


(7) For the new babies and expectant mothers, Jurliques Baby's Bathtime Kit, it's on sale at Saffron Rouge!
(8) Dr.Hauschkas Aromatherapy Bath Kit. A wonderful way to explore different oils for stress-free bathing.
(9) An adorable gift set from Zia that comes with a soy candle, body butter and Madagascar Vanilla Red tea to complete your pampering experience. This set is on sale, I guess there are some benefits to last minute shopping!
(10) Juice Beauty Organics to go travel kit! A great way to try out this much talked about skincare line, there seems to be just about a little bit of everything in this box! And the kits on sale for $29 when you order from the Juice Beauty website.
(11) Lastly for the friend who likes the finer things or should I say more expensive things in the product world there is the Care by Stella McCartney Discovery Set. The set has great shelf appeal and will only set you back $38.

I hope these suggestions helped solve some shopping dilemmas or if anything provided you with some new product for yourself! What I love about the holidays is that there are a lot more gift sets and trial sizes offered by companies. This gives opportunities to be adventurous and try new product samples without having to spend too much money.

skincare for him...

Just in time for gift giving season, the vedaPure line offers a little something for the males in your life, the vedaDude gift set! The set includes four items which you can read more about below...you can also purchase these great products separately as well.

Clean :: A Green Clay, and Vitamin C based cleanser that create a synergetic blend to protect the skin against free radicals. The Vitamin C Esters absorb readily into the skin without stinging and the Green Clay make this cleanser rich and effective in protecting the dermis from environmental toxins, aging and sun damage. Great for all skin types.

Glide :: A shaving gel made with Organic Aloe Leaf Juice, Bilberry Extract and Organic Orange Fruit Extract that makes this a refreshing and clear way to shave. The non-sticky gel glides on easily and stays clear and smooth for a protected shave, but washes off fresh and clean.

Splash :: An aftershave made from Organic Orange Fruit, Lemon and Cranberry Extracts that refresh and purify the skin after shaving, while the Organic Lavender Distillate calms and softens the freshly shaved skin.

Chill :: A wonderfully relaxing aftershave balm with Organic Coconut and Jojoba that moisturizes but leaves the skin feeling pure, refreshed and hydrated.

Available now at vedaPure.com.

designer/"product junkie" turned soap maker...

I came across the website for The Bubble Roome and fell for the packaging! Simply beautifully designed. I then discovered that the products are made with "goodness" and knew I had to post them on flawless beauty! I have not yet had the chance to try these but am going to do so the next time I'm shopping the boutiques in Brooklyn (where the company is based out of).

What I really like about The Bubble Roome is that a lot of thought was put into the packaging and shelf appeal. If you have been following the inspiration posts, you know why shelf appeal is so important to me! The Bubble Roome founder David E. Johnston has a design background and is a self-proclaimed "product junkie". These products also make perfect gifts, being as cute as they are...

ALL IMAGES FROM THEBUBBLEROOME.COM.

perfect gift for the holidays...

As I said may have said before I LOVE all and any products by Jo Wood Organics. The shelf appeal is so great and the product is such nice quality. The scents are both sensuous and luxurious. So, to say the least, I was very excited to come across this Amka gift set available online at Saffron Rouge. The gift set includes the Amka Organic Body Dew, Organic Body Oil, Organic Bath Oil and Organic Body Lotion. Amka (which is Swahili for 'to wake') is enchantingly fresh with top notes of Bergamot and Neroli and a romantic heart of Egyptian Jasmine and Iranian Rose Otto. This set is definitely number one on my holiday wish list!