guest blogger Jess G. ...

Guest blogger Jess, is the Creative Director of Cult Beauty blog and the newly launched Cult Beauty website. Jess has a great eye for beauty trends and products that are definitely bathroom shelf worthy!

Right. Hello Flawless Beauty fans! This guest blog comes from across the pond. I write to you from London, the still swinging heart of Blighty. It’s been a long year of blogging and website building here at Cult Beauty and the Cult Beauty blog, but we were thrilled when the Flawless Beauty blogger asked us to whip up a little guest entry for her lovely blog.

We snapped up the opportunity immediately and decided to give you a best of list for the coolest new natural and organic (and we mean it… no green-washing here) brands from this side of the sea:

1. Pai Skincare: it’s a wonderfully gentle yet effective capsule range made by-hand in London proper. The products are so fresh they’re never more than a few weeks old when you order them. The founder’s whipping up a batch of cleanser for us as I type this. We’ve heard from a little birdy that it might be coming to US shores soon.

2. Ila Spa: Seriously beautiful bath salts, facial oils, body balms and more made with Himalayan salts, Moroccan Rose Otto Oil and more fragrant ingredients, all packaged in opaque glass containers in the English countryside. Their facial oil is already a cult item in the UK.

3. Ilcsi: This range is a staple in virtually all Hungarian bathroom cabinets. Still made by the same Auntie Ilcsi that founded the brand half a century ago, it’s so fresh you need to refrigerate the products once you buy them. They use healing Hungarian mineral waters and mud, Stonecrop, Sour Cherry, Carrot and Rose Petal. Fragrant and so good for you that you could eat it.

4. Kirsty Mcleod: This renowned facialst helped Marcia Kilgore get Bliss off the ground in the UK. She had the loveliest little studio in London’s Pimlico neighbourhood but has since upped sticks and started a family. The good thing is that before she did that, she started a range of amazing cosmetics. You’ll find everything from Arctic Raspberry to Pineapple Enzyme in them. The Clarifying Clay Exfoliator is our favourite because it doubles up as a mask and a zit cream. Multi-tasking.

5. The last thing we want to tell you about now is a little beauty secret… one of our favourite skincare experts in London is launching her skincare range at the end of the year. She gives amazing facials and happens to be an expert on Cult Beauty as well! Check out her profile here. We love Sarah and have big hopes for her range!

We’ll leave you with those nuggets of beauty wisdom from the UK for now. For a daily dose of insider beauty news from London, be sure to check out our blog, http://www.cult-beauty.blogspot.co.uk

And, you, Flawless Beauty blog readers, are the first in the States to hear about the online debut of the Cult Beauty website! That’s right… it’s open for business. Check out the cult selection of beauty brands and products, read about our panel of experts and peruse our beauty editorial for the latest in beauty. http://www.cultbeauty.co.uk

a little Sunday inspriation...

There's something about this bathroom that feels so cozy. Maybe the hue of neutrals or the towel warmer. This image is from one of my favorite interior books, Home Is Where the Heart Is, by Ilse Crawford. Ilse is an amazing interior designer, her website showcases projects that are truly inspirational.

In her book, she talks about bathhouse basics, here are a few questions shes suggests you ask yourself when setting up your bathing space...all great things to consider...

• If you don't have a bathroom window, is it possible to add one?
• Can you have a water softener installed?
• Can you incorporate tactile surfaces such as wood, stone, handmade ceramics?
• Is there space for a towel-warming rail?
• How much storage do you need to keep the room uncluttered?

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.

a new skin solution for the new year...

Saaf pure organic skincare is a wonderful new product line founded by Dr. Mah Hussain-Gambles, a qualified homeopath and pharmacologist.

Using rare, organic, cold pressed botanicals and finest quality, steam distilled organic essential oils with scientifically proven healing and anti-ageing properties, Saaf Pure Skincare has been certified by the Soil Association. It qualifies, too, for Halal accreditations, by employing a policy of no alcohol, no GMO's and no irradiation. Further accreditations make it vegetarian and vegan approved as well as being cruelty free and Naturewatch certified. Available in select locations. I will try to update all flawless beauty readers when Saaf becomes available online or in the U.S.. I can't wait to try these products by Saaf, the skin serums sound amazing!

things to do... check out Toast!

All images from Toast.com.
So I was browsing my very talented friend Kaytes adorable blog love forever and she did a great post about Toast from the UK. I thought it was a very appropriate for flawless beauty because they have a really great ethical statement that you just may want to read for yourself...also browse the goods, the catalog is full of wonderful product!

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!