Fabulously Cheeky

What is all the fuss about safe cosmetics? Aren’t all cosmetics that is sold to the public safe to use? I used to think it was. I thought that all cosmetics was regulated by the FDA, and I also thought that all the gibberish on the back of the labels were simply latin names for herbal ingredients. Little did I know…

The truth is, the FDA regulates drugs, not cosmetics. Unless it is considered a drug, they simply don’t get involved unless there are lots of complaints from consumers. The fact that you can find cosmetics and body care products on the shelves in every supermarket doesn’t mean that the products are safe to use. Even certified organic products only has to contain 70% organic ingredients, the rest can be pure poison, and it can still be sold as “organic.” And, because everything you put on your skin, eventually can end up in your blood stream, these kinds of chemicals can seriously affect your health over time!

There is an organization called “the campaign for safe cosmetics” that has collected a list of companies that pledge to only use safe ingredients in the products they make. My own company, Green Beauty Cosmetics, has signed this pledge, and the product line is now in the process of being added to the cosmetics database. CLICK HERE to research the database about Green Beauty Cosmetics, or any other product or ingredient you would like to know about. This site is very helpful because they have thousands of products and ingredients listed. You can simply search for anything you have in your bathroom, and it will blow your mind to see what you are actually putting on your skin every day!

I also got a link to a very eye opening video today. CLICK HERE to see the video clip from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, and make sure you share it with all your friends, too!!!

About a year ago, when I discovered how much deceit there is in the beauty industry, I decided to create an alternative to toxic and carcinogenic skin care products. So, after studying skincare with Victoria Rayner at the Rayner Institute, I created my very own natural skin care line called Green Beauty Cosmetics. These products don’t just make you look good, they make you feel good as well, because none of them will compromise your health in any way. Right now, I have 12 new products that are safe for anyone to use. CLICK HERE if you want to check it out.

We may not be able to change the system or the corporate business practises that are all completely money driven, but we can do something to become much more aware, because awareness gives us choice. Therefore, spread the word, and start demanding safe cosmetics! We no longer have to put poisons on our skins – healthy alternatives do exist! Visit the cosmetics database and they’ll tell you which ones they recommend.

Tags: campaign for safe cosmetics, cosmetics database, green cosmetics, natural skin care

I have recently heard many women state that they only wish to use ONE skin care product when they get out of the shower. They don’t want to buy exfoliators, cleansers, toners and so on. So the question is, is it enough to only use one product on your skin?

When you are very young and your skin is plump and healthy, you might be able to get away with only one product. My 9 year old daughter uses a light hydrating lotion on her face after taking a bath. It keeps her skin soft, and also protects from the cold in the winter. However, this kind of skin care regimen is no good when the skin starts showing signs of time. At that point, you need more than just one cream or lotion because you can’t cover all your skin needs in one layer.

The more mature your skin gets, the more different ingredients it needs to stay elastic and healthy. The first area to be affected by age, hormones, temperature and UV radiation is the area around the eyes. Aging in this area starts to show up as early as in the early twenties. The skin around the eyes have no sweat glands, so it tends to simply dry up since it has no protective barrier to hold moisture in.

Moisture is the most important thing you can put around the eyes. It can be in the form of a toner or spritz, or a light moisturizing face cream or serum. In addition, you also need an oily or buttery barrier to keep the moisture from evaporating. These products should be layered, with the moisturizing agents first, to allow them to penetrate the skin, and an emollient barrier on top that keeps the skin soft and prevents the moisture you just added from evaporating. Other ingredients that should be considered around the eyes are anti-oxidants that prevent formation of wrinkles from UV damage. So, really, what you want in your facial cream or eye cream is moisture (water, hyaluronic acid, glycerin, etc.), a buttery barrier (coconut, shea, jojoba etc), and anti-oxidants (green tea, acai berries, vitamin E or C, etc), and ideally, these ingredients should be layered and not just contained in a single cream.

So why can’t we just put all of these ingredients into one product? You can, but it won’t give you the maximum benefit of the ingredients. The reason is, some of these ingredients are made to penetrate the skin and moisturize the deeper layers, and other ingredients are supposed to sit on top of the skin to soften and protect.

A lot of times, you’ll hear people say that if you have dry or mature skin, you need a rich cream. Not so! If you put a rich cream on dry or mature skin, it will simply sit on the surface without increasing the moisture levels in the skin itself, and if you want to improve the way your skin looks, you really need to do both.

Therefore, the best solution is to use products that can be layered, where each product has a specific purpose. For example, if your skin is normal or oily, you probably won’t need to add a barrier to the skin. A light natural face moisturizer is all you need after cleansing and toning. If, however, you have dry or mature skin, you must add moisture first of all, and it has to be as a thin serum so that it can bathe your skincells in moisture and penetrate into the deeper layers. Then, after allowing your serum to sink in, you add your rich, buttery barrier cream to soften the skin and keep the moisture in.

This is why, using one product on your face is basically useless, unless we are teenagers, or even pre-teens. What we need are products that can be layered, depending on what each individual skin type needs. This can vary with age, hormones, temperature, and UV exposure.
CLICK HERE to see suggestions for how to layer skin care products depending on skin type.

Tags: skin care, Skincare

The answer is very easy. Have you ever seen what happens when you leave a peach on the kitchen counter too long? The longer you leave it, the more moisture evaporates and the more wrinkles appear.

It is the same with your skin. Whether you are outside, enjoying the sun and the wind, or inside, letting your air conditioning dehydrate your skin, wrinkles are pretty unavoidable – unless you keep hydrating your skin.

Most of us end up with wrinkles sooner or later, and many wonder what we can do to minimize these signs of age and weather. There are countless products on the market that promise to reduce, or even remove your wrinkles, but few that keep their promises. It doesn’t matter how exotic the ingredients are – once you start getting lines on your face, they are basically there to stay.

However, we can still reduce the appearance of the lines. Like the example with the peach, the same applies to the skin. The drier it gets, the more wrinkles appear. And the opposite is also true. If we can replace the water, the appearance of wrinkles will also get much less. The water plumps up the skin and makes it look both younger and healthier.

The best hydrating agent that I have found so far is called hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid is a natural component of the skin that is plentiful in young skin, but decreases as we age. If we can replace the hyaluronic acid, it plumps up the skin with water and this reduces the appearance of lines. Therefore, always check the labels on your skincare products. If it contains hyaluronic acid, it will highly benefit your skin and reduce the appearance of wrinkles.

Let’s face it – wrinkles are a natural part of life. As we move through our cycles, life will mark us in many ways. This is simply part of nature, but that doesn’t mean that we can take good care of ourselves. If we moisturize the skin, it will remain younger looking for a much longer time. So, don’t worry about a few lines on your face. Just keep moisturizing with natural face moisturizer…

Tags: hyaluronic acid

Exfoliation is really “in” these days! There are so many exfoliators on the market, and many of them are not good for the skin at all! Most exfoliators are way too rough for the skin, especially the ones that contain crushed apricot seeds. The apricot seeds tend to scrape up the healthy skin cells that are underneath the layer of dead cells, and the result is redness, itching, stinging and inflammation.

So, what does exfoliation do? Exfoliation is designed to remove dead skincells from the surface of the skin. Dead skincells make the skin look dull, and by removing them, you can make the skin look fresher and younger again. The younger your skin is, the less exfoliation is needed. Why? Because the younger we are, the faster we regenerate skincells. Therefore, the opposite is also true – the older we get, the slower the cell turnover, and the duller the skin.

This is why the skin tends to get thinner, duller and more translucent the older we get. So, why would exfoliation help? By removing old skincells, the skin gets a younger glow, but that isn’t all. By removing the skincells, the body also gets the message that more skincells must be made. Therefore, exfoliation will actually cause the skin to renew itself faster and become thicker when exfoliated regularly. So, exfoliation is probably one of the most important things you can do for mature skin. However, it has to be done gently and with an exfoliator that doesn’t scrape up the skincells below the surface.

Therefore, no apricot shells should be used. Jojoba beads, finely milled white sugar, or even corn meal or oatmeal are much better alternatives.
Luckily, Green Beauty Cosmetics is offering a very gentle, but effective oatmeal natural face scrub that is gentle enough to be used daily. It contains oatmeal, cornmeal, goat milk, honey, finely milled white sugar, rose petals, orange peel and lemongrass. Need I say anything more? This scrub is pure luxury…
To learn more about natural cosmetics, please visit my website. Previous Post
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Tags: skin care

I run into this question a lot. What is the problems with chemicals? If products are sold in stores, surely, they must be safe to use? Not necessarily so!

First, we have to understand what health is. Health is not a static state, it is always dynamic. What does this mean? Dynamic means that it is always in a state of adjustment. The body has lots of systems set up to help keep it in a state of balance. For example, if you get too hot, the body will find ways to cool you down, such as perspiration, blood going to the surface, and so on. If you get to cold, blood will go away from your surface, all your little hairs stand up, your body start shaking and you need to urinate. The body contains many systems like this, and all these systems keep our bodies healthy.

One of our biggest organs is our liver, which is there to filter out toxins and chemicals from our bodies so they can be excreted out of the system through our stools. However, if the products we eat, apply to the skin, breathe or drink are full of chemicals, the liver will get so overloaded that it becomes sluggish, and a lot of these chemicals will end up in the blood stream and tissues, instead of being eliminated. Eventually, this causes sicknesses of different kinds, since the toxins keep the body in a continuous state of imbalance.

Have you ever heard raw food enthusiasts talk about detox? Detox is what happens when you start eliminating foods that clog up your system, and the body finally has enough energy to actually get rid of the toxic substances that are stored in your body. The resulting symptoms can be fever, headache, chills, diarrhea, nasty body odor, bad breath and so on. Most people have no idea how toxic their bodies actually are, until they do a fast or colon therapy, or some other therapy that is designed to detox the body.

So, what does this have to do with chemicals in skin care products? Very simple: anything you put on the skin, eventually end up in your bloodstream, where they add toxins to an already stressed out body. It doesn’t happen overnight, so you won’t feel sick an hour after you put toxic lotion on your legs. But, everything adds up over time. And, if you read the labels on the product you use on your body everyday, and add up every word that sounds like chemical gibberish, it can easily add up to over 100 different chemicals daily!!!

There is no way, that adding that many chemicals to your system, even in tiny amounts, isn’t going to affect your health in the long run. Therefore, I’m on a mission to make people aware of the problem, so they can make a conscious choice what they want to expose themselves to, and I have also made an awesome alternative in my new natural cosmetics line Green Beauty Cosmetics.
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Tags: chemicals in skincare

There were many reasons why I decided to create my own natural cosmetics line, but one of the reasons was that I never liked the whole concept of having a whole line of products for a certain skin type. It just doesn’t make any sense to me! Normally, you can buy products for dry skin, normal skin, oily skin, combination skin, mature skin, sensitive skin, combination dry skin, and so on. Aubrey Organics is one of the companies that is trying to cater to every different skin type, and then you end up with literally hundreds of products which can make it quite confusing to figure out what exactly you need. So, I came up with a much easier way – layering!

All you need is a handful of products that all have different purposes, and then you layer them according to what your skin needs. And, why is this approach so great? It is really great for many reasons. First of all, your skin isn’t always the same, and therefore, it doesn’t always need the same products applied all the time. For example, when I was younger, I noticed that my skin often changed before and during my periods. The T-zone would get a bit oilier, and sometimes, pimples would appear. I also noticed that my skin needs were totally different on a hot muggy day to what they were on a cold frosty day. So, instead of having to buy 3 different lines of products to make up for variations in hormones and environment, I had the idea of a simple line of products that could just be layered…

The idea is so simple. If each product has a specific purpose, you look at your skin every day, and decide what it needs that day. For example, if your skin looks a bit dull, exfoliation will make a difference. I have an awesome natural oatmeal face scrub that is gentle enough to be used every day if needed. It contains natural alpha hydroxy acids, finely milled white sugar, rose petals and orange peel, and also a few things that will balance sebum production.

Next, you look to see how oily or dry your skin is that day. Does it need a little extra cleansing? If so, you use the natural face cleanser, which by the way doesn’t strip any of your natural oils, it simply removes excess oil so you can create a good foundation for your makeup.

Then, you decide if you need a toner, alcohol free, of course!
While the skin is still moist, you add a very light natural face moisturizer, which is made to penetrate into the deeper layers of the skin. Everyone needs moisturizing, even oily skin types, so this serum is always applied.

So, how dry is your skin? If it is quite oily, you may not need any other products. But if it is very dry or mature, or if you have dry patches on your cheeks, you might need to add a moisturizing face oil on top of the moisturizer. The oil nurtures the skin and creates a barrier that stops moisture from evaporating from the surface. This is important especially in mature skin, and also in the winter time when the frost hits. The oil can also be used by people with normal or oily skin as an intensive night treatment, since it is made with oils that don’t clog the pores.

In addition to these basic skin care products, I have also made two different lotions, one for normal skin (vanilla body lotion), and a slightly richer one for drier skin (chamomile body lotion).

I also have a waterproof mascara remover that removes any kind of mascara, even the stubborn, waterproof kind, and because I know what the needs of women are, I also created a coconut oil sensual lubricant that works like a dream! And this is just the beginning! I have lots more ideas for great products coming up, and you lovely ladies who are reading my blog are the first ones who gets to hear about it!

This is just an example of how you can tailor your skincare routine to fit your skin on a daily basis. The other advantage of a system like this is that if you have daughters with different skin needs than yourself, you still only need one line of products that everyone can layer depending on their own needs.

My own little 8 year old daughter loves my facial cleanser. When she comes in dirty from playing outside, she puts the cleanser on, adds a little water, massages her face, cleans it off with water and pats it dry with a towel. The dirt comes off without any scrubbing, and she loves the way it smells. After cleansing, she finishes her face with a dab of lotion, and her skin looks and feels gorgeous! My husband, who isn’t really into pampering himself, just uses the lotion after showering, and he told me yesterday that he thinks it actually makes sunburns go away quicker. So, basically, an approach like this makes it possible for the whole family to use one simple line of products. So easy, simple and practical! You can even earn free samples based on your purchase amount!

As you can tell, I am very excited about this new skin care line, so I’m going to spend a few days telling you about what I have created.

I also have a favor to ask from all of you – please spread the word! Tell your girl friends about what I have created. The whole product line is created to help women of all ages enhance their natural beauty without having to compromise their health in the process, but it only works if we can get the word out. So, I would greatly appreciate it if you tell as many people as possible, that now, there is actually a healthy, luxurious alternative to toxic skin care called Green Beauty Cosmetics.
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Tags: natural skin care

My new product line, Green Beauty Cosmetics has finally been launched. Green Beauty Cosmetics is an all natural, chemical free, non-toxic luxury skin care line that gives health conscious women an alternative to toxic skin care products.

GREEN BEAUTY is a new concept in beauty care.

It is about creating products that are TRULY GOOD for your skin,
your body and the environment.

It is about creating products that are NOT TESTED on innocent animals.

It is about creating products with INTEGRITY and HONESTY, using only the finest natural ingredients.

And it is about creating products that you can TRUST…

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Tags: green cosmetics, natural skin care

I just came across an interesting article today about whether or not facials can remove wrinkles. According to the doctor who wrote the articles, deep cleansing and massage isn’t going to do anything to remove the wrinkles. Even facial workouts don’t work!

So, what can we do? If you don’t want to go to the extremes of having your face skin sanded off with steel brushes, or burnt off with 88% Phenolic acid, which is actually strong enough to kill you if it gets into your bloodstream too quickly, there aren’t too many options left. However, there are a few things you can do which can make your skin texture look more youthful and give you back some of that lost glow.

The most important thing, when it comes to youthful glow, is to find an exfoliator or natural face scrub that is gentle enough to use daily. It should contain no apricot seeds or other abrasive substances, since these will damage your healthy skincells in addition to scrubbing away your dead cells, and that only ends up as inflamed and irritated skin, which is no good. Instead, find a scrub that contains oatmeal, cornmeal, crushed rose petals, or even white sugar. Think of it more like a polish than a scrub. If your scrub is gentle enough and you use it daily, it will give your skin a very smooth texture, and that in itself makes you look younger, even though your lines and wrinkles are still there.

The second culprit is your cleanser – stay away from soapy cleansers. Healthy skin is NOT supposed to feel “squeeky clean.” That only means that all your natural oils have been stripped away. Besides, soapy cleansers don’t remove makeup as well as creamy non-soapy cleansers, and when they strip the oils from your skin, they also change the natural acidic pH of the skin to alkaline, which is no good. Anytime the pH is off, bacteria can invade hair follicles and you’ll end up with pimples and boils. So, when it comes to cleansers, try to find a creamy, non-soapy, preferably pH balanced natural face cleanser.

The toner should be alcohol free, of course! Alcohol dries out the skin, and who needs that? A good natural face toner should contain ingredients that won’t dry out the skin, such as rosewater, chamomile, marshmallow root, comfrey or apple cider vinegar, and it must be pH balanced!

The moisturizer should be thin, like a serum, even for dry skin. Why? Because thick, heavy creams tend to sit on top of the skin, and even though they prevent water from evaporating from the surface, they don’t moisturize the deeper layers of skin and can therefore actually keep the skin dry. A serum like natural face moisturizer can easier penetrate the skin and moisturize the deeper layers.

The most important ingredient in moisturizers is hyaluronic acid, which should be vegan and paraben free. Hyaluronic acid is a natural component of the skin that can hold its own weight in water 1000 times, and it also helps increase the penetration of other skincare ingredients, since it increases the moisture levels in the deeper layers of the skin. This substance will even plump up your skin enough that fine lines and wrinkles look less obvious. So if you don’t want the nasty side effect of using Retin-A, hyaluronic acid is a good alternative. It will make your skin look plump and young, and it is a totally harmless ingredient as well! According to the cosmetic database, hyaluronic acid is rated green, which is basically harmless.

And last, but not least, don’t forget to add a good sunscreen before you go out. Not only does it protect the skin from sun damage, but it can also prevent those nasty brown aging spots to occur.
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Tags: hyaluronic acid, wrinkles

When I hit menopause and realized that my skin was getting wrinkled, I panicked and went looking for solutions. One of the first things that everybody praised was face creams that contained peptides.

The main two are palmitoyl pentapeptide, also called Matrixyl, which is supposed to signal the body to make more collagen. The other one, Argireline, is supposed to work a little bit like Botox, by blocking the nerve impulses to the muscles so they’ll stop contracting and creating wrinkles by squinting. Sounds great…

So, I promptly went and bought products that contained these peptides. After a year of using these types of creams, with no effect on my crowsfeet, whatsoever, I started reading cosmetics reviews online. I wrote down a list of products that were supposed to be amazing, with great before and after pictures, but when I found reviews from actual users, they were not impressive at all.

One of the so called best creams on the market is called “Bellaplex.” It so expensive that they won’t even tell you how much product you are buying, and you even have to sign up for automatic monthly mailings, if I remember right. The reviews, however, were basically stating that the cream did nothing and that it was basically a waste of money.

This is when I decided that peptides were just another form of hype that allows the cosmetics companies to charge more money for their products. Or, perhaps, the cosmetics companies don’t put enough of it into their products, since it is very, very expensive?

Collagen is another ingredient that are popular in skin products. It is a structural protein that naturally occurs in your skin, and the idea is that if you add it to your skincare products, it can be absorbed by the skin and used to build up collagen wherever it needs it. However, there is a big hole in this theory – the collagen particles are actually too big to penetrate the skin. So, what exactly is the collagen supposed to do, sitting on top of your skin? You’ll just wash it off next time you clean your face! Seems to me, Collagen products are another scam, so save your money…

The only product I have tried that really works, is hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid is a natural component of the skin that is reduced as we age. Hyaluronic acid has the ability to hold its own weight in water 1000 times, so what it does in skincreams is to bathe your skin in moisture. This will moisturize tissues that are no longer able to hold moisture on its own. It plumps the tissues, makes the skin look healthy, and makes the appearance of small lines less obvious.

So, if you want a product that creates visible effect, make sure it contains Hyaluronic Acid. Whether or not Peptides work, are highly questionable, they certainly didn’t do anything for my skin in the products that I tried. And forget about collagen. You can’t add it on the top of your skin, and expect it to change the collagen inside your skin if it doesn’t penetrate. It won’t, and it can’t, if it just sits on top. But, hyaluronic acid will defintely make your skin look younger. (If you take before and after pictures of yourself, you’ll see a difference after 1 month).

And the best thing about hyaluronic acid is that it is totally green, and it is not an allergenic component, so you won’t end up with some nasty skin reaction.
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Tags: hyaluronic acid