Pumpkins and Scarecrows and Football, Oh My!



I’m starting to feel a chill in the air come evening, which could only mean autumn is right around the corner. I’m a summer kind of girl, so this makes me a bit sad. But there are some things about fall that you gotta love: pumpkins, apple cider, hay rides… So I’ve decided to get into the spirit this week and bring you some autumn-inspired DIY cosmetic recipes.

First, there’s pumpkin. It’s great for all skin types, especially environmentally damaged or sensitive skin. High in Vitamin A (skin healing), C (anti-oxidant) and Zinc, pumpkin soothes, moisturizes and acts as a carrier, assisting the other mask ingredients to absorb deeper into the skin and intensifying the results. Enzymes remove dead skin cells making skin glow. And it may also help get rid of and prevent blackheads.

Pumpkin Pie Face Mask

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons cooked or canned pumpkin, pureed (or fresh if you have it)
1/2 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon milk (or soymilk)

Optional Ingredients: For Dry Skin add 1/4 teaspoon heavy whipping cream or ½ teaspoon brown sugar (for exfoliation). For Oily Skin add ¼ teaspoon apple cider or ¼ teaspoon cranberry juice.

Directions: Combine the ingredients. Mix gently and apply to your face avoiding the eye area. Rest and relax for 10-15 minutes while your pumpkin pie facemask gently exfoliates, nourishes and conditions your face. Rinse with warm water and apply the appropriate moisturizer for your skin type.

Pumpkin Pie Body Scrub

This foot and hand scrub will help slough off rough skin, leaving it soft and moisturized.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup pureed pumpkin
2 Tbsp organic cane sugar
3 Tbsp oil (try jojoba, grapeseed, almond, or olive oil)
1 pinch cinnamon
1 drop natural vanilla extract

Directions: Blend ingredients thoroughly. Over a large bowl or in the bathtub, massage mixture onto feet, hands, elbows and any rough areas. Allow mixture to remain on skin for 15-20 minutes, and then rinse with warm water.

Next let’s look at apples which have been used in beauty products for centuries. Thanks to a high concentration of vitamins A and C and potassium, when applied as a facial toner, apple pectin can sooth and refresh all skin types.

Apple-Pectin Toner

Ingredients:
1 apple, cut up with peel, seeds removed
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup witch hazel

Directions:
1.Place the cut-up apple in a small saucepan with the water. Bring to a boil and remove from the heat.
2.Allow the mixture to cool completely, then strain out the apple chunks. Stir in the witch hazel and pour into a clean container.
3.To use, spray or apply to skin using a clean cotton ball. Keep in refrigerator and use within one week.

Lastly, we can forget cranberries. Cranberries are naturally rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin K and plenty of other antioxidants, which will keep your skin looking healthy and may even decrease dark circles. This power-packed berry also acts as a natural toner, and when combined with moisture-rich honey and yogurt, creates a soothing mask.

Cranberry Lip Gloss

Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon organic sweet almond oil
10 fresh cranberries (organic if possible)
1 teaspoon organic honey
1 drop vitamin E oil

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
2. Microwave for two minutes or until just boiling. You could also heat your bowl in a pan of water on the stove.
3. Stir well and gently crush the berries.
4. Cool the berries for five minutes. Strain with a fine sieve until there are no fruit pieces left in your mix.
5. Stir and set aside to cool completely.
6. When cool, transfer into a small portable plastic container or tin. Store in refrigerator and use within a week.

Wake me up when spring arrives.

The Lemon/Chocolate Experiment: Day 1



I started my “Lemon Chocolate Experiment” a little more than 24 hours ago. So far, so good. I even noticed some ‘results’, be they psychological or not.

First let me clarify what I am doing and why. Every morning upon waking, I drink a cup of warm water with the juice of ¼ lemon. I don’t consume anything else for at least half an hour. Then later in the day or evening, I consume 1 oz. of organic dark chocolate. Why am I doing this? I’m constantly seeing articles about new health fads: the quinoa diet, the coconut oil diet, etc. Two that consistently pop up are the lemon water thing and the dark chocolate. I’ve researched both, and both seem to have some legit scientific backing.

The supposed benefits of the lemon water include: weight loss, improved digestion, boosts immune system, balances pH (reduces acidity in your body), clears your skin, acts as a diuretic, relieves respiratory problems, freshens breath, reduces stress, helps kick the coffee habit, hydrates the lymph system, boosts energy, flushes toxins from your liver and kidneys, suppresses appetite, reduces cellulite (because it increases blood flow to the skin and helps your body flush out waste), boosts your body’s ability to metabolize fat, and lowers your risk for heart disease, strokes, cataracts and gout because of the high amount of vitamin C. With all those claims, how could you NOT want to try it?!

I started out with ¼ lemon in one cup of water. I think by the weekend I will up it to ½ a lemon since it’s not as sour tasting as I thought it would be. And right now, I’m only doing it in the morning. The recommendation is if you weigh less than 150 pounds, squeeze the juice of one half a lemon (one ounce) into a glass of purified water and drink this mixture twice a day (one whole lemon a day.) If you weigh over 150 pounds, squeeze the juice out of an entire lemon (two ounces) into a glass of purified water and drink this mixture twice a day (two whole lemons a day.) The lemon juice can be diluted more according to taste.

I actually find that I’m looking forward to my lemon water when I wake up. It’s refreshing, and makes me feel like I’m doing something good for my body. I’ve found that I make better food choices during the day. I’m sure this is all psychological. And hey, it’s only been a little over a day.

On to the chocolate. There are many more articles out there about the benefits of eating dark chocolate. And the claims are just as numerous. They include weight loss, improved heart health, improved cognitive function, helps control blood sugar, has antioxidants (even more than the ‘superfruits’ acai, pomegranate, cranberry, and blueberry) which help fight free radicals, contains theobromine which helps harden tooth enamel, has anti-inflammatory properties, lowers cholesterol, stimulates endorphin production, contains serotonin, which acts as an anti-depressant and even has cancer fighting abilities. Like I needed an excuse to eat chocolate in the first place?! BUT it must be noted that none of this applies to milk chocolate, white chocolate or even some of the lame dark chocolate. These claims apply only to dark chocolate with high cacao (65% or greater) and low sugar levels.

But what about the fat in chocolate? Some of the fats in chocolate do not impact your cholesterol. The fats in chocolate are 1/3 oleic acid, 1/3 stearic acid and 1/3 palmitic acid:

•Oleic Acid is a healthy monounsaturated fat that is also found in olive oil.
•Stearic Acid is a saturated fat but one which research is shows has a neutral effect on cholesterol.
•Palmitic Acid is also a saturated fat, one which raises cholesterol and heart disease risk.

That means only 1/3 of the fat in dark chocolate is ‘bad’ for you.

I chose Endangered Species Chocolate for my experiment. I chose this brand because I like their ingredients (low sugar, high cacao content), it’s reasonably priced, part of the line is organic, they donate to animal causes/conservation efforts, oh and it tastes good. I decided for this experiment I would eat 1 oz a day. It was hard to find a recommendation for how much to eat a day, but 1 oz seemed reasonable. The big ESC bars are 3 oz, so this made it easy for me to divide it into thirds. The nutrition content for 1 oz. breaks down as follows:

Calories: 140 Total Fat: 12 (saturated 7.3, trans 0) Cholesterol: 0 Sodium: 0
Total Carbs: 14 (dietary fiber 3.3, sugars 8 ) Protein: 1

This is not something that was gonna kill my diet. The first day I made the mistake of leaving the chocolate bar on my desk all day. There it was. Staring at me. Saying “eat me!!”. Or maybe that was the PMS talking (sorry, TMI). I finally put it into my work bag and didn’t think about it again until later that night. My boyfriend HAS to eat some kind of dessert every night. And he never gains weight. It’s so frustrating. So last night as he was looking to devour a quarter of a chocolate cake with peanut butter icing, I grabbed my chocolate bar and started gnawing on it. I’m a fan of dark chocolate to begin with, so the slight bitterness is okay with me. The fact that it doesn’t have a lot of sugar, oils or other gooey junk that instantly melts in your mouth means it takes longer to chew….longer to savour. You spend more time eating an ounce of dark chocolate than you would popping three Hershey’s Kisses into your mouth. It’s an experience. I finished my last delicious bite just as he was finishing his last bite of the giant cake wedge. And I felt satisfied. I didn’t feel slighted or cheated because I didn’t have the cake. I felt GOOD. I had eaten my dessert, enjoyed it, and didn’t feel bloated or guilty. I could get used to this! In summary, the dark chocolate made me avoid making a poor food choice, gave me an enjoyable dessert experience, and had a positive impact on my mood. To me, it was a win-win.

Let’s see what happens over the next 29 days…..

How Blonde is Blonde Enough?



I’m a natural blonde. But I learned at an early age, apparently I wasn’t blonde enough. I remember I was about six years old when my mom started spraying Sun-In on my hair at the pool in the summer. This went on for years, so when I got older I continued the tradition, because blonde is apparently good. Then I learned that I could use the hair dryer instead of heat from the sun to get the same effect year round. Surprisingly, my hair handled the abuse pretty well. And then one summer I heard about girls mixing lemon juice with hydrogen peroxide to make their hair even MORE blonde. Well, this I had to try. I forget what ratio I used (lemon juice to peroxide) but it probably didn’t matter much. I dumped the mixture on my head and blasted it with a hair dryer. It worked…but turned my soft hair to straw. That was the last time I experimented with peroxide.

Late into my college years, I really started getting into herbs. I was mixing potpourris, cooking herbs and making herbal wreaths. I loved reading about the plants and their properties. There must be a mad scientist inside of me, because I once again started experimenting. After the development of our Herbal Aftershave, Tropical Lip Balm, Deodorant Powder and a few other products that have since been discontinued, I turned my attention back to hair. I knew infusions of lemon, chamomile and calendula could give me that oh-so-coveted “blonder” look. So I made a tea. And poured it on my hair and went out into the sun. It worked. But this time, my hair felt (and smelled) fabulous. I had to share this creation with everyone else who didn’t feel blonde enough.

I researched and created another blend for folks with dark hair. Soon I packaged my whole herbs into large tea bags which were sold in pretty printed envelopes. I kept this product around for a while, but discontinued it about four years ago as sales were sluggish. Maybe people didn’t want to bother making a tea for their hair. Or maybe it was easier to just use a hair dye.

I still think the concept of hair herbs is a cool one. If you want to try it, mix together the following:

Blonde: lemon peel, chamomile, calendula

Brunette: rosemary, sage, black tea, cloves, black walnut shells

Red: hibiscus, red rose petals, rose hips, red clover

Make a strong tea with your herbs, leaving them in the water for up to 30 minutes. After shampooing, apply your herbal rinse to hair. Comb through. The more often you use the tea, the more dramatic the results.

You can add other herbs which will benefit the condition of your hair too. If your hair is dry, try adding marshmallow root, elderflower, lavender or nettle. For oily hair, add yarrow, witch hazel bark, watercress, strawberry leaf, lemon balm or horsetail. Want your hair to have more body? Try oat straw, dandelion, burdock root and apple cider vinegar.

Herbal hair rinses are easy, beneficial, and fun to mix and feel as luxurious as a spa treatment. As for the blonde thing, no matter how stupid I think it is, part of it is still engrained in me. I wish it wasn’t. Hair color doesn’t determine how pretty or attractive you are. That comes from the inside.

How Do You Come Up With Your Color Names?

Make up should make you feel good. Make up should make you look good. But above all else, make up should be FUN. And when someone asks you what lipstick color are you wearing, isn’t it more fun to say, “Seduction” instead of “Pink Mauve”?

Sometimes people have issues with our names. I’ve had customers take offense to our eye liner name Smoking Gun. The name has nothing to do with a weapon. Smoking Gun refers to evidence that is highly suggestive in favor of a particular hypothesis. There are also customers who won’t buy our Orange Mimosa or Strawberry Champagne lip balms because their names have alcohol connotations. And I once had a very angry lady call me complaining that the Brown Sugar eye liner she purchased did not match the brown sugar she had in her cupboard.

But how do we come up with those crazy color names? Is there a formula to it, a science? Nope, it’s nothing like that. Sometimes it’s as simple as looking at a color and calling it what it looks like. The shade Chrome in the Rock the Smokey Eye Shadow Palette just looks like chrome. Sometimes we will post the color on our Facebook page and ask customers what they would name it. Other times we all sit around and look at the color and make a list of names we think we should call it, and then pick the best name from that list. Sometimes I’ll be driving to work and think “Hmm…Bombshell would be a cool name for a lipstick.” And then there are times when the names we come up with have a story behind them. Some of the stories are happy, some are melancholy, but I think the coolest names are the ones that have a meaning. I’ll share a few.

San Francisco – I’m not a city person. But if I was ever going to live in a city, it would be San Francisco. I just love it there.

Camelot – I think my dad secretly wanted to be a performer. I remember him bouncing around the house when I was little, singing “Light My Fire” by the Doors at the top of his lungs. But one of my favorite memories of him is when he would act out and sing songs from the musical Camelot. He acted so serious, like he was Richard Burton himself up on a NY stage. Used to make me laugh and that’s how I want to remember him.

Valentine – This is a family name on mom’s side. It makes me think of my mom, my grandmother and how much I miss them. Also I just missed being born on Valentine’s Day by 4 hours.

Fairy Dust – Okay, there’s a part in the movie “The Bird Cage” where Nathan Lane is rehearsing for his show. He’s supposed to be a getting a perfect mythical creature to come to life, so he waves his hand, motioning like he’s sprinkling something and says “fairy dust, fairy dust, fairy dust…” You’d have to see the movie – it’s a funny scene and one of my favorite movies of all time.

Mocha Latte – my favorite coffee drink and one my close friends tease me about (because I get it decaf, non-fat, no foam, no whip, one pump…..)

Sunset Strip – Named after the famous street in Hollywood. Kinda straight forward, but I love Hollywood (also the name of one of our lip gloss shades)

Charisma – A song by the band KISS

Vanilla Pie – This is an actual pie that a family member used to make. I swear it was pure sugar, but tasted heavenly.

Orange Mimosa – The first time I was in the Napa Valley region of California, I took a hot air balloon ride. It was magical. When that was over, there was a breakfast buffet prepared for us. It was the first time I was introduced to the drink orange mimosa, and I was in love!

PS Pink – PS does not stand for Post Script in this case…we won’t say what it stands for LOL

Falon – Named after my precious kitten who sadly passed away last year. She came to us in very bad shape (she was missing an eye) but we nursed her back to health and she was a sweetheart who was full of life. Her handicap never kept her down. Sadly she had feline leukemia which cut her vibrant life very short. We only had her for three years, but I’ll never forget how special she was.

Abyss – Our little kitten Falon was black as night, and we believe she was part Abyssinian.

Kashmir – Named in honor of a friend’s beloved cat who also passed away last year. She was named after a Led Zeppelin song.

Innuendo – a line in a song by Guns & Roses

Simplify: Less is the new More



The first week of August is national “Simplify your Life” week. Seems easy enough, right? Sometimes though, it can be downright overwhelming. With crazy schedules and growing responsibilities, we are always rushing around and looking to cut corners. Here are some of helpful tips that may help calm the chaos:

1. Limit the incoming. Paper, mail, phone calls. Get on the do not call list to limit the incoming phone calls. Call companies who send you junk mail and ask for your address to be removed from their files. Get your bills and financial statements online. Regularly delete messages from your answering machine and inbox.

2. Paper Management. Your filing system should have current items only – you don’t need grocery receipts from 1985. Go through your mail every single day and shred unnecessary paper. Have a special place for bills (a basket, a holder) and label them when you open them with the date and amount due. Keep stamps and a pen with the bills to make paying them more efficient.

3. Plan the night before. Before you go to bed each night, prep things for the morning. Your clothing, work bag, car keys, school items for the kids, gym bag, grocery list, items that you have to return to the store after work. Keep these items in one place and train yourself to look at that spot before walking out the door. You’ll never forget anything again.

4. If you haven’t used it in the past year, toss it. Give clothing and shoes to Goodwill, sell used electronic equipment on line, donate items that are still good. DE-CLUTTER. When there’s less stuff laying around and everything is in its place, you just physically FEEL better. More in control. Less stressed. It’s one of the founding principles of feng shui.

5. Plan meals a week in advance. Cook in bulk. Cook large meals and freeze them. This saves not only time but money.

6. Give everything its own place. Keys are on a table next to the door. Book bags hang on a hook in the mud room, even specific grocery items have their place in the pantry. That way when that space is vacant, you know you’re out of that item.

7. Keep a “to do” list. Prioritize what needs to be done each day. Check things off your list. It gives you a sense of accomplishment and keeps you motivated.

And don’t forget to take time out for YOU. Have a getaway space. Be it your bedroom, a spare room, a bathroom or even a corner of a room; make an area that is your sanctuary. A calming, relaxing space that is uncluttered, organized and stress-free.