| |||||||||||
 Patagonia is a member of 1% for the Planet Message Brought to You by Patagonia & Eco Consulting * Eco Media |
Follow Us On Twitter@GreeningHollywd
The Green Blog Network
Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood
Greening Beauty
Greening Vancouver
Beauty Secrets from France's "Biotiful" People...
“Silky-young to the touch”
Far and away one of the most delightful and dedicated organic skin-care lines to come out of France is Iroisie. Founders Anne Bontour and Jean-Francois Cabos have just launched their product line in the U.S. Lucky US!
Creator Anne Bontour was inspired to create a beauty care line from the natural potions and beauty remedies she remembers both her grandmothers habitually dreaming up when Anne would spend summers with them at the Mer d'Iroisie in France's northern Brittany. She infused one grandmother's passion for ingredients from the Sea with the other's passion for ingredients from the “campagne” and voila', Iroisie was born. “As 'homemade' beauty preparations were my childhood universe, I came up naturally with the idea of developing a real skincare line using both of these two treasures, treasure from the sea and treasure from the earth,” reminisces Bontour, a former model.
There was never a doubt in her mind that the line would be entirely organic, as organic has long been her life philosophy. Bontour also maintains that all her products had to smell good, to be inviting to use everyday not just for their efficacy but for the pleasure of texture and scent.
The French seem more fond of using nourishing and hydrating oils for both skin and hair. When the oils are 100% organic and natural-based, the absorption into the hair and skin follicles is efficient and leave no trace of oil residue - just silky soft skin and hair!
HUILE ANTI-ÂGE À L’ABRICOT
BODY ANTI-AGING OIL WITH APRICOT EXTRACT
We are a big fan of Iroisie's Apricot Body Anti-Aging Oil. The scent is ravishingly delicate – sun-kissed and clean with that hint of “Provence” that reminds you of warm summer days and langorous home-from-the-beach afternoons.
Its precious ingredients are Apricot, Ylang-ylang, Avocado, Cranberry, and Seaweed Extract. The oil is naturally concentrated in A, B and E vitamins and in essential fatty acids.
Iroisie Slimming Oils and Serums
French women are also known for their sleek and slim bodies. Iroisie can help you achieve this beautiful silhouette with several of their products designed to reduce cellulite and help the body rid itself of toxins.
L’HUILE MINCEUR: SLIMMING OIL: reshapes the body
Results of clinical studies : 95% more beautiful skin; 95% more toned skin. Precious ingredients : Slimming spices bio-complex
LE CONCENTRÉ MINCEUR: SLIMMING SERUM This fresh and non greasy serum is specially designed for fast and efficient slimming.
Results of clinical studies : 98% smoother skin; 78% reduction in “orange peel” skin.
Precious ingredients: Guarana – Sandalwood - Slimming seaweed bio complex
Nourished, Protected, Respected
Iroisie skincare sources its precious ingredients from the rarest of the oceans, obtaining its raw marine materials from protected natural places classified by UNESCO. The UNESCO's Man & Biosphere program has given Iroisie express permission to harvest the seaweed from the Iroisie Sea, a protected UNESCO site, on condition they do so with total respect for and in harmony with the ecosystem. Thus, they “harvest seaweeds from May to October and only by hand to keep the roots alive.”
These precious ingredients yield extraordinary properties. For example, these marine sourced active ingredients have a concentration 20 times higher for natural anti-oxidants, 80 times higher for calcium and 35 times higher for iron than the active botanical agents commonly used. Iroisie's active plant ingredients are harvested only from the best organically farmed plants and also in a sustainable way. Their ingredients are culled from crops yielding the highest concentrations in essential nutrients such as vitamins, restorative minerals, trace elements, amino acids, omegas 3, 6 and 9 and powerful anti-oxidants chosen specifically for their optimal performance with skin cell metabolism.
PATE D’ALGUES AMINCISSANTE (transl.) = SLIMMING SEAWEED MUD
Exceptional concentration of active marine ingredients allows rapid actions of draining and slimming. Precious ingredients : Rose - Peppermint - Bitter orange – Seaweed extracts
Iroisie's full line of skincare luxury items include facial firming care for face and neck, Botanical Anti-Wrinkle Smoothing Care, Instant Beauty Fresh Mask, Gentle Facial and Eye Cleanser Gel...in other words, you will find a perfect solution for all your skin needs, face and body, with Iroisie. Their white and gold packaging is elegant and understated...and ever so chic!
Organic – EcoCert – Certified
Each Iroisie product is certified organic by Ecocert, Europe's Top organic certification body which maintains the strictest of standards. All Iroisie products are formulated without parabens, silicones, chemical preservatives, mineral oils, synthetic fragrances/colorants animal extracts, phenoxyethanol or GM ingredients. Iroisie is pleased to gurantee the origins of all their skincare ingredients.
For product and information: www.iroisie.com 346 rue Saint-Honoré75001 Paris
Relatively new on the Eco Beauty scene is ekia, the French beauty care line by Carine Mudry, a veteran of l'Oréal, who launched her new regime based on two primary principles: 1. exquisite care for mature skin 2. All organic to the highest standards.
So far? Success! Since only April 2009 have the ekia products been on the market in France and already they are carried in major natural beauty care retail outlets throughout Paris and the Provence. Two new products that ekia introduced just this summer are both targeted towards the fragile skin surrounding the eyes: Le Gel Lift Paupières and Le Baume Regard.
Le Baume Regard is formulated to revitalize the eye area and can be used to stall the signs of aging in the skin that can surface around the eye area from many factors - not just age – such as stress, fatigue, free radicals, smoking, sun over-exposure and other damaging environmental conditions for the skin. Le Gel Lift Paupieres is a serum formulated to firm and lift the eye area. It works immediately upon application, its concentrated formula giving the eye area a brightening effect that seems to magically remove signs of fatigue. These two products can be used individually and have also been designed to work together. First apply the Gel Lift serum to the eyelids, wait one minute to allow for penetration, and then finish the application to the surrounding eye area with Le Baume Regard. Using the products like this allows for perfect synergy in the ingredients.
Dragon's Blood
What is ekia's “magic ingredient”? It is nothing less than the mythical-sounding “dragon's blood” or “Sang du Dragon”(in French) which comes from the sap of a tree in the Amazon. This ingredient has been proven to boost cellular regeneration by 40%. The sap is particularly interesting for the skin around the eye area because it is anti-inflammatory and it is rich in polyphenols and anti-oxidants.
In fact, most of the ekia skincare line has at the heart of its ingredient recipe, this Dragon's Blood, derived from the Croton Lechleri tree in South America. The sap from this tree has been used for thousands of years by the local population to treat all kinds of external and internal ailments, including ulcers.
Organic Skincare That Works
Ekia is one of those rare natural-based, organic skincare lines that has proven its efficacy with clinical tests. The line went so far as to test each line of its products on 150 women, all of whom were 50+ years old over a period of three months. They documented the product's results using an independent dermatologist and close-up photography that used no lighting effects or photoshop retouching. The positive results on the women's skin are clearly visible.
Ekia Skincare comes in three main lines: Crème Initial – stimulating; Crème Intense – Restorative; and Crème Extreme – Revitalizing. In Paris and throughout France you can find the line in all the top organic beauty retail outlets. You can also find it at: www.ekia-cosmetiques.com.
Around since the early 90's, “Nature at Heart,” Melvita is France's organic beauty brand that has been doing beauty naturally long before green was seen as glam! Walking into a Melvita Natural Beauty boutique in Paris or anywhere in “provence” and you instantly fee like you're on safe ground.
There is also no lack of choice for products. Whatever beauty care need you might have at the moment, Melvita has a solution for you. Dry skin?Try any of their range of face and body skin care products. A couple of our favorites are the aromatic, smelling-of-provence-herbs Melvita Naturalift® crème anti-age certified cosmetique-bio; also their Huile d'Onagre which is wonderful as a decollete' treatment. Determined to use only a natural-based deoderant for health and beauty reasons? Melvita has a range of affordable, effective and good-smelling deoderants. Shampoo? What a selection! Conditioner without parabens? How many types and scents are you willing to try in one go?
Melvita is the affordable and truly organic line of beauty and personal care products that you would expect to find at your neighborhood Whole Foods store or the Organic section of your local market. Its fresh, white and green packaging is easy to spot and also made from recycled materials.
So how did Melvita craft such a loyal brand following ages before “paraben” became a dirty word in the beauty industry? Simple: Dedication to organically sourced products and clean, fresh ingredients. When you use a product stamped with the Melvita brand, you can be sure that:
“We adhere to these standards with passion and conviction,” commented a Melvita spokesperson when Greening Hollywood spoke to him about the EcoCert certification processes and standards. Melvita carries the EcoCert label, one of the strictest organic certification labels anywhere, not just in Europe. EcoCert demands the above minimum requirements be met for any beauty and personal care products it certifies. They also oversee and monitor the application of the label CosmeBio so that it is only applied to those products that meet the strictest ecological production and organic formulation.
“An article came out on June 21st in Inside Cosmeceuticals that outlines how Whole Foods' U.S. Stores will require all personal care products and cosmetics making “organic” claims to be third-party certified by June 1st 2011. This points to the fact that there is a wide range of products out there making all sorts of 'organic'claims in the U.S. With Melvita, we list the percentage of the 'total ingredients from natural origin,' and the 'total ingredients from organic farming,' on each of our products. There is no grey area for us.'
In keeping with Melvita's philosophy never to use any ingredients that might be harmful to the body or the Earth, it does not use any of the following Big No No Ingredients: Silicons, Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate, EDTA, phthalates, Formol Generators, Parabens, Phenoxyethanol, Troclosan, Mineral Oil or Chemical Sunscreens. Nada. Not in Melvita!
Melvita is now widely available in the U.S. Check the website for retail outlets: www.usa.melvita.com
Follow Us On Twitter@GreeningHollywd
by Rachel Sarnoff
Think Eco-Beauty’s expensive? We’re out to prove you wrong, beginning with your hair. Because there’s nothing more ego-stoking than a fabulous coif, and nothing more disappointing than realizing said coif is dependent on $150 worth of toxic hair products. Luckily, we sourced everything you need—from shampoo to shine—in products that retail for $20 or less. And lest you forget what you’re reading, these are all crafted with organic and truly natural ingredients, eschewing anything on our Big List of Things That Suck, natch.
Because you’re worth it.
European beauty standards are notoriously more strict than American, so when we heard Lavera was ranked first in a German study on safe cosmetics conducted by Oeko-Test and that they were certified natural by the European BDIH organization, we knew they were solid. The fact that they have shampoos ($15 and under) for pretty much every type of hair on the planet? Pure gravy.
Renowned for taming the tresses of everyone from Demi Moore to Sting, Tara Smith was named the U.K.’s “hairdresser of the year” in 2009. We think this might have something to do with the genius that is her Base Coat Serum ($9.95). Formulated with gamma linolenic acid-rich borage oil, the vegan Serum works with all hair types to finesse everything from corkscrew curls to lackluster locks.
A 1980’s big-hair staple, mousse pretty much went out with the Go-Gos. But for limp-haired ladies, there’s nothing better to volumize—providing your mousse of choice doesn’t contain propane, a common ingredient far better suited to you barbecue than your head. We like propane-free Eufora Formation Whipped Styling Solution ($19.50), which delivers all the volumizing of a mousse, without the oh-so-outré name.
Follow Us On Twitter@GreeningHollywd
There's no shortage of bath and body products made with organic ingredients or otherwise positioned as earth and human friendly. Hoping to stand out in that increasingly crowded marketplace, a new German company is taking things a step further: instead of a regular brand name, it operates under a message: Stop The Water While Using Me.
Stop The Water currently sells shampoo (EUR 13) and shower gel (EUR 12) through its online store, with toothpaste in the works (EUR 8). All products are made with organic and/or natural ingredients, packaged in biodegradable containers, and manufactured with sustainability in mind. But the standout feature is that message, reminding people to switch off the tap while lathering up.
Managed by ad executive Stefan Kolle, Hamburg-based Stop The Water was shortlisted for a 2010 Cannes Lion and is currently seeking retailers to sell its products. Whether or not you sell bath products, the concept of message-as-brand is worth a brainstorm.
Website: www.stopthewaterwhileusingme.com
Follow Us On Twitter@GreeningHollywd
by Irina Wardas
In a previous article on lycopene, we learned that super foods can be used to protect our skin and face from sun damage; papaya, rich in natural enzymesand alpha-hydroxy acids is one such food. Papaya and other fruits, can also be used to make a honey face mask by adding honey or plain yogurt. But did you know that you can also use papaya to make your lips look luscious and flake free? I would like to share with you some tips on how to make a lip facial to exfoliate your lips with papaya from The Green Bea For a quick lip exfoliation, use ripe, juicy papaya. You can use leftovers from a fruit salad or dessert. Mash the papaya flesh into a juicy paste so that you get at least a tablespoon of puree. Apply a generous amount of papaya pulp to the lips and skin around the lips. Leave on for ten to fifteen minutes. Rinse off with warm water and enjoy smooth, flake-free lips. For an even quicker exfoliation, rub the inside of papaya skin against your lips for a few minutes. By the way, pineapple has also natural enzymes andalpha-hydroxy acids that can be used for face exfoliation to rejuvenate, restore elasticity and add glow to our skin. So, next time you want to make a pineapple and papaya smoothie as an energy booster or midday snack, don’t forget it is one of the best lip facial beauty remedies. P.S. Don’t miss our discussion on Natural Beauty Tips and Remedies with holistic nutritionist and author of her best selling book The Green Beauty Guide, Julie Gabriel. We will be live on Feel and Look Fabulous with Irina on Tuesday, July 20th at 11:00am PT Follow Us On Twitter@GreeningHollywd
The Green Blog Network
Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood
Greening Beauty
Greening Vancouver
From: Campaign for Safe Cosmetics
July 14, 2010 www.safecosmetics.org
We have the opportunity to reach millions of people around the world with "The Story of Cosmetics", creating a wave of support for an effective, common-sense law that will ensure all cosmetics and personal care products are safe.
Earlier this month we asked you to help launch this film - and we've been blown away by your response so far.CLICK HERE TO WATCH STORY OF COSMETICS TRAILER HERE JULY 21st RELEASE DATE
THANK YOU to everyone who has already who's already donated and offered to spread the film far and wide! Because of you, we're almost halfway to our goal of raising the money we need to put the finishing touches on the movie and create opportunities for viewers to turn their learning into action. But we're not there yet!
Good enough to eat. We say it about dessert—and that gorgeous guy on the second floor who hoses off his mud-covered mountain bike in the courtyard on Saturdays.
Yummy.
But what about beauty? If you consider that 60% of what goes on our skin goes in our bodies, wouldn’t it make sense to use products that are safe enough to eat in the first place?
When we put our favorites to the test, we found that many of them are—technically—edible. That’s because they eschew parabens, phthalates, synthetic perfumes and other petro-chemicals in favor of truly natural, organic-whenever-possible ingredients.
Note the use of the word “technical.” Please don’t call us with a bellyache after you decide to make your face mask your meal: These products are formulated without taste in mind, no matter how safe they might be to ingest. Oh, and p.s. we scored $1,300 in edible eco-beauty giveaways!
The Environmental Working Group shook up the beauty industry last year when it found that 60% of lipsticks contain lead, a known neurotoxin. Add to that the fact that the average woman eats about nine pounds of lipstick over the course of her lifetime—just from licking her lips. Ick.
That’s why we love Primitive lipsticks. Made with natural waxes, shea butter, vanilla extract and vitamin E, the rainbow of gorgeous colors in the Primitive line up is created exclusively from elements like iron oxides and carmine. Lip smackin’.
Cosmetic chefs David Parker and Margaret Skarin are organic beauty veterans—he as a NorCal spa owner and she of Blue Lotus Organic Skincare fame—but when the two joined forces in 2002 to create The Body Deli their goal was to take it a step further with products so clean you could eat them. Hence the refrigerators in their flagship Palm Desert, CA store—and the allegiance of local farmers in the California Central Valley. With a truly unique range of products for women and men—our favorite, hands down, is the ever-so-masculine, sandalwood-heavy, Spanish Fly line of scrub, wash, lotion and soap—The Body Deli truly serves it up. Take a number.
It’s seriously hard not to eat Bodykor’s Chocolate Macadamia Mask—it smells that good. Made with organic almond oil, antioxidant-rich chocolate, organic shea butter, macadamia nut oil and honey, among other natural ingredients, the hydrating mask penetrates without any greasy feeling, leaving skin soft and supple. Go ahead, take a lick!
Sweet Beauty takes the concept a step further, with an entire line of Theo Organic Chocolate spa treatments like something out of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” only guilt-free. We’ve been addicted to their lip balms for years, but our new faves are Sweet Beauty’s Pot de Crème body creams made with shea butter and grape seed oils, which present a chocolate flavor base accented by rose, coconut, coffee or a double shot of cacao. Mouth-watering.
A pinch of salt highlights the sweet, and nowhere do we find this to be truer than in Golden Path Alchemy’s Kiwi Coconut Exfoliating Mask, crafted with brightening kiwi enzymes, antioxidant-rich coconut milk and acerola cherry fruit acids, complemented by Himalayan sea salt. Hand-made in small batches from USDA Certified Organic food-grade ingredients—many of them sourced from the company’s own organic farm in Montecito, CA—the entire GPA line is edible and based on the five elements of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Tata Harper wants you to feed your head. Or your face, rather, with her eponymous and uniformly edible line of unique custom skincare products, made with love on her organic farm in Vermont. The Rebuilding Moisturizer is a perfect example: Minus the superficial silicones that leave skin with an oily finish, Tata Harper Rebuilding Moisturizer includes naturally-fermented sodium hyaluronate and organic raw honey to protect from sun damage. Amazingly, Tata’s Moisturizer leaves the skin matte, yet hydrated. Dig in.
Follow Us On Twitter@GreeningHollywd
An adult Brown Pelican gets evaluated upon his arrival at the International Bird Rescue Research Center in Fort Jackson, Louisiana. The IBRRC cleans birds covered in oil from the Deepwater Horizon wellhead. Photo: Daniel Beltra
Posts
