Belli Skin Care announces the launch of their new and improved Web site on August 5, 2008! If you read our first post on Belli Skin Care ~ For the Baby Bump and Beyond, you know how fabulous this product line really is. Belli has skin and body care products geared towards new moms, moms to be, and babies, and it is now right up my alley…yes, at the time of writing this post, I am now expecting!
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This past Saturday, I had the opportunity to attend the Fashion Day Soiree held at the Ritual Supper Club in Hollywood. Priscilla Thomas founded this event; she holds events several times a year in different metropolitan cities.Priscilla states, “While attending our fun and fabulous events you are also contributing to the betterment of many individuals who may be suffering hard times or children that are at a disadvantage. All of our events benefit a wonderful women or children’s charity. It is my favorite way to give back.” More »

After some serious reading, analyzing, and debating, a winner was selected for the Fab Freebie Giveaway, commemorating Beauty Chat’s one year anniversary. Congrats to Kristen who left this comment:

“I’m brand new to this site, and all I can say is WOW! I’ve probably just spent…Oh my god! The past 3 hours (at work, mind you) just reading through all the great articles and reviews of products! I have to say that my favorite so far is “Somme Many Skincare Choices, What’s A Girl to Do?” by Denice. The title is so clever, and the way she talks about the skincare system really makes me want to try it, and gets me excited to do so! Thanks for all the great info Beauty Chat!”

Kristen, while we don’t condone blogging on the job, we’d like to say that we greatly appreciate your delinquency =) Don’t tell your boss that we said this, but feel free to read Beauty Chat whenever you have the urge! Each of our staff writers thank you for the warm words and are glad to have you as a reader.

Now, on to the “Plastic Makes Perfect” T-shirt giveaway. Four lucky ladies were awarded this prize, and they are: Laura Lapcheska, Mikki, Dee, and JB. It was no easy task narrowing down the terrific comments that were left for us, but these entries really stood out.

Once again, thank you to everyone who entered both contests. And if you didn’t win this time, that’s okay because there are more fab freebies coming your way. In fact, check back with us next week!

                        (Would you wear these? Found on Secretlifeofshoes.blogspot.com)

Be safe, enjoy your weekend, and catch up with your favorite Beauty Chat team on Monday.  More hot topics, product reviews, and interviews coming your way next week!

I know it’s been awhile since I vowed to keep our readers abreast of the trends in natural skin and personal care. The unfortunate truth is, there hasn’t been much news for me to share with you – until now. As it turns out, the Natural Products Association revealed a new “seal of approval” program for natural certification on May 1, 2008 – and I missed it! Finally, there’s a standard definition for companies that boast natural and holistic claims to abide by. So, with my sincerest apologies for letting this go unnoticed, I give you a few of the association’s stringent criteria for products that wish to be legitimately placed in the natural category:

• The product must be made up of at least 95 percent truly natural ingredients (or ingredients that are derived from natural sources)
• No ingredients with any potential suspected human health risks
• No processes that significantly or adversely alter the purity/effect of the natural ingredients
• Ingredients must come from a purposeful, renewable/plentiful source found in nature (flora, fauna, mineral)
• Processes must be minimal, and without synthetic/harsh chemicals or other dilution of purity
• Non-natural ingredients are acceptable only when a viable, natural alternative ingredient is unavailable, and only when there are absolutely no suspected potential human health risks

And it doesn’t stop there! The association, which is partially made up of experts from natural product manufacturers (including consumer faves like Burt’s Bees and Farmaesthetics), provides the full criteria at: www.naturalproductsassoc.org/certifiednatural. Because this group is the nation’s largest natural products, non-profit organization, representing more than 10,000 retailers and distributors, I think we can be confident that this program is an effective way of determining who’s natural – and who’s not. Start looking for the Natural Products Association Seal of Approval on the shelves within the coming year (keep in mind that it may take a while for every qualified product to receive its seal).

Who’s excited? I know I am! Let me know if this announcement will make a difference in the way you shop for personal care products.

Photo credits: Natural Products Association and Tractenberg & Co.