If you’re looking for a young, hip, natural cosmetics, let me introduce you to J.Lynne Cosmetics. This mineral makeup line uses only high-quality, natural ingredients in order to let the “purely beautiful, naturally you” shine through. They’re also proud to say that they are cruelty free, so no testing on animals here!

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Every woman is concerned about breast cancer, I know it is a huge fear of mine.  Cancer does not run in my family, but that does not mean I am immune to it.  I am sure most of you have heard about antiperspirants being linked to cancer. It makes sense to me since I can tell the difference in my armpits when I use an antiperspirant, as opposed to deodorant (in emergencies only). My underarms break out and I develop ingrown hairs. Gross, I know! More »

Interesting name, wouldn’t you say? Well, it is more than just a name; it is the philosophy behind Nude skin care. This company creates its products to be biocompatible by using high performance bioavailable ingredients. The focus is that it works with your body’s own biology, so it recognizes it and helps it deliver the intended results.

One question and answer I found particularly interesting on the Nude web site was:

Why do we feed our skin chemicals we would never consider eating?
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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.

As I dive further and further into this world of beauty, I am learning more than I ever could imagine. Two years ago, I could never tell you what a paraben was, or that it had the potential of being harmful to your body. Now that I am a little more educated, I have started researching my products before buying them. I would like to think I am becoming some what of a beauty expert!

I have started to apply sunscreen every morning in these warmer months (I know this is something I should already be doing to avoid sun damage and skin cancer, and I am working on it!). In my quest for the perfect sunscreen, I found this company called Juice Beauty. I had actually seen a product by them in a Sephora sample kit and decided to look into them a little more.

Upon researching Juice Beauty, I found that they produce organic products. The one I zoned in on was the Mineral Medium Moisturizer with SPF 20. This is a tinted moisturizer made from a patent pending organic juice base. The formula uses over 60 active organic ingredients to create the 100% organic juice base. The total organic content of the product is 95%. That is amazing, seeing that most products that claim to be organic are really on about 5%. More »