I never used to get my nails done. Nail polish is completely wasted on me. It lasts about… ok, let me be generous and say 24 hours. That is before the polish gets scuffed or chipped. Usually, there is at least one nail that gets smudged within the hour. So, manicures were never my thing. Simply no worth the time and certainly not the expense. That is, until I tried the “No Chip” (aka gel) mani. That changed everything.

I first tried a No-chip a year ago, right before a big event that I was organizing and I needed to look, well… polished. I decided to test the no-chip as I knew that I was in for an afternoon of setting up the room for the event. That meant moving furniture, scratching off labels, tearing open packaging of all sorts and working with lots of nail-unfriendly tools. The result: not a chip in sight and my nails still looked freshly painted, even two weeks later.

I only thought I’d share this now because I’m still meeting so many women who have not treated themselves to getting their nails done recently for the very reasons I mentioned above. It seems that they have been timid to try the gel manis. So, for those of you still on the fence, here’s the scoop:

• Gel lacquer takes NO time to dry. Each coat of applied gel is cured for two minutes under a UV light. The gel finish is hard and dry and you can pay for your manicure immediately after the fact since fumbling for your wallet and keys in your purse will not damage your nails.
• The gel manicure will last up to three weeks with nails still as lustrous as the day the polish was applied. The only problem that I have with this is the visible nail growth that occurs over that period.
• Nails are stronger with the gel coating. That’s great if you want to grow your nails. It would probably help nail bitters too.
• Many of the gel lacquers are free of DBP, toluene and formaldehyde, which makes them safer and healthier to use. Kinda.
• Don’t peel off the gel by yourself. This will damage your nails. A nail technician should do it for you by soaking them for ten minutes or so.
• A no-chip manicure is about $15 more expensive than a regular one. But it will last, in my case at least, infinitely longer. That is two to three weeks.
• The Shellac brand is my favorite, for its colors, adherence and long lasting-ness. It doesn’t look visibly thicker than regular polish. Just glossier.

Here’s what my nails look like after 8 days following my recent gel/no chip manicure. I chose red to match the festive season. They look perfect, no? I think I have another 10 with these, at least!

So, as you can guess, my conclusion is try it. I can’t get to the nail salon on a weekly basis, but I do treat myself and go a half dozen times a year now, knowing that the expense will produce results for a good two weeks.

Also, still on nail trends, but more on the DIY side, you’ll want to know all about Magnetic Polish. Along the lines of the metallic polish trend that we reported last spring, but taken to new heights! Indeed the magnetic polish by Nails Inc. works by separating the iron powder in the polish when a magnet is run over it to create a distinctive pattern.  It’s exclusively available in three colors through Sephora for $16. Could be great fun for New Year’s Eve.

Enjoy!

If you are not familiar with E.L.F. makeup, you should know that they have an extensive line of cosmetics and makeup essentials that are incredibly INexpensive but that do NOT compromise on quality (just read their reviews and you will see what I mean).

E.L.F. now has a complete line of Mineral Makeup. Their mineral eyeshadows  are 100% mineral based with no parabens, preservatives or chemical dyes. They are rich with vitamins A, B, C and E that help hydrate the eyelids and minimize the appearance of fine lines.

And, you must be starting to get invitations to all those holiday parties? Want to make a dramatic appearance? Each mineral eyeshadow color is just $3.00 each, that’s… oh… about $10 less than what other well known brands charge for the same thing.

Also, to help get that dramatic look, E.L.F. has a complete line of ergonomically designed makeup brushes. Their brushes are professionally tested so that you can apply your makeup precisely and more evenly for a flawless finish every time. The brush sets range from $5.00 – $30.00. Not sure what brush is right for you? Their Brush Guide can help you choose the right ones for your needs.

Head to E.L.F. and check out their current offer (there is always a good promotion going on). And remember, Christmas is only 54 days away (oy!) so you may as well stock up on stocking stuffers while you are there.

I’m pleased to announce that dry shampoo is no longer what it used to be. It has evolved and has now become a versatile styling tool that adds volume and texture to hair. Personally, I have been using it more than usual this summer to remedy sweaty-summer-hair syndrome.

Dry shampoo is a powder, available in a shaker, spray canister or “pouff” bottle. The powder absorbs the oil that makes hair look greasy between washes. Simply apply to the root area and brush to remove the excess. It’s the best quick fix to get you on your way, hair looking refreshed and well-coiffed.

Which dry shampoos to choose?  There is something in every price range:

PSSSSSST Instant Dry Shampoo. The no-frills classic is available at almost any drugstore for about $5.99.	HerCut Dry Shampoo protects color. This one for normal hair but there is also a formula for oily hair. On sale for $11 at Sephora.	The Oscar Blandi Dry Shampoo gets great reviews for adding volume and removing dirt in a matter or seconds. About $19.00.

Of course, there are many more choices to be had. Check your beauty supply stores or online such as Ulta and Drugstore.com.

Alternatively, if you are the DIY type, why not make your own? Here’s a recipe for that.

Either way, let us know how it all works out!

As most of you, I have become acutely aware of the toxic chemicals abundantly present in our personal care and homecare products. I am making a progressive effort to move everything to all-natural products. That includes home cleaning products, body lotions, shampoos, makeup and… self-tanners.

Most self-tanning lotions contain dihydroxyacetone (DHA) as the active ingredient. DHA is a colorless sugar that interacts with the dead cells on the top skin layer and causes a temporary change in color (see what the Beauty Brains say). In itself, this has not been proven dangerous (unless inhaled or ingested, as in a tanning booth environment) so it’s really the toxicity of the remaining ingredients that has me concerned. It’s the usual culprits, parabens, phthalates, petroleum, synthetic fragrances and dyes that I want to stay away from.

So, eager to don a more luminous glow along with my new sandals, I went looking for a chemical-free and safe self-tanning lotion. I found two that I would highly recommend:

True Natural Cosmetics. It’s mission is “…to provide you with high performance, chemical-free personal care products that are safe for you, your family & the environment. safely biodegradable and contain no parabens, phthalates, petroleum, synthetic fragrances or dyes of any kind”.  The Self Tanner Face and Body is vegan, cruelty-free, and 100% free from harmful chemical ingredients. As opposed to DHA, True Natural’s self-tanner uses a combo of naturally occurring sugars found in certain fruits and vegetables. These sugars react with amino acids found in the outer layer of the skin, creating a nontoxic reaction which gives skin a tanned look. It also contains natural jojoba oil, aloe vera and green tea extract for hydrating and anti-oxidant benefits.  Buy the 3 oz self tanner directly from TrueNaturals.com, on Amazon.com or Drugstore.com for under $20.00. Look for their all natural sunscreens too.

Lavera is certified BDIH in Germany which is the toughest certification process anywhere in the world for natural and organic products. All Lavera products are designed for sensitive skin, made with pure, organic plant oils, herb and flower extracts, free from parabens and synthetic preservatives , free from fragrances, emulsifiers and petroleum based ingredients and also Cruelty Free, Gluten Free, GMO Free.

In the case of this natural sunless tanning lotion, it’s the organic soy extracts that provide the active ingredient and are combined with extracts of sugar to deliver a smooth application and an even result. Organic jojoba oil, lavender, aloe vera and rose water are added for moisturizing benefits. I discovered Lavera when shopping on Alice.com where the 5 oz tube sells for $24.70. I have enjoyed the streak-free, natural looking results.

I’m quite sure that I don’t need to remind you that self-tanners are NOT sun protection and that you still need to use sun screen to protect your skin. But, you knew that.

I saw it on the fashion runways (well, I mean on the photographs of the runways) but now I am seeing it on the streets and, I must say that I really love this new trend. Metallic Nail Polish creates bling without having to wear it. From metallic silver, gold and brass, to metallic green, black and plum colors. It can give a dramatic look to an outfit, but can easily be worn for daytime wear also, especially with short nails. My treat once a month is to get a pedicure. I usually skip the manicure due to the fact that these only last for about two days but today I decided to give it a try and go for a metallic silver.

I know it may sound crazy but looking at my nails wearing Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous by O.P.I. (search for it on the O.P.I. site under metallics) brings out my confident alter ego. I feel like I am not just the respectable soccer mom, carpool lady or school volunteer but an unrestrained, independent woman as I check out my blinged-out nails while steering my Honda minivan down the wide open highways of Southern California. How liberating nail polish can be!

I think I may try these shades next:

	Nars Desperado – A beautiful shade of antique brass. Get ready Scott, we are going dancing!
	Dior Vernis Nail Polish in Czarina Gold – True decadence right there on your nails
	Butter London Diamond Geezer 3 Free Nail Lacquer – So shiny and yet totally free of the nasty stuff: DPB, Toulene and formaldehyde free.
	And if I can’t decide? KLEANCOLOR High-Metallic Nail Lacquer Mini Collection has six different metallic shades for around $10.00. You can play around with these to see which metallic strand fits your alter egos of the day.
	If you want the true gold look, you’ll have to go where the pros are, specifically where you can get a set of Minx professionally applied. Here is a store locator to find a salon near you.

And now, five years later, at 47 and still resistant to cosmetic procedures (though often tempted), I think it’s time to revisit the practice of facial fitness. It’s less invasive and certainly less expensive than surgery and needles.

If you want to play & experiment, there’s a panoply of books out there on the very subject of Facial Fitness. This is the one I got a few years ago and just pulled out again, “Five Minute Face-Lift“. The exercises are well illustrated and easily explained though, I promise, you will look as if you are grimacing throughout the routine. So, unless you would like to entertain your family in that way, I suggest that you do these exercises solo, in front of a mirror for your own personal amusement. And beautification. Personally, I also do the exercises when driving, though not while stuck in traffic (Mom, look at that lady, why is she making all those faces…?).

I’m now officially on a routine to lift my brow and my jaw line.

Need convincing? Watch this video that re-inspired me to get on a daily facial fitness routine. How can this woman, Eva Fraser, be 79???

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you want to take this fitness-for-the-face to the next level, here is a new product line that couples anti-aging face care with facial fitness. The Mama Mio formulas pride themselves on going “beyond skin deep”, i.e. targeting the supporting muscles as well as the skin that covers them.  Theirs are High Protein formulas (includes some serious ingredients: peptides and amino acids, algae extract, hyaluronic acid, grape stem cell technology, pre+probiotics, omegas, aloe vera, vitamins and mega-antioxidants) that are said to improve collagen and elastin levels, reduce wrinkles and improve skin tone and elasticity. Mama Mio believes in facial fitness as complement to excellent skincare but also “… whenever you work the muscles you are also stimulating circulation, increasing oxygen and boosting the lymphatic system to give your skin that beautiful healthy glow”. I like their philosophy.

For now, I’m picking funny faces and good quality potions & lotions over needles & scalpels.

Birchbox is a subscription service that will send its monthly subscribers a lovely, hand-packaged box with four to five luxury beauty samples. Cost? $10 per month and it includes shipping. The samples include well-known brands like Laura Mercier, NARS, Stila and Phyto. They also include lesser-known, hard-to-find, niche and prestige brands. Beauty samples can include makeup, skincare, body and hair product and fragrances.

New members fill out a beauty profile (hair color, skin type) that allows Birchbox to better match samples to your coloring, skin type and style preferences.

If you love any particular sample, a full-size version is available in the Birchbox store.  If you don’t love it, Birchbox welcomes the feedback that it will convey to the brand in question.

Birchbox also provides beauty and “how to” advise in it’s online magazine and through video demos (see their YouTube channel here).

Click here to view the embedded video.

All around very cool. I just signed up and am looking forward to discovering the goodies in my box. I also think that a yearly subscription is a fantastic gift idea for the beauty product junkie in your midst.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Whether or not you have seen these videos, thought the actor goofy but endearing (his name is Austin Craig) and bought the product, you should know about the very serious (read in a deep, low voice) importance of tongue cleaning and scraping. Indeed, I first learned about this from my yoga/Pilates/all-things-wellbeing teacher, Ki at the Ki-Atsu Institute. She taught me about all the Ayurvedic daily cleansing rituals. I have been cleaning my tongue ever since and cannot fathom going through my day without doing first doing this. Yuck.

Yuck is the operative word when discussing the whole subject of tongue cleansing and all the residue stuck on the tongue.  But since none of us want to impose halitosis on others, the subject is worth talking about. Here is the  clinical explanation (Wikipedia) of what happens on the tongue:

The most common location for mouth-related halitosis is the tongue. Tongue bacteria produce malodorous compounds and fatty acids, and account for 80 to 90 percent of all cases of mouth-related bad breath. Large quantities of naturally-occurring bacteria are often found on the posterior dorsum of the tongue, where they are relatively undisturbed by normal activity. This part of the tongue is relatively dry and poorly cleansed, and bacterial populations can thrive on remnants of food deposits, dead epithelial cells, and postnasal drip. The convoluted microbial structure of the tongue dorsum provides an ideal habitat for anaerobic bacteria, which flourish under a continually-forming tongue coating of food debris, dead cells, postnasal drip and overlying bacteria, living and dead. When left on the tongue, the anaerobic respiration of such bacteria can yield either the putrescent smell of indole, skatole, polyamines, or the “rotten egg” smell of volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) such as hydrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptan, Allyl methyl sulfide, and dimethyl sulfide.

Gross. But, the cute Orabrush videos explain the same thing visually and humorously (especially the Norman the Tongue series). After scraping my tongue with a metal scraper for the last few years, I bought the Orabrush last month. I have to admit that I gagged for the first three days of using it. Rough way to start the day. But it’s completely worth getting used to. The brushing and scraping combo is the secret. I feel that my mouth is indeed… cleansed.  And whether you use the Orabrush or some other device, you need to do clean your tongue. Or you know someone who really needs to…

At the moment, the Orabrush is still hard to find in stores, but is easily available online on the Orabrush website and on Amazon (scroll down the page for quantity pricing).

Alaffia’s Sustainable Skin Care line is based on community empowerment AND Shea Butter. But let’s get our Shea Butters straight. This is NOT of the refined type that we find in most commercial beauty products. The refined Shea Butter, like any other refined product, has been robbed of its nutritive, effective and healthful properties. Indeed, Alaffia uses only UNREFINED handcrafted Shea Butter, the type that provides maximum protection and hydration, has not been altered in any way and contains no added chemicals, preservatives or dyes. Shea Butter has been used for centuries in Africa and in its unrefined form has been found to help to protect skin against climate and UV aggressions, prevent wrinkle formation, soothe irritated and chapped skin, and moisturize the skin. Shea Butter also enhances cell regeneration and capillary circulation, which helps prevent and minimize stretch marks, inflammations, and scarring.

Unrefined Shea Butter is the common thread in all of Alaffia’s beauty care products which include face cleansers, toners and moisturizers, body and hair care products as well as pure, handcrafted Shea Butter.

The products are outstanding and so it Alaffia’s mission. Or should I say missionS. Read the founder’s story here to get a better feel for the importance of the work that this company is doing.

We firmly believe that it is our duty as educated, healthy, and determined individuals to take advantage of information and communication to work towards bettering the conditions of people and communities who are not so advantaged. We also understand that truly eradicating poverty, gender inequality or environmental collapse requires cooperation and action by all levels of society – individuals, governments, organizations of every scope and scale. However, until this occurs, we have pledged our lives to what we can do – helping our communities in central Togo sustain themselves through the fair trade of their indigenous resource – shea butter.

This mission is enforced through the sale of a product that is not only environmentally sustainable, but is also Fair Trade certified AND that has a community empowerment program implemented through education and women’s cooperatives … among other effort! That’s quite an agenda but it’s not all just talk. Alaffia is really doing all this. Read about their programs here.

You can buy Alaffia Skin Care products from their website or through local stores (such as Whole Foods and other independent retailers). Search this page to see who sells the line in your area.

I already said “remarkable”, yes?

This is a great story and, as you know I love great stories! It all started one night when Rita Sevigny was getting ready for a dressy party. She had a nasty blemish on her arm and did not want anyone to see it. Rita decided to cover it with a Band-Aid. We have all been there, it looks just as bad. Here we are, all dressed up and think maybe one of our children’s bandaids, like Dora or Spiderman would be better, at least humorous. Wrong. So Rita got out her stash of bling (I love this woman), applied it to the bandage and made it into a true thing of beauty! When everyone complimented her on her cute bandage she knew she had stumbled onto something and thus Boo-Boo-Bling was created.

Each BooBoo Bling is made with acrylic rhinestones. Available in seven color choices, each Boo-Boo-Bling package is sent with a set of matching band-aids. They are top name adhesive bandages that are latex free and actually stay on. I love that they come in a variety of colors and I can co-ordinate them with what I am wearing.

Think of your teenage daughter getting ready for prom night and having a nick on her leg from shaving. Fear no more, Boo-Boo-Bling is here to save the day! My young daughters also love them!! Surprise, surprise. Really, what little girl would not? No tears in their eyes now when they come to me needing a band-aid. Due to the small rhinestones, however they are not recommended for children under 6.

They can be ordered directly from their online shop here at for $5.99 per pack.