As stated in my last Beauty Routine post on my teeth and body care post, I am just as careful as to what I put ON my body as to what I put IN my body. I can't stress enough that investing in high quality products that are gentle on your skin, hair, body, face & nails will help preserve the quality and health you are trying to obtain through diet, rest and exercise.
When Derma E approached me about their line, I fell in love with their concept and their line has since become my line. It's a 100% vegan & gluten-free beauty & skincare line that is approved safe for Celiacs, and upon their launch of their #ICANTWHEAT campaign I knew it was time to share what I love about them. You can read all about their formulations here to see all the goodness that's in there and all the nasty that's not.
While most products start in labs, Derma E started in a health food shop in Southern California, and as a resident beach girl, I love products that start in little shops seaside. It speaks to the entrepreneur in me who dreams of a nutrition office near the shore.
Their skin, hair and nail oil is one of my FAVORITE products because I love being able to get multiple uses out of a product for the best value. I use it primarily for my nails, because I adore soft, silky cuticles, but in the winter months I also add a drop with my lotion or moisturizer as well as a drop of my favorite essential oil for the richest and deepest moisturizing action when the weather is particularly dry and harsh on my skin. It's also comprised of three clean ingredients: argan oil, kukui oil & jojoba oil. Though I am careful to use it on my hair (my hair is quite fine and too much oil of any kind makes me look like I need to shower & a good shampooing), I do use it in a mister with a little water to tame fly-aways when I travel to humid climates. As I'm heading to Texas in a week, it will accompany me for frizz defense.
Another MUST have in ANY girls beauty arsenal is a GOOD dark circle eye creme. I don't care how much sleep you get (and I ALWAYS get 8-9 hours) as we age our sensitive skin around our eyes take harsh punishment from makeup, washing, the elements, the sun and its better to invest in a good eye cream now.
And when it comes to my eyes, I am SUPER careful about what I put on them. In changing and cleaning my diet I started reacting to EVERYTHING I put on my eyes. From mascara, to moisturizer, eye shadow to cleanser, if its not pure my eyes will develop styes (I know, ew) or get red & itchy. When I find something that is gluten-free & gentle I embrace it. I hug it. I use it regularly and I recommend it to others who I know struggle with finding products for their sensitive skin. In addition to being gluten-free and paraben-free, it is also GMO Free and full of beauty rockstar awesomeness.
And I saved the best for last. Well, ok, anything that is gentle and healthy and makes me feel pretty is the best. But as our skin is the largest organ, it makes sense to give it extra loving care. LOTION is one of my favorite things in this world. It's just something that has always made me feel pampered & pretty and it lets me know I'm taking care of my skin.
I travel, a lot. And plane rides, road trips, constant climate changes and varying weather BEATS UP my skin. Finding a gentle, vegan, gluten-free lotion is CRUCIAL when I'm applying it daily, sometimes multiple times a day. Derma E's Vitamin E lotion is such a Godsend. It's buttery soft and comes in Fragrance Free or a scented variation with natural oils. It's also gentle enough to use on YOUR FACE. Which totally blew my mind because I never in a million years put a traditional lotion on my face in fear of harsh chemicals or crazy breakouts. If you have any questions, feel free to ask! I'd be happy to answer questions about any ingredients, practices or usage. Derma E did sponsor my post with product, but all photographs & opinions are my own. I'd been seeking a gluten-free & vegan beauty and skin line for so long and I am so happy to have found, and embraced, this beautiful company. The line offers an abundance of products from haircare to skincare, nail care to beauty. I was just highlighting the top three in my beauty cabinet because I don't use a ton of product. I know my go-to's and what has worked best to keep my skin balanced, healthy & glowing. OK. I know I said that was the best part, but this next part is the BEST BEST part. YOU can save 25% of anything in the line using the promo code ICANTWHEAT in celebration of the #ICANTWHEAT campaign & they are doing an AMAZING giveaway. Enter for you chance to win $150 of Gluten Free Natural Skincare by derma e. One winner will receive a $150 gift certificate to shop at www.dermae.com 1,000 Runner Up winners win a Gluten Free Sampler kit (3 foil packs) + insert with coupon code
You can also head over and take the evaluation to find what's best for YOU and your skincare regiment. This is what I did originally to get started and I was matched with the PERFECT products missing from my beauty cabinet. You can put in your preferences and allergies to make the recommendations super tailored to your uniqueness.
I would love to know your favorite gluten free skincare products, and if you've tried Derma E, what's your favorite from the line?
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Let's face it, a girl wants to look beautiful. I believe it is deeply encoded somewhere in our DNA. But here's the problem with that little fact... Make-up contains chemicals and toxins. Chemicals and toxins like phthalate's, lead, ammonia, parabens, fragrance (not the natural pretty kind) and lanolin. And these chemicals and toxins are bad. Very bad in fact, and have been proven to cause all sorts of nasty problems like cancer, reproductive challenges and allergies. I made a pocket-printable for you to keep in your purse of all the really nasty ones. That's just not worth it in my opinion to feel pretty. Now a small disclaimer before I go raving about my mineral make-up findings. All products pose a risk for those that are sensitive and it's not great to have even mineral makeup on your face or eyes overnight, but unless we are willing to go outside, find some red rock powder and make our own rouge (didn't think so), then it's definitely a healthier way to go. So as I started to overhaul my beauty bag, one of the first companies I stumbled upon was Mineral Fusion. More specifically their mascara. It was love at first swipe. It's long lasting, gives full lashes, comes in true jet black (or brown if you prefer) and most importantly, no gross chemicals. My eyes have become very sensitive in the last couple of years. Baby blues that use to take all kinds of torture on sets and at photo shoots, covered in heavy products from MAC, will now become red or swollen if I sleep in ANY product overnight. But I have found that this mascara is gentle enough that I can wear it all day and night to magazine events. It also washes off easily. Another product I love in the line are the pencils. The eyeliner is creamy and glides on smooth and I love the deep black color it gives for dramatic eyes, and the brown eye pencil is PERFECT for filling out my eye brows. My brows are very small, and I like to draw them on when I want to look more "done up." wearing the Mineral Fusion mascara (1 coat for day wear) and Mineral Fusion Brun pencil on eye brows) And finally, their eye shadows. I ADORE these. I've tried MANY mineral eye shadows and most don't give dark pigment which I crave for nights out. Mineral Fusion color pots come in an assortment of colors and these two are my personal favorite for blue eyes. The gold and brown mix I use for day time, and for more dramatic eyes to bring out my eyes natural blue, I use the blue and deep green palette. They glide on smooth, the color lasts and they wash off easily as well.
Overall, I recommend this line to anyone seeking a healthier alternative for the beauty bag. If you have any questions on my beauty routine, contact me here. For more information on Mineral Fusion, visit http://www.mineralfusion.com *this post is not in any way sponsored by Mineral Fusion. These are my honest, personal opinions of all items within. Each year I like to make a list of my goals to moving toward more healthy, whole, organic living. I did a Natural Goals post in 2013 for home, food and body. And this year, I am doing the same. My beauty routine has gotten quite the overhaul and I've met some amazing beauty experts and make-up creators along the way. What I've Accomplished: Full make-up overhaul. I adore my new makeup routine. I got rid of SO many of my chemical products and it's so much simpler to find things. I use all mineral, no chemical eye shadow, mascara, lip products, and blush. I will be doing a product review on all soon! Using all natural products. From my body scrub, to my natural tangerine vanilla soap, my organic plant-based shampoo and conditioner and my essential oil perfume, I try to keep as much artificial fragrance out of my routine as possible. I also smell like a coco-nutty-hawaiian fruit. Yoga and meditation on the regular. This has been so crucial in my over-all calm and well-being. Being so susceptible to anxiety and worry through my not-so-great gut health and hormone imbalances, taking time to just pray, talk to God, do devotionals, do yoga, stretch and meditate on the Word has been so important for finding balance and handling stress on the daily better. My hair is SO much healthier. So, I know last post I was very sad I was no longer a blonde. And, ok, some days I still struggle, and Mr. Charming and I find this to be a touchy subject because he knows how much I love being blonde, but I will say my hair hasn't been this long in a LONG time, and though it's still pretty thin, its definitely in a better state than its been in years. So I'll stay chest-nutty brown for a while longer. Detox. I found out this year I have a genetic mutation that hinders my detox pathways. I'm saving up to see another Dr. about this too, because, quite frankly, it sounds like something that totally sucks, but in the meantime I'm trying to do as much healthy stuff as I can. I take coconut oil and kale in my smoothies everyday, I dry brush before shows and I try to work-out when I'm not exhausted. This can def. be an area I improve. But I am trying to make small steps to improve. What I Still Want To Do:
A Better Cardio Routine. Since finding out about my MTHFR mutation, it explains why when I vigorously workout I get sick. Which sucks. I LOVE running and dancing, but I also need to respect my body. I would like to get into a better habit of taking walks with Mr. Charming and my girlfriends, just to try to sweat a little, de-stress and get some cardio in. DETOX, DETOX, DETOX. Like I said above, I found out this year I have a genetic mutation that hinders my detox pathways. So I'm trying to find more healthful ways to detox without my body getting sick in the process. In addition to what I'm doing above. Toothpaste and Deodorant. I'm awaiting my next Honest Co. shipment that includes toothpaste, and I'm still on the hunt for an aluminum-free deodorant that lasts all day. Or at least half a day. Or at least a half of a half of a day. So. It's true. I miss being a blonde. Since the age of 14 I've been a platinum blonde. (except for this one summer, when I was on tour and my hair was red, brown and blonde. You know, when I was off being fabulous and "finding myself). Not sure what was going on but it was fun at the time... haha... When all of my symptoms started around fall 2011 and I started cleaning up my food and my home, I had to wonder if all of that toxic hair dye had something to do with it. We'll never know I guess, however I did know that I didn't want to keep sending chemicals into my body when I was trying so hard to detox. For a while I let my hair grow out, because I didn't know what to do. It was all kinds of a mess, dirty blonde roots, with blonde hair. Luckily, (I guess) this new "ombre" trend EXPLODED around that time and everyone thought I looked like that on purpose. I didn't. But I went with it while I was in a funk about what I was going to do about the ever growing two-toned mop of hair. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not totally vain. But I am a girl. A girl who comes from the music industry and it's engrained in me to feel good about myself. What HAS changed is that I was taking a stand to put my health first, hence the ombre do'. I searched, and searched, and SEARCHED for hair color that wouldn't give me cancer, hormonal disruption a rash or a third leg... and not shockingly every organic, fancy-shmancy salon within 50 miles that claims to have "healthier, safer" hair dye still carried color that was full of PPD and other harmful, harsh chemicals. They were ammonia free, but PPD is the one you have to look out for. So, I continued my quest until I stumbled upon a review of Palette By Nature. A hair color made from minerals and I decided to give it a try. My hair stylist told me she would put it in for me, so I decided to order a box and take it to her. The first color I chose however came out a little too ashy and my hair ended up looking a little gray, fading to an odd dark bluish hue, then finally to brown. I then decided to order a warmer toffee brown and went back to my stylist... its rich, and warm and I love it. The smell is pleasant, fruity. Your hair will feel a little grainy until you've shampooed a few times... and if you are going to apply it yourself, its dark and will get everywhere... so I suggest using a professional stylist who will apply it for you. I've used it three times and am pleasantly surprised. Although I miss being blonde, I like knowing that I am making a better decision for my body. And I know that when its time to start a family I can keep up with my hair while I keep the little nuggets environment safer. Will I one day go back to blonde? I don't know. Sometimes I get the impulse to just do it. But then I take my supplements, and eat my organic salad and I go back to being content as a brunette for now, in this season of my life. Plus, it's fall! Warmer, richer colors just work darling! ;) I'm officially in love with this blush. See how I gave it five stars. Yes, it's that awesome. And it's not full of horrid ingredients you wouldn't want on your precious skin. As I'm slowly recreating my make-up collection from scratch... "goodbye chemicals, hello minerals!"... I have been testing out various products. I want make-up that is healthier but that will still give me good coverage & color. I found Pixi and fell in love with the shimmery pinkness of this blush. I highly reccomend this blush to anyone looking for deep, true color in a blush. It goes on smooth and lasts all day. The best part is that it comes in an array of colors! Pixi Perks:
After finding a mineral mascara I love (Mineral Fusion) and a new mineral blush (Tart), I was on a mission to find a better foundation. I have been mixing a mineral powder foundation by Ulta with a regular Maybelline cream foundation that is loaded with chemicals. I had done research on EWG.org (the environmental working group, they test products for safety and is amazing source of information) to see what the best organic foundation would be that still gave good coverage for nights out or photo shoots. I had found one online that stated it was carried by Ulta and was in a very fair price range of around $28. (some you find will run $65+, especially at Sephora, etc.) So I was excited to go get some. However, it was an online only brand, and since I'm so fair, I have to color match so I don't come out looking orange. They did however have Juice Beauty. A line of all organic face products, including makeup and skincare. I picked up a bottle of the lightest foundation and sampled it on my skin, it matched perfectly and the smell was very light and lemony. I ended up splurging and bought myself the entire line of skin care, (the green apple face mask peel, the moisturizer, night serum and hydrating mist) because it was half off and I needed a new organic skincare regime anyways! Win, win! So, as for my review of the makeup. I give it a 6 out of 10. While I love that its gentle on my skin and smells nice, and the color is right, its almost sticky. The pump doesn't squirt correctly (which I had read about it on other reviews) and it doesn't blend as easily as regular foundations. The price point was also a little higher, $38 for the same size bottle of the one I had originally gone in looking for. However, I am willing to sacrifice a little more money and a little more time in application to save my skin. It also pairs beautifully with my mineral powder, when together the coverage is just enough! I will be reviewing the skincare line soon! I just want to use it a little longer for a true review :) |
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