Modern Hippie Mag » Beauty

A world of beauty care products from Nature’s Basin

Guest Contributor — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 20:00:19 +0000

Nature’s Basin is a US based online retail store specializing in organic beauty product and natural makeup from around the world that are safe but also effective. Nature’s Basin analyzes every ingredient in the products they sell to ensure that the product is safe and there are no harmful chemicals in these products.

Our natural and organic beauty care products are formulated with ingredients from natural sources, such as plants, flowers, fruit, vegetables, etc. We select products that do not contain any synthetic chemicals, including parabens, phthalates, petrochemicals, fragrances, or dyes.

Nature’s Basin not only selects beauty care brands that are committed to your health, but also a healthier environment through their production and packaging. We also make it easier for you to shop for products that are organic, vegan, cruelty-free, and hand-made based on your needs. We carry many excellent brands such as Erbaviva, NVEY Eco, Suki, Living Nature, Soleo Sunscreens, Pangea Organics, Sophyto, Suzanne aux bains, from around the world.

Nature’s Basin offers free shipping on all orders over $65 in the Continental USA and free shipping on all orders over $95 to Hawaii and Alaska. Additionally, Nature’s Basin offers a 30 day lowest price guarantee. If you find a lower price online for a product within 30-days of its purchase, we will refund the difference to you. Nature’s Basin also offers a 90-day no questions asked full refund policy or store credit. And not to be missed is their My Rewards Program.

To stay up to date with news and specials, please sign-up for the newsletter and receive a 10% off coupon offer from their home page. Become their Facebook fan at www.facebook.com/naturesbasin and follow them on Twitter at www.twitter.com/naturesbasin.

A world of beauty care products from Nature’s Basin is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

{Giveaway} Soaptopia – Bath Certified, Junk Free!

Jaszy McAllister — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 17:00:47 +0000

We had a great time getting to know Soaptopia and well, it’s time to share the love! Blessed Soaptopia, makers of some pretty awesome natural & handmade soaps, have generously offered to gift one pretty cool gift set to one very lucky Modern Hippie Mag reader! Best of all, you get to pick one of these below if you’re fortunate enough be to chosen as the winner!

Sir Follicle Whisker III

Sir Follicle Whisker III Shaving Kit ($36 value) comes with Badger Shaving Brush, Two All Natural Shaving Soaps, Wooden Shaving Soap Dish & Travel Bag. Choose any two Eucalyptus, Rosewood or Sweet Almond Shaving Soaps. It is all natural, eco-friendly and old school.

Eco Luscious Green Gift Box

Eco Luscious Green Gift Box ($27.50 value) contains 1 Yummy Handmade Soap, 1 50/50 Body Balm & 1 Salt Soak Scrub. All natural, handmade and delicious.

Five Soap Bubble Box ($30 value) contains five Soaps to a box in a variety of flavors -

Five Soap Bubble Box

choose from Moist-O-Rama, Scrub-A-Go-Go, High Five, Shower of Love, Lavender Schmavendar, or Green (visit site for scent details).

Note: To be eligible you must be a Modern Hippie Mag subscriber receiving our updates via email, or RSS, Facebook fan, and/or Twitter follower (tell us your Twitter name in your comment below).

(Complete the following in separate comments below for more chances to win!)

In a comment below tell us which gift set you’d love to own and why.
Follow Soaptopia on Twitter, @Soaptopia.
Show that you like Soaptopia on Facebook.
Tweet this: {Giveaway} Soaptopia, Bath Certified, Junk Free! http://ow.ly/2ehcS @Soaptopia #soaprcks
(Tweet often but don’t forget to add #soaprcks to your tweet so that we can keep track!)

For additional entries, chat us up!

Blog about this giveaway and link to this post.
Share this giveaway on your Facebook wall.
Add Modern Hippie Mag to your Blog Roll or Featured Blogs list.

(Remember to leave a separate comment for each requirement for more chances to win!)

More details:

Open to U.S. entrants only.
Recipients chosen at random using Random.org.
Won something in the last thirty days? Last month’s winners are ineligible for this giveaway.
Giveaway ends 12 midnight EST, on Tuesday, August 3, 2010. Winner will be announced on Wednesday, August 4, 2010.
Winner will be contacted via email and/or Twitter. You will have 48 hours to respond at which time another winner will be randomly chosen.

Big thank you to Marc G. over there at Soaptopia for sponsoring this giveaway!

{Giveaway} Soaptopia – Bath Certified, Junk Free! is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Source4Style.com – Connecting Designers with Sustainable Fabrics

Jaszy McAllister — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 14:00:42 +0000

Summer Rayne Oakes

Summer Rayne Oakes is certainly no stranger to the world of eco-fashion. As a world renowned model, fashionista, and environmental activist, she is once again making waves with her newest venture – Source4Style.com. Presently in the beta stage, the intention is for Source4Style to become a hub where designers can search and source sustainable fabrics and textiles as well as engage in educational workshops on sustainable design and responsible sourcing techniques. Additionally, Source4Style.com may become the destination site where designers and vendors can network – an added feature Summer and her team hope to include in the final site release this fall.

Listen to my interview with Summer to learn more about Source4Style and this awesome lady on the eco-scene!

Jaszy

Jaszy McAllister is the woman behind the curtain of Modern Hippie Mag. She is also the host for ModernHippieMag.com video and podcast interview profiles and a Green Guru for TheGreenGirls.com. Find her on Twitter, @msjaszy or connect with her on LinkedIn. Read more articles by Jaszy.

Want to have your company, product or service featured in a video or podcast? Contact us! Watch our video profiles and listen to our podcast interviews.

Source4Style.com – Connecting Designers with Sustainable Fabrics is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Your Daily Groove – Beauty is Truth

Steve McAllister — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 11:00:53 +0000

“‘Beauty is truth, truth beauty,’ – that is all ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.” – John Keats

It is somewhat sad that in this day and age our concept of beauty is often based on Photoshopped magazine ads of painted on faces. There is a certain standard manufactured and cultivated into the popular mindset on which we gauge our ideal of beauty. However, beauty is more than we often give it credit for.

Beyond the facade that brings a glimmer to our eye, the depth of one’s character and the brightness of a soul still shines through. By looking upon the work of a generous heart or the compassion of helpful hands, we get a glimpse as to what true beauty is. When we look deeper into people, we realize that beauty is not skin deep, but something that permeates all of reality.

Take a closer look at the people around you today and find that spark of beauty that you may have missed yesterday. When you are able to see it in them, you will find your own beauty shining back.

Steve McAllister

In addition to serving as Managing Editor and contributor to Modern Hippie Mag, Steve McAllister is an actor, musician, accomplished author, filmmaker, and the man behind Your Daily Groove. His most recent novel, The McAllister Code is available as an e-book at www.themcallistercode.com. Find Steve on Twitter, @InkenSoul. Read his reviews and articles here.

Your Daily Groove – Beauty is Truth is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Summer Trends – the Eco-fashion Report from Magnifeco.com

Guest Contributor — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 20:00:58 +0000

Ah, summer! This is the perfect season to add a piece of eco-fashion to your wardrobe with everyone from H&M to Target offering organic cotton t-shirt options. Dressing with ethics doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice aesthetics. Eco-fashion means you can be fashionable while supporting fair and sustainable practices. Want to figure out how to combine the current summer trends with ethics? We bring you our Eco-fashion Report:

Trend#1 – Rompers

L to R – ecoSkin, Elroy, Prairie Underground

Worn everywhere from the red carpet to the market, the romper is back! Following this trend and staying ethical is no problem with these designers. ecoSkin is a California-based apparel company offering chic, contemporary designs for the eco-conscious, fashion-savvy woman by using only environmentally sustainable luxury fabrics (woven, dyed and sewn in the USA.) Canadian designer Leanne McEroy believes it is more than possible to live in abundance without polluting, consuming natural resources excessively or abusing labor practices, and uses only organic or sustainable fabrics: tencel chambray denim, organic cotton, or vegan-friendly raw silk. Seattle-based Prairie Underground ensures that their collection includes organic cotton and remnant/salvaged fabrics and is ethically made in Seattle.

Trend#2 – Grape

L to R – deux fm, Sust, Stewart+Brown

This hot summer shade looks fabulous on everyone regardless of your skin tone or eye colour. Adding a piece of grape to your wardrobe will complement your complexion and keep you on trend. Canadian designer Anna Gilkerson studied in both New York (FIT) and Florence (Polimoda) before she created deux fm. Pronounced deux femmes, the line is for the woman who broadcasts both fashion and ethics. SUST is taking sustainable style to another level with a line of essential pieces in classic styles that are meant to stand the test of time. Each piece of clothing has social and ecological responsibility woven into its very fabric with organic fibers that are produced with fair labor practices in California. Karen Stewart and Howard Brown, partners in life and work, launched their ethical fashion brand Stewart+Brown in 2002 from Los Angeles, California. Inspired by their love and respect for nature and a passion for design they are determined to pioneer the sustainable fashion movement.

Trend #3 – African Prints

L to R - ASOS Africa, Sika Designs, Lalesso

Bold prints are synonymous with summer and this year is no exception, get on trend with these African Prints. UK fashion retailer ASOS has launched ASOS Africa, a clothing and accessories collection that has been designed, sourced and produced fairly by community groups in Africa. Sika Designs are inspired by the rich and diverse culture of Ghana, West Africa. Every fabric has been carefully selected in local Ghanaian markets and hand-made using natural methods, creating exclusive limited prints. Lalesso was launched in Cape Town. Inspired by the beautiful “khanga” or “lesso” which is actually a spotted handkerchief brought to the East African Coast in the 19th century from India, they produce organic cotton summerwear: bikinis, dresses, skirts, etc.

This content was produced exclusively for ModernHippieMag.com by www.magnifeco.com – the daily eco-fashion blog featuring gorgeous products that are fair-trade, recycled, reusable, sustainable, organic, and/or vegan. Every day the amount of information is growing about the Magnifeco options for fashion: from earth friendly fabrics, to sustainable manufacturing processes to fairtrade practices. We feature conscientious designers and products for you the conscientious consumer.

Summer Trends – the Eco-fashion Report from Magnifeco.com is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Acne, Dairy and Soy: The Killer the Culprit and the Cure?

Shayna Teicher — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 16:30:01 +0000

For those who haven’t heard my story, a huge part of how I ended up opening Butterfly Effect and getting into this business in general was that I had constant skin problems starting from my early teens. From oily skin to hormonal breakouts to funny little patches of eczema, it was always something, and despite spending plenty of my money (starting with my earnings from working at a bead store from ages 14-17) and buying everything from high-end skincare to special makeup that was recommended to me by countless department store ladies/makeup counters/infomercials/health food stores, nothing ever seemed to make an improvement. I was on and off birth control which (while I was on it for the fourth time) did seem to help, but overall it just made me a crazy person- many of my friends will vouch for this, bless them. I also started eating organic and using natural products.

At this point, I realized that you can’t take anything at face value, not what the sales people tell you and certainly not what a product’s packaging says- they want you to buy their product when you read its label. Then I found mineral makeup. When I started wearing i.d. bareMinerals (I now custom blend my own mineral makeup) around my junior year of college, my skin saw a HUGE improvement, and I knew there was something to this whole “natural thing”, that there was benefit in putting less on your skin rather than more, and certainly in putting less chemicals on your skin in general. I hate to say it, but other than my introduction to mineral makeup, the biggest improvements I’ve ever seen in my skin have come from my own research and using deduction to rule out triggers, NOT from salespeople or physicians. That’s why when I recommend skin care products to customers, I always ask lots of questions and encourage them to pay close attention to things like their diet, activity level, chemical/product exposure, and daily lifestyle when trying to determine the cause of a skin issue (very different from the approach of too many MDs: “Treat the symptoms. If they go away, what does it matter what the cause was?” Sorry if it seems harsh, but this has been my experience.) I’ve seen people with breakouts caused by cell phones, shampoo, skin cream, natural extracts, wheat, dairy, soy, chemicals, mineral oil, etc…all who went to the dermatologist, who simply wrote them a prescription. Breakouts aren’t always caused by what you think.

Part of my journey in dealing with breakout prone skin and switching to a more natural, organic diet has been cutting back on dairy, which in turn has resulted in my eating more soy (thank goodness for Purely Decadent soy ice cream- See? All my posts really do go together!). I noticed a significant difference in both the oiliness, and in the amount, size and severity of my breakouts when I cut back my dairy. I went from consuming probably 3-5 servings a day to 1-3. As I started eating more soy, the breakouts seemed to improve even further. When I went online to see if other people had had similar experiences, I was surprised to find lots of people on opposite sides- either switching from dairy to soy made their skin worse, or it improved it. There was little in between and I was having trouble finding a source to bridge the gap.

In his abstract “Pathogenesis of Acne”, Dr. Toyoda M. Morohashi (Japan) explains that “Acne results from hyperkeratinization and obstruction of the pilosebaceous follicles secondary to androgen-stimulated failure of normal desquamation of the follicular epithelium, androgen-stimulated sebum production, subsequent colonization of the follicles by Propionibacterium acnes and other organisms, and variably, inflammation.” Basically androgenic (male) hormones stimulate sebum production (the mix of oils and dead skin cells our skin produces), which prevents the normal process of the natural shedding of the outer layers of the skin and leads to hardening of those cells and blocking of the sebaceous follicles, leaving them prone to acne-causing bacteria and inflammation. This explains why traditional, over the counter acne remedies rely on exfoliation (salicylic acid) and anti-bacterial (benzoyl peroxide) action, or else hampering oil production all together (accutane). The key word in Dr. Morohashi’s explaination is ANDROGENS: a group of “steroid hormones that stimulate or control the development and maintenance of male characteristics”.

If androgens are a culprit behind acne, how are so many women (over 75% of girls age 16-18 experience acne) being exposed to them? It seems highly unlikely that such a substantial portion of the population would all suffer from an overproduction of the same hormone. More and more studies are pointing to milk and dairy.

In a talk at Harvard University, Ganmaa Davaasambee, “a Mongolia-trained medical doctor, a Japan-trained Ph.D in environmental health, a fellow [in 2006] at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, and a working scientist in the Harvard School of Public Health,” discussed the link between cancer and dietary hormones, in particular the estrogenic hormones found in milk and dairy. “Among the routes of human exposure to estrogens, we are mostly concerned about cow’s milk, which contains considerable amounts of female sex hormones,” Ganmaa said. She also noted that dairy accounts for 60-80 percent of estrogens consumed. Where do all these hormones come from? In order for commercially bred cows to be most productive (for the nearly 300 days a year that they are milked!), they need to be kept pregnant. Those hormones that the cows produce are also in their milk, so when we drink that milk or eat dairy made from it, we are ingesting those hormones. While the high levels of estrogens in modern dairy may have a connection with cancer rates (the focus of Ganmaa’s study- which you can read about here), the same milk also contains androgens, progesterone (which breaks down into androgens), and androgen precursors. It’s the androgens (testosterone producing hormones) that are a trigger for acne, especially in women who are already biologically sensitive to male hormones.

Photo by Marijn van Braak

The level of hormones present in milk depends on how far along in the pregnancy the cow is. “Milk from the late stage of pregnancy contains up to 33 times more signature estrogen compound (estrone sulfate) than milk from a non-pregnant cow…” making “the milk we drink today quite unlike the milk our ancestors were drinking without apparent harm for 2,000 years.” Ganmaa isn’t declaring dairy itself a bad food, but she is questioning its safety when it’s produced using our modern techniques. “Milk is a food of great complexity, and contains high levels of beneficial nutrients, including calcium and vitamin D.” Even cows not treated with BGHs (bovine growth hormones) contain these hormones, because they’re still kept pregnant.

This would explain why many women experience improvement in their acne with the use of birth control- the estrogen hormones helps counterbalance the excess of testosterone/androgenic hormones. Unfortunately, this isn’t a cure, it’s just a band-aid.

In the experiences that people were sharing online, some people who tried switching from dairy to soy in an effort to improve their breakouts found that they were allergic to soy and that it actually made their breakouts much worse. Others found that switching to soy delivered an improvement- indicating not only that they may have been experiencing a dairy intolerance, but that the estrogenic compounds in the soy itself might be beneficial. Sheesh! The conclusion? While there may not be a definite answer, it’s relatively easy to use trial and error to find out if dairy and/or soy are behind your acne woes.

This would be my recommendation: If you currently consume dairy and soy, try cutting out only dairy for two weeks. You don’t even have to cut it all, just a significant amount; I just don’t want to give up my morning latte, but I’ve cut out all ice cream and yogurt, and most cheese. After two weeks, do you see any improvement? Then add it back and cut out soy for two weeks. What changes have you seen? I think many people will find right away that cutting out one or both of these food groups leads to improvement of acne symptoms. Note: many processed foods contain milk and soy ingredients, so if you eat a lot of those, be sure to check the ingredients labels to see if you’re getting dairy and soy in unexpected places. If you couldn’t see an improvement being either dairy-free or soy-free, then you have to try cutting out both.

For me, the experience of experimenting with my diet was well, WELL worth it. I learned that while I need to avoid dairy in excess, I can have a little, and soy (perhaps it’s the additional estrogenic compounds) seems to help, rather than hurt my situation. It’s also just another example of how where our food comes from and how it’s produced is just important, if not more so, than the food itself.

Have you had any skin revelations? Do you have experience dealing with dairy or soy reactions? Please share!

Resources:

http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2006/12.07/11-dairy.html

http://dermatology.cdlib.org/124/original/acne/danby.html#2

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11479771?dopt=Abstract

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desquamation

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Androgen

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,835434,00.html

Shayna Teicher

After nearly three years managing a bath and beauty boutique, Shayna decided to go out on her own and open Butterfly Effect, a holistic, eco-conscious beauty boutique located in Sarasota, Florida. Our very own “Beauty Chick”, read Shayna’s other intriguing articles and product reviews here.

Acne, Dairy and Soy: The Killer the Culprit and the Cure? is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

{Update} Modern Minerals Winner!

Jaszy McAllister — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 16:00:57 +0000

Modern Minerals

Congrats to Justine (@ShesAnAngel417) you’ve won five brand new full size eyeshadow colors from Modern Minerals!

You will be contacted via email and/or Twitter, please respond within 48 hours to claim your gift or another winner will be randomly chosen.

HUGE thank you to everyone who entered and for supporting this giveaway. Thanks to Jeanne for the fab find and double thanks to Diane at Modern Minerals for sponsoring the giveaway!

We have more fab contests/giveaways coming up…don’t miss your chance to win Earth Science Purfection Hand Cream, a new luxurious product from Earth Essentials. Giveaway ends next week!

{Update} Modern Minerals Winner! is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

The Art of Natural Shaving

Steve McAllister — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 20:00:57 +0000

Last year, I started exploring a better way to shave. I’d been using a Schick Quattro razor, and while it gave me a pretty clean shave, I could only use each head for so many uses because it would get too gunked up, and the “disposable” aspect of using a disposable razor didn’t sit right with my eco-conscious constitution. I also realized that spending at least $10 a month on new razor heads wasn’t doing any great favors for my wallet. (I don’t know about you, but in any given year I can think of several better uses for that $120 than throwing more plastic into the landfill.)

So I took a few steps back to before people used disposable razors and invested in an old school safety razor. The razor itself cost me just over twenty bucks, and if I apply a little olive oil to the blades after I shave and clean them, a pack of ten blades that costs only two dollars or so can easily last me several months. I’m not only saving money; I’m not throwing away all of that plastic, and once I’m finished with the pack, I can throw all of the used razors into the recycling bin. (Every little bit helps, right?)

Since finding my new shaving tool, I’ve also been trying out new shaving creams, soaps, and gels. I have a half can of Barbisol in my medicine cabinet as a standby, but I haven’t had the need to use it in awhile so I don’t have to worry about releasing any more aerosol into the atmosphere or putting any unnatural ingredients on my skin.

As far as shaving with soap goes, Soaptopia has some excellent selections, and they come with a wooden shaving dish ($11 for both) that you can buy refills for ($5 each) when you run out. They also offer pretty reasonably priced badger bristle brushes (I’d hate to be the guy who plucked those out of the badger) for $28. The base consists of vegetable oil processed with castor oil, avocado oil, vitamin E, jojoba oil, macadamia nut oil, and aloe vera essential oils. They lather up with a brush pretty good and offer a nice, smooth shave. They offer eucalyptus, rosewood, and almond scented soaps, each with just enough essential oils to give a nice scent without being overpowering. My only problem with shaving with soap, and it’s one that is not that hard to get over, is that I have to shave in sections. The soap lathers up nicely, but it doesn’t last very long. Nevertheless, it’s still one of the most natural ways to shave and a bar of soap will last a good, long while. (On a side note, I highly recommend taking a few minutes to look through some of Soaptopia’s handmade soaps. Not only are they creative, all natural blends, the names they give them are very creative as well, like Woody Wood Pepper, The Grapefruit Gatsby, and Aloe Be Thy Name.)

For regular shaving cream, Everyman Jack is some pretty good stuff. It is not tested on animals and contains no parabens, phthalates, dyes, or sodium lauryl sulfate. It does, however, contain a lot of other stuff that I can’t pronounce, but I’m pretty sure they’re not as bad for your skin as those other things are. What is does have is squaline, a wheat germ derivative that lubricates and softens your skin; hydrating olive oil extract; soothing chamomile; and healing aloe. I use the unscented, but they also offer a mint scent. You can either lather it up in your hands or with a brush. Either way, it offers a really nice shave and only costs $6.

Since even broaching this subject already probably classifies me as a metrosexual, I’m gonna lean on my mention of Everyman Jack to balance my masculinity and delve forward into this next product. To be fair, when my wife got it for me, I did not realize that Whish Almond Shave Gel was “the original non-foaming shaving cream for women.” I just discovered that while researching for this article. Nevertheless, having already used it, I’ve got to say that it is the mack-daddy, bomb-diggity best! It has no parabens, sulfates, DEA or TEA, or petrochemicals. And it not only contains squalene, but also organic shea butter, organic green tea, and organic jojoba seed oil. They also don’t test on animals and it comes in an earth-friendly pump or jar. It goes on with a smooth sheen, and leaves me with a magically smooth face when I’m done shaving. It’s the priciest of the bunch at $24 for only 5 ounces, but thankfully, you don’t have to use as much. (As another side note, the guy who invented it did so because his wife liked his European shaving cream so much, but didn’t like smelling like English Leather. So I guess my masculinity is still intact.)

Steve McAllister

In addition to serving as Managing Editor and contributor to Modern Hippie Mag, Steve McAllister is an actor, musician, accomplished author and filmmaker. His most recent novel, The McAllister Code is available as an e-book at www.themcallistercode.com. Find Steve on Twitter, @InkenSoul. Read his reviews and articles here.

The Art of Natural Shaving is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

Brilliant New Website, Very Happy Beauty Chick

Shayna Teicher — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 18:00:56 +0000

I get a lot of inquiries as to my where I go for info regarding cosmetics ingredients and the answer is usually “well, all over the place”. I go to Skin Deep’s Cosmetics Safety Database to get an overall idea of a product but, although it’s a great resource, their product ratings are only based on known studies so they’re not always entirely accurate. Plus, I’m a big believer in cross-referencing; I never like to take one source’s “word for it”.

When I have concerns about specific ingredients, I usually Google it and end up at the same sites over and over again including: Cosmetics Ingredient Review,Cosmetics Info Org, Truth In Aging, Cosmetics Cop, PubMed.Gov, Essential U and FDA.gov. I usually review at least twenty different articles/websites (often more) before coming to my own conclusions about a product or ingredient and I tell ya, it’s a lot of work!

Well, a couple of talented and brilliant women, each with their own natural product line, joined forces to create the website Personal Care Truth. It’s a hub of just about everything you could possibly want to know about cosmetics ingredients and so much more, all in one place! Take the controversial subject of parabens, for example. In a previous article (after endless hours of research) I noted that, while it would be nice to be able to eliminate all preservatives from our products, they are necessary to prevent bacterial/fungal/mold growth in our products- which is even more dangerous and poses an immediate health risk. More importantly, the more research I read, the more apparent it seems that parabens are not nearly (if at all) as dangerous as much of the general press makes them out to be. Well, Personal Care Truth, with their slew of experts in everything from manufacturing to aromatherapy to chemistry, continuously posts articles based on emerging science, the newest research and knowledge about skincare and the subject of parabens is no exception. And it’s all in one place. Here’s the newest paraben update.

I don’t know how they did it, but they get MAJOR props from me- Thanks, ladies!

Shayna Teicher

Brilliant New Website, Very Happy Beauty Chick is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.

The Natural Beauty of Earth Essentials

Jaszy McAllister — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 16:00:19 +0000

I have been a fan of Earth Essential’s Earth Science products for some time now after being introduced to them in an article published in body+soul Magazine last year. At the time I was desperately searching for an effective yet gentle eye makeup remover and was pleased to find the Earth Science Chamomile & Green Tea Eye Makeup Remover. The results exceeded my hopes and expectations. Additionally, I was pleased to learn that the science and mission of Earth Science has always been to create affordable paraben free products, which they have done for the past twenty-five years. Their products are never tested on animals, contain natural and organic ingredients, and are extremely reasonably priced. Since that initial fab find I have incorporated several other Earth Science products into my beauty care routine and have been consistently pleased with their results. Imagine my excitement when I got an opportunity to chat with Ken Grand, Earth Essentials Owner & President.

Ken Grand

Ken has a long history in natural beauty care having founded Alba Botanica thirty years ago, and based on our conversation appears to be one really cool modern hippie! Check out our chat…

Two lucky winners will have a chance to try Purfection Hand Cream, the newest addition to the Earth Science line!

The Purfection Hand Cream is rich in vitamins C and E, aloe vera, shea butter and jojoba. It is extremely hydrating and in my humble opinion makes a purrrrfect all-over lotion too!

(Complete the following in separate comments below for more chances to win!)

Follow Earth Science on Twitter, @EarthScience_.
Show that you like Earth Science on Facebook.
Tweet this: {Giveaway} The Natural Beauty of Earth Essentials http://ow.ly/251vO @EarthScience_ #earthess (Tweet often but don’t forget to add #earthess to your tweet so that we can keep track!)

For additional entries, chat us up!

Blog about this giveaway and link to this post.
Share this giveaway on your Facebook wall.
Add Modern Hippie Mag to your Blog Roll or Featured Blogs list.

(Remember to leave a separate comment for each requirement for more chances to win!)

More details:

Open to U.S. entrants only.
Recipients chosen at random using Random.org.
Won something in the last thirty days? Last month’s winners are ineligible for this giveaway.
Giveaway ends 12 midnight EST, on Tuesday, July 20, 2010. Winner will be announced on Wednesday, July 21, 2010.
Winner will be contacted via email and/or Twitter. You will have 48 hours to respond at which time another winner will be randomly chosen.

Big thank you to Earth Essentials for sponsoring this giveaway!

The Natural Beauty of Earth Essentials is a post from Modern Hippie Mag your online resource dedicated to hip, healthy conscious living & environmental sustainability.