When daily routine gets old and the cold weather begins…sometimes the only place you really want to be is on a warm, sandy tropical beach.

Here are a few beauty products that can help you feel like you are on vacation instead of in your bathroom shower:

Coconut Body Butter by The Body Shop:

This intensely moisturizing body lotion is a great way to stay soft in the cold weather and smell like you came from a warm beach.

Made from organic, cold-pressed, virgin coconut oil and community trade shea butter, this 24-hour body butter will keep your skin soft and supple.

Style your locks with David Babaii’s  Bohemian Beach Spray which uses eco-friendly and exotic ingredients like sea salt from the Dead Sea and Volcanic Ash from the South Pacific.

Not only does this styling product work on wet or dry hair to give sexy, just-got-back-from-the-beach volume, but it’s made with kiwi and shea butter to keep your hair soft and healthy.

The icing on the cake: 10% of profits go to the WildAid foundation…so even if you can’t be on an African Safari at least you can be doing your part to contribute to WildAid’s mission to save the our planet’s wildlife.

Tocca Beauty Scented Candles have a way of sending you into a  sitting-in-a-hammock, tranquil state of mind.

Tocca’s Havana Candle, scented of sugarcane and rum makes you dream of pirates and exotic crystal blue bays.

Tocca’s Montauk Candle, scented of sea grass and fresh air will have you dreaming of lighthouses and the sound of crashing ocean waves.

Tocca’s Tahiti Candle, scented of tiare flower and coconut will have your bathroom smelling like a romantic island honeymoon.

Bon Voyage!

Posted in Cold Weather Beauty, Hair, Skin ~ 0 Comments

I love the fall and winter season, but my skin and my hair do not. This time of year brings on dry, itchy, flaking skin that irritates us and even ages us. Below are three steps to bring back youthful, supple skin and hair and prevent the yucky dry weather from taking its toll:

Step 1: Stop frizzy, dried out hair: During this time of year I often make the mistake of using a heavier conditioner to keep my strands soft. Ultimately, I end up with greasier, weighed down hair.

Solution: Hair mask! You can apply a hair mask once a month or as often as once a week depending on your strands. I love Ojon Restorative Hair Treatment. I coats your hair in a grainy, greasy, strange smelly mess, but then ends up giving you perfectly soft, shiny healthy hair without a trace of greasiness.

Step 2: Prevent flaky skin and exaggerated wrinkles on your face: The dry weather sucks out all the youthful soft and suppleness of my face. This is really two steps in one. You have to get rid of the dry skin by exfoliating and then prevent it by moisturizing. Many experts suggest using a facial cream with alpha hydroxy acid which acts as a two in one step process by exfoliating the top layer of the skin while moisturizing it. This can be an effective solution, however using a moisturizer with alpha hydroxy acids on sensitive skin can cause further redness, flakiness and irritation. Therefore I suggest using separate products for each step.

Solution: Use a mild exfoliant (not something with large beads that scrape the skin!) like Dermalogica’s Gentle Cream Exfoliant made with lactic acid, salicylic acid, lavender and aloe vera which combined help gently remove dead skin and sooth irritation. Then use a deep moisturizer at night like Prevage Anti-Aging Night Cream or take it one step further and use a 24 hour cream.

Step 3: Stop using soaps in the shower that dry out your skin and make you itch all over! Often times I find myself using a bar of soap in the shower and find myself lathering lotion on my dry skin afterwards. It’s messy, sometimes downright greasy, and even gets on my clothes. Oh yeah and it takes forever to rub in.

Solution: Use a moisturizing body wash like Kiehl’s Creme de Corps Nurturing Body Washing Cream which uses mild glycerin soap to cleanse and jojoba oil and shea butter to moisturize the entire body. Using a creamy body wash prevents itchy, flaky skin and gives you a break from slathering on loads of moisturizer after the shower.

Posted in Cold Weather Beauty, Face, Hair, Skin ~ 1 Comment

Spring is here, the sun is out and it is time to start easing into a natural looking tan. Here are three products, depending on your budget, that will help you gradually get the glow of summer.

On a budget: If you are on a budget then try Jergens Natural Glow Firming Daily Moisturizer. A 7.5oz container costs around $8 and gradually firms and darkens skin tone.  Choose your shade, fair, medium or medium/tan (a Jergens tip to determine your shade: look inside your forearm to match the chart on the back of the bottle). Give it a week and you will see the difference.

Willing to pay: If you have a little cash to spend, then try St. Tropez Everyday Body. A 6.5oz bottle costs $30 and comes in two shades: fair to medium or medium to dark.  St. Tropez Everyday Body gives a natural radiance to the skin without looking orange and streaky.  St. Tropez Everyday won Instyle Magazine Best Beauty Buys 2009 in the category of Self-Tanner for Body.  You can find it online at sttropeztan.com or in most beauty supply stores.

Splurge: If you are willing (and able) to spend a little dough on self tanner then try Clarins Radiance-Plus Self Tanning Body Lotion. A 5oz bottle costs $42 and is available at department stores like Nordstroms. Tiny mother-of-pearl particles give an irredecent golden shimmer to your skin. One bottle works for all skin types and works to give you a tan appropriate for all year-round.

Click here to read about keeping up your tan in Bravadora’s article on Get Glowing: Tips to Keeping Your Tan in Winter.

Posted in Cold Weather Beauty, Skin ~ 1 Comment