Acure Organics Argan Conditioner

Okay ladies...let's talk shaving!  It's summer and we all want to have soft, smooth legs and shaving can sometimes irritate the skin.  I used to use shaving gels/soaps but used hair conditioner when didn't have anything else and will never go back!  I know many of us change up our shampoos and since we use more shampoo we're always left with excess conditioner.  I've heard from many women who have a stash of left over condtioners cluttering up their cabinets. What a great way to use up left over conditioners or some that didn't work so great on your hair.  We recently started carrying Acure Organics after I tried their Argan oil with CoQ10 shampoo & conditioner and fell in love!  The best part - the conditioner is the best shave gel ever!!  Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Confessions of a Greenophobe

I’m going to start this post off with a little honesty-I’m not really an “organic” person.  I’ve never been one to stray toward non-chemical products and in the grocery store, the label “pesticide-free”  waving at me from a pile of apples tends to send me running in the opposite direction, and I tend to binge eat overly processed candies on a cyclical basis.  Why do you ask?  It’s not that I’m an earth-hating, GMO-toting, Grinch (hey, I recycle); I just carry the wide-spread fear that in buying natural products, I pay more and sacrifice effectiveness. 

BUT-it is springtime; that means new year’s resolutions are still hanging in there, not to mention Lent, and with the added bonus of the beauty of nature popping up all around me; I decided there’s no better time to turn a new life and go natural…err…at least try it out.

Lucky for me I have an awesome downtown Athens apartment, and there is a just as awesome natural body care shop just down the street (corner of East Clayton and College to be exact).  So I took a stroll to Keeping It Natural (walking gives me “green” bonus points, right?) and took the plunge into their soap-filled world of earthy and organic products. 

Keeping it Natural had EVERYTHING-even things I didn’t know existed, like black soap (ironically clean) and bars of lotion.  And it smelled really good.   We’re talking yankee candle meets a candy shop in a field of lilacs good, none of that dirty, gritty stank that I imagined all natural products carried with them.  So there I was, in a cute little green and brown store, surrounded by hundreds of products that I was tempted to eat while I read their labels, just a tad bit overwhelmed by choice. 

Luckily, the store owner, Melissa, was there to save me.  And with her guidance and expert knowledge of all of her products, I navigated my way through the shelves of locally produced and organic temptations until I settled on a couple of products that were 1-not the super expensive, overly trendy items I was anticipating 2-pretty perfectly suited for my life.  BONUS: the labels were adorable and I got to play pretend photographer with my Instagram later.  I know, I know, I’m so artsy.

Clovertree Apothecary Deep Cleansing Face Wash was perfect for my not-so-perfect skin, and easy to fit into my lifestyle; I already wash my face, so I just substituted my regular bar soap for something a little less chemical-ly.  Let me tell you something-I am NOT a morning person.  I cringe at the idea of waking up before dawn and find myself burying my head in pillows at the sound of that hauntingly familiar iPhone ringtone.  This stuff didn’t exactly make me want to get up in the morning, but it definitely made it a teensy bit more bearable.  It had just the right balance of citrus to wake me up, with a little honey balance to ease me into the waking world.  Super refreshing.  The smell alone would keep me using this stuff on the reg, but the fact that it actually works is an added bonus.  It keeps my skin super clear, without slathering on scary sounding things, like sodium laureth, yikes.

Face wash is great and all, but I wanted to get something fun to, and to my surprise, found out there was local, natural make up, too! SallyB’s Skin Yummies is located right in Atlanta and Melissa helped me to find a really cool gel-like charcoal eye shadow from her line to dress up my organic experience.  I’m not a big fan of the harsh black raccoon-eye look, so the fact that this went on in a less gothic manner made me really happy.  Not to mention, I just switched from a thick eye shadow brush to an angled one and boom-instant eyeliner!   Plus, look at the packaging; it’s kind of adorable and even has a little mirror on the inside for on-the-go application (or general vanity, your call).  And guess what guys-it’s not expensive!  We’re talking like half of the price of all of the department store face cleansing regimes and makeup pieces.  And this is coming from a jobless, constantly-broke, extremely stingy college student. 

 So what are this springtime’s realizations:  Natural products work just as well, if not better, than their chemical-laden counterparts.  AND they actually smell good, like really good.  Keeping It Natural has about a million options for anyone looking to go natural, and Melissa offers fantastic prices and an incredible knowledge about organic and natural products.  Needless to say, I know where I’ll be frequenting for body wash needs and cute little presents in the future.  I’m not going to get ahead of myself here and pretend that I will be growing my own organic carrots or housing a colony of compost worms in my kitchen anytime soon, but this girl’s life may have gotten just a little more natural.

All this talk about yummy smelling organics has me daydreaming about twizzlers; I think those might be processed?  Baby steps……….

- Guest Blogger: Katie Bazemore, University of Georgia Student

MIX IT UP: B Smoothed Mud Mask Recipe!!

Whip up a super hydrating B Green Mud Mask to repair dried and chapped skin, offering it a quick boost of moisture for instant relief. For those of you who have been hitting the slopes or indulging in afternoons spent outside on these unusual springtime like days, treat yourself to an at-home spa night and a made-from-your-pantry Mud Mask to refresh your skin and keep it healthy and looking its best. 

B Soothed: Hydrate and soothe while reducing redness!  This recipe is great for a girls night in since it makes 4 masks.  Adjust accordingly or store unused portion in refrigerator up to one week!

1 tblsp. Sally B's B Green Mud Mask

1 tblsp. Olive oil

1/2 ripe avocado

1/2 ripe banana

Mix all together in food processor or by hand.  For extra cooling/sotthing place in refrigerator for a few minutes before applying.  Apply evenly  to freshly cleansed skin and let sit 20 minutes before rinsing off with warm water.  Follow with toner and moisturizer!  Your skin will thank you!!

MyChelle Ultimate Lash & Brow Serum!

WOW!!  This one works great! Wanted to try a lash serum for awhile but was afraid of the nasty side effects so I was thrilled to find this one from MyChelle.  When I was younger I didn't need to wear mascara but as I got older the need grew!  Then I noticed a gap in my lashes on my right eye and would dab eyeliner at the base so it wouldn't be as noticeable.  Hoping that the ducts hadn't closed up I decided to try this serum and am so glad that I did!  It took a solid 3-4 weeks to see "sprouts" in my gap and within 3 months the area was completely filled in.  I stopped using for about a month to see if they would go back to the way they were before I started using this serum but they didn't.  Now I just use several times a month and my lashes look great! The best part is that this serum is half the price of Latisse and doesn't have any of those nasty side effects!!  The only thing I noticed after using every night for the 3 months was a small dry patch on one lid which went away with a little extra moisturizer.  It only happened one time and may not have had anything to do with the serum but worth the mention.  All in all I highly recommend this one if you have ever wanted to try Latisse but didn't want the side effects.  Not much to lose and just beautiful lashes to gain! Any questions just drop me a line!

Southern Comfort Food for the Skin??!

Now for those of you who know me know that I'm not a grits lover but thanks to HollyBeth I have a new appreciation for this southern staple!! Grits & Honey facial scrub!!! HollyBeth mixes this family recipe up in her loft in Atlanta, Ga..   LOVED this scrub the first time I tried it.   I believe in exfoliating the skin on a regular basis to keep it young, fresh & smooth and this one does the trick.  You can use this scrub on dry skin for maximum exfoliation or dampen skin for a lighter touch.  You'll find the right combination for your skin.  The scent is sweet, fresh & natural. Rinses off to reveal healthy, glowing skin that's soft and smooth to the touch! Now that's a true southern treat for the skin!!


Some benefits of regular exfoliation include but are not limited to:


* Brighter, smoother complexion
* Increased blood circulation
* Removes dead skin cells and encourages growth of new skin cells
* Deep clean pores


All of HollyBeth's products are:


Hand made in Atlanta with love and passion
Certified USDA organic
Artisan-Crafted from family recipes
Environmentally Sustainable
HollyBeth’s Natural Luxury is a line of refreshing USDA-certified-organic products for face, body, hair and home. Each product is handmade in small, artisanal batches in an old cotton warehouse in Atlanta.

All the products  start – and end – with simple, easy-to-pronounce natural ingredients. Just as her grandmother would have made them.


Give them a try you won't be disappointed!