Not more than a couple of weeks after proposing that argan oil may be the next “it” ingredient in skin and hair care, I find that my prediction may be dated. Skin care trends seem to have the pace of fashion trends. Gladiator sandals? Please, girl, those are so last summer. While I’m not willing to concede that argan oil is so yesterday, I’m excited to see  Read more…

It’s a beautiful thing when effective ingredients come at reasonable prices.  That is exactly what the stunning Salma Hayek has claimed to do with her new skin care line, Nuance. Hayek partnered with CVS to develop the ambitious collection, sold exclusively at the US chain. Nuance seems to dabble in everything from makeup, skin care (both face and body), to hair care! Inspired by Hayek’s Mexican heritage, the Nuance collection boasts a proprietary formula that blends exotic and ancient ingredients with modern science, delivering the most effective results.  Read more…

Skin care and beauty trends are as dynamic as fashion and iPhones. Something is always brewing to change the market – to be better than the last “it” product. So I’m constantly looking at what the beauty industry is doing in terms of innovation, but sometimes some trends come right out of left field. Turns out, my kind of Asians – South Koreans, have really taken a liking to a Chilean skin care ingredient that has been shown to have great skin benefits…snail slime. Yeah, that’s right.  Read more…

A few months ago, a friend and I were talking about natural skin care and discovered we both shared a love for natural oils. Lankika mentioned she particularly enjoyed using argan oil. I hadn’t heard of it, strangely; but that quickly changed. Literally within a week of our conversation, I began to hear about argan oil all over the place – from QVC, then HSN, then in my Google news alerts, and in magazines! I gained enough exposure to decide to pick up a bottle of this “liquid gold” at Wholefoods, sold by Soelle. I hate gimmicky euphemisms like this (this is what they used to call  Read more…

Last weekend I celebrated my birthday by taking a trip to Atlantic City, which it turns out is very different from Atlanta. *Shrug* Now I know, so get off my case, Ashley.  While not the best in US geography, it also turns out I’m Lady (bad)Luck. I discovered, however, it’s a lot more fun when you’re losing someone else’s money, rather than your own. Throwing money away can have its perks, but I was more excited about laying on the beach the next day. Less excited, was I, about radiating heat from parts of my body that normally don’t see a lot of sunlight.

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Each time I dig into celebrity skin care secrets, the lists always include sunscreen. But sunscreen is not only important for preventing sun damage that makes you look older, it’s important for overall skin health – from Baby to Grandma. Hillary Peterson, CEO of Marie Veronique Organics, explains what you need to know to find safe and effective sunscreens.  Read more…