Relaxing Bath
After the crazy week I’m sure some of us like myself have had, I feel like we all deserve a nice warm, relaxing, bath. And I can’t think of a better way to relax our body, overcome mental fatigue and ease our emotional stress. That’s why we created two wonderful bath salts for you. Have a look.
Or, mix 5 drops Lavender, 3 drops Sandalwood, with 2 drops German Chamomile or 2 drops Mandarin
Enjoy!
Hydrate Your Skin From Within
May 14, 2010 by admin
Filed under Archive, Cool Finds
By Dr. Jessica Wu
I’m on an airplane once or twice a month, and all that flying can really dehydrate my skin, so I’ve made a conscious effort to drink more water. However, as I’ve written before, I don’t like the taste of water (or lack thereof). In fact, my staff used to call me the desert rat because I could go all day without a sip. This year, I made a resolution to drink more water, and so far I think I’m doing a pretty good job (and my skin looks better). If you fly frequently, live in a dry climate, or just want plumper skin, remember to stay hydrated. Here are some of my tricks to making water more tasty:
Add fruit. Slice some lemons or cucumbers into a pitcher of water so you’ll always have a tasty cold drink. If you don’t have a fridge at work, or you’re always on the go, put half a lemon or orange in a Ziploc bag, and squeeze a few drops of fresh juice into your water bottle now and then.
Have a “cocktail.” Sweet, candy-colored cocktails go down easily, but alcohol can end up dehydrating you. When I’m out with friends, I try to have just one real cocktail — then I switch to cranberry and club soda. I love the bubbles, and it’s more fun to drink than just plain water. (This is also a great option if you’re the designated driver for the night.)
Make tea. Many teas contain caffeine, which is a diuretic, meaning it flushes water from your body. While this can be helpful when you’re bloated, too much caffeine can dehydrate you, making your cheeks look drawn and your wrinkles more prominent. Instead, drink caffeine-free or herbal teas, such as chamomile and mint. At Starbucks, choose iced herbal tea instead of Frappuccinos.
Stressed out? Try these oils
Stressed out a home, work or with life? Use these oils to bring back the balance:
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Geranium: emotionally balancing. |
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Rose: aside from its lovely intoxicating, floral aroma, rose oil is known for its balancing effect on female hormones and its ability to calm the mind. |
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Clary Sage: used to help as an antidepressant |
Put one drop of each oil on one facial tissue, cup between your hands and inhale deeply. This should help you regain your balance.
Enjoy!
All Natural Skin Care Tip
May 7, 2010 by admin
Filed under Archive, Cool Finds
Great suggestion from Kristen for natural simple skin care. Read about her natural skin care tip.
What simple tips do you use? Please share in comments below.
Matthew McConaughey’s Avocado Soup
October 13, 2009 by admin
Filed under Archive, Cool Finds
Yes ladies Matthew McConaughey makes avocado soup too! Here’s his receipe:
Ingredients:
- 2 avocados diced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 2 C. buttermilk
- 4 tsp fresh lime juice
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp red pepper
Directions:
- Add avocados, garlic and 1 cup of the buttermilk to blender or food processor.
- Blend until smooth.
- Add the rest of the buttermilk along with the lime juice, salt and pepper.
- Blend until smooth. If the soup seems too thick, you can add more buttermilk or a little cold water.
- Chill and serve.
Did you also know that avocado makes a great skin mask and buttermilk makes a great soap.
Breast cancer reality check: Toxic chemicals in cosmetics may be the biggest cause
October 13, 2009 by admin
Filed under Archive, Cool Finds
by Mark Rubi
It’s time for a breast cancer reality check: Despite all the hype about obesity, toxic chemicals in cosmetics and personal care products may be the biggest cause. As everyone in America seems to know, even the National Football League, October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Even if an average guy had not noticed the hundreds, if not thousands, of articles devoted to breast cancer in the last week or so, watching NFL football this past weekend would surely have cured him of his ignorance. Football fields all across the nation were adorned not only with “pink ribbon” logos, but players and officials were wearing a variety of pink wrist bands, shoes, and gloves to show the NFL’s support for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
The reason that a reality check is needed is that many of the articles seem to place the blame for breast cancer primarily on obesity, as if a major new discovery had been made. In fact, no such new discovery has been made about obesity alone being a causing agent for breast cancer, particularly breast cancer for pre-menopausal women.
Those studying breast cancer have long tried to place the blame for this unfortunate disease at the door of obesity. By doing so, they can blame the victims, even though the causes for obesity, at least to the extreme currently plaguing America, are neither well known nor understood. The most commonly repeated mantra in the health care community is that obesity is nearly completely self-imposed, despite growing evidence to the contrary. Environmental factors such as food and water toxins, cellular level food hypersensitivites, and even a virus are all routinely dismissed because it easier to blame the victims for the pollution which now makes it necessary for millions of Americans to choose to drink bottled water.
Witch hazel wards off their recession
October 6, 2009 by admin
Filed under Archive, Cool Finds
EAST HAMPTON, Conn. - Nothing signals the presence of a venerable remedy in this quiet suburb 30 minutes southeast of Hartford. No garish signs, no proud slogans, no roadside stands proclaim the world-famous properties of the humble shrub that flourishes beyond the shores of Lake Pocotopaug.
The only clue is the lone plant growing a dozen feet high in front of a brown stucco building on Connecticut Route 66. This is witch hazel, hamamelis virginiana. It stands outside the business that has made the astringent distilled from the shrub’s ridged bark a household staple for generations.
Native Americans used witch hazel as a cure-all. So did the early European settlers. Your grandmother used it; a bottle of the clear, nut-scented liquid is probably still tucked away in the back of her medicine cabinet. And so, perhaps without your knowing it, have you: Witch hazel from East Hampton is an important ingredient in shampoos, mouthwashes, high-end facial toners, acne treatments, and eyewash, to name just a few items.
Because of that, Dickinson Brands Inc., the world’s largest producer of witch hazel, has quietly prospered here, in what is arguably the witch hazel capital of the world.
Owners and employees say they have avoided the layoffs, furloughs, and pay cuts that have benighted so many companies. And in this season of shrinking sales and mounting losses, the privately owned company says it has experienced double-digit growth.
The challenge for Dickinson, which bottles and sells the astringent under the brand name Witch Hazel, is how to make the remedy relevant for today’s generations. “It’s become a part of Americana,’’ said Bryan Jackowitz, the company’s marketing director. “People say: ‘Oh yeah, yeah, I know Witch Hazel. My grandmother used it. What do I use it for?’ ’’
No one at the factory knows for sure the origins of the name of the plant, a shrub that grows in northern forests and is distinguishable by its yellow flowers, which bloom in late autumn, after most trees have shed their leaves. A popular version has it that “witch’’ is derived from an old English word, “wyche,’’ which means pliant or bendable. The word “hazel,’’ it is suggested, may have come from the use of twigs from the shrub as divining rods, the way twigs from the hazel plant once were used in England. Dickinson is hoping to tap into the increased demand for all-natural skin-care products. In recent years, it has phased out the word “astringent’’ from one of its two versions of Witch Hazel, the yellow-label one, which it now markets as “pore perfecting toner.’’ The more powerful blue-label Witch Hazel, for treatment of bites, scrapes, and irritation, is still sold as “100 percent natural astringent.’’Continued…
View bluebasins bath & body’s witch hazel products.
Raise Your Cup to White Tea
September 11, 2009 by admin
Filed under Archive, Cool Finds, Featured
White Tea Could Keep You Healthy And Looking Young
Next time you’re making a cuppa, new research shows it might be wise to opt for a white tea if you want to reduce your risk of cancer, rheumatoid arthritis or even just age-associated wrinkles. Researchers from Kingston University teamed up with Neal’s Yard Remedies to test the health properties of 21 plant and herb extracts. They discovered all of the plants tested had some potential benefits, but were intrigued to find white tea considerably outperformed all of them.
Professor Declan Naughton, from the School of Life Sciences at Kingston University in South West London, said the research showed white tea had anti-aging potential and high levels of anti-oxidants which could prevent cancer and heart disease. “We’ve carried out tests to identify plant extracts that protected the structural proteins of the skin, specifically elastin and collagen,” he explained. “Elastin supports the body’s natural elasticity which helps lungs, arteries, ligaments and skin to function. It also helps body tissue to repair when you suffer wounds and stops skin from sagging.” Collagen is a protein found in connective tissues in the body and is important for skin, strength and elasticity, he added.
Results showed white tea prevented the activities of the enzymes which breakdown elastin and collagen which can lead to wrinkles that accompany aging. These enzymes, along with oxidants, are associated with inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. Professor Naughton said: “These enzymes and oxidants are key components of normal body processes. However, in inflammatory conditions, suppressing the activities of these excess components has been the subject of decades of research. We were surprised to find such high activity for the white tea extracts in all five tests that were conducted.”
The researchers were blown away by exactly how well the white tea had performed. “We were testing very small amounts far less than you would find in a drink,” Professor Naughton, one of the country’s leading specialists on inflammation, said. “The early indicators are that white tea reduces the risk of inflammation which is characteristic of rheumatoid arthritis and some cancers as well as wrinkles.”
Eight of the other plants and herbs analyzed also helped protect against the breakdown of both elastin and collagen. After white tea, bladderwrack performed well followed by extracts of cleavers, rose, green tea, angelica, anise and pomegranate.
Dr Pauline Hili, Technical Director for Neal’s Yard Remedies, said: “We are really excited by this research as it helps us to remain innovative and at the cutting edge of natural skin care. Celebrating the plants used in the Neal’s Yard Remedies products and understanding their specific actions on the skin is what it is all about. The Kingston University research program helps us to create safe, highly effective and cutting-edge products so it’s an ideal partnership for us.”
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At bluebasins we’ve created a Green Tea Tree Oil soap. Have a look.
Papaya facial mask
This fabulous fruit, the papaya offers anti-oxidants, rich in essential fruit enzymes, large quantities of carotene, vitamin C and A. For skin care it has both preventative and restorative properties. Papaya is also an excellent aid to helping with skin disorders such as acne.
Papaya provides a “natural” face lift while brining about a wonderful, natural and rejuvenating glow to the skin
Papaya facial mask
Ingredients:
- 1/2 ripe papaya, skinned and seeded
- 1 beaten egg white
- 1 teaspoon of honey
Preparation:
Simply mix all the ingredients together. Carefully, so you don’t touch the eye area, apply the mask on the face and leave on for 20 minutes.Rinse well and pat dry.
Use Cucumbers for Puffy Eyes
Did you know that cucumbers contain a highly beneficial ingredient that when place on your swollen eyelids, puffy eyes and eye bags reduces that swollen look.
To use: Easy. Simply cut thin slices and place them over your eyelids, then sit back and relax for a few minutes while it works it’s magic.
Another good vegetable secret which helps to lighten dark under eye circles are potatoes. Wrap a grated raw potato in cheesecloth and apply to eyes dark circles for 15-20 minutes.
Enjoy!
