Garden Of Wisdom–Picking a New Product to Try! Help!

Don’t you wish that there were just one skin care product that would fulfill all of your skin care needs?  I sure do…  I wish that I could just buy one great, natural, skin care product that would address hydration, and collagen, and wrinkle reduction, and pore size, and combination skin.  Alas, there is no such product.  I would not care, if I had all of the money in the world, but that I do not have, either.

Besides, I have nothing to review if I try nothing new, right?  I am all out of my beloved Garden of Wisdom Summer serum, with the coffeeberry, and since summer is over, so is my shine–for now.  I am also out of a hyaluronic acid serum, and DMAE serum, but I want to try something new, something with more zing for my aging skin–and of course, it will be something more expensive.  I read some of the skin care routines that GoW fans use, and I have a pretty bare bones program going here, but then I make a lot of face food stuff that works wonders, too, and does the job of some of these products.

So, right now, I am looking at the following products from Garden of Wisdom.  I know hat I am going to buy the Crisp Apple Hydrating Mist.  What I do not know is what comes next, and I am asking for you help.  Here are the products that I am considering:

The Garden of Wisdom Skin Communicator Serum–this is a peptide serum with Syntakes peptides, as well as rice protein, white lily, and hyaluronic acid.  It costs $27 for an ounce, while skin care companies such as Peter Thomas Roth, and many others charge $110 and on up for products containing the syntakes peptides.  Those who have reviews this serum say that it works wonders, plumping the skin and making it look better, and more radiant, too.

My other possibility is the GoW Renew cream with Renovage–another thing fancy skin care companies use.  This cream has lingonberry fruit extract, and seed oil, or reduce photo-aging, lift and firm the skin, and to lighten age spots.  The Renovage is said to help with cell structural recovery.  Again, rave reviews, and Renovage is suppose to ward off signs of aging, as well as healing skin.  Hmmm….this stuff is $32 for an ounce.

And then there is the GoW Matrix Majik Anti-Aging serum with M, DMAE, and R-ALA–lifting, and so forth.  This is $24.60 for an ounce.  See why I wish everything could be packing into one bottle, or jar?

Finally, there is the Vita Resuface Retinol Cream, which cost $48 for the 1% strength, and we all know that retinol is the *must have* anti-aging product.  This cream has a sample size, but I suspect you do not see results after sampling.  I will probably get the sample size anyway.

I want to try them all!  Alright, I have a sample size of all four product in my cart right now.  I removed the hydrating mist–it can wait.   What do you all think?  Should I try them all, or go full size one at a time?  Please!  Help me out there!  This is tough, and I want to know what you would like to see reviewed, too!  Comments please!  Thanks gang!

Review: Garden of Wisdom Cucumber Hyaluronic Acid Serum

It’s time for another review! I have told you how well the Garden of Wisdom products are working for me, and I have reviewed the coffeeberry Summer Serum, and the DMAE serum, but I have not shared my thoughts on the three hyaluronic acids serums that I have been using. I order three serums from the oily skin selection, as my skin is oily in the summer. They are the autumn berry hyaluronic acid serum, the white peony tea hyaluronic acid serum, and the cucumber hyaluronic acid serum. This is a review of the cucumber hyaluronic acid serum.

This serum is clear and has a wonderful, fresh, cucumber scent. It goes on smoothly over damp skin, and it absorbs very quickly. This serum is touted as having a skin tightening effect, due to the cucumber extract, and it is a true statement! While this serum is drying on my face, I do feel my skin tightening.

I use this cucumber hyaluronic acid as part of my morning skin care regime. I apply it after I cleanse and tone, and after I apply an anti-oxidant serum, such as the Summer serum, or the Garden of Wisdom Cloudberry serum that I am trying now. I use the DMAE serum after, either the GoW DMAE serum, or the SkinJourney DMAE serum.

As with all of the other Garden of Wisdom skin care products, this serum does not roll, nor does it leave skin feeling greasy. Because it is water based, it is perfect for acne prone, and oily skin. It is also delightful to apply on a hot summer day! I give the cucumber hyaluronic acid serum two big thumbs up!

SkinJourney Anniversary Sale on Etsy.com, Through August, 9th!

Hi again!  Twice in one day, huh?  But, this is just a quickie, which is better than nothing.  

I recently ordered a sample of the DMAE, Carrot Seed Oil, Squalane Oil serum from SkinJourney, an etsy shop.  I have been trying it out for less than a week and I love it!  It soaks in so fast, no greasiness, and you can feel the tightening, and SEE it!  I was surprised when it first arrived, as it is called a serum, but it looks like a cream, and goes on like a cream.  I emailed SkinJourney, and this is because carrot seed oil is hard to emulsifiy, hence the cream consistency.

At any rate, SkinJourney is having an anniversary sale through August, 9th, to celebrate their 3rd year selling on etsy.com.  This sale is great, with 30% off regularly priced items!  Who can resist that, so I purchased a full size of the DMAE, Carrot Seed, Olive Squalane serum.  If I decided to buy a full size after using a new product for such a short time, I must really like it, so take a look at SkinJourney, on etsy.com!

Violet Daniels–Blueberries and Skin Care

I hope that someone gets my Willy Wonka reference.  I was thinking of blueberries today, as I had a bunch in my bowl of  whole grain cereal.  These were the store bought kind, not the delicious, wild blueberries that will fill my back pasture come August.  Hence, I was reminded of Violet Daniels, and of course, natural skin care 😉

By now I think that most of us know that the blueberries is considered a super food, right up there with the acai berry.   Blueberries have more antioxidants than green tea and red wine combined, so it has been said.  Because of these antioxidant super powers, many skin care products now contain blueberry extract.

Last summer, while at the fair, I was browsing my way through the blueberry building.  Yes, an entire building devoted to the wild Maine blueberry.  It was there where I stumbled upon Carmen Pease, and her line of natural skin care products, many of which contain wild Maine blueberry extract, along with nori seaweed.  Carmen has been making the Naturally Exquisite line of skin care products for 10 years, and after doing a little magic with my face, I bought two products–The Eye Dew, and the Face It moisturizer.  I loved them especially the Eye Dew.

The Eye Dew contains blueberry extract, along with the nori seaweed, and a secret ingredient that, like magic, opened up the fine lines around my eyes and had them all but disappear.  Extraordinary!  The Face it moisturizer was lovely, as well, containing Alpha Lipoic Acid and other good stuff, such as hyaluronic acid.

Carmen now has a website, to sell her Naturally Exquisite products.  You can order these products online and pay with PayPal.  The Eye Dew serum costs $24.99, and the Face It moisturizer costs $22.99.  That may be a little rich for some peoples blood, like mine, however, I have decided that I might like some more Eye Dew as it does work wonders.  But I think that I will go to her, and save on shipping 😉

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I love to support independent, small companies that produce top notch natural skin care and cosmetic products.  Carmen Pease and her blueberry containing Naturally Exquisite skin care line fit that bill, and she is a delight to work with, too!  And, if you cannot afford a product right now, then have a bowl of blueberries.  There are oh so many 4th of July dessert recipes that call for blueberries 😉

Garden Of Wisdom Hyaluronic Acid Serum-Goji Berry!

Good Morning!  I have a busy day today.  I am going shopping with my very soon to be 18 year old son, and my 4 year old son.  I need a date with the kid before he is an “adult.”  The 17 year old, of course.  It should be a fun day as the 4 year old and 17 year old get to bickering, as siblings do, and it’s always enjoyable to see the two minds pitted against each other 😉  So, I am posting earlier than usual.

I suppose by now that you may wonder if I ever by a ready made product.  The answer is, yes, of course I do!  I’d love to be a master natural skin care mixologist, but I am not one yet, so I do buy things that I need or want.  Today, if I am left with any money after this shopping trip, I plan to order a a little something for myself from Garden of Wisdom.

Garden of Wisdom is a wonderful place to buy ingredients for your DIY skin care portions and lotions, but they also sell finished products that they formulate themselves.  Whenever I can, I love to support independent businesses and companies, as well as buy things that are not made by corporate America.  They have a vast selection of all of the things that you might want, like essential oils, butters and oils, and active ingredients.  That’s the unformulated stuff.

Among their  finished products is a large number of hyaulonic acid serums to suit various skin needs.  Right now I am torn betweeon they hyaluronic acid serum with vitamin C packed goji berry, or the green rooibos serum, chock full of antioxidants and minerals.  The white peony serum looks good to me, too.  For those of you with ance prone skin, you might choose the cranberry hyaluronic acid serum, while those wanting a tightening effect might pick the cucumber serum.

Hyaluronic acid is a compound that is naturally found in the skin’s connective tissues. Hyaluronic acid is said to hold up to 1000 times as much water than other cell types.  Of course, this retention of moisture plumps the skin.  As we age, the amount of hyaluronic acid in our skin declines, so using a hyaluronic acid serum can replace some of what is lost.  Because of the moisture holding properties of hyaluronic acid, a good serum can be used in place of your usual moisturizer, and the moisture will benefit the skin cells in the connective tissue, not just the top layer of skin.

I am hoping that I can using the hyaluronic acid serum in place of my moisturizer might cut down on my summer time oily skin, as well as having the desired plumping effect!  I will be keeping you all posted on what hyaluronic acid serum that I choose, and in the weeks to come, I will let you know how it is working!  Goody!  An adventure!

What is a paraben, and why should we care, anyway?

Did you do your homework?

There is an old joke that goes, “What’s a paradox”? A pair of doctors, of course. I can hear the collective groan, as it is a pretty corny joke. The answer to the question, “What is a paraben”? is not much funnier.

Very simply put, a paraben is a chemical compound that is widely used in cosmetics, skin and body care products, and even food, as a preservative. Certainly, we all know that most packaged and highly processed foods are full of preservatives, but skin care products and cosmetics? Yup.

Paraben, in all of their many types, methyl, eythl, propyl, buetyl, are used in cosmetics and skin care products to inhibit the growth of bacteria and molds. Think about it–you are dipping your fingers into the jar time and again, or sticking that mascara wand back into the tube over and over, and as clean as you may be, there are still germs. And who knows how long that jar of whatever has been sitting on the shelf already! So, what is so bad about these paraben preservatives?

In the body, parabens mimic, or act like, estrogen. We females already have as much as we need, and there is a huge link between estrogen and breast cancer. We know that all of the stuff that we put on our bodies gets absorbed through the sink right into our bodies. The nicotine patch proves that. So, there go those parabens, acting like estrogen, right into us each time we use a paraben containing product.

Word on the street about the dangers of parabens differs a lot, with some saying they are safe, and others disagreeing. The cosmetic industry claims that the amount of parabens in a given product is about 1 to 2%, which doesn’t sound like a whole lot. However, it has been estimate that most women apply 12 of these paraben containing products to their bodies each day! Yikes! Add that up, day after day, year after year. That makes it sound a bit less benign, doesn’t it?

So, what can we do to avoid parabens, and still avoid bacteria and molds? Natural skin care products use natural preservatives, such as vitamin E, grape seed oil, and lecithin. A natural skin care product using grape seed oil as a preservative has a shelf life of 18 months.

I don’t know about you, but when it comes to a face cream, I use about a 1.7 ounce jar per month. Some body lotions and washes last a bit longer, but if you’ve had most anything for 18 months, you are either not using it and it should be tossed, or it’s been open too long and should be tossed, too.

We are all learning to buy fresh foods, and to make our meals from fresh ingredients, rather than from a box. Fresh is good for food, don’t we want the same for what we slather over our bodies? Besides, things like vitamin C, and other good stuff in skin care products lose their effectiveness as time goes on, so why would we want or need anything that lasts more then a few months, let alone 18 months?

Naturally preserved, and freshly made skin care products need no parabens and there is no worry about a cancer risk. You can start by making your own facial cleanser, one that you mix fresh in a minute, first thing every morning, and without a drop of preservatives. I will be back later today to post a few recipes! One by one, you can find ways and products to replaces those nasty paraben preserved ones. I promise!

YourAttitude–the BEST natural beauty product!

Rosalind Russell said, “Taking joy in living is a woman’s best cosmetic.”

Dorothy Parker put it much less timidly, “Beauty is only skin deep, but ugly goes clear to the bone.”

Have you ever been in the supermarket, or library, or at the gym and seen what appears to be a beautiful woman, who turns ugly to the bone when she starts screaming at her kids, or gossiping about her best friend, or complaining about everything!  What about the woman who walks around with a perpetual scowl on her face rain or shine, who refuses to smile back at anyone who smiles at her?

These types of women lack the one thing that can make their natural beauty everlasting- a good attitude towards life.  I know that this sounds trite and glib, but these days it seems that many of us need these little reminders.  Sure, everyone loses their temper once in a while, and who actually knows what is happening in the life of scowling woman.  But, if the rage and the discontent become chronic conditions of life, then something needs to change, and it needs to change within you–no cream or eye shadow will cure unhappiness.

It doesn’t cost a dime to smile at a stranger, or to be kind, or to laugh, whether it is at a friends silly joke, or at yourself, when need be.  Life is difficult for all of us at some time, and difficult for a lot of us right now due to a rocky economy.

If you have less disposable income to spend on skin care products, and new cosmetics, then invest some time in yourself, and develop an attitude that projects grace under pressure,  a sense of humor, and a kindness that will allows you to glow from within with an unparalleled  natural beauty.  Then take that great attitude, and that kindness, and sense of humor and pass it on!  Good things need to be shared to be fully enjoyed!