All posts filed under: Beauty

10 Best Lip Balms, Scrubs and Masks For Dry and Chapped Lips This Winter

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This is no lip service, we genuinely want to protect your lips. Did you know that the skin on our lips is extremely thin compared to the rest of your body? That is because the stratum corneum is much thinner here, making our blood vessels visible and your skin more susceptible to injury. Now you can see why we deem protecting your lips essential. Do this through exfoliation, hydration, nourishing ingredients, and most importantly, SPF. From the affordable, to the pricier options, here are some of our current clean favorites. Henné Organics Lip Mask The last step in your nighttime skincare routine should be a lip mask. Since you will not be eating or moving your lips, this luxurious and nourishing mask can really seep in. Using this product is an experience for multiple senses: it has a light sweet citrus scent and glides on with ease. If you care about organic ingredients, Henne is USDA Certified Organic and made in the USA. Cornelia International Lip Enhancing Complex Do you ever find yourself admiring your …

Talking Spa Beauty, Wellness & Seaweed with Repêchage Founder, Lydia Sarfati

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Spa industry giants everywhere know Lydia Sarfati as the seaweed skincare authority – the Repêchage founder has worked her way up from esthetician who loved formulating and creating, to spa owner on Madison Avenue, to running one of the most well-known professional skincare brands in the spa community. Beauty insiders continue to be impressed by the Repêchage Four Layer Facial (I have yet to try it for myself). It is Lydia Sarfati who has helped set the professional and business standard in the field of esthetics. Many new brand creators can learn from this founder’s contributions and dedication to giving us the gift of effective and lasting beauty. Q & A with Lydia Sarfati Cultivated: I read that as a young girl you loved science and chemistry. Where did your passion for skincare and formulating products come from?  LS: My approach has always been based on chemistry and biology coupled with a holistic approach, looking at the skin from within as well as what you put on topically. Growing up in Poland, every Friday our kitchen …

Heavenly Facial Oils For Every Skin Type

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The romance of facial oils has not worn off. In fact, we urge you to anoint yourself with enthusiasm. While we we feel we no longer need to make the case for facial oils (most would agree that they have become a widely accepted skincare hero and a genderless beauty product), some skepticism is understandable. Our best advice? You know your skin better than anyone – Turn your focus on learning to read labels for ingredients, research them, and heed advice from the professionals. With the right oil in hand you can either balance oily skin or boost moisture for dry skin. Best scanario of all, you get the most plump and radiant skin of your life, just like Chrissy Teigen does with Le Prunier Plum Oil. Yes, we’ve tried it, and yes, we love it. With so many facial oils on the market, it can be quite difficult to find the one that your skin loves the most. Here is what we tried in 2020 and will continue using going into 2021. For further …

Quarantine-Inspired 2020 Holiday Gift Guide For the Most Hated Year

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The 2020 holiday season might look different, but is is more important than ever to show how much we care. Choose your gifts carefully and with their health in mind. The year might have sucked, but the gifts don’t have to. Lola’s Apothecary For extra special holiday splendor give them the gift of at-home spa. Lola’s Apothecary is an English brand that puts a ridiculous amount of attention into each product. If your loved one likes to indulge in a luxury bath or take extra special care of their skin, Lola’s Apothecary has you covered. Plus, they can share their love of beautiful skin with their partner or family through massage oils, candle aromatherapy and shower oils. The brand has created special packaging just for the holidays so go ahead and get shopping. Sanara If your gift receiver enjoys the at-home spa experience, and supporting Latin brands, Sanara should be your go-to. Sanara has tapped into botanical ingredients that make very effective body care, especially for those who suffer from dry skin, eczema, or psoriasis. …

The Most Nourishing and Luscious Body Butters You’ll Ever Experience

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SOOTHING SELF-MASSAGE TO THE RESCUE We said it before and we will say it again – skin is your largest organ, one that protects you, feed it luxurious skin food and it will thank you back with health and radiance. Testing body care products is one of our favorite perks of the job, and these brands know how to quench the thirst with hydration and flurry textures. ENGLISH LUXURY If your budget allows for one luxurious collection this winter, make it this English brand. Lola’s Apothecary has artisans whip up each and every product, and their body soufflés are beautifully designed glass tubs of goddess containing a fragrant cloud of tranquil aromatherapy. The one-of-a-kind scents will have you keep coming back. As soon as the product touches your skin it melts in like butter. Among other rich ingredients, this soufflé is made up of shea butter, coconut oil, and rosehip CO2. Use it as a skin treat after a bath or shower, and let it all seep in with a proper self-massage. WHIPPED INTO PERFECTION …

Wellness & The City: Best Places For Socially Distanced Beauty & Wellness Treatments

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In today’s uncertain world escapism is the ultimate luxury. We combed our beloved city for socially distanced beauty and wellness treatments – three places helped us indulge in beauty and wellness, standing out as the best and safest to help us practice self-care. SALT LIVE ENERGIZED 180 Avenue of the Americas Respiratory health and immune health should be our priority, and salt therapy has the potential to become your new favorite pastime. While we have been to a number of salt rooms in the city (each unique in their own way), SALT is the only one that focuses solely on the respiratory system and makes their own body care line of products. Salt air therapy is natural and it is what makes SALT unique is the dry particles of pharmaceutical grade salt, as small as 1 micrometer (aka “micron”), released in a low humidity environment. We can tell you about the science of it all, but instead we’ll just tell you that our sinus headache was relieved upon exit. So what happens in the room …

Best Pumpkin & Vitamin Rich Skincare Products For Glowing Skin

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It’s National Pumpkin Day, and while pumpkin spice lattes aren’t our thing, we do find pumpkin formulated skincare products to be very effective. This is exfoliation season and this stand-out ingredient is good for all skin types. Celebrate what the Autumn pumpkin has to offer – it is superfood for your skin. Let’s get glowing! Elemis Superfood AHA Glow Cleansing Butter Elemis Pumpkin Glow Facial Cleanser gives your skin healthy radiance with a unique blend of a fermented Pumpkin enzymes, Acerola Cherry, Mango Butter and Chia Seed Oil. Acerola Cherry is naturally rich in AHAs, while Mango Butter and Chia Seed Oil are rich in omega fatty acids. Combined with Pumpkin enzymes your skin will be bright, nourished and hydrated. You’ll never have to worry about this cleanser making your skin dry or tight, plus it is fragrance-free, which means no overpowering scent of pumpkin. So feel free to melt the day, and your makeup, off your skin with this yummy looking facial cleanser that looks and feels like butter. Eminence Pumpkin Latte Hydration Masque …

Sleeping Beauty: Overnight Masks, Serums & Potions For Restored Morning Skin

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The sweetness of slumber is even sweeter when you wake up with soft and radiant looking skin. A healthy sleep hygiene is a beauty secret we often hear about from doctors and skincare experts alike. We all want to look refreshed and restored, but in reality naps and eight hour sleep schedules compete with life and stress. So, let effective products pull their weight in lending a hand in your quest for the best skin of your life. The goal is not perfect skin, but healthy and happy skin. All you have to do is take good care of your skin before bed, and the rest is taken care of by nature and science. We’d call it magic, but a lot of hard work has gone into these creations. Here is our list of tried-and-true products that are so effective, you see instant morning results. SLEEP & RESTORE Commit to better skincare, then reap the results in the morning. “Some things are best done under the moon and stars.” This is exfoliation season and we’re …

Self Care Insiders: Fall Skin Care and Lifestyle Tips From Dermatologist and Cosmetic Surgeon, Dr. Dendy Engelman

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Seasons are changing and that means your routine is due for an overhaul. When we need advice on skin care, ingredients, skin dilemmas and even holistic, but essential, lifestyle tips – we go to the pros. By pros we mean our aesthetician and doctor. We have had lots of questions lately; from switching our skincare going into the fall to what causes rapid aging. Dr. Dendy Engelman answered. Dr. Engelman is a board-certified dermatologist located in New York, and a Director of Dermatologic Surgery at Metropolitan Hospital. Let’s get right into it. Cultivated: What skincare products or ingredients should we look for when switching from summer to fall/winter routines? Dr. Dendy Engelman: When it’s cold, there is less moisture in the environment. When you compound that by wind and central heating which further lessens the moisture. In this state, water is lost from the skin cells (keratinocytes) leaving skin dry, flaky, chapped. Even if skin does not seem dry, it still needs that layer of protection. The best way to combat it is layer, layer, layer! …

New York City Has a New Museum: The World’s Only Makeup Museum Has Opened It’s Doors With a “Pink Jungle – 1950s Makeup In America” Exhibit

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New York City proves that it remains to be America’s cultural hub with the opening of the world’s first Makeup Museum. Beauty, and more specifically makeup, have been a part of society for thousands of years, so we do wonder – why has no one thought up this idea before? While the initial opening of the museum was delayed due to the coronavirus, the 3,500-square foot space has officially opened its doors September 1st at 94 Gansevoort Street – proving that the city is recovering and very much alive. Before you go, make sure to reserve your ticket and schedule a visit on their website. Don’t forget to explore the rest of the meatpacking district afterwards. Let’s talk makeup. Makeup is so much more than tangible objects and what the eye sees. Makeup is heritage, resilience, nostalgia, strength, folklore, art, and so much more. Makeup artifacts can tells us more about what was considered beautiful, past inventions, and societal thinking. It was about time someone paid homage to makeup and its purpose. The museum opened …

Product Highlight: Kansa Organics Kansa Wands

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Kansa Organics Takes Face Massage To a Whole New Level PRODUCT HIGHTLIGHT | Kansa Organics Massage Wand Massage plays an essential role in the Ayurvedic healing system. In fact, the healing power of touch can be traced back to India as far back as 3000 BCE (or earlier). The Kansa Wand was born out of that belief, practice and love for massage. When it comes to facial, and body massage, we find this tool to be far more sophisticated than facial rollers and even Gua Sha tools. The reason for this is its history rooted in healing the mind and body and easy to use design. We find ourselves using it a lot more often than other tools, and adding it to our skincare arsenal has greatly improved our love for facial and body massage. WHAT IS THE KANSA WAND? The Kansa wand is a small domed tool (shaped like a bell or a cup) that can be used to massage the face + body. Kansa wands are made with India’s sacred and healing metal (Kansa). …

Symbol of Resilience: Best Red Lipsticks on National Lipstick Day

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Today red lipstick is widely accepted and considered beautiful, but throughout history it was symbolic of boldness, strength and rebellion. Wearing a bold red lip could strike fear into anyone opposing change, sex equality, and those who thought of it as inappropriate. Wearing red lipstick could get you accused of being a witch. We say that’s more of a reason to enjoying wearing it today. It is no secret that we love a bold red lip. Before the pandemic, it was almost a daily go-to. It is time to celebrate the red lip once again. You can still wear it at home, on occasion, to boost your mood and when you need to feel fearless. Don’t shy away from it. Red looks good on everyone. Here is our list of all-star red lipsticks in the clean arena. Kjaer Weis Lipstick Rituel de Fille Enchanted Lip Sheer Hickey Refillable Lipstick REALHER Moisturizing Lipstick Lucky Chick Creamy Matte Lipstick Ere Perez olive oil lipstick Absolution Le Rouge Theatre No. 08 Aveda feed my lips  pure nourish-mint™ lipstick Alima …