A Visit to Maryam's Soap Nook.

I have read the rave reviews of Maryam's Soap Nook's products, and am thrilled to have finally gotten to give some a try myself.

All of Maryam's products are all natural, and hand made with love in each batch.

I am such a sucker for handmade, hand cut soaps. And I am in love with this Dutch Apple Pie Handmade Soap. This soap is enriched with palm oil, olive oil, coconut oil, goats milk, shea butter, monoi de Tahiti oil, and Vitamin E. How enriching is that? It smells amazing with the aroma of fresh from the tree granny smith apples, smoothered in butter, cream, sugar, and cinnamon, with a background of fresh baked crust. Yum - is the best way to describe this. Each bar is $5.00.

Mayam also offers some glorious whipped shea butters. Hers are entitled Whipped Shea Monoi Body Butter. There is nothing like a whipped shea butter on rough knees, elbows, and feet, and to soothe sun scorched skin. And this shea butter is so ultra rich. Some of the scetns, scented only with essential oils, of course, include Sweet Lavender Herbal, Jasmine and Neroli, Chocolate Lovers, Fresh Cut Flowers, Pomegrante and Wild Berries, just to name a few. This Whipped Shea Monoi Body Butters sell for $15 for an 8 ounce jar or $25 for the 16 ounce jar.

I hear that Maryam'a Shea Butter and Dead Sea Salt Glow Scrub are her star product, and I can't wait to try that. It sounds like a perfect mix of ingredients to exfoliate and moisturize skin.

Be sure to visit Maryam's Soap Nook to see her handmade goodness for yourself.

A Cure is in Your Hands.

For the month of October, this limited-edition Hand Relief from Aveda is specially packaged in a 5oz tube and features a limited-edition pink ribbon design. Emphasizing the importance of early detection, the packaging reminds users of their annual breast exam.

The formula is a very thick, yet non-greasy, cream to help soothe dry, chapped hands, leaving them noticeably softer and smoother.

Aveda will contribute $2 per tube sold, along with a matching $2 company gift from the Estee Lauder Companies, in support of its $280,000 donation to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Hand Relief  retails for $20 and is available in Aveda salons, spas, stores and online at aveda.com in October 2006. Please visit their website or call 800.328.0849 for locations or more information.

Love to the Little Guy!

Have you taken a look at some of the smaller, independent beauty companies out there?

Well, they may not be so little. And by little, I mean it in the sense that we cannot find them at our major department store, Sephora, or beauty.com.

I want to spread the word about some great little beauty sites I discovered, and hope to bring you reviews of their products soon, if I haven't already.

Ooohlala of Beverly Hills - super cute bath and body sets, bath bombs, and candles
Bella il Fiore - fun makeup, polishes, and bath & body sets
Bath by Bettijo - a great selection of natural products - soap, scrubs, shea butter and lip balm
Renee Rouleau - unique skin care products for unique skin from a celebrated esthetician
ME! Bath - home of bath ice cream and shower sorbet - yummy
Piaffe Beauty - beautiful vitamin and mineral bases makeup and skin care
Urban Apothecary - artisan quality makeup and skin care

Let me know if you have tried anything!