I’m a pretty big fan off all-in-one salves or balms and while it seems that the beloved Shea Butter ingredient  is at the core of most of these, this next product introduces us to another nourishing ingredient. LAVIGNE ORGANICS Mayan Magic Balm contains Tepezcohuite, the bark of a tree native to Mexico and northern Brazil and is the core of each product in the line. From what I have read, the Mayans used to roast this bark to treat lesions and it has so many other benefits like treating other skin ailments like rashes, psoriasis, and burns. Used in the LaVigne Organic products, it helps promote collagen growth and regenerate new skin cells.

Remember the dry spot I told you about on my ankle and my toe? This takes care of it lickety-split! $16/1.7oz, $27/3.5oz @ lavigneorganics.com.

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.

Wowee, this is some mask from ARCONA! It’s their Tea Tree Mask and it “cleanses, purifies, detoxifies and refines the skin’s texture,” and I feel like it did all that and just really woke my skin up! I have combo skin and I’ve used it a few times all over my face and neck but I’m also thinking since I get blemishes only once in a while, this might be a good one to use as a spot treatment. But wow, it does feel so good when I use it all over, like my skin just gargled with Listerine! Witch Hazel Extract and Sulphur are the first two ingredients listed but the product itself doesn’t smell overwhelming like sulphur, which it’s sometimes known to do. And the Sulphur is a really good exfoliator and this especially great at helping to treat psoriasis spots, which I have a few of on my body. $30/2oz @ arcona.com.

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.

BURT’S BEES Cranberry & Pomegranate Sugar Scrub sounds good enough to eat, doesn’t it? In a base of sugar is pomegranate oil, which is high in anti-oxidants and tiny cranberry seeds as well as olive oil, coconut oil, honey and Shea Butter, among others. I really feel like I’m getting back to nature when I use this one! And the price? $13 for 8oz. How can you go wrong?? (yup, two question marks).

Get yours @ dermstore.com.

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.

There’ve been some changes ‘round HAIR THERAPY WRAP land! Good changes to an already great product. If you remember, this is a cordless heat cap you wear to help your hair treatment really penetrate strands. I am still baffled why more people don’t use this regularly!

Improvements include:

• Solid thermal gel packs instead of liquid (and if you ever have to replace it, they will do it for free).
• The Cap is now made from 100% cotton
• New box design

And just like before, you just pop the whole cap into the microwave for about 90 seconds and it’s ready for a 15 to 20 minute wear! Comes in Brown or White for $22 @ amazon.com.

It’s been raining the past week or so in LA, which is a sign that the seasons are changing and what better time to rethink your skin care regimen? You need to up the moisture on your skin that the cold air sucks out and this new one from CAUDALIE seems right up that alley. Their new Vinosource Quenching Sorbet-Crème not only hydrates with some major players like Organic Grape Water, Shea Butter and Grape Seed Polyphenols but also their exclusive ingredient, Vinolevure. This one is extracted from wine yeast and helps protect the skin from everyday pollutants, while helping it retain its weight in water. And what a great price! $40/1.3oz @ sephora.com.

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.

As much as I love color right now, the nude color also has a piece of my heart. And over the years I have discovered that there is such a thing as a lippie or eye shadow being too nude as in, it’s practically invisible. I want some color with my nude, right? Here are some nudes that are rockin’ my features and not don’t do a disappearing act.

From L to R:
Buxom Big & Healthy Lip Stick in Marrakech ($18 @ sephora.com).
MAKE UP FOR EVER Aqua Lip in 1C ($17 only @ sephora.com).
CND Nail Colour in Dessert Suede ($9 @ ulta.com).

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.

If the words organic and natural are not enough for you right now, I have another term to throw on the heap. Ayurveda. It’s a form of traditional medicine native to the Indian subcontinent and practiced in other parts of the world as a form of alternative medicine. It is grounded in metaphysics and based on the five great elements to bring harmony to the mind, body, soul and universe.

I was recently introduced to a new Ayurvedic line called BHAKTIVEDA. Each of the 5-skew products in the line is made in India according to strict Ayuvedic principles and uses a lot of botanicals. The one I jumped head first into was their Neem Hand & Foot Cream ($18/4.4oz @ bhaktiveda.com). It contains neem powder, neem oil, among others and the herbs in contains are grown right on the Himalayan Mountains. Not only is it really thick and rich, it smells amazing! A little geranium, rosemary and I know I can smell the sesame too. And with the cold, cold coming up, I’m giving this one a BIG recommendation.

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.

I got into a huge conversation about false eyelashes over the weekend. We talked about brands, which kind work best (individual vs. strip), colored and price. I’d say the trait that derived the most talk was price. We’ve all seen ones that are priced at a few dollars all the way up to about $25 and even more if you go for those mink ones. Out of the 6 of us, only 2 would pay upwards of $10 for a pair. Driving home, I couldn’t understand why you would not want to invest in a nice pair of lashes as I usually get 3 or 4 wears out of a strip, easy. But I guess how many times you wear them and the fact that a few of the girls at the table did not consider this; they thought they were one time wear. Here’s the way I’m able to get so many wears – I make sure my whole eye look including mascara, is done before applying a strip. That way when I remove them at the end of the day, I don’t have to put in a lot of elbow grease when cleaning each in some makeup remover. Sometimes I use a little mascara and the lash curler to infuse the strip to my lashes but not often.

So which brand did I tout at this get together? ROBERT REESE BEAUTY (formerly Xtended Beauty) Eyelashes & Adhesive. I can’t quite figure out the reason these are so easy to apply but I think the curve of each was just made for my eyes only! Hardly any adjusting needed and only $9 pair @ reeserobertbeauty.com.

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.

You have to appreciate a brand that goes the extra mile to source ingredients from other nations, especially when it’s an independent brand like this next one, BELLA LUCCE. In addition to quite a few products, the line has four collections inspired by different parts of the world – Asian Indulgences, Rainforest Restorations, Arabian Odyssey and the latest addition, the African Adventures Collection. The creator of the line traveled to Africa six times over two years studying the natural botany and talking to the native women in a few of the continent’s countries like Ghana, Egypt and Uganda. The 8 products in the collection are the result. I tried the Moringa & Shea Cleansing Bar ($10/4oz @ bellalucce.com) from this collection and it’s made up of Palm Oil, Rice Bran Oil, Shea Fruit Butter and Avocado Oil, among others. There are no hard-to-pronounce or foreign-to-the-ear ingredients inside this one and each comes from the wilds of Africa!

And what this soap comes in is worth noting. Each is wrapped in a piece of bogolan cloth hand painted by the local women Mali, Africa in the nations traditional black designs with fermented mud from their Niger River. The tag attached to it suggests one find a special use for it and I will be sure to.

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes.

Do you change your foundation each season? Like in the summer for example, do you only wear mineral makeup because it gets so hot? I find I don’t really have a pattern when it comes to the different types of foundation out there. I do find myself gravitating towards powder foundation mainly in the summer and them randomly throughout the year. Just something to think about!

So speaking of foundation, I’m really feeling LAURA MERCIER’s new Crème Smooth Foundation ($50/1oz @ lauramercier.com). First off, this 1oz size looks so huge in the glass jar it comes in and a little goes a long way. This gives medium to heavy coverage that’s totally buildable and it contains not only the anti-wrinkle ingredient Dermaxyl but also those optical diffusers. Available in 6 shades.

This formula also comes in a Toffee Bronzer shade that I’ve been using to practice contouring my cheeks. Do you contour your features?

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided to Cybelesays.com for review purposes