Even thought we only buy organic fruits and veggies we always like to wash it, after all we all know how many hands will touch a piece of fruit or a vegetable before we consume it.
I always soak everything in a 3 part water to 1 part vinegar concoction for 15 minutes. I’ve been doing that for a long time that and It does the trick but it was a little time consuming.
Miracle Produce from Natural Way Organics is a 100% natural and organic produce cleaner.
It washes away residual dirt, wax, grime and it makes the whole cleaning process faster and easier thanks to the spray dispenser. Quick spray of Miracle Produce, rub for 30 seconds, rinse with water and voila!! Clean produce with no weird after taste.
The three main ingredients are saponified organic coconut, olive oil and jojoba
The term saponification is the name given to the chemical reaction that occurs when a vegetable oil or animal fat is mixed with a strong alkali.
The saponification process is a simple one-step reaction with no waste generated: the glycerin is split off from the fatty acids, and the fatty acids combine with the sodium or potassium to form soap, while the hydroxide forms water. The result is soap, glycerin and water (no alkali remaining)
Also included in the mix: orange and tea tree essential oils, organic aloe vera and rosemary extract
For just $6.99 you get this huge 16oz bottle. So worth it!!
I’ve been a fan of @frankieandmyrrhsince the first days after starting this blog!
I love the variety of scents they produce, their creativity, the awesome super practical packages and their superb costumer service.
This is the Purple People Pleaser and it it has lavender as it main ingredient .. Which is my favorite in the whole world!! It is SO relaxing and the roll on just makes it the so easy to apply and keep in my purse and use it whenever I want!
Lavender is much more than just pretty & calming. It is one of the most powerful remedies in the plant world, offering both physical and emotional relief for problems as varied as burns, migraines, insomnia, insect bites, skin problems, infections, stress and nervous tension. It owes this amazing spectrum of healing powers to its complex chemical makeup.
It also has fractionated coconut & jojoba oil and Rosewood, Orange, Tangerine and Vanilla essential oils.
When you buy 3 bottles or roll-ons on @etsy you can get the 4th FREE! Just place 4 bottles in your cart and enter coupon code “GOODGOODSMELLS” for the free bottle.
Wildcrafted in Costa Rica and NYC
I found this Anima Mundi Herbals toothpolish at my new favorite store Green Line Beauty on Melrose!
I love love love it!! Makes my teeth feel super clean, my mouth fresh and is a plus that I can also use it to swish.
This toothpolish is a living paste filled with enzymes, minerals and pro-biotics in the raw, natural state. This nutritional paste is made to help your body detoxify while you boost your orgal ecology and clean your teeth.
The main ingredient is Bentonite Clay, which I’ve recently become a huge fan of. It binds to unhealthy substances in the mouth, such as around the teeth and on the tongue and gums, and helps to remove them before you swallow them and become sick.
It can be taken internally to help with toxin removal so it is safe for use in the mouth and it contains calcium, magnesium and silica which are nourishing for the teeth
You can use this tooth polish once a day as an adjunct dental tonic.
Or If used as your only toothpaste: 2-3 times a day. Dab toothbrush into the container, and brush. Before rinsing completely, swish for 1-2minutes with water before spitting out.
Ingredients: Bentonite & White clay, Coconut oil, Baking soda, Clove extract, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Myrrh Gum Resin, Anima Mundi’s Stevia Leaf extract, Neem & Peppermint Essential Oil.
Anima Mundi’s roots are within the heart of Costa Rica. They specialize in sourcing directly from native people within Central and South America. This provides a sustainable system, and a direct relationship to the source of botanical alchemy and native wisdom.
This project supports TRUE fair trade practices
They believe that by supporting native people directly and their ancient practices, we are contributing to the revival of medicine that has been lost in today’s world. http://animamundiherbals.com http://www.greenlinebeauty.com/
Love,
Raquel ❤️
I LOVE Booda Organics, all of their products are Palm Oil free, Organic, Cruelty Free and handcrafted in small batches without the use of any wax or emulsifiers. Like food for your skin!!
Their lip balm is one of my favorites and the body moisturizer (Tub Of Love) is out of this world. (Smells like a good old chocolate bar and it will make you smile as soon as you put it on)
I was very excited to discover this new item ‘Suds Of Love’ 😍 It’s 3 products in one: soap bar, shave bar and shampoo. It is completely unscented, lathers up super nicely and really works well removing oils.
It is made with organic unrefined Olive and Coconut Oil, Fair Trade Shea Butter, Artisian Spring Water and Sodium Hydroxide (none remains after saponifying oils)
By using Booda’s products, you are letting our planet know that you wish it no harm- in choosing biodegradable ingredients and supporting organic, we will no longer pollute the earth with dangerous pesticides and chemicals. Also, by choosing recyclable packaging, we can help to greatly reduce our ecological footprint.
Handmade and fairly traded from El Salvador, this Lemongrass soap is 100% certified organic. It’s made with organic coconut oil, lemongrass essential oil and it’s free preservatives and fragrances.
I have to admit at the beginning the scent can be a little overwhelming, but after a while you start to really get used to it and really enjoy it.
Overall this is a lovely all-natural soap!! It moisturizes while providing nourishing exfoliation, It lathers well and the bar is a good size, so it’ll last you a while.
In San Salvador, Matilde Carillo de Palomo uses traditional Mayan recipes to create herbal soaps that soothe the body and quiet the mind. Matilde learned her craft from her father, an herbalist who spent decades studying the properties of local flora.
The company prides itself on hiring women from rural areas and paying them fair wages for the first time in their lives.
Shuchil Soap’s products have been given a Certified Organic designation in the United States, Germany, and Asia, and a recent grant from the Humane Society of the United States will allow a new line of organic pet shampoos to garner a USDA Certified Humane stamp.
This is week is all about natural, amazing soaps from all over the world and the local companies that are working together to make a difference in their communities.
Lets start with Haiti.
Ayiti Natives soaps are made from an all natural blend of Haiti’s most precious essential oils, herbs, nuts, and pure hand-extracted Haitian coconut oil.
This is the Toasted Coconut Scrub Soap and is made with pure, rich coconut oil and toasted coconut flakes from the souther coast of Haiti. It is a natural scrub that will help reduced acne, age spots and will leave your skin irresistible soft.
Each soap is hand crafted by a small group of women in Port-au-Prince Haiti. Founder Caroline Sada, a Haitian-American social entrepreneur explained her reason for forming Ayiti in her native Haiti “What I’ve learned since my return to Haiti is that Haiti will only evolve through job creation, strategic investments, and export of its most valued assets: crafts, coffee and essential oils. I see Haiti brimming with products that are marketable internationally”
Ayiti’s soaps don’t just create jobs for Haitian women, but the company also focuses on the environment, all soaps are packaged in scrap fabric from a local t-shirt factory which has been lined with scrap aluminum wrapping from a local snack factory.
I am super happy to share with you my experience with this incredible Coconut Infusion from Leahlani Skincare. A company based in Kauai, Hawaii, that was founded in 2006 by Holistic Esthetician Leah Klasovsky.
I discovered Leahlani Skincare a couple of weeks ago on Instagram. The fist picture I saw was of this Coconut Infusion and being the island girl-coconut lover that I am, I knew I had to try it. I contacted Leah, the lovely owner, to ask her a couple of question which she gracefully answered on a timely manner and 5 days later, just in time for my Memorial Day vacations, I received my package…boy was I happy!!
As soon as I opened the bottle I smiled, the smell of this Coconut Infusion is something I can only describe as the feeling you get when you open your eyes on a Sunday morning.. Pure happiness!!
I have some melasma on my face from the years and years of taking sun in my country, so for the past three years I have been trying to avoid sun as much as possible. But that weekend I knew I wanted to soak it all in, I missed my golden skin!!
So I brought it with me to Palm Springs and the first thing I did was slather myself with it and lay on the sun (joy!), I figured there is no better, healthier bronzing oil than a mix of pure organic coconut and macadamia oils. I absolutely love the beautiful color it gave me!
After my shower I smeared it all over again as a moisturizer after my long day in the sun. I have to say during the whole weekend my skin felt super soft, nourished, delicious and I was walking around with a super sexy glow from head to toe.
This infusion can also be used on the hair to soften and moisturize and as a shaving oil. (I will be trying these two next!)
It smells so lovely and the texture is so amazing, you will just want to rub it on at all times.
This Coconut Infusion comes in two different scents:
This one is called MAHANA which the owner describes as ‘a soft, gentle and mildly sweet fusion of organic vanilla and coconut cream‘.
The other one is called THE PUA LEI, ‘a fusion of exotic puakenikeni flowers and tuberose are very reminiscent of the flower leis that are worn in Hawaii‘.
Both of these products are made using pure unrefined coconut oil infused with organic, cold pressed Kukui, macadamia and sea buckthorn fruit oils and gently kissed with golden shimmer.
Coconut oil is loaded with medium chain fatty acids, or triglycerides, which help to soften and moisturize the skin. And is anti bacterial and anti viral which helps in treating various skin conditions including psoriasis, dermatitus and eczema.
Kukui nut oil contains fatty acids and antioxidants, as well as vitamins A, C and E. This miracle oil also helps to treat a variety of skin ailments such as eczema, psoriasis and burned or damaged skin.
Macadamia oil contains palmitoleic acid, oleic acid, linoleum acid and phytosterols. Combined, these fatty acids help to delay skin and cell aging, boosts cellular regeneration, moisturizes and hydrates the skin.
Sea Buckthorn oil is often touted as a ‘miracle berry’, it is loaded with antioxidants, vitamins, essential fatty acids and omega 3, 6, 7 & 9.
If you are interested in trying this Coconut Infusion or get to know more of Leahlani Skincare and all their amazing, natural, cruelty free local products,visit them at:
Like I mentioned in my last post, I am from the Caribbean… A proud island girl!!
Coconut is the staple of every beach in my country, the beautiful palms trees stand tall in every country road and surround every single one of our stunning, crystal blue, warm water beaches.
I was born and raised in the Dominican Republic and in my country we use coconuts a LOT. From drinking the coconut’s water and then eating “la masita” (what we call the coconut’s meat), cooking amazing dishes like my favorite “arroz con coco” (rice with coconut) to making refreshing drinks. We use it for frying, moisturizing, we make milk from it, butter, flour, we use coconut for and in about everything you can think of!!
But coconuts have so much more to offer and it was not until I moved to LA that I realized that my love for it was just getting started!
In this post I will tell you a little about the amazing properties and benefits of coconut and the many ways that I’ve used it over the years.
A little background on coconut:
The coconut (cocos nucifera) is regarded as the jewel of the tropics and it is without a doubt the most economically important palm. Often called “the tree of life”, coconut contributes significantly to the economies of many countries and is of prime importance to the daily lives of millions of people (nearly one third of the world’s population depends on coconut to some degree for their food and their economy)
It is highly nutritious, rich in fiber, vitamins, minerals and it’s classified as a “functional food” because it provides many health benefits beyond its nutritional content.
While coconut possesses many health benefits, it’s the oil that makes it a truly remarkable food and medicine. It contains lots of easily digestible, fat-soluble vitamins: A is good for the immune system, E has strong antioxidant properties for the skin and can provide some protection against UV rays, D is good for strong bones and teeth and K is good for blood-clotting.
Coconut oil has a saturated fat called lauric acid, which has been shown to increase the good HDL cholesterol in the blood which helps improve cholesterol ratio levels. Also, when coconut oil is enzymatically digested it forms a monoglyceride called monolaurin, both lauric acid and monolaurin can kill harmful pathogens like bacteria, viruses and fungi.
For Heal and Wellness:
Oil Pulling –An ancient Ayurvedic ritual dating back over 3,000 years, coconut oil pulling is one of the best ways to remove bacteria and promote healthy teeth and gums.
I haven been “Oil-Pulling” with Corpo Natura RD cold pressed virgin coconut oil, every morning. I take it as soon as I wake up, I swish it while I shower, blow dry my hair and do everything I need to do before spitting it out, rinse and then brush my teeth. That gives me a good 20 minutes of swishing.
Oil-Pulling involves rinsing (swishing) approximately one tablespoon of oil around your mouth. As the oil hits your teeth and gums, microbes are picked up and bacteria hiding under crevices in the gums, pores and tubules within the teeth are sucked out and held firmly in the solution.
Coconut oil is preferred because 50% of the fat in it is composed of the bacteria whooping ingredient Lauric acid. This acid is very well known for its antimicrobial actions. (It inhibits strep mutants that are the primary bacteria to cause tooth decay)
Toothpaste – Combine equal parts coconut oil and baking soda and voilà! For more taste you could also sweeten with stevia and flavor with your favorite essential oil.
Healing Bug Bites and Other Cuts – When applied directly to bug bites, it can stop the itching sensation. When applied to scars or cuts it forms a layer that protects the cut from dust, bacteria and it also speeds up the healing process.
For an energy boost – Only 1 teaspoon of coconut oil can give you a burst of energy. Try adding a spoonful to your coffee instead of turning towards a caffeinated energy drink. Takes a little time to get used to it but once you do you’ll love it.
Clear up congestion – All it takes is coconut oil, tea tree oil, and rosemary oil. Rub it on your chest, underneath your nose and in your temples to help you breathe and sleep better.
Clean your ears – Dip a cotton swab into coconut oil (but just for a second—you don’t want it to be soaked), and gently clean earwax out of your ears.
For Beauty Purposes:
Shaving –Conventional shaving cream is a massive blend of chemicals that you don’t need in order to get a nice clean shave on your legs or underarms. Coconut oil, on the other hand, is inexpensive, naturally antimicrobial, anti fungal, anti inflammatory and not to mention it smells amazing.
Even though I’m always trying new things, I always keep my jar of organic coconut oil in the shower for shaving and when it’s very dry I also use it as an after shave oil.
Make-Up Remover/Face Cleanser –This is one of my favorite uses for coconut! It is so simple, I don’t need anything but my fingers and water.
I take it straight from the jar, smear it all over my face, (coconut oil even removes waterproof mascara) gently massage until all the make up is removed and then rinse with warm water. In the mornings I follow up with my favorite facial soap bar and at night time I just pat dry my face and go to sleep. It is the best moisturizer!
Body Moisturizer –This one is very easy, at the end of my shower, when I turn off the water, I slather the oil all over my whole body and pat dry. I love it specially during summer on my feet since I use a lot of open foot shoes and they tend to get very dry. Also in winter time when the weather is very dry and after long beach days It calms my skin and helps minimize peeling.
Massage Oil –Coconut oil is the perfect choice for a massage oil. Is not too greasy and maybe because I grew up around so much coconut I find the scent super relaxing.
Hair Static Reducer and Anti Frizz – I rub a very small amount on my hands and run them through the static or frizzy areas.
Cheekbone Highlighter – For a natural glow apply a small amount on cheekbones after putting makeup. Be careful and make sure to use very little so it doesn’t look greasy.
For Cooking:
Replace Vegetable Oil for Baking and cooking – I started replacing vegetable oil for coconut oil in baking around 5 years ago. I was look for healthier alternatives and liked it so much I have never gone back. If you are not the biggest fan of coconut, like me, you don’t need to worry as the taste is not overpowering at all.
Pan Frying – From potatoes, onion rings to even eggs, next time you have to fry up try using coconut oil. Coconut Oil has a high smoke point which is important for deep and pan frying because proper oil temperature guarantees a healthier fried food. While all fried foods will absorb oil, the right temperature will prevent burning, reduce the amount of oil absorbed and better preserve nutrients. Deep frying and pan frying require an oil temperature of 325 to 375 degrees Fahrenheit, making refined coconut oil the best option for these cooking methods.
For baking, breading and thickening sauces – Coconut flour!! Just beware, you cannot substitute coconut flour 1-to-1 as it sucks up a lot more water than just about anything else.
For your pets:
Cut down on hairballs – Coconut oil aids improve cats digestion and helps the body to absorb the nutrients necessary for the body to work properly. At the same time, it helps in the removal of hairball. Add ¼ teaspoon of coconut oil to your cat’s food and gradually increase the dose to 1 teaspoon per day.
Condition your pet’s fur – Rubbing some through your cat’s or dog’s coat will keep it healthy and shiny.
This is all for now, I will keep updating my list and sharing my experiences with you!! I really hope you enjoyed it.
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