Brand Focus: Fitglow Beauty

How I came to discover Fitglow is a bit of a long story with no short version. All I'll say is, small world. Fitglow is a Canadian brand started only a couple of years ago by Anna Domi. Anna is a down-to-earth, beautiful, and smart business woman who just draws you in. I've met her once, briefly, and literally couldn't help being drawn to her and wanting to know her whole story. Her beautifully and chic packaged products and colours are hard to resist, so hard that I had to purchase the mascara and a gloss.

Fitglow Beauty was started as a personal dream to find effective natural products that would not irritate rosacea-sensitive skin while providing effective ingredients to fight free radical damage and slow down the effects of aging.
Understanding that our skin absorbs what we put on it was critical to developing a skin care line that both nurtures the skin and provides a beautiful transition to makeup. From start to finish, Fitglow Beauty products work together to bring out your best.

Our line of makeup and skin care are always cruelty-free, natural, non-toxic and are the result of our passion for everything we do.

Read more about Fitglow Beauty here.

Good Lash Mascara ($25 cdn/8g): Create super VOLUME and LENGTH without toxic chemicals or parabens. Good Lash natural formula with Organic Rice Bran Oil coats lashes with VITAMINS and ANTI-OXIDANTS enhancing the condition of your lashes and promoting growth. GLUTEN FREE/ MERCURY FREE.

This mascara darkens, lengthens, and volumizes my lashes really well. It doesn't irritate my eyes, flake, peel, and only minimally transfers after a 7+ hour work day (keep in mind my lids are crazy oily). It's completely vegan but does contain phenoxythanol, which doesn't bother me since most of my products don't contain it. Plus, mascara goes near your eyes and should be well preserved to avoid bacteria growth (aka eye infections). I absolutely adore the natural bristle brush, they tend to make lashes look nicer and is generally more comfortable to use.

One thing to note is that my tube dried out so quickly. I noticed the texture change within a couple of weeks of opening it and within two months, it was dry. Lisa, from Glam Goes Green, told me to let the (closed) tube sit in warm/hot water and that would help, it totally did! I was able to get another couple of weeks from the tube. Either way, it's a fave of mine.

Good Gloss in Nudie ($24 cdn/15g): Treat your lips to super shine and nourishment with Good Gloss natural formula with certified Organic COCONUT OIL, SHEA BUTTER and JOJOBA. This advanced gloss will hydrate, enhance and protect lips without petroleum-based ingredients.

This nude gloss is the perfect nude that looks gorgeous alone or over top of lipstick (of any colour, really) and on any skin tone. It's comfortable to wear, moisturizing, long wearing, and offers pretty good colour pay off for a gloss. It is slightly sticky, but I feel like that is what helps make it long wearing. It boasts incredible ingredients, like coconut oil, cocoa butter, and jojoba oil, all very nourishing for that pout. I'm not a huge fan of the cocoa butter taste, but it is mild. Will definitely be picking up Jam (purple shade) for the Fall/Winter!

Please note that since purchasing these products, the packaging has changed and the line has expanded. They now have lipstick and a contour shade, oh-em-gee. Hold me back!

Get it here: Fitglow Beauty, Glam Goes Green, Anise Apothecary, and these retailers.

Good Lash Mascara Ingredients: Aqua (Water), Oryza Sativa Wax (Rice Bran Wax), Olea Europea Fruit Oil (Olive Oil), Vegetable Source Cetyl Alcohol (Coconut), Coernica Cerifera (Carnauba Wax), Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla Wax), Vegetable Glycerin, Stearic Acid, Acacia Gum, Black Iron Oxide (CI 77499), Aminomethyl Popandiol (Ph Adjuster), Phenoxythanol (Preservative).

Good Gloss Ingredients: Ricinus Communis Castor ) Oil, * Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, *Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil*, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Oil, Bis Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate, Cera Alba (Bees Wax), Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax,Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa Butter)*, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter) , *Tocopherol Acetate (Vitamin E), *Origanum Vulgare Leaf Extract, *Thymus Vulgaris (Thyme) Extract, *Cinnamomum Zeylancum (Cinnamon) Bark Extract, *Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, *Lavendula Angustifolia (Lavender) Flower Extract, *Hydrastis Canadensis (Golden Seal) Root Extract, *Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Peel Extract, *Citrus Grandis (Grape Fruit) Seed Extract May Contain : Titanium Dioxide

(CI- 77891)Iron Oxides (Cl-77499), (CI-77491), (CI- 77492) Tumeric Powder Kaolin Mica

Brand Focus: Pure Daily Essentials

Discovering new products is fun, but discovering new Canadian products is even funner! That's a word, right?

Pure Daily Essentials is a small home-based business in Langley, British Columbia. We are committed to providing all natural skin care products working with ethical ingredients. All of our products are paraben and chemical free. 

Being small, all of our products are handcrafted in small batches and made fresh to order. We respect that what goes onto your skin, goes into your body! We are environmentally friendly and are against animal testing. We test all products on ourselves and family members.

Read more about Pure Daily Essentials here.

*Makeup Remover ($16.95 CAD/50 ml): Our all natural Make-Up remover easily removes all make-up without rinsing. Remove all traces of eye shadow, eyeliner and mascara with this gentle natural eye make up remover but also use it as a dual cleanser for the rest of your face. It's gentle enough for all skin types and won't dry your skin or clog your pores. 

This makeup remover is light, effective, gentle, soothing, calming, and wonderful. With oils like sweet almond and olive, and extracts of comfrey, calendula, and chamomile, it's no surprise why. It easily removes makeup, smells heavenly, and doesn't break me out. I enjoy how fluid it is and those that cleansing oils with castor will understand what I mean, as castor oil is pretty thick. Of the four products that I had the opportunity to try, this one is hands down my favourite.

*Revive Hydration Mist in Sandalwood ($14.95 CAD/60 ml): A refreshing and nutritious tonic of all natural skin care ingredients blended to provide hydration and balance for your skin, while counteracting the damages from environmental influences; it regulates your skins natural oils. This skin tonic is made with healing essential oils such as Sandalwood essential oil to help soften skin by increasing and restoring its ability to retain moisture. Using this tonic after cleansing, prepares your skin for the ultimate experience of whichever Pure Daily Essentials moisturizer you choose. 

This mist feels really nice on the skin, is refreshing, and hydrating but I don't enjoy the scent. It's a combination of geranium, sandalwood, vetiver, palmarosa and ylang ylang. If you're into either of those, or all of them, then you'll love this. 

*Gentle Oatmeal Scrub ($24.95 CAD/60 ml): Our oatmeal face scrub is made without harsh chemicals that often strips away too much of the skin. This all natural cleansing and exfoliating scrub is gentle enough for everyday use and is the basis for every effective facial care routine. Our oatmeal facial scrub, made with plant granules such as Lavender and Chamomile flower tops, will polish the skin just enough to rid dead skin cells without irritating the skin.

I was really hoping that this would replace my beloved Angels on Bare Skin by Lush, but it's completely different than what I was expecting. It's oilier, as you can see from the picture, and chunkier. While I do love how soft it makes my skin feel and the fact that I don't need to moisturize after using it, I do wish it wasn't as oily and the oats were ground up more. Still, this scrub is gentle yet effective, and a little goes a long way.

*Lavish Hydration Lavender ($26.95 CAD/250 ml or $11.95/60 ml): The best body lotion to deeply balance, soften and delicately scent the skin with the aroma of Lavender. Our rich and luxurious all natural body lotions are formulated with botanical infusions that are known to revitalize, rejuvenate, and nourish the driest of skin. Full of fatty acids, antioxidants, and a concentrated blend of vitamins and minerals, we worked with the earth to create a luscious treat for all skin types.
This is my least favourite of the bunch. I chose it because I love lavender, but the ylang ylang and geranium essential oils completely take over. Also, the lotion doesn't fully absorb and leaves me feeling greasy. It definitely boasts a list of impressive ingredients, like coconut oil, sunflower oil, calendula, chamomile, and comfrey, so it's unfortunate that it didn't work for me. 
Get it here: Pure Daily Essentials and these retailers. *Products provided for review consideration. All opinions are my own. Makeup Remover Ingredients: Prunus amygdalus dulcis (Sweet almond) oil, Olea europaea (Olive) fruit oil, Symphytum officinale (Comfrey) root extract, Calendula officinalis (Calendula) flower extract, Anthemis nobilis (Chamomile) flower extract, Lavandula angustifolia (Lavender).
Revive Hydration Mist Ingredients: Aqua, Pelargonium graveolens (Geranium) oil, Santalum album (Sandalwood) oil, Cymbopogon martinii (Palmarosa) oil, Vetiveria zizanoides (Vetiver) oil, Cananga odorata (Ylang ylang) oil. 
Gentle Oatmeal Scrub Ingredients: Avena sativa (Oatmeal), Prunus amygdalus dulcis (Sweet almond) oil, Lavandula angustifolia (Lavender) flower tops, Matricaria recutita (Chamomile) flower tops, Plantago lanceolata (Plantain) leaf extract, glycerin, Rosmarinus officinalis (Rosemary) leaf extract, Lavandula angustifolia (Lavender), Styrax benzoin.
Lavish Hydration Lavender Ingredients: Aqua, helianthus annuus (Sunflower) seed oil, Cocos nucifera (Coconut) oil, Cera alba (Beeswax), Calendula officinalis (Calendula) flower extract, Symphytum officinale (Comfrey) root extract, Anthemis nobilis (Chamomile) flower extract, Lavandula angustifolia (Lavender) oil, Citrus aurantium dulcis (Orange peel) oil, Cananga odorata (Ylang ylang) oil, Pelargonium graveolens (Geranium) oil, Rosmarinus officinalis (Rosemary) leaf extract, Styrax benzoin, Prunus oenothera biennis (Evening primrose) oil, Glycerin, Sodium borate, Xanthan gum, d-alpha Tocopherol (Vitamin E).

Brand Focus: ZAYA Oils (+Giveaway: CLOSED)

If I haven't said the following enough, I'll say it again, I love finding local brands! Canadians make some incredible products and many of my favourite skin care and makeup items are made right here, eh. I was thrilled with Anna, one of the beauties behind the brand, reached out asking if I wanted to try out some products. They are based out of Toronto and handcraft each of their beautiful oils using only wild-harvested and organic ingredients. I had the pleasure of meeting Anna at the Green Living Show earlier this year and wow, what a friggen beauty! Her skin was flawless, along with the other two ladies (whose names I forgot because I'm a horrible person).

Anna offered to send whichever oils appealed to me, and based on the ingredients and scents, I picked the *Eye Oil ($69.90 CAD/30 ml), *Face Oil ($59.90 CAD/50 ml), *Belly Oil ($49.90 CAD/100 ml), and *Body Oil ($43.90 CAD/100 ml). All of them came housed in dark glass bottles with pumps, for freshness and easy dispensing, and gorgeously packaged inside of a chic cardboard box with their corresponding characters. While I don't leave the boxes on my dresser, because I like to keep it minimal, these boxes have worked well to store larger pieces of jewelry that are kept in my dresser. I absolutely adore the packaging and appreciate the effort to create an artistic piece that can be re-purposed.

Our strong belief in natural skin care is blended with our passion for elegant beauty. We create them in desire to remind women that their beauty has countless number of faces. To inspire them to bring out their natural beauty, to be different, but irresistibly charming and elegant every day! 

All our products are created in Canada (Toronto) in our own facility using only natural, wild-harvested and organic ingredients. The product compositions are thoroughly developed by the team of PhD chemists who have 15 years of experience on the natural skincare market. No synthetic ingredients ever cross the doorway of our manufacturing site. Our manufacturing is cruelty free and not harmful for the environment.

Like many responsible businesses nowadays we are trying our best to use only recyclable and environmentally friendly materials to package our products. The carton boxes we use are made of 100% recycled paper [and can be used as a jewelry box]. Our bottles are made from beautiful high quality dark violet glass that offers optimal protection against the ageing processes that are released by visible light. So, you can make sure that the potency of our blends will not decrease over a long time period.

Read more about ZAYA Oils here.

*Eye Oil Rosewood "The Magestic One": This oil blend was specially created to nurture and restore the delicate areas around your eyes. When applied in the morning, it hydrates the skin, helping your eyes look fresh throughout the day. When used in the evening, it gently removes makeup, while revitalizing and nourishing the skin. 

Since I've started incorporating more oils into my skin care regime, I've found that my eyes don't get nearly as dry as they used to. That means that I no longer use creams or oils specifically designed for the eye area. Still, I decided to try out this oil for its intended purpose. By day 2, I had already forgotten to apply it. Now, I use one to two pumps to breakdown and remove eye makeup at night. The combination of sweet almond, rice bran, and macadamia nut oil leave my lashes and eyes well moisturized, even after removing with a cloth, but never feels greasy or heavy. The sweet and floral scent of rosewood is gorgeous and subtle. If you're into eye products, this is definitely one to try.

 

*Face Oil Rosewood "The Stunning One": This oil blend was specially created to delicately moisturize the skin without leaving the greasy feeling on your face. Carefully selected combination of oils deeply moisturizes your skin giving you a radiant glow

Ohhh how I love this face oil. It is loaded with sesame, evening primrose, grapeseed, and sweet almond oil, yet never feels greasy or heavy on my skin and absorbs quickly. The scent of rosewood is beautiful and I rarely get whiffs of geranium, which is a scent that normally bothers me. I apply one pump, in the P.M., to love my skin while I sleep. When I wake up, my skin is plump and well nourished. In the morning, I mix half a pump with a dime sized amount of moisturizer to create the perfect base for makeup. It hasn't irritated or broken out my sensitive, hormonal skin. Instead, it's helped calm redness, reduce dry patches, and even out my skin tone. Gorgeous, gorgeous oil and definitely my favourite of the four.

*Belly Oil Vanilla & Petitgrain "The Loving One": Specially created for Mothers-to-Be this oil blend nourishes your skin and maintains its natural elasticity. So comforting to the skin, it relaxes your body and soothes your mind. Pamper yourself and your little bean!

Before anyone asks, I'm not nor was I pregnant. I selected this belly oil based on the scent alone and I'm glad so that I did! The warm, smokey, and slightly spicy blend of vanilla and petitgrain make this oil a delight in the colder months and before bed. A little goes a long way, it absorbs into the skin with ease, and leaves the skin well moisturized. It contains sweet almond, rice bran, apricot, and macadamia nut oils, plus a few others, which I find to be rich enough to moisturize but light enough to properly absorb. Apricot kernal oil is actually one of my favourites!

*Body Oil "The Alluring One": Specially selected combination of oils keeps your skin hydrated and balanced. Giving your body a boost of nutritive energy this blend promotes the firm and smooth appearance of your skin.

This body oil is slightly thicker, due to the avocado and castor oils, but still absorbs really well. I absolutely love the combination of rosemary and grapefruit, it's fruity but still fresh and herbal. I have only been using it for about a week, but think it'll definitely be a love of mine through the warmer months, mainly because of the uplifting scent.

Get them here: ZAYA Oils, and these retailers.


GIVEAWAY TIME! - CONGRATS SHELBY!

• Follow ZAYA Oils on at least two of the following: Twitter, Instagram, and/or Facebook.
• Follow Live It, Love It, Green it on Twitter and/or Instagram.
• Comment below telling us how your incorporate oils into your daily skin care routine, as well the names associated with the social media outlets in which you followed us on.
• Open to residents of the the USA and Canada only.
• Must be legal age of majority or have permission from your parent(s)/guardian(s).
• Winner will get to choose any two products of their choice, which can be view here.
• Winner will be chosen by ZAYA Oils and announced on social media.
• Contest will start on Tuesday, May 12th and end at 11:59 P.M. EST on Wednesday, May 27th, 2015.

Good luck!

P.S. If you like patchouli, the hair oil smells delicious. I was worried it would smell too much like ylang ylang, but was pleasantly surprised when I sniffed it at the Green Living Show.

*Products provided for review consideration. ZAYA Oils was kind enough to offer one of my readers the opportunity to try out two of their products. All opinions are entirely my own.

Eye Oil Ingredients: Prunus Dulcis (sweet almond) oil*, Oryza Sativa (rice) bran oil, Macadamia Ternifolia (macadamia nut) seed oil*, Punicagranatum (pomegranate) seed oil, Triticum Vulgare (wheat) germ oil, Simmondsia Chinensis (jojoba) seed oil*, Aniba Rosaeodora wood (rosewood) essential oil. 

Face Oil Ingredients: Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) seed oil*, Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) oil*, Vitis vinifera (Grape) seed oil, Prunus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) oil*, Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) germ oil, Camellia oleifera (Camellia) Seed Oil*, Aniba Rosaeodora wood (Rosewood) essential oil, Pelargonium graveolens (Geranium) essential oil*.

Belly Oil Ingredients: Prunus Dulcis (sweet almond) oil*, Oryza Sativa (rice) bran oil, Prunus Armeniaca (apricot) kernel oil*, Macadamia Ternifolia (macadamia nut) seed oil, Sesamum Indicum (sesame) seed oil*, Triticum Vulgare (wheat) germ oil, Vanilla Planifolia (vanilla) CO2extract*, Citrus Aurantium (petitgrain) essential oil*

Body Oil Ingredients: Prunus Dulcis (sweet almond) oil*, Oryza Sativa (rice) bran oil, Macadamia Ternifolia (macadamia nut) seed oil, Triticum Vulgare (wheat) germ oil, Persea Gratissima (avocado) oil, Ricinus Communis (castor) seed oil*, Citrus Paradisi peel (pink grapefruit) essential oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis (rosemary) essential oil*

*Organic

Brand Focus: North Hill Soap Company

I love bar soap and find myself using it to wash my hands and, of course, my body, on a daily basis. It's important for me to support local soap makers that avoid the use of palm oil and any other questionable ingredients, and really put an emphasis on sustainability. When my friend Lisa, from Glam Goes Green, told me about North Hill Soap Company, I knew I had to try them out!

Welcome to North Hill Soap Company! We have been manufacturing hand-crafted, artisan soap since 2008. Our emphasis is on natural, sustainable ingredients, and 100% post-consumer recycled packaging. 

My name is Kelly Martin, and I am the soaper-in-chief at North Hill Soap Company, directing my family of four children and web-savvy husband in all their bubbly endeavours. 

Our family journey in soapmaking began with an innocent conversation. A family friend who owns a small-town art shop was lamenting her inability to find a soapmaker. I have always suffered from OCD- Obsessive Crafting Disorder. I have to try whatever craft is going by, and I thought, “I’m sure I can make soap!” 

I could never list all of the crafts I have dabbled in and moved on from, but soapmaking stuck. I fell in bubbly love almost immediately, and I haven’t looked back since. Not only do I enjoy the process, but once you start using handmade soap, you really can’t go back to store-bought. The difference in your skin is so obvious, you would never want to feel dry, itchy and rough again. Not to mention the confidence in knowing what you and your family are putting onto (and hence into) your body. 

Read more about NHSC here.

The packaging is absolutely awesome! I love the colours and design of each one, as well as the fact that they come in post consumer recycled packaging. Seriously, just look at those boxes! After reaching out to Kelly, she was kind enough to allow me to select a few bars of soap. I chose *Sea Goddess, *Happy Hippie, *Blackbeard's Booty, *Sex On The Beach, and *Earth Goddess.

*Sea Goddess: The Mediterranean Sea provides us with so many Gifts of beauty– it’s no wonder Aphrodite is pictured as being Born from the waves! Sea salt will polish your skin to glowing freshness, and Spirulina Algae is a tremendous source of Antioxidants. 

In theory, this soap sounds amazing and I was really excited for it. Sadly, it fell short. The scent and texture reminds me of soap that my grandma used, in Portugal, to wash her clothes. I'm talking the old school way of washing clothes; a bar of soap and bucket. I find that it can either be harsh or feel like you're dragging a dry soap bar on dry skin regardless of how wet both are. This is definitely my least favourite.

*Happy Hippie: Tempt your inner peace child with the earthy scent of patchouli, and enjoy the moisturizing benefits of hemp butter in our grooviest soap bar. Made with Organic Canadian Hemp Milk & Calendula Petals, you may have to find your love beads and flower crown after this far-out shower experience!

This is my favourite of all the bars. It smells in-freakin-credible, is ever so gently exfoliating, nourishing, creamy, and just lovely to use. I can't get over the scent and love that it fragrances my bathroom with a light hint of patchouli. I'm such a hippie eh?

*Blackbeard's Booty: When Blackbeard took his yearly bath, we’re sure this is the soap he favoured. Sail your pirate armada in your bath, while you enjoy the spicy sweet scent of bay rum essential oil straight from the Dominican Republic. Poppy Seeds add a gentle exfoliation.

How cute is the name and little pirate skull on the bar of soap?! This is my second favourite of them all. I love the (truly) spicy sweet scent of the bay rum, which is very unisex leaning towards masculine, and how lovely the poppy seeds feel on the skin. It leaves my skin exfoliated, nourished, and baby soft.

*Sex On The Beach: The fruit acids in our blend of tropical fruits encourage cell turnover, and help to dissolve the glue holding together the top layer of cells. Immerse yourself in memories of a Caribbean vacation. Notes of citrus will whisk you off to an island paradise, fruity drink in hand.

I'm sure you can all guess that what attracted me to this soap was the fact that it's supposed to be like a chemical exfoliant for the body, however, I'm not convinced it actually does much in that department. Usually with chemical exfoliants, your skin will tingle. This soap doesn't tingle whatsoever, not even on breakouts. I mean, obviously it's not meant to be an intense, all over body peel. Just thought it would be worth mentioning, in case that's the reason you decide to choose this particular bar. If you're looking for a soap bar that smells fruity, feels great on the skin, and leaves it feeling soft, this is the one for you! Out of the 5 bars, this one is in my top 3.

*Earth Goddess: Kaolin is the most gentle of all the clays, drawing impurities from your skin without stripping your natural oils. Kaolin clay is suitable for all skin types, and exfoliates gently enough to be used even on your face! This beautiful bar also includes Himalayan Pink Salt, which will draw out impurities while providing necessary minerals to your skin.
Lastly, we have Earth Goddess! This one is really nice and leaves my skin soft, just like the others, but it didn't live up to my expectations. I expected it to help with breakouts, because of its clarifying properities (pink and green clay). It doesn't. I also don't find it fragranced enough considering it contains patchouli and lavender, two dominant essential oils. Still really nice, just not one I'd repurchase.
All in all, I'm thrilled to have had the opportunity to try out this amazing Canadian brand. Their soaps really are beautiful and reasonable priced considering the quality. I will 100% be purchasing Happy Hippie and Blackbeard's Booty once I run out and highly recommend.
Retails for: $5.99/bar and is available in 16 different scents (4 of which are unscented).
Get it here: North Hill Soap Company and these retailers. *Products provided for review consideration. All opinions are my own.