Well i told you about Coconut Oil

Avocado oil is supposed to be excellent as well according to this Ford Model:



I told you Beauty doesn't have to be expensive.

Mixed Reviews

So lately I've become obsessed with the plight of Afghan Women since reading this book called A Thousand Splendid Suns-a definite must read. I picked up a book last night from my library called Kabul Beauty School and spent my Friday night engrossed in it. I really did enjoy it. The book is basically about an American beautician who goes to Afghanistan to start a beauty school. Through the relationships that she cultivates with these women, you learn so much about the Afghan culture and the way women are treated there (not great at all). An example was when she went to visit the women's prison and she found women that were jailed because they had been raped. That broke my heart. Not only had these women been through the horrific experience of rape, torture and abuse (many times from their own husbands) but they were now being punished for it. Many times the women had their children in jail with them. It really saddened me. Needless to say I couldn't put the book down.

However, this morning I wanted to do further research on the book's author, to find out a little about her. I must say, finding out about her, broke my heart more than the book. The Afghan women that were featured in this book are now being threatened with their lives. They claim that the author Deborah Rodriguez promised them that if they allowed her to tell their story, she would get them out of Afghanistan-well not so. The women are still in Afghanistan;the book has been published and the women are now not only disgraces to their family but are pariahs in Afghanistan.

The author claims that the women "misunderstood" her. She claims only that she would give them proceeds from the book, and now that the movie rights have been bought, she claims she will give them 5% of the profit. I find this really sad. This woman tricked these poor Afghan women (who already have been through so much oppression with the Taliban,Mujadeen and horrible husbands) and because they confided in her, it is possible that they will now be murdered.

Ms. Rodriguez has said she will not be returning to Afghanistan. These poor women have no choice but to stay, and live in fear for their lives.
I wonder how Ms. Rodriguez feels knowing the damage that her book has caused. I wonder if she even cares now that she is a millionaire.

After reading that, I regretted ever picking this book up and my prayers are with those women.

Driving lessons

This has nothing to do with beauty but if anyone needs a Great driving instructor, you have to use Alfredo from Ferrari driving school in Queens. i have taken so many lessons with other people but I admit I get so nervous behind that wheel. Anyway for the past months i've been taking lessons with him and literally I am like a damn expert on the wheel. He is the BEST!!

LOVING IT

I am in love with the whole Aubrey Organics line. Lately, I've been trying to use shampoos that don't contain Sodium laryl Sulfate. I've read through various websites that SLS is a detergent-like substance that is inexpensive and is the reason why shampoos lather so quickly. i don't know about you but putting a detergent-like substance on my mane is not cool. That's where the Aubrey Organics line comes in. This company's products are all organic and all natural. I mean literally i love all of their items. But my absolute faves are the following:

After using this conditioner, my hair felt like silk, but the shine it emitted afterwards was downright insane. I also love knowing that my hair will not suffer later damage from using this. A lot of shampoos now are not only infused with SLS but with silicones as well which could be incredibly drying as well. The ingredients to this conditioner are so simple too: Coconut Fatty Acid Cream Base, Organic Aloe Vera, Organic Shea Butter, Wheat Germ Oil, Organic Jojoba Oil, Organic Rosa Mosqueta, Rose Hip Seed Oil, Extracts Of Fennel, Hops, Balm Mint, Mistletoe, Camomile, Yarrow, Chrysanthemum, Angelica, Forsythia, Honeysuckle Oil, Carrot Oil, Aubrey's Preservative (Citrus Seed Extract, Vitamin A, C and E)

Next product;

My Friend Tanika is a super hot beauty. However, her relaxed hair never shines. And i mean the girl has spend 1000's of dollars on products trying to get that hair to be glam. Her birthday was 2 weeks ago, and I went to The Vitamin Shoppe and picked up a basket of goodies from the Aubrey line. i must mention, Tanika is a bit of a product snob. She thinks spending 100's of dollars on products equates to quality. i've told her often "it aint so" but she only recently believed me after she saw what the conditioner i got for her did to her luscious mane. She advised me that she went to the salon and gave them the conditioner, however she still used her Kerastaste as a shampoo (said she couldn't bear to not use one expensive product on her head). Anyway, the product i gave her was:



Well after they blew out her roller set, Tanika called me in tears. She was so happy. There was finally shine to her hair. For years she had used other lines as well as the Kerastase and didn't get shine but she told me and these are her exact words "holy crap my hair is gleaming." Needless to say Tanika is a new customer. The ingredients to Island Naturals Conditioner are as follows:
Coconut Fatty Acid Cream Base, Organic Aloe Vera, Wheat Germ Oil, Almond Protein; Extracts of Fennel, Hops, Balm Mint, Mistletoe, Camomile and Yarrow; Organic Coconut Milk, Jojoba Butter, Organic Shea Butter, Horsetail Extract, Coltsfoot Extract, Aubrey's Preservative (Citrus Seed Extract, Vitamins A, C and E), Vegetable Glycerin, Organic Rosemary Oil, Pimenta Leaf Oil, Allspice Powder, Organic Sage Oil, Carrot Oil.

Your hair needs protein. Thats for sure. Your hair is made of protein and using a protein treatment at least once a month followed by a moisturizing conditioner is essential for maintaining a healthy head of hair. This is probably my fave product from the Aubrey Line. i am in love with their GPB Conditioner. First, it smells like a dream, and what it does to your hair is downright mind-boggling. i use it as a deep conditioner then use the honeysuckle. i've noticed that my hair has much less breakage, amazing length, and looks so healthy:


here are the ingredients:
INGREDIENTS: Coconut Fatty Acid Cream Base, Organic Aloe Vera, Wheat Germ Oil, Lactalbumin, Organic Rosemary Oil, Organic Sage Oil, Horsetail Extract, Coltsfoot Extract, Nettle Extract, Amino Acid Complex (Cysteine, Methionine), Glycoprotein (from oyster shells), Balsam Oil, Aubrey's Preservative (Citrus Seed Extract, Vitamins A, C and E).

You'll love this stuff

The Miracles of Coconut Oil

Around two years ago, I was walking through Central Park when i spotted this lovely young lady with the most beautiful hair I've ever seen. After walking directly behind her for 5 minutes mesmerized by the shine and luster of her mane (yes i will become a stalker for beauty), I decided to approach her before she turned around and slugged me. So I asked her what it was she put on those beautiful locks. She advised me that she used Coconut Oil on her hair. She told me that she applied it on her hair (not too much though) used it, left it on her hair for the day and washed it out. Me being the beauty-eager woman that I am, quickly ran to Whole Foods and purchased a bottle of Spectrum Coconut Oil:



I went home and boiled some water and placed the bottle of oil inside. Coconut oil comes in a very hard consistency and the only way to turn it into a liquid is to heat it. After it was liquid, I placed it on my hair, and put my hair in a ponytail. The next morning, I trooped to my salon, they washed it out and woooooooooooooooooooh, my hair looked amazing (i think even better than the girl who gave me the suggestion). lol

On the website: http://thebeautybrains.com/2007/05/14/two-natural-oils-that-make-your-hair-shiny-and-strong/

They state that there have actually been scientific studies on Coconut Oil showing that it is one of the few oils that penetrate the hair and actually will make hair stronger.

I definitely have noticed the difference.

Loving It

I am a woman who loves to accentuate my facial bone structure. Yesterday walking around in Sephora, my favorite sales girl recommended a product to me that turned out to be my new fave. Clinique Liquid Illuminator is absolutely incredible! She carefully applied the product to my cheek bones and asked me to look in the mirror. HOLY HOTNESS! I looked like a bronze version of Mischa Barton with my incredibly high looking cheekbones. Also I looked so flushed and healthy almost as if i was glowing. It was INSANE. You must get this. This is a huge bottle considering you will use very little of it and for $22.00 you can't go wrong. It comes in four shades and the one I purchased was Bronze but I am heading to Sephora tomorrow to purchase the peach tone.

Beauty From Within First

It boggles my mind the amount of women that will buy expensive hair and skin products but not nourish their inner body. Don't they know that beauty begins from within first? Growing up I was a constant acne sufferer with massive dark spots and incredibly greasy dead-end hair. Anyway, I became incredibly frustrated because my Dr's would constantly prescribe a myriad of products and my skin would improve for a while but after terminating use of the prescriptions, my skin would return to its old pimply, and bumpy state. So I decided I was tired of quick fixes and wanted something permanent. I decided to take the bull by the horns.

First off I started reading about supplements that are known to improve skin. One of them is GLA which is an acronym for Gamma Lineolic Acid. This is an Omega 6 Oil. Here is what this website says : http://www.fatsforhealth.com/library/libitems/Evening_Primrose_Oil.php said about the benefits of GLA for skin:
Nutritional supplementation with GLA is one of the most important tools in treating eczema. GLA also helps moisturize the skin and protect it from environmental oxidative damage. There have been many scientific studies using GLA with excellent benefits in improving the symptoms of eczema.9, 10, 11, 12 Dosages in the range of 0.5 to 3 grams of GLA are appropriate. Both evening primrose oils and borage oil have been used in these studies:

So after researching GLA, I began taking it in a supplement form in Borage Oil. Borage Oil has the highest amount of GLA of any supplement. Keep in mind supplements are not a quick fix-they take time people!! Don't think that after taking them for one day you will wake up with skin clearer than a baby's bottom-unfortunately, that won't happen. But i do promise you that the benefits of waiting are amazing. Slowly after taking it, I began to notice that my skin had a glow to it that it didn't have before. After around 2 weeks, i notice that my nails which were always weak and soft were now hard and strong. It was insane. My hair seemed shinier (but that could be because of the massive amount of beauty products I own too).

After I saw the benefit of just one supplement, I added a few others. Here is my regimen: I take Borage Oil, MSM (acronym for Methylsulfonylmethane) a mixture of Omega 3, 6. 9, Alpha lipoic acid (antioxidant to help with antiaging), Vitamin C and of course a multi-vitamin. After this regimen (almost a year), I find that my hair is a lot longer (literally it is down to my waist), my skin is a lot clearer (you must understand I was a constant pimple sufferer as a teen and even as an adult, and now my skin and nails look great. KEEP IN MIND, I am in no way shape or form giving medical advice, but these items worked for me. Keep it beautylicious.

BeautyLicious

Welcome fellow bloggers. To start off, let me begin by telling you about myself. I am a self-proclaimed beauty product junkie. I constantly buy and experiment with different products and review them on various websites, but why review on everyone else’s site, when I can just review on my own. So here it goes, my first venture. I have a feeling we'll be interacting with each other on a regular basis. Enjoy