Bananas and Kefir for Healthy, Beautiful Hair!

Bananas are rich in potassium, an ingredient that temporarily gaps in hair's cuticle, so strands feel smooth. Vitamins B5, A, E, and C in the fruit preserve hair's natural elasticity, lessening breakage and split ends over time.

The lactic acid in kefir helps maintain your hair and scalp's pH balance, so they stay moisturized and shiny naturally; fatty acids coat and soften hair. If you would like to make your own kefir for your hair, you can find the organic, probiotic kefir grain cultures in my etsy shop...all you need to do is purchase them once and you can make healthy and delicious kefir indefinitely!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/54411910/kefir-a-cultured-dairy-product-full-of

Banana and Kefir Hair Treatment

1 banana
1/2 cup - 1 cup kefir

In a blender, whip the banana and kefir until they have a smoothie-like texture (about 45 seconds). Work the hair mask into wet hair, wrap a wet towel around your head and let the mask soak in for 10 minutes. Rinse, shampoo, and style!

Tester Tip: You might want to try making kefir cheese (or "labne") for this hair mask because it has a thicker consistency that won't slide off wet hair. Add a few drops of vanilla or lavender essential oil to de-stress while you wait. ;-)

Pamper Your Face with a Kefir Mask

Kefir is wonderfully beneficial for your skin; it naturally contains Alpha Hydroxy Acid (AHA) that is said to reduce wrinkles or the signs of aging, and improve the overall look and feel of the skin. In kefir, alpha hydroxy acid is in the form of lactic acid.

Lactic acid naturally harmonizes with the slight acidity of our skin and hair. The lactaic acid in kefir softly dissolves the lipids that hold old skin cells together and helps to remove dead skin particles so that new skin can emerge into new radiance. Other miracles of alpha hydroxy acid found in kefir include reducing the appearance of wrinkles and scar tissue, and fading aging spots and freckles (pigmentations from sun exposure).

I put home-brewed kefir on my face all of the time and I love the way that it makes my skin feel; slightly tightened and soft. You can put kefir alone on you face for a therapeutic mask or you can follow this wonderful kefir-oatmeal face mask recipe below.

Kefir Honey Oatmeal Mask

½ cup uncooked oatmeal
¾ cup of kefir
2tbsp of warm liquid honey

Mix kefir and oatmeal and refrigerate for ten hours. Strain, keeping the liquid and discarding the oatmeal. Add the honey and mix well. Apply the mask and leave on for twenty minutes. Rinse well and apply a moisturizer to the face. This is a great mask for oily skin.

If you would like to make your own kefir for a calming and therapeutic facial mask, you can find the organic, probiotic kefir grain cultures in my etsy shop...all you need to do is purchase them once and you can make delicious, healthy kefir indefinitely!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/54411910/kefir-a-cultured-dairy-product-full-of

Etsy Shop Product Review: Discover Dragon's Den!

Darling Amanda from the Dragon's Den has some very high-quality, all-natural pampering products and necessities. Need a little indulgent pampering that you won't feel guilty about since you won't be exposing your body to harmful synthetic ingredients like parabens, artificial dyes, etc. Welcome to the Dragon's Den, where you don't have to feel guilty about your spa pleasures!

The products that I have purchased from the Dragon's Den are:


With cocoa butter, sweet almond oil, hemp oil, and vitamin E, this homemade Jack Frost Kiss Peppermint Lip Balm is invigorating, very nourishing, and wonderfully all-natural! I love it!


I purchased the Chamomile Neroli essential oil blend from the Dragon's Den...this oil is very high-quality, pleasingly potent, and smells delightful! This is a great mood booster!


These pure beeswax tea light candles will create a calming and/or romantic atmosphere in your home without releasing the harmful fumes that traditional paraffin candles expel.

To find out more about Dragon's Den please check out:

The Dragon's Den Etsy Shop:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/dragon06

The Dragon's Den Blog:

http://craftydragon06.blogspot.com/

A Day in the Park and Etsy Shop Product Review: Orglamix's All-Natural Make-Up!

Such a lovely day in the park...I love being surrounded in nature, and so does my face! I have made a conscious effort to strive to find the perfect "all-natural" make-up for my face (without parabens, artificial dyes and colors, and other harmful synthetic ingredients). You know your face can soak up all of that stuff! So in my search, I stumbled upon the wonderful Etsy Shop: Orglamix!


This is Orglamix's Butternut Pure Organic Mineral Foundation (light skin with golden undertones) that perfectly matches my fair skin tone and blends in beautifully...see!


I also love this Rosy Future - Pure Organic Mineral Blush (tea rose) by Orglamix which I am also wearing in the photos above.


They have a large variety of all-natural cosmetics including powder foundations, blush, eyeshadow, and more!


My beautiful and expecting twin sister, Andrea, and our gorgeous grandmother "Nana", Sharee.

Please check out Orglamix's Etsy Shop here:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/orglamix