When I was a child I always wanted long and lowing hair. I loved to play dress up and put on my wigs from Halloween and pretend that I was a princess. I wore braids most of the time and every now and again my mom would relax my hair with every young black girl’s favorite Just For Me kit.
I never really felt self-conscious about my hair until I developed a bald spot in eighth grade after a bad relaxer and using too much gel. My hair was probably to my shoulders, a decent length compared to many of my struggling friends. So when that bald spot happened and I had to side swoop my bangs for a few months until it grew back, I knew I had to ditch the relaxer and go natural. My mom went natural around the same time and started to rock... -
Get My New eBook Eco-Glamorous & Win a Gift Card to SpiritBeautyLounge.com
OBVs I am super excited to announce the recent launch of my new eBook, Eco-Glamorous: A Fail-Proof Guide to Ditching Toxic Beauty Products, Protecting Your Health & Greening Your Beauty Routine, available...
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What I Learned From My Mom About Being A Single-Parent Superstar
If my life were to be solely defined by statistics I wouldn’t be where I am today. As one of many children born into this world under the nucleus of a single-parent home, society can often make us feel,...
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Do You Know What’s Really in Your Food?
Image Source Are you a fan of crushed beetles in your strawberry shake or ammonia in your beef? By choice you may not have an option. After the Starbucks fiasco and countless warnings by popular mediums like Food...
Good Hair Rules: Teaching Your Daughter To Love Her Hair
When I was a child I always wanted long and lowing hair. I loved to play dress up and put on my wigs from Halloween and pretend that I was a princess. I wore braids most of the time and every now and again my mom would relax my hair with every young black girl’s favorite Just For Me kit.
I never really felt self-conscious about my hair until I developed a bald spot in eighth grade after a bad relaxer and using too much gel. My hair was probably to my shoulders, a decent length compared to many of my struggling friends. So when that bald spot happened and I had to side swoop my bangs for a few months until it grew back, I knew I had to ditch the relaxer and go natural. My mom went natural around the same time and started to rock... Carmine in Your Cosmetics: Do You Really Want Crushed Beetles in Your Lipstick?
Being from the North West, my life was surrounded by nature and camping, fishing and hiking were regular activities required of me during summer camp and weekends with family and friends. While I love nature, the trees, the oceans and the serenity of the great outdoors, I despised sleeping in tents, eating hot dogs over the open flame and getting bit and grossed out by bugs I didn’t care to identify.
When I discovered that many products I’ve used before becoming an Organic Beauty Vixen contained crushed beetles — Carmine to be exact — I couldn’t help but do a post to warn and inform my fellow vixens.
I couldn’t believe my eyes when I read this information. The red coloring in many foods and cosmetics is... 4 Eco-Beauty Books You Need to Read Now!
Everyone has advice on how to live greener, better, healthier, blah, blah, blah. Yes we’ve heard it before, read all the blogs, bought a t-shirt and put it in the scrap book. The fact of the matter is no one wants to be lectured, which is why I’ve tried to make Organic Beauty Vixen a place for resources and tools that you can use to walk away from.
While I do a lot of research and constantly converse with beauty, health and environmental professionals, I still love to stroll the isles of my favorite Barnes and Noble to check out what new beauty books are out and what they are saying. Out of my collection there are a few of my favorite eco-beauty books that have enlightened me and have continued to be part of my inspiration to... Eco-Fierce Friday Giveaway! The Body Shop Honey Bronze Brilliance Powder
I’m spending the summer in Seattle and last week got a chance to get a makeover from celebrity makeup artist Shalini Vadhera at The Body Shop with their new Honey Bronze Collection. Honey, known as one of nature’s best moisturizers, is used throughout the entire line so you can enjoy even application and a natural-looking bronzed and beautiful complexion.
Here’s what you can win:
I’m excited about today’s giveaway. Five lucky winners can get their hands on the Honey Bronze Brilliance Powder. This illuminating powder can be applied to your cheeks and collarbone, leaving skin looking glowing and radiant. Enhance your natural skin color with this easy-to-apply powder, which gives an instant shimmer courtesy... A Brown Girl’s Guide to Chemical Peels
I didn’t discover the beauty of chemical peels until I went to the Aveda Institute to get my certification in aesthetics. Chemical peel sounds like such a scary word right? Especially for women of color who tend to scar a lot. I am proud to say that I am no longer a chemical peel virgin and can attest to the benefits of receving one to combat some of the issues you may be having with your skin.
What a Chemical Peel Is
A chemical peel is a liquid chemical exfoliation that does what your typical face scrub does, only at a deeper level and in a quicker way.
What it Does
Chemical peels are great for evening out skin tone, treating hyper-pigmentation, acne scars, sun damage, and smoothing the texture of your skin.
How It Is Applied
A... Organic Seals and Labels on Your Eco-Beauty Products: What They Really Mean
Navigating the beauty isles in search of truly natural and organic products is a daunting task. Believe me I know, especially when many brands on the market are doing a ton of green washing (claiming that they are natural or organic when they aren’t and confusing consumers with natural-looking packaging) and the FDA doesn’t regulate what the words “natural” and “organic” mean.
Unfortunately, the eco-beauty industry is a free-for-all when it comes to labeling products. That’s why, to help customers like us be better protected, there are certifying agencies that have special requirements for issuing a certified seal verifying the authenticity of the organic ingedients in a brands products.
I’m... Top Five Foods For Healthy Skin And Hair
You truly are what you eat. I’m a chocolate lover and unfortunately indulging in my favorite dark chocolate treat which is typically followed by ice cream, candy or some other sweet loaded with refined sugar, always leads to my skin breaking out and my energy level at zero. When I’m not treating my body right through a healthy diet and exercise I notice the difference in the health of my skin and hair.
You can use the best natural and organic products on the market to cover up your beauty blunders but it all boils down to what’s going on internally that will have the biggest impact on the outside.
Check out my list of the top 5 foods that you should begin to incorporate into your diet for healthy skin and... Tell Me Your Eco-Glam Story! New Series Inspired By You
Hi OBV readers, supporters and followers!
I am pleased to announce our new Saturday series, Eco-Glam Living Spotlight, that will feature the stories of our readers that are living or have started living an eco-glam lifestyle. I want to hear about your journey whether you are growing out a relaxer, have started eating organic, or using natural beauty products and cosmetics, we want to share it on Organic Beauty Vixen and spotlight your beauty.
To be featured during our “Eco-Glam Living” series, please submit a high-quality picture of yourself living eco-glam (i.e. standing in front of a healthy and organic meal you prepared, shopping for organic products or dumping out your toxic ones, your favorite natural hairstyle, etc).
Please... Join the Movement!
