But not to worry!  I will be back from our destination wedding refreshed and ready to write lots – hopefully with some new imported beauty secrets.

For Thoroughly the Modern Mum: Wooden Macbook Cases
This functional gift is for tech-lovin’ moms who love beautiful things.  Depending on the size, these cases run from $129- $149 and are made up of bamboo that is said to be “uncrushable”. They even have versions for the mac book air and the ipad.

For the Happy Gardener: Ergonomic Gardening Tools
I’ve been looking at these for Ben’s mom for a while.  She has arthritis but loves to garden, and what better way to help her tend to the earth than tools that make her more comfortable.  I don’t much about gardening tools, but there is a set for $109 that makes it easy.

For the High-Powered Mama: An Organic Facial
I had to say it: nothing is better than giving someone a facial.  Obviously I’m biased, but come on, an hour or two of relaxation, massage and skin support?  If you do this at Pure + Simple, she’ll get a service with all-natural products – so add in the aromas of the organic essential oils and the soothing body massage.  High-powered, high stress mothers need pampering, and this should be worked out with a wonderful scalp massage.  This month gift certificates are on special 10% off!

For the Green Glamourista: Upcycled Jewelry
Want to get mum something pretty and fun?  Functional is great, but now you can buy a luxury item without being wasteful.  This upcycled necklace is both beautiful and eco-friendly.  If you look close, you’ll see its made with pieces of computer board.

For the Voluntary Simplicity Lady: A Free Range Egg Brekkie
Some mother’s aren’t just modest, they don’t want a gift.  Want to avoid giving her more clutter?  Why not make her healthy a brunch or breakfast in bed.  Get some organic, free range eggs from your local farmers market and cook her up a special meal.  If you’re like me, you have a mom with many dietary restrictions, so making her something delicious and caters to her preferences can be one of the most thoughtful presents around.

T’is the season to get married!  And, some of my friends have so many wedding invites that they hardly have a free weekend this summer.  Well, as an upcoming bride myself, I thought I would write up a post on bridal skin preparation.  At Pure + Simple, we specialize in facials and skincare so we get quite a few brides-to-be in asking about how to take care of their complexions before the big day.  It definitely depends on the state of your skin, but there are a few tips that help prevent stress breakouts and bring on that radiant glow.  Of course, this is not restricted to people a-getting married, you can use these tips for any occasion in which you want to put extra effort in to look your best!

Tip #1 – Start Early
Preferably six months early.  This is because it give you plenty of time to treat specific skin conditions that cannot be corrected overnight.  A series of IPL can be done to remove broken capillaries and pigmented spots or a package sea salt microdermabrasion can be booked for those needing smoothing exfoliation or to treat acne.  Remember, changes in our skin take time, and instead of leaving it last minute, having enough time to incrementally improve your skin is important.  Also, you’ll be stressed out close to the big day, and planning out your beauty regime can also force you to take time out to relax and pamper yourself.

Tip #2 – Don’t Do Anything Drastic One Month Before
While you may have your esthetician put together a protocol of intensive peels or light therapy leading up to your wedding – let your skin take a breather one month before.  You don’t want one too-strong treatment to cause a big flare up or reaction close to the big day.  This will only stress you out, aggravating it further.  Instead, stick to a gentle regime designed for sensitive skin and don’t switch up your daily regime.  And, of course, I’m bias towards all-natural beauty products.  Using chemical-free skincare is gentler and healthier for your skin all the time (wink).

Tip #3 – Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate
A lot of brides are afraid of breaking out so they opt to use disinfecting products and blemish-drying topicals.  Fight that urge.  You can’t have glowing skin if its dehydrated and your make up may go on flaky if its too dehydrated.  Actually, a Super-Hydrating Facial one week prior to your wedding is the best thing you can do.

Tip #4 – Prepare for a Week of Craziness
The week before is the best time to get all your last minute beauty treatments done….and the list is long.  I’m talking leg waxing, eye brow shaping, tinting, mani, pedi, eye lash extensions, hair refreshers…  Book them in early and block out time for yourself.  Its a whirlwind, but since you don’t want extra hair growth, chipping etc., days before are best.  But don’t do anything the day before.  Especially services like upper lip wax.  You don’t want to risk any irritation so leave at least four days between it and your walk down the aisle.

Tip #5 – Know your Makeup Plan
Don’t rush – know what you are going to do for make up in advance.  Unlike, I, who has yet to plan how I’ll do my make up (I’ve got a week and a half!).  But, since I’m doing my own its not so bad – if you are getting a makeup artist to do this, you’ll want to trust them and trust comes from practice, practice, practice.  Always do a trial.  Or if you’re like me, at least follow these guidelines for DIY bridal make-overs.

Unfortunately none of my usual fixes have worked – taking turmeric and neem did very little.  I tried eliminating starches, increasing my water intake and limiting salt.  Even super-alkalizing by taking baking soda (which is my ace in the hole of kitchen remedies) only gave me relief for a couple of days before reverting back into tummy ache and inflammation.  So, I decided to go on a fast.  I remember years ago Ayurvedic Doctor, Dr. Lele told me that the first thing he’d ever do if he fell ill was to start fasting.  He explained that when the body does not spend energy breaking down and digesting food, it uses those resources to heal itself.

Many people get twitchy when I talk about fasting – they associate it with an eating disorder or insist that going sans food would deplete all of my energy, but I’ve done week long fasts before and if done properly, by the individuals with the right intention, its very helpful.  Saying this, you can’t just jump into a fast willy nilly.  You need to prepare, slowly lighten your diet until it becomes liquid and ween yourself back onto eating again.  You also cannot be doing strenuous work or exercise programs that take up the energy you are trying to reserve by going onto the fast in the first place.

Now as you know, I’m pretty busy these days – so I wasn’t ready to go into the whole spiritual space of a full-on fast.  Instead I opted to do a one day fast, in which I would also drink homemade soup broth (no salt) and the digestion supporting Clarifying Tea.  According to Ayurveda, one day fasts can be very effective, and those who are high Vata and Pitta can also choose to eat water-rich fruits and veggies when feeling they cannot undertake anything too drastic.

So that’s what I did last Wednesday.  And, I felt so good that I continued it for an extra day.  This was spurred by the fact my mouth swelling completely disappeared and my stomach felt more settled than it did in weeks.  When I broke my fast, I did so with a fresh squeezed vegetable juice – a yummy combo of carrot, celery, kale and beet.  Post-fast I’ve been feeling much better.  And, to my delight, my eczema flare up has subsided and the patches are going away.  But I’m still paying attention to my diet, avoiding acidic foods and continuing to drink the Clarifying Tea.

If you  decide to fast, it best to speak to your Naturopath, TCM doctor or Ayurvedic Practitioner about if this is best for your constitution right now.  But, as you can see, a fast does not need to be a measure of discipline – it can be easy, short and gentle and still help you rebalance your body and restore its functions.

Take The Road Less Traveled – Anyone who ditches their car to travel to one of our spas will receive 15% off all product purchases.  Take public transit, bicycle or stroll in for your discount!

2x Bottle Credit On Our Recycling Program – We’re offering double credit on all glass bottle returns of Pure + Simple brand items.  These are then brought back to our lab, sterilized and reused for waste reduction.

Free Totes For All! – Every customer over the Earth Day weekend, will get a reusable Pure + Simple hemp tote.  These bags say “I Planted a Tree” as they were made for an initiative with environmental non-profit org, Evergreen.

Hope to see you there – make beauty a little more green!

Inflammation on the skin is related to inflammation inside the body.  And while I (obviously) recommend many wonderful ingredients for soothing rosacea, eczema, allergic or sensitive complexions, it can’t be ignored that you also need to address the internal aspect of beauty.  In my pursuit to educate y’all to the best of my abilities, I decided to sit down and have a chat with an expert.  I was lucky enough to get some time with long-time holistic buddy, nutritionist, Julie Daniluk.  Julie is the author of the best-selling “Meals That Heal Inflammation” and TV Host of “The Healthy Gourmet” on the OWN Network.  So, if you are having issues with inflammation, watch this great vid for Julie’s fantastic dietary tips to treat this!

“This abnormal obsession with women’s faces and bodies has become so normal that we (I include myself at times — I absolutely fall for it still) have internalized patriarchy almost seamlessly. We are unable at times to identify ourselves as our own denigrating abusers, or as abusing other girls and women.”

She continues to explain the ridiculousness she has experienced as a public figure, having been scrutinized when she is less than perfect, but also accused of having work done when looking “too perfect”.  Not only does this display the unhealthiness of celebrity culture, it also emphasizes how women are often measured according to their physical attractiveness.  I know, I know, this isn’t new knowledge – but it I do think that Judd’s eloquent replace (and moxy of her stance) highlights how we are all part of the problem.  Because, lets face it – while we can blame the media and insist that it shapes our views, the media is made up of us and for us.  Yoko Ono once said that no organization can exist without individual participation and, sure she was talking about protesting the Vietnam war, but it applies here too. Oh Yoko, you’re such a smart cookie.

So, if we’re going to start promoting a healthier self-image for women we need to stop being part of mean media and the public judgement of them.  So Christina Aguilera has gained some weight and Cameron Diaz has crowsfeet.  As Ashley Judd said: Is someone being puffy really news?  Is it really something worth talking about? Google search Xtina and Cammy, and you’ll find that apparently it is.

And, we also have to examine why we idolize other women for only the reason of finding them good looking.  Read: Pippa Middleton – I mean come on, she’s beloved for being someone sister and having a great derriere?  If you could see me now, I’m making a scrunchy face.  I may get some grief about this post – my last post that mentioned the Royal fam got some reader’s virtual panties in a twist.

But lemme know what you think: Is Ashley Judd’s response an over-reaction or a fair comment on society’s superficiality?