My guest today is Ginny Cardenas, CEO and founder of Lila Natural Cosmetics, the makers of Scotch Naturals and Hopscotch Kids nail polishes. I met Ginny last month in Baltimore at the Natural Products Expo. We had a rousing discussion about nail polish and how I couldn’t find one I thought was nontoxic enough to recommend. She made some interesting points I want to share with you. Ginny has always valued the importance of safe, yet effective, cosmetics. In 2009, when she took a closer look at the chemical cocktail of ingredients in her daughters’ nail polish—including phthalates, acetates and other toxics—she was shocked. Determined to create a natural and safe alternative to conventional nail polish, she teamed up with a chemist to develop revolutionary water-based lacquers in fun, vibrant colors and a soy-based polish remover. And thus, Hopscotch Kids was born. In 2010, Ginny unveiled Scotch Naturals, the grown-up spin-off of Hopscotch Kids, which caters to an adult demographic with a sophisticated color palette and professional quality results. Passionate about using only the safest and natural ingredients in her products, Cardenas has been at the forefront of natural formulation with innovative technology and bold, fashion-forward colors since the company’s inception. Today, both brands are found in 225 boutiques across the US and internationally. www.scotchnaturals.com and www.hopscotchkids.com.

 

 

My guests today are Tom Wennerstrand and Ben Okamoto, who are developing a new approach to beauty products. Tom is the creator of the REAL Beauty approach and product line. Tom was Inspired and taught by his career of ten years as hair and makeup artist working at Paris, Milan and New York fashion week, and building “Noir Concept”, a unique lifestyle salon concept for Helsinki. His career combined with his personal quest for deeper understanding of well-being and beauty lead to the development of “REAL Beauty”. Tom teamed up with Ben Okamoto to bring the concept of REAL Beauty to life. Ben obtained his his BA majoring in Economics and Political Science and International Relations at the young age of 19. After a year of working as the Commercial Manager Australia’s biggest telecommunication company, Ben became disillusioned with corporate life and moved to Berlin where he fell in love with the REAL Beauty concept.They have been working together since, and now have a Kickstarter campaign to launch their products. www.realbeauty.life

 

 

My guest today is Kim Mendes, Founder of Yoreganics, a small family business that makes laundry and skin products based on “revisiting simple, like the days of yore, when Mother Nature’s ingredients were used to heal our bodies naturally.” We’ll be talking about Kim’s philosophy and her products and how she, as a mother, decided she had to “take charge to become an advocate for myself and my family.” Her lighthearted blog is filled with humor and poetry. www.yoreganics.com

 

 

Today my guest is Ken McGowan, founder of Sinfully Wholesome. He creates amazing luxurious skin care products, “handmade from wild fruits and their precious oils.” Soaps, oils, and even laundry products that will leave clothing and bedding soft against your skin. We’ll be talking about the importance of eliminating toxics from your skincare regime, why they chose their luxurious wildcrafted ingredients and special packaging material, and what it means to be social and environmentally responsible. Ken is an environmentalist, entrepreneur and the former Leader of the Green Party of Nova Scotia. www.sinfullywholesome.com

 

 

My guest today is Claudia Cusani, Founder of Sage Canyon Botanicals. She makes bodycare products from organic botanical ingredients and her signature blends of real aromatherapy using essential oils—”curative plant essences that gently promote wellness.” We’ll be talking about how natural fragrances can be healing, unlike synthetic scents, which can be harmful to health. Claudia was a professional singer until fifteen years ago, when she took a detour from her music career to follow an avid interest in alternative medicine and the study of therapeutic massage. She obtained her license, set up shop, and built a practice where the use of soothing botanicals and essential oils became an important adjunct to hands-on therapy. She found they clearly enhanced her clients’ well-being and overall treatment results. The profound beauty of essential oils was a siren call for Claudia. Enchanted by their fragrances and intrigued by their vast clinical applications, she delved more deeply into the study and practice of aromatherapy and began to create her own essential oil blends. To someone like her, with allergic sensitivities who could not tolerate commercial skin preparations, candles or room sprays, these beguiling essences offered a fresh new world of possibilities. She decided to share her passion with others by handcrafting 100% natural and organic products using her favorite personal aromatherapy blends. And Sage Canyon Botanicals was born. www.sagecanyon.com

 

 

My guest today is Cynthia A. Young Jennings, owner of Sweet Harvest Farms in Tampa, Florida. She runs a thriving cottage industry that makes soaps for women, men, and dogs. C.J. has formulated a soap recipe all her own that consists of natural, soothing and luxurious organic ingredients to make a soap that “not only leaves you squeaky clean but also give s you soft, supple and silky skin.” I can vouch for this. I bought a big bar of her soap at a holiday crafts fair and had to have her on the show. C.J. has been an artist longer than she can remember. Painting on anything that “didn’t move”, including old cupboard doors, chairs and even her father’s old Army boots, made her offerings a bit eclectic. Even during her 20 years in the medical field CJ always had her hand in creating. Years later, opening her store in Destin, Fl. , she decided to offer a little bit of everything from antiques to handmade primitive dolls. Included in this eclectic mix was Potpourri and Handmade Soap. Always being a perfectionist and wanting to give her customers only the best, she found the Soap and Potpourri not up to her standards. Many Soaps that are sold as “homemade” are actually produced in huge warehouses? These “soap blocks” are shipped in large quantities which others re-melt, mix with scent, color, blend them with synthetic Glycerin, and call them “Glycerin Soaps”. Many contain chemicals, preservatives, Parabens and Petroleum by-products that are eventually absorbed into your bloodstream through your skin not to mention the damage they create to the environment when washed down the drain or thrown out into the garbage. True Soaps don’t melt, become slimy, or leave a greasy residue on your skin or shower—AND true soaps must have a cure date on their label. Sweet Harvest Farms products do not contain Parabens, Sodium Lauryl Sulfates, Phosphates, Harsh Chemicals, Mineral Oils or Petroleum products of any kind. C.J.’s experience in the medical field has given her the ability to formulate her own patented recipes for her handmade soap, lip balm, she butter bars, roll on perfume, tooth powder and more. There are very few true Soap makers left that stay true to the old fashion method of Soap making used hundreds of years ago. Vitamins A-E, Organic and All Natural Shea Butter, Flaxseed Oil, Olive Oil, Castor Oil, Jojoba Oil, Palm Oil (sustainable), Coconut Oil and others. are what customers say make this Soap nurturing and hydrating. www.sweetharvestfarms.com