Skin Care Essentials - Exfoliate

As part of our “essential skin care steps” blog series here comes today’s post about second important step on your way to a beautiful and healthy complexion. You can read about first step here.
Exfoliation - a simple and effective beauty treatment which artificially encourages the gentle removal of surface skin cells. Our body sloughs off up to 500,000,000 dead skin cells every day - by actively assisting this process we help cell renewal and regeneration. Exfoliation actually lifts of the top layer of dead skin cells, dirt and sebum, revealing new layer of young looking skin beneath. This stimulates the blood circulation in the dermis, which in turn feeds the newborn skin cells more efficiently and rids the area of waste products. As the skin ages, the production of of new cells slows down, often leading to dull skin tone and uneven texture.
Exfoliation can also assist with some other common problems like flaky or ashy skin or enlarged facial pores. Dermatologist Susan Evans, MD, recommends exfoliation to help fight enlarged facial pores. “Pores appear enlarged when they are clogged, dilated, or infected, and that's why the best way to keep your pores small and less visible is to keep your skin clean all the time. Often the pores get clogged with dead skin cells, dirt, and oil, which makes them appear more prominent. That’s why regular skin exfoliation is essential, in order to remove the dead skin cells and to allow your skin to produce newer, healthier cells”. (WebMD article)
There are many great natural exfoliants that can be found on the natural market today. Most popular of them are sugar and salt. We create our emulsifying body polishes with pure cane sugar and Dead Sea and Epsom salts, with addition of extra conditioning butters and oils. Our double whipped body polishes/scrubs are not messy and not runny - they are always ready whenever you are.
It is recommended to exfoliate at least once a week and even more frequently during summer, to shed off extra dirt that we accumulate from spending more time outside, and to rid of sun-damaged cells. Quick tip: depending on the personal preferences body polishes can be applied on dry skin to achieve more friction and exfoliation, or lightly damp skin, to insure easy glide for sensitive skin.
Note: salt body polishes may sting sensitive skin as well as cuts and bruises.

For facial exfoliation, we recommend using Marmalade Hills clay masques, as clays provide gentle exfoliation and deep cleansing without applying any pressure.


Hope you find this post useful. Take care of your skin and it will thank you!

Till next time,
Liana.

"Love u more" Mondays.

NOTE: all Facebook giveaways have been postponed until further notice.

Love it or hate it, the Monday is here! Life is back to normal and we all have have 5 days of hard work ahead of us before we can come out and play or just regroup and concentrate on things that have been put off for far too long. So I decided to create a fun and very unselfish tradition to cheer up a special person in your life who, in your opinion, needs and deserves a “little break” or a “treat”. It will be called “Love u more” Mondays and it will be held every Monday. The process is extremely simple: first “Like” us on Facebook and than look for a post every Monday asking for a quick story about your friend who in your opinion deserves a little cheer. Leave your comment under the post by 11:59 pm EST on that same Monday and let me know which one of your friends and why he/she needs our pat on a shoulder and a virtual hug.
I will use www.Random.org to pick a winner. Winner picks the prize from our store and he/she will be contacted via Facebook messaging for shipping and special note information. The package will be carefully prepared, include a note … and maybe a little something unexpected :)

Lets make it fun and invite friends to participate! Remember, what goes around comes around!

Till next time,
Liana.

Carry on with a smile.

I took this picture yesterday night when the house was quiet and calm, during those precious two hours when kids go to bed and all noises subside. Just like any other busy family houses, most of the time our house is filled with toys, all kinds of school projects, dirty dishes, loads of laundry and kids laughing, fighting, crying or playing in the background. You wake up in the morning and it starts all over again. Sounds familiar? I bet it does! Today is a start of a new week, new round of chores and endless projects, so I want to pass around a few thoughts to keep in mind: #1 – Optimists get the last laugh, according to a new study that shows their hearts stay healthy longer than those of grumps. The recent study says, pessimistic people may be more prone to developing habits and problems that cut life short, such as smoking, obesity and hypertension.
#2 – Numerous studies over the decades have shown that responsibility strengthens the immune system (check out Chapter 10, Stress, in Matt Ridley's "Genome")

Wake up, smile and say "Hello" to Monday :)

Can you hear wedding bells?

Wedding is one of the most important moments in persons' life: memorable, beautiful and happy. It is a very special day that you share with very special people in your life and thoughtful token of appreciation to your guests is always a great idea to have. Allow us to introduce Marmalade Hills' most popular wedding favor item: massage/spa candle. Elegant, pampering and practical, it is a perfect gift for anyone with skin. Made with soy wax, creamy shea and mango butter, nourishing jojoba oil and extra vitamin E, to moisturize and provide extra slip during massage. Like how it sounds? Just wait till you try it!

Show feedback

Yesterday I was at one of the most exciting shows I have ever been to so far. It is an annual Boutique Show that has been organized and hosted by the sisterhood of Shaarey Zedek congregation in Southfield, MI. It is definitely a five star show on my list, right after the Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago. Two shows are very different though and required different amount of time and money to participate. Renegade Chicago was absolutely crazy, we had barely enough time to have a snack. We had an amazing crowd and a ton of sales but we had to pay for the hotel, the quite expensive booth fee, gas and had to pack and unpack every night and morning (this part was pretty exhausting). The Boutique Show at Shaarey Zedek was in a beautifully set up hall with lots of natural light, beautiful architecture, high quality vendors, and a celebrity speaker. The very fair booth fee included 8’ tables and linens, breakfast and yummy lunch. The fact that I didn’t have to drive far, nor pay for the hotel was another great bonus. But the best thing about this show was making great local connections: meeting people who teach at my school district, who shop at the same grocery stores, and who have already heard of us and had purchased Marmalade Hills products before from our local retail locations. Oh yeah, and listening to Patty Stanger speak was a blast - she cracked me up!
Here are a few highlights of that day:

It was a beautiful day outside and lots of women came to shop! The sea of cars was spilling over onto the neighboring streets.

Bottom line: I had great time, met new people and spread the word about Marmalade Hills. Hoping to be back next year!


Till next time,
Liana.

What is your favorite facial moisturizer and why do you love it?

I have always wanted to formulate a natural facial care line and even though MH already offers many wonderful skin care essentials, I am working on some new formulations for facial moisturizer, gentle wash, make up remover and an eye creme. I love playing with new ingredients, researching various studies and tweaking my formulas. However, I am a wrong person when it comes to moisturizers. I have been using MH Glow facial serum for a few years now and I am not used to anything else, especially oil-water emulsions (that's what creams and lotions are), they just have a different feel.
For the past few weeks I have made quite a few trial batches of facial products and tried multiple products from leading natural facial care brands. So far I didn't like any of the above. I am still looking for that perfect one. So I was hoping that maybe you can give me some clues.

Please got to our discussion board and lets solve this important world problem!

Leave a comment and I will send you a surprise gift ♥ :)

Liana.

Get to know us a little better

A few weeks ago I had a pleasure talking to Robin - freelance business writer for one of our industry's leading suppliers and role model, Debbie Mae from Wholesale Supplies Plus. It was one of those Sundays with my kids screaming on background and Robin having difficulties with her computer. But the interview came out great and I couldn't have sum everything up better myself!



Thank you Debbie and Robin for an amazing article!

Liana.