Lemon and orange slices exfoilate and polish your skin naturally!

Make sure you hit your T-zones! Your forehead, your nose, and chin to soak up oils.

Mix Egg, milk, and Honey for an easy, breezy face recipe!

One of the best ways to start the New Year is by refreshing your skin during the winter months when skin becomes dull, dry, and often tired looking from rounds of Christmas and New Year’s parties.  Here are three easy recipes for taking care of your largest organ that will cost you practically nothing!  Cheers to that!

Milk and a Washcloth: 

Take a washcloth and soak it in a bowl of milk then ring it out.  It’s best to use cow, goat, or buttermilk for smooth and supple skin.  Microwave for 30 seconds then place on face for ten minutes or until the washcloth cools.  This aids in both soft, smooth skin and is effective for getting rid of age spots since it lightens skin pigmentation.

The Breakfast Mask:

This little mask requires a blender and a little tender loving care!  I use this mask almost everyday because it is gentle and helps reduce redness, dark eye circles, and acne.  I’ve even started my teenage daughter on this regimen to gear her through the teenage years.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of rolled oats
• 1 cup of boiling water
• a drizzle of honey
• 2 TBSP milk
• 2 TBSp coffee grounds
• 1 teaspoon of Greek yogurt

Pour the oats into the blender and soak for a couple minutes in the boiling water.  Then add the additional ingredients and blend well.  Cake on face until dry then use a washcloth to exfoilate.  You can even keep leftovers in a separate container that can be heated up for 40 seconds for the next use.

Waterfall:

Take a common everyday vaporizer, preferably the warm heat model, then steam your face for at least 15 to 20 minutes.  After steaming your face, which opens the pores, then splash ice cold water onto face to close them.  Then moisturize as usual.  Prior to doing this, spend the day drinking an entire gallon of fresh water by the jug.  This will purify your skin from the inside/out. 

Blogger Laurali Star can be found on her blog, Charming Laurali Star, and on her site, The Damsel in the Attic, where she sells handmade and vintage clothing and accessories.  Another fab way to help reduce, reuse, and recycle!  Check it out!

Click here to see how to make art latte. There are some unique arts made in this particular review im about to show you.

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

by Corey

Parents are becoming more and more savvy about how conventional candy companies work: Make the “treat” with the least amount of effort and sell it for the most money. Using real, wholesome, ethically sourced or even safe ingredients are not necessarily part of the deal.

Luckily, there are now many awesome options available. Healthy (and healthier), ethically sourced and sustainably grown Halloween treats are becoming easier and easier to find. Even super market chains, major online retailers and big box stores have jumped on the bandwagon, making these items more accessible to families no matter where they live.

But it can be confusing to negotiate the web of certifications and labels that some treat brands boast. Are they really meaningful? Or just “green-washing”? This list will (hopefully) make the process of buying healthier Halloween treats (and party fare) more simple.

Just look for as many as possible of the following:

• Non-GMO (preferably Non-GMO Project Verified)
• Organic (Certified is best)
• Locally grown/produced
• No high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)
• No Palm-oil
• No artificial colors, flavors or preservatives (i.e. Real, whole foods – If your first-grader can pronounce all of the ingredients, you are probably in luck.)
• Fair Trade
• Minimally processed
• For chocolate – Rainforest Alliance Certified and/or shade grown

In addition, you may want to consider giving away goodies or serving foods that are peanut-free, gluten-free, dairy free and/or egg free. These are some of the most common food allergens. And with 1 in 13 kids suffering from food allergies*, limiting highly allergic foods is one way to ensure that Halloween is safe and fun for everyone.

*Source, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

by Corey

With scary stats such as the fact that 1 in 3 trick-or-treaters is expected to develop diabetes in their lifetime, it may be hard to imagine giving away chemically laden, conventional candy as kids come to your door.

So this Halloween, forgo the candy isle and grab a bag (or box) of these healthier treat options that keep all the YUM:

Yo’ Drops from Revolution Foods

The first time I tried Yo’ Drops, I couldn’t believe my mouth. These crunchy, freeze dried, 100% real organic fruit and yogurt snacks are sooooo good. Packaged just perfectly for Halloween, too. Might just become your family’s new Halloween favorite.

Stretch Island Fruit Co. strips

It’s amazing how delish a treat so simple can be. And how excited kids can get over something made from 100% real fruit. We gave Stretch Island Fruit Co strips away last year and the reactions from the kids were just adorable. Expressions such as “OOH! I LOVE these!” And “This is my FAVORITE flavor!” were heard throughout the night until every last strip was gone.

Larabar (minis)

In 2006, when first had the idea for creating a community movement around making Halloween healthier for kids and planet, I didn’t have a lot of recommendations for food items that kids would go wild over and that mom would approve of. At that time there wasn’t overt demand for healthier Halloween fare, and so many health-food brands were leaving the conversation alone. So in 2007, when the Green Halloween website was first launched, we had only three or four “treat” (food) items in our recommended list: granola bars, honey sticks, fruit leather and…. Larabars. Indeed, it was Larabar that led me to believe that Halloween treats could be just as exciting to kids without the processed and artificial ingredients, HFCS and hydrogenated oils that were the basis for most Halloween goodies. Larabars are whole, real food. But they come in flavors such as Cashew Cookie and Apple Pie that don’t just sound good, they are good. (Really good.) And now that they’re available as minis, they’re even more affordable for those families who get droves of trick-or-treaters.

Honest Kids organic drink pouches

Another little Green Halloween history tale: In 2006, as I took my kids trick or treating, I noticed that they (and their friends) were more excited about the goodies they received that were not conventional candy. Bubbles ans stickers received squeals of enthusiasm. Snickers and M&Ms, not so much.

What was going on?

I soon come to realize that kids today are over-exposed to conventional candies. They’re available at birthday parties, at the dry cleaner, even at the doctor’s office! I also discovered that my nephew’s teacher even kept a bowl of candy on her desk for when kids got a good test score or pushed in a chair for a friend.

So it’s not that kids like candy any less, it’s just that it’s not as novel as it was when I was a child – when Halloween was the one time of year when I had access to it.

So this year, why not consider giving away a drink pouch in lieu of a conventional treat? My hunch is that kids will be all over this twist on tradition – some ghosts and goblins may even down the drink while on their trick-or-treat trail. Moms will love Honest Kids’ organic ingredients, no HFCS, the fact that the pouches can be recycled through Terracycle.net.

Nature’s Path organic crispy rice treats

Nature’s Path new organic crispy rice bars knock the YUM ball right out of the park. Made with better for kids & Earth ingredients, and packaged and priced just right for Halloween, we think these new Halloween treats are going to be a hit!

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Of course, giving non-food “treasures” is another way to make Halloween healthier. Just choose items that are made from safe, natural materials and look for treasures that will last long past Halloween, such as polished rocks, recycled mood pencils, and mini decks of cards or games.

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

by Corey

We’re over the (full) moon! Excited to present to you the brand-new Green Halloween® Marketplace on the one-and-only EcoMom.com!

Not only are we thrilled to help the greening of Halloween becoming easier for parents seeking safe, sustainable alternatives to conventional Halloween products, we’re so very grateful (and proud!) to be EcoMom’s non-profit beneficiary partner. (15% of sales will support the Green Halloween initiative!).

Here’s some of the eek-o-fab items you’ll find:

2011 limited edition Green Halloween ChicoBag

Designed by the 13-year-old winner of last year’s design contest. (Your child can enter to have his/her drawing selected for next year’s bag! Info here). Resusable (and washable!) year after year; a new Halloween tradition for your child. p.s. If the bags show as out of stock – not to fear. New bags are on the way!

All-new, Mineral Based Face Paints from Terrafirma

You may have read Campaign for Safe Cosmetic’s 2009 report in which 10 of 10 brands of face paints tested contained lead, a powerful neurotoxin. Since up to 60% of what we put on our skin is absorbed into the body, lead in face-paints is a definite concern for many parents. That’s why we’ve partnered with Terrafirma to create the very first line of lead-free face paints that are bold and vibrant enough for your lions, tigers and bears. {Oh my!}

Eye-Ball (organic) Cookies by Beautiful Sweets

We just love these  adorably-eco, not too scary treats. Just perfect for edible decor. Kids love e’m, Mama Earth approved. We’d say the eyes have it this Halloween.

100% Silk Mermaid Costume by Sarah’s Silks

Costumes made with petroleum products (i.e. polyester and PVC/vinyl) may contain toxic chemicals such as BPA, lead and pthalates. 100% natural materials make for a safer Halloween and year ’round dress up.

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Love the items we’ve listed? Have ideas for more? Let us know what you think of the new marketplace! Add your comment, below.

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

Halloween is big on fun but, unfortunately, it’s also big on unhealthy traditions and waste. Many moms and dads worry about the impact of this holiday on the health of their kids and the planet.

And for good reason.

Almost $6 billion a year is spent on costumes, candy, décor and other accessories, most of which are made from unhealthy, unsustainable materials, by people who may not be paid living wages or treated fairly. Most of the stuff – what isn’t consumed – winds up in landfills.

And scary news about high-fructose corn syrup, artificial colors, lead laden accessories just fuel parent’s concerns.

But our goal is to show families that it’s easy and affordable to keep the fun, while losing the unhealthy, un-Earth-friendly traditions. It’s not about telling parents how they should celebrate – it’s about inspiring them to make choices that make sense to their families, their budgets and their schedules. And when many families make healthier and more sustainable choices for Halloween – taking even the smallest of steps – big impacts can be made for the short and long term.

Here are a few of the “spooky statistics” that might fuel your desire to help change the way you celebrate Halloween:

• One in three trick-or-treaters born today will develop diabetes.
• One-third of America’s trick-or-treaters are overweight; 17% are considered obese.
• Today’s trick-or-treaters have a life expectancy that is shorter than their parents.
• 1 in 13 trick-or-treaters suffers from food allergies.
• Coco beans used for chocolate that are grown in full sun (as opposed to shade) are susceptible to disease and therefore require heavy doses of toxic pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.
• The chocolate industry has engaged in the use of child slaves and other unethical treatments of growers.
• Store-bought costumes, makeup and accessories may contain phthalates, lead and other toxins.
• One test of multiple brands of face paints found detectible levels of lead in all of them. (According to experts there are NO safe levels of lead).
• Over 6,000 synthetic chemicals are used in the processed-food industry. Most Halloween “treats” are processed.
• A 2004 study with 1800 three year old children found that behavior measurably improved after a one week diet without preservatives and artificial colors and dramatically worsened on the weeks they were given preservatives and artificial colors (present in most Halloween candy).

For more “why’s” of Green Halloween^®, click here.

Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.