InstaNatural 100% Pure & Natural For Face, Skin & Hair Review

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

My in-laws are from Iran and my step-dad is from Pakistan so I am not stranger to rose water as a food ingredient, but not one of them told my I could use it as a beauty aid! I don't know why I didn't think of it on my own, but I started to read about using rose water as a toner online. I was happy to discover InstaNatural Rose Water on Tomoson and was even more excited to be able to try it out. There are so many uses for rose water, I didn't even know where to begin, so I decided to go simple and add it to some bath water for a relaxing bath before bed. I became addicted to that little ritual very quickly and have been having baths with rose water as often as I get the chance! It's relaxing, it smells fantastic, and it will really help soften the skin.

After I tried the bath with rose water, I knew the next venture would have to be using it as a toner before I applied my makeup. I have tried tons and tons of cleansers, toners and other facial products, this one is by far the most moisturizing, it just made my face feel so hydrated and clean. It is a nice way to begin my makeup routine, to begin with a clean face and tone the skin in the process. I also like using this to clean my face at the end of the night. My next move is to add some to my shampoo and see how it softens up my hair. Plus, the smell of roses is great, so I know my hair will smell awesome when I do!

In just a few weeks, I am already down to half a bottle. I absolutely recommend this to anyone looking for a do it all skin product and I would especially suggest it to be used as a toner to be applied at the beginning of the day before make up. This product is inexpensive, especially compared to other toners moisturizers or cleansers you might buy and this one is 100% pure rose water, which is much better than the products you might be using that who knows what are in the ingredients. I think anyone looking to use natural products on their face (especially someone who has extremely sensitive skin like me) would be impressed with InstaNatural's rose water.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Original Sprout Review

Original Sprout is a company I was already somewhat familiar with because I have been using their curl calmer and leave in conditioner in my kids' hair since they were infants. I jumped at the chance to review some of their products I had yet to try because I feel very comfortable with the company and the ingredients they choose to use, as well as the icky stuff they make sure NOT to use. Inga, the founder of Original Sprout, is a master stylist and started a quest that would end up lasting 9 years, the end result- Original Sprout.


For this review, I was sent Original Sprout Miracle Detangler, Original Sprout Shampoo and  Face & Body Sunscreen from the new Tahitian Family line.






The first product I used was the Face & Body sunscreen from the new Original Sprout Tahitian Family line. I am very particular about my sunblock. I, of course, only use sunblocks that are not full of a bunch of ingredients I can't pronounce. The last thing I want to rub onto my body, or worse yet, my kids bodies, are chemicals that could harm us. I have tried a ton of natural sun blocks on the market, there are very few that I use on a regular basis. Many of them just won't rub in all of the way. The Original Sprout Tahitian sunblock was not too thick and not to thin and it rubbed into my skin super easily without leaving any greasy residue. It worked fantastic at keeping me from getting burned and smells so good! Right on the front of the packaging it is labeled Free & Clean and even goes on to tell you what it is free of- No parabens, nano particles, formaldehyde, petroleum oils, propylene glycol, dioxanes, sulfates, gluten, soy or dairy. I love that it is all right there for you to see, for me, a disclosure like that makes me feel comfortable with buying a product I know I will be putting on my children. Did I mention that Original Sprout products are also vegan friendly and biodegradable?




Next we tried the shampoo on my three kids. Let me start this by saying my two year old boys HATE getting their hair washed. It is a fight usually nightly. The Original Sprout shampoo has the same Free & Clean label as the sunblock, as well as the other Original Sprout products. I lathered up the kids' hair and was delighted to find that this shampoo washes out super quickly. That is a big deal to this mom of twin two year olds who hate getting their hair wash. It left their hair soft and shiny and smelling awesome. Another cool thing about Original Sprout is that while they all smell amazing the are all made with naturally derived ingredients & are certified FREE of phthalates, lavender, tea tree, PG, DPG, parabens, dioxanes, benzenes, formaldehydes, acetaldehydes, styrene, toluene, chlorobenzene & glycol ethers. Who says you can't have a great smelling product without using synthetic fragrance?

Finally, we tried the miracle detangler on my 4 year olds thick hair that is prone to tangling. We sprayed it on right after we towel dried her hair a bit after washing it with the shampoo and that stuff really is a miracle! Usually when I spray detangler on my daughter's hair, It takes me brushing through it a few times before I can brush through it. With the miracle detangler, the hair was soft and easy to brush through right away!


Original Sprout products have been outselling other brands in boutiques, salons, and health food stores and have a cult following among "green" hollywood, salons and women's who want high quality, safe products for their families! Original Sprout is a family owned company run out of San Luis Obispo, California.


Want to check out what all of the fuss is about? Try it out for yourself! You can purchase Original Sprout online, find it in health food stores like Central Market, in Salons like Cool Cuts for Kids and locally, Sweet & Sassy in Plano, TX just started carrying Original Sprout products this week!




If you order online at OriginalSprout.com, enter the code FIRST_ORDER_10-U for 10% off your first order!

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*Disclaimer- I was given complimentary Original Sprout products in exchange for my honest review. No monetary compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

Earth Day Freebies-some really good ones!

There are some great freebies going on tomorrow for Earth Day. If you have always wanted to take better care of the Earth (and yourself) or if you just love getting something for nothing, you don't want to miss out on these great freebies!

My favorite freebie for tomorrow is at Origins. If you take in your empty cosmetics bottles you will get a FREE bottle of moisturizer. Here is what the Origins Facebook page says:

Get your cosmetic empties ready & get ready to run to your nearest Origins store this Sunday, April 22nd. On Earth Day, we’ll give you a FREE A Perfect World™ SPF 25 Age-defense moisturizer with White Tea or Starting Over™ Age-erasing moisturizer with Mimosa just for bringing them in! You don’t want to miss it!

There are a few different places offering free reusable bags. Target is giving away a free resuable bag to each customer on April 22 until supplies run out, so you will want to get there early!

The Disney Store is giving away an adorable bag to customers who bring in 5 plastic bags to recycle. They are also having a scavenger hunt to help you learn more about how to save the planet.

Michael's is having a "make it and take it" craft event going on where you get to decorate a reusable bag in the store and take it with you!

I have heard that Lowe's is giving away a million trees (one per household) but I do not see that information on their website. Call your local store to verify before heading over there. They are offering 10% off energy star appliances.

Pottery Barn Kids is offering a free packet of Sunflower seeds, so don't forget to take your kids over there and then plant the seeds with them in the afternoon!

If you are a coffee drinker head on over to Starbucks and/or http://www.cariboucoffee.com/ with your reusable drink container and get free coffee!

Have you heard of any other Earth Day freebies? Leave them in the comments below!

Cureology Shine Mist Review

photo courtesy of CureologyBeauty.com

As a mom of three kids all aged 4 and under, I am constantly looking for products that will add to my beauty routine that will make me look nicer, but in a quick manner. I found just that in Cureology's illumination shine mist.

Cureology is a special company. Not only are their hair products free of a bunch of junkie chemicals that are no good for your hair or your health (you won't find any parabens, sulfates, aluminum, synthetic fragrances, phalates or any other harsh chemicals in these products. They are 100% natural.) Cureology products are  green, sustainable and vegan friendly. They are also full of antioxidents, cruelty free and organic to boot. If that set of standards isn't enough to show you how truly amazing this company is, Cureology is a cause product. That means that portions of their sales go to a specific cause, in this case, The National Breast Cancer Foundation. Through the sales of Cureology products the NBCF is able to provide funding for free mammograms, increased awareness through education and cancer research.

The Cureology products are salon exclusive. That means if you want to buy them, you have to do so at your local salon. If your salon doesn't carry these products orif you are a stylist interested in carrying Cureology products you see about starting at the Cureology website. If you want to find out if a salon near you carries these products, you can call 855-444-2873.

As far as the Shine Mist goes, I really liked it. The bottle directs you to style your hair as you normally would and then spray it evenly on your hair. I love the shine that it adds and I noticed after using it a few days in a row that it also added some volume. Something I really loved about the Cureology Shine Mist is that it smells so good. That is the awesome thing about all natural products, they smell so fresh and clean, not like hair spray, which a lot of traditional styling products smell like. It also makes my hair feel super soft. I could really tell this was a salon quality product. Not only does the Cureology Shine Mistmake your hair soft and shiny, it also offer's uvb protection. Does your hair product do that? I think that is pretty innovative.

**Disclaimer** I was provided a free sample of Cureology's Illumination Shine Mist for this review, however all opinions stated here are 100% my own.