return to archives home

Donna Maria's Handmade Beauty Connection
October 28, 2002

A Publication of The Handmade Beauty Network
ISSN 1530-9630 | Vol. 3, Issue 42
To subscribe, click here.

This Week's Sponsor
Green Valley Aromatherapy

100% Pure Essential Oils & Aromatherapy Products

International suppliers of oils, fragrances, carrier oils, diffusers, books, hydrosols, creams, bases, bottles and floral waters. Bulk, wholesale, retail.

Stock up on bottles, bases and oils for all your handmade toiletry projects. Check out our monthly specials and clearance center!

Check out our monthly e-newsletter and free catalog.

Green Valley Aromatherapy | 4988 N. Island Hwy., Courtenay, BC V9N 9H9
Toll Free (877) 572-7662 | Email: greenvalley@57aromas.com

1. HBN Update: Welcome New HBN Members!
2. New At MakeYourCosmetics.com:  Lemon-Honey Cuticle Bath
3. Handmade Beauty Trivia Question: win a sample of one of my favorite massage oils: Fairy Whispers!
4. Join Me In France Next Summer
5. Handmade Beauty Treatment Review by Donna Maria

Clever Cosmetics | Audrey Curry | New Mexico
* handmade toiletries

Red Bee | Marina Marchese | Connecticut
* the benefits of organic essential oils, beeswax and honey in natural balms. Bee good to yourself…everyday! 

Learn more about our members and their exciting activities by visiting their Web sites through HBN's Online Member Directory, now with 4 ways to search: (1) by state/country; (2) by member business name; (3) by keyword search; or (4) using our new alphabetical listings!

Lemon-Honey Cuticle Bath is really easy to make and will clean, tone and soften your cuticles so you can push them back to reveal a more healthy nail bed. Make some next time you treat yourself. I made some last week and put two plastic bowls of it beside me in the tub. I soaked the nails from both hands at once in the bowls as I inhaled the wonderful aroma of the 6 drops of my Fairy Whispers Aromatherapy Blend that I had added to my bath. Ohmmmm!

When you visit MakeYourCosmetics.com, it's easy to buy the ingredients you need by clicking on our Partner links:

SunRose Aromatics: pure essential oils (many organic), carrier oils and other aromatherapy products, each carefully selected for quality. Check out their new Perfumer's Emporium.

The Scent Shack: fragrance oils and soap supplies. Fragrance oils are pre-tested in cold process, melt & pour soap, and candles, and test results are listed at the Web site. Scents tested by soapers for soapers!

Lynden House International , Canadian supplier of soap and candlemaking supplies such as fixed oils, perfumes, essential oils, molds, powdered milks, colors, pre-made bases, candle wax, wicks, embeds and more!

Provide the name of the author of the above quote, the name of the book in which the quote appears, as well as the page number.

Last Week's Answer: Donna Maria, "Making Aromatherapy Creams & Lotions," page 91.

While time does not permit me to respond personally to all entrants, the winner will be notified by email and their name posted at HBN's home page.

Join me in France next summer from June 3 to June 8 where Aroma Tours'® Jim and Robbi Zeck will serve just a few HBN members this fabulous treat! Jim and Robbi have years of experience composing successful tours to France, Bali, Turkey and other exotic and aromatic destinations around the world! You won't want to miss this opportunity!

There are some spaces left so be sure to check out the links of great photos so you can see what you're in for when you come with us!

To view the full itinerary, click here! To register, click here!

This trip presents a wonderful opportunity for HBN members to enjoy a working vacation and we encourage all business owners to check with their tax professionals to make sure that they receive whatever tax benefits are available as a result of this trip to see first hand how some of the ingredients used in your products are manufactured!

Check the entire itinerary here.

Aroma Tours has set up a special page at their Web site for HBN members to register! Join us for this fabulous trip!

If you have any questions about the trip, just email me!

Seaweed Facial at bnatural Day Spa & Salon, Bowie, Maryland
$80.00 (excludes gratuity)

I thought it was time to take a quick detour from my usual review of finished products to provide a review of a delicious spa experience. I have searched high and low for an esthetician in my area of Maryland who is both qualified and convenient. It has been quite a search but I finally found one that I like! (HBN member Ricey Clapp of Inner Sanctum Salon & Day Spa is a fabulous esthetician and aromatherapist, but she's a little too far away for me since I moved to the suburbs. To read my review of the great Custom-Designed Aromatherapy Facial Sequence I had with Ricey, click here. Scroll to Item #4 to enjoy the review.)

bnatural is located in the Bowie Town Center, a new "main street" shopping mall just a mile from my home! Walking in the front door, I was welcomed by beautiful teak wood fixtures a nice retail area and a friendly lady behind a desk. The teak presents an upscale experience which is continued throughout the spa. After passing by the manicure and hair care area, I was lead into more quiet surroundings featuring a small waiting area with fruit (strawberries and grapes), lemon water and a soothing waterfall. After a quick healthy bite, I was ready for my facial.

My technician was Angelica, a Romanian trained skincare specialist with a tender touch and a pleasant bedside manner. The facial room was beautifully prepared for me with a heated spa table and soft music. The room was dimly lit and the walls were painted a muddy red-brown ... the perfect complement for a "bnatural" experience. My facial treatment consisted of 9 stages: cleansing, exfoliation, massage, steam, extraction, Vitamin C treatment, seaweed mask, toning, and moisturizing.

Angelica started by making sure I was comfortable on the table. I think it was a massage table heated with an electric blanket. (I prefer a real facial bed because it contours to the body rather than being flat, but this was a nice substitute.) After covering my hair with a soft towel, she began to cleanse my skin with a smooth and creamy unscented cleanser. Hmmmm, I guess the cleanser was working but the best part was Francesca's hands! Gently and professionally, she cleaned my face and neck area.

The exfoliant was the next step, explained Angelica, to remove all of the dead skin cells. Next, I enjoyed what I thought was the best part of the facial ... the facial, neck and décolleté massage. I think I went to sleep for part of that because Angelica has such wonderful hands. She used a light massage oil, which prepared my skin for a nice 15 minute facial steam. I know I went to sleep for that. How soothing it was to feel the light steam opening my pores. This step got me ready for what is usually the worse part of a facial for me: the extraction. I have never endured an extraction process that was not painful so I usually ask my technicians to skip this step. But Angelica was very gentle and she knew how to use the extraction tools without ripping my face apart. I felt safe in her hands, which is a new experience for me where extractions are concerned. The extraction was followed by a Vitamin C treatment which smelled of oranges (of course). Angelica massaged the surface of my face with the treatment which felt slightly tingly but not irritating. My pores were still wide open so I'm sure it was penetrating!

Finally, I enjoyed a seaweed mask which Angelica said contained seaweed extracts loaded with vitamins and minerals that are small enough to penetrate the skin and provide powerful skin toning and allowed to stay on my face and neck until it hardened enough for her to peel it off. If felt like rubber. Sadly, the facial experience had to end, but not without the application of a light toner and soothing moisturizer to seal and protect a job well done!

I give this facial experience a grade of a solid B. I would have given higher marks had there been a facial bed, which for me is much more comfortable than a flat table. You can schedule your own facial spa experience at bnatural Salon & Day Spa (which carries products made by HBN member Epicurean Soap Company!) by calling (301) 809-9855 to make your appointment.