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Raw Beauty & Skin

Avocado Sex Appeal, by Rebecca Mead

Saturday, April 10th, 2010

Holy Guacamole! I am feeling very sleek and sexy these days.  Big thanks to my abundant Avocado consumption.  No kidding,  I recently found myself on an avocado feast-not on purpose, it’s just that I love Guacamole so much, and Diana makes the best guacamole EVER, (try her recipe in Get Naked Fast pg. 83).  And lately, the avocados have been so tasty that we make a fresh batch ever day and I just can’t help myself.

I was a little worried about the fat content of the avocados, and felt a bit guilty, until I was reassured that it was good fat, and really, who am I to complain when there is fresh Guacamole staring me in the face?  And what a face, I mean my skin is glowing , my hair is shinier than ever, and would you believe I lost weight?   Certainly not what I was expecting after the amount I’ve been eating.

Studies have shown that avocado is excellent for weight loss and weight control.  And, yes, avocados are full of fat – but it’s full of good fat. Bad fat makes you fat; good fat keeps you from getting fat.

  Avocados are high in monounsaturated fat which has been proven to lower cholesterol as well as control weight as it affects how your body metabolizes blood sugar.

 Avocado also contains a unique weight loss friendly carbohydrate called mannoheptulose which is a rare form of sugar, found to lower insulin secretion.  The rise in insulin is the cause of weight gain.

The sexy side affects of eating avocados don’t stop at weight loss, Ancient beauties have long known  the avocado to be a wonderful beauty aid, rich in beneficial oils that rejuvenate the skin, reduce eye puffiness, and heal frazzled hair.  Ultimately a beautifying food from the inside out.

Here are a few recipes and tidbits we have been playing with in the kitchen:

Vitamin E Moisturizing mask :

1 half an avocado mashed

1 teaspoon Cold Pressed Olive oil

1 tablespoon Tocos Plus ( A rich vitamin E powder from rice bran: Tocotreinols)

Mix together and spread evenly over your skin and neck.  Leave on for 15 minutes, then rinse with warm water

Cure for Puffy Eyes This works great. Just slice a peeled avocado half into quarter-inch crescent-shapes. Lie down with a few slices under each eye and rest for around 20 minutes. Amazing results!

Easy Avo- Facial Mask Just mash half an avocado and spread evenly on your clean face. Allow to remain for 15 minutes, then rinse off with warm water. This is best for dry skin types.

Shiny Soft Hair Treatment

In a small bowl, mash and combine:

1 avocado (1/2 for shorter hair)

1 tablespoon olive oil

Apply to hair and allow to remain 30 minutes or longer, then shampoo and condition as usual. Amazingly silky, shiny, soft hair!

And don’t forget, Avocados make for a great fulfilling snack, a meal if you want, you can blend them into smoothies, dice them into salads or just eat them with a spoon- just sprinkle with sea salt and a squeeze of Lime juice or eat them plain.


Enjoy how sexy they make you feel!



Meet Rebecca

Friday, March 12th, 2010

A make-up artist has seen and knows all skin types- the artistry of make up is that it evens skin tone, adds color, and brings out the beauty in everyone.  On the hundreds of women and models I have painted with beauty, those who live a healthy life-style, have needed very little make-up. Upon eating more raw foods I have seen big changes in my own skin. I have since become more in-tune with natures ingredients and as a result of working with Diana, have been experimenting with fresh fun masks, scrubs, and creams, made of raw ingredients, including essential oils, raw honey, Himalayan sea Salt, sea vegetables and of course fresh produce. As we create more products and experiment with the effects, I will be documenting the fresh recipes for your raw beauty and skin.

One of my favorite natural skincare products is Coconut Oil, because it not only nourishes and softens the skin, but it promotes healing. It is an effective moisturizer on all types of skins including dry skin.  It also helps in treating various skin problems including psoriasis, dermatitis, and eczema. It can delay wrinkles by penetrating into the deeper layers of the skin and strengthening the underlying tissue.  Rub it on your face, your body and your hair.  And enjoy your natural glow.

Skin Lovin’ Solutions

Friday, March 12th, 2010

Thanks to the sudden reprieve in the cold weather, my chapped lips are newly moistened, and my dry skin is looking supple again.  The cold front came up on me so quickly, I didn’t have time to amp up the hydration.  Busy, busy, busy, doing all the things we do, we forget that our skin is our largest organ.  When it looks distressed, things are just not right!  Skin is the one organ we definitely need to nourish externally as well as internally.

When you feel the weather outside is frightful, and your face wants to remain delightful, add these four ideas to your repertoire and enjoy the winter with a radiant glow;

1. Eat/Drink- dark green leafy Kale, it is super high in calcium, which is essential in keeping the skin supple.  Try avocados and walnuts, they have oils and omega fatty acids that equally aid the skins soft and moist surface.  But the number one hydrator for your beautiful skin, is water…good ol’ H20.  Drink twice as much as you think you need, and you may have had enough.

2. Avoid- Caffeine and Alcohol, they are very acidic to the body, and ultimately drying to the skin.

3. Wash- In the winter months, change your face wash to an oil based or milky wash.  The clear gel washes tend to strip away natural oils, leaving the skin thirsty.

4. Moisture- Pure coconut oil is a wonderful moisturizer for all over the face and body.

Or, try an essential oil, mixed with jojoba or avocado oils as a base to your skin before slathering it with your favorite natural moisturizer.

Cherry Love Mask

Sunday, January 24th, 2010

I was playing in the kitchen, high on life, feeling the urge to create a recipe for my skin. (I think about this stuff all the time, but rarely follow through.) It was a moment in the kitchen where I created magic. I’ll call it the Cherry Love Mask. I smothered myself in this rich and somewhat chunky face mask, and could immediately feel its soothing tingle. Rebecca, my beautiful assistant came over and I slathered her face with it as well. I guess I didn’t realize how goopy and icky it looked until I put it on her. We stared in the mirror and laughed. She felt the tingle too. We let it set on our faces for about 10 minutes before we took it off and couldn’t believe how smooth and luscious our skin was. I tweeted about it, took pictures, and slathered it on my daughter and another friend. We were so excited I had to share.

1/2 cup Montmorency Cherries

1/2 cup Tocotrienols

1 teaspoon of raw honey

appx. 1/4 cup Purified Water

Blend water and cherries to a paste. Add Tocos and honey and blend until smooth (or as smooth as you can get it)

Slather it all over your face….look in the mirror and laugh…wash off in 10 minutes and enjoy your super soft, hydrated skin!

Why?

I kept reading how Montmorency Cherries have the highest amount of antioxidants. There is always some claim to fame for every wonderful fruit placed on this earth, but this one seems to have climbed its way to the top for healing, health benefits and its beautifying properties. The naturally occurring bioflavinoids in the Montmorency cherry fruit combats free radicals and the effects of aging. The fructose and fruit acids have a nourishing, toning and astringent effect on the skin that refreshes and rejuvenates the complexion.

Tocotrienols a rice bran soluble having the highest amount of Vitamin E and 50 times more potent than tocopherols. In a powder form, I have been mixing Tocos into my morning smoothies and green shakes, but have always been aware that it is going to be the wave of the future in skin care. Vitamin E is one of the best known antioxidants found in the human body. Its key biological function is to protect lipids from oxidation and free radical damage. Lipids are the building blocks of cell membranes and other important biochemical structures. As a topical food, it has incredible anti-aging properties.

Honey is a nectar of the gods transferred from the budding flowers of life to the the buzzing of bees. Honey is surely sweet, but it is also a natural humectant, aiding and attracting moisture to the skin. Honey is a natural antiseptic and antibiotic, excellent for removing bacteria from skin-it is known to aid in controlling acne.

Thats why!

And, it tastes good, too!