Okay ladies, September is Yoga month – so time to roll out that dusty old mat and commit to doing just a teeny bit of yoga every day! You really don’t have to do a 90 minute practice (the length of most classes,) in order to benefit. Just mastering a little breathing and a couple of poses a day can get you nicely on track. As I’ve been sitting at a computer for more hours than is healthy or comfortable for the past 3 years, my regular yoga practice began to slip down my priority list. As a result, tighter hips, shoulders and heightened stress levels began to creep back into my life, so I resolved to carve out a quiet half hour every day and get back on the mat. The most important element in Yoga is the breathing, which ultimately leads to a sense of calm, whereby the mind begins to quieten down. Read the rest of this entry »

I was so excited to be able to interview celebrity makeup artist, Rose Marie Swift. Rosemary is a big shot in the industry, having created the “look” for many advertising campaigns including Victoria’s Secret and Gap. She has made up (like they really need it!) some of the world’s most beautiful faces including Gisele Bunchen, Miranda Kerr, Celine Dion, Paloma Picasso, Isabel Rossalini, Milla Jovovich, and many others. A few years ago, Rose Marie found that she had serious health issues resulting from heavy metal poisoning, and thus her journey towards clean & green cosmetics began. Read the rest of this entry »

I picked up a Sunday Fashion Magazine here in England today and splattered across the cover, I read: “MUST-HAVE Fashion For the Fall!” I had a good look through all the “editor’s picks” to try to make sense of all the different styles that are being touted as the pieces you’ve got to have or else you might risk looking like a total loser. All this “must-have” business get’s really tiresome, especially for someone with a penchant for fashion, like myself, but whose also desperately trying to be Green. As I pounded the streets of ever-so Trendy London last week, I noticed that gone were the Grecian Sandals that only a month ago were the thing, and in place of them were great clodhopper, clog-style Read the rest of this entry »

When traveling to large cities, such as NYC, Chicago, London, Paris etc, it’s often a challenge to find a green way of doing it. On a recent trip to NYC, I was pleasantly surprised to find a new level of consciousness arising in the hotel industry. For now, with their massive and often archaic infrastructure, it’s pretty hard for for old school hotels in any city to change, however, like an old person stuck in their ways, some are at least taking a stab at it. So before landing in the big apple, I sniffed around a bit, and found The Benjamin Hotel, which is bang in the center of the city (mid town), and is a jewel among a lot of other rather large hotels in this Read the rest of this entry »

My first port of call when I get to England is to visit the nearest Neal’s Yard Remedy store to find some herbs and tinctures that will magically lift my jet lag lethargy. So I rose rather too early my first morning in the UK (1am LA time!), had a cup of strong Matcha green tea and got ready to drive on what seemed like the wrong side of the road to the nearest town, Guildford, which resides in the rolling green hills of Surrey. The original Neal’s Yard store opened its doors nearly 30 years ago in the heart of London’s Covent Garden. Its founders wanted to fashion their shop after a seventeenth century British apothecary, where all the potions and tinctures were sold in cobalt blue bottles. Read the rest of this entry »

Anyone got tickets for Eat, Pray, Love yet? There’s so much buzz going on about Julia’s wardrobe in this sure-to-be blockbuster Summer movie. It’s her garb in India, which is getting the attention – all those gorgeous shawls and magnificent colors that look great on everyone.The thing I love about this kind of look is that you can find it at affordable prices and fair-trade.I’m a long-time fan of Rising Tide Fair Trade and was thrilled to see that Julia’s toting their Hobo bag (pictured,) in the movie. Made from old remnants and vintage quilts, these useful bags are made in a women’s co-op. I use mine to travel, as it’s quite amazing how much you can stuff into it. Read the rest of this entry »

One of the things that I just adore about my job is that I get to meet a lot of women who are really making a difference. I get emails every week from teenagers to elderly women – all concerned about a myriad of different ways in which they can help the people they love, to be the best that they can be. This week I had the pleasure of meeting the two lovely women, Vici Prodromitis and Donna Sanvig, who founded the fantastic charity, Canswerlink, just a couple of years ago, to solve a problem that hasn’t really been addressed until now. I can’t believe that they’re just a 2-woman gig – these inspiring ladies get down & dirty to literally scrub people’s houses clean – the homes of cancer patients who are undergoing treatment. Read the rest of this entry »

It was such fun stumbling upon the Compost Collection at Union Sq. Green Market in NYC. What a fantastic idea – to basically encourage apartment dwellers to recycle their kitchen scraps into “Brown Gold”. Four days a week you can schlep either your kitchen scraps, which they suggest you stash in old milk/juice cartons or plastic bags, and bring them down to Aurelia. She’ll then feed them to her red wiggler worms and that’s that! You can also do your own composting if you have a patio/balcony, or small yard and then bring the compost down to Aurelia, who’ll be sure to make very good use of it. Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re looking for a really unique Birthday or Hostess gift – here’s a very cool idea: Why not order a Poem for your loved one. You can go straight to talented poet, Rebecca Strecker, and tell her exactly what you want the poem to be about and which details to include etc. You can then send it either as an email, or embed it in an e-card. A customized poem would also work really well for a special thank you, or a love letter! It’s greener than green, as no resources were used at all and the recipient gets to print out your poem on recycled paper to frame, or transfer to a word document to keep forever. Read Rebecca’s Gorgeously Green Poem:- Read the rest of this entry »

The thought of rubbing toxic chemicals into my body or scalp is bad enough, but when it comes to a baby – it’s horrendous.  Little babies are now bombarded with chemicals the moment they make their entrance, and this realization was one of the catalysts that catapulted me head first into the Green space almost a decade ago. My daughter, Lola (just turned 9,) is now very savvy when it comes to reading ingredient lists on bottles and lotions, which is fortunate because those little fingers are already dipping into every glittery lip balm pot she can get them into! It’s actually so much fun, because while researching/experimenting for Do It Gorgeously, she got to help me try out many of the skin care and particularly baby care recipes – she figured Read the rest of this entry »