AFTERNOON WITH NEUTROGENA & NICOLE KIDMAN

It makes perfect sense that Nicole Kidman and Neutrogena have teamed up for their new Rapid Wrinkle Repair Creams. Nicole is the Global Brand Ambassador for Neutrogena and why wouldn't you want Oscar winner, Emmy winner and an all-around fabulous female on your team.

Neutrogena puts on amazing events and their brand Ambassadors are always empowered and caring women. Nicole was beyond lovely, gracious and funny. It was truly a treat and always fun to have a little girl-talk about skincare.  Nicole just turned 50 and we spoke about how freeing it is to understand that aging's a gift.  We also spoke about how you begin to appreciate your time on a whole other level.

See Q & A with Nicole below                                         

Rapid Wrinkle Repair - Neutrogena has developed a super-emollient cream that offers an option for dehydrated skin with the power of retinol. Dermatologist agrees that retinol stimulates the skin cells underneath the epidermis - not only on the top layer. Retinol is highly regarded as one of the best substances in fighting the signs of aging. It gives the healthy skin cells underneath the chance to become the epidermis, that's where dead skin cells are collecting. This is what gives aging skin that dull and tired look. 

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RAPID WRINKLE REPAIR MOISTURIZER DAY with sunscreen SPF 30 - Retinol SA helps with diminishing the look of age spots. the Hyaluronic Acid helps with plumping moisture to your skin for hydration.

RAPID WRINKLE REPAIR NIGHT MOISTURIZER - Retinol SA - Glucose Complex - Hyaluronic Acid - 

WRAPID WRINKLE REPAIR EYE CREAM - Targeting those fine lines & crows feet. I find that dark circles are definitely reduced after one week of using the eye cream.

NEUTROGENA RAPID WRINKLE REPAIR REGENERATING CREAM - Apply twice daily, morning and night to face & neck. Joined together are hydrators with retinol so it's gentle enough for daily use.  Retinol / Hyaluronic Acid / Glucose Complex

Nicole had been a fan of Neutrogena before joining the iconic brand. Her skin is fair and she said she regularly applied their sunscreen. During our interview, Nicole shared with Melissa Meyers and me that sunscreen is a must and she's consistent with making sure the whole family is protected from the rays with 100+ coverage.

Neutrogena sunscreen is SPF 100+ and water resistant up to 80 minutes and the #1 Dermatologist Recommended Suncare. Don't leave out your neck and your hands. I like to keep a tube in the car, living in sunny L.A. and spending much of my time in traffic I have more sun damage on the left side of my face, neck than the right side. Now I apply before I hit the road.

Try their Hydro Boost lip treatment with Hyaluronic Acid. Beautiful shades along with the perfect nude lip

Meet Dhaval G. Bhanusali, MDFAAD - If you live in Miami or NYC, lucky you! Melissa & I did our best to convince him to extend his practice here in L.A.

Beautiful setting by One Nine Design at Eric Buteraugh Gallery.

Thank you to Neutrogena for a special afternoon with Nicole Kidman and introducing us to Rapid Wrinkle Repair. 

If your skin is sensitive to retinol you might want to try Neutrogena's HYDRO-BOOST 

Cleansing Gel - This lightweight gel cleanser transforms into a silky lather that removes makeup and impurities. With hyaluronic acid - soap free, oil free, paraben free.

HYDRO-BOOST hydrating serum - Instantly absorbs to deliver hydration.

HYDRO-BOOST water gel - Hydrating oil-free moisturizer so you can wear alone or under makeup. 

Neutrogena has focused on women's beauty for many years...since the 30's to be exact. There is a reason it's still a favorite of women from across the globe.  We may not all walk the red carpet, but we sure want to feel like we do. Thank you to Neutrogena for an exciting afternoon with gracious Nicole Kidman and introducing us to Rapid Wrinkle Repair. 

*If your skin is sensitive to retinol you will want to check with your doctor to see what works best for your skin type.

Here's to aging gracefully! 

Q & A with Nicole

Q - How have your own personal views about aging changed?

A - When I was a teenager I never thought about it, not even in my thirties, it then becomes more about time. I want to look good, but it's about time. There are so many things I still want to do. It's more about time and being healthy

Q - Do you feel 50? or do you feel like age is just a number?  What age do you feel inside?

A - No, you never feel 50, I know that I have children who are 9 & 6 and I want to be able to be there for them. I have a mother in Australia and I want to be there for her. At this particular age, you have children and you've got parents and you have to take care of everyone including yourself. 

Q - Do you use the sunscreen?

A - Yes! I use the 100+ and I use it on my kids too, It doesn't sting their eyes, and it doesn't break you out.  When Neutrogena came to me, I said yes. This retinol really works, if I use a straight retina a cream I break out and get really dry. The combination of the retinol and the moisturizer, I can use every night and feel like it's really helping my skin.  

Q - What do you do with your skin when you're not working?                                                                                                                      

A - I moisturize and I don't wear a lot of makeup, I love hydration.  I tend to be dry, and I love hydrated lips. I love the peachy lip balm.

Q - What are your favorite Neutrogena products?

A - The Rapid Wrinkle Regenerating Cream & the Ultra Sheer Sunscreen. When Neutrogena came to me, I said Yes!. This retinol really works. If I use a straight retina A cream I break out and get really dry. The combination of the retinol and the moisturizer, I can use every night and feel like it's really helping my skin.  

Is she that tall?  Yes!  Is she that beautiful?  Yes!  and she's that Gracious! 

INSTYTUTUM - MY FAVORITE HIGH PERFORMANCE SKINCARE LINE

We all want our skin to look and feel healthy and by now we know how important it is to be consistent with our skin care routine and when we find one that delivers a noticeable difference...that can be exciting, so exciting that you want to share that information with women everywhere. No, It's not about erasing our lines... we've earned those! But, let's face it, it feels great when our skin is radiant.

Lifestyle & beauty blogger Melissa Meyers has been introduced to so many skin care lines over the years and is always attending beauty events along with discovering the latest treatments. I value Melissa’s opinion so I wanted to share her personal blog post about Instytutum with my readers. After using Instytutum consistently for one month Melissa and I both became proud Brand Ambassadors, and honestly, we are loving our results! 

MY FAVORITE HIGH-PERFORMANCE SKINCARE LINE

It can be a challenge to find the BEST skin care product launches with so many options out there! Part of my job as a lifestyle blogger is to road test new products and then recommend the ones with proven results to my glow girl friends. The past month you may have noticed on my Instagram that I have been posting quite a bit about Instytutum, a new high-performance skin care brand from Switzerland dedicated to creating flawless skin. I am proud to be a brand ambassador for them, a relationship that was sparked by my love for the products. Read on for more details on Instytutum, how to get some complimentary samples and a 20% discount on all products.

I first discovered Instytutum at a desk-side product launch meeting that I attended with my blogging partner Janet Gunn of The Grateful Gardenia who is now also a brand ambassador. After listening to a presentation on how this skin care line was different with impressive scientific results, we were given some samples to take home and try. After using them for a few weeks, I saw so many improvements in my skin that I personally reached out to the company to see if we could work together. Instytutum products are formulated with powerful cosmeceutical ingredients like Retinol, Peptides, Patented Stem Cells, Vitamin C, Glycolic Acid and more to improve overall skin texture and to firm the skin. After using the products, I noticed a significant reduction in fine lines and wrinkles, pore size and spots. Plus, they are extremely hydrating and plumping! 

Go to Instytutum.com and use promotion code FLAWLESSGG for a 20% discount on all products. As a special gift to my Glow Girl community, Instytutum will also send you a complimentary sample size kit including the Cleansing Milk, Triple Effect Peel, and Lifting Cream. 

The body cream is the best ever!

Three of my favorite product include the serum, the lifting cream, and the eye cream. 

Since I have been using Instytutum, my skin is more refined and noticeably smoother, firmer, and even toned. All products are formulated without parabens, sulfates, mineral oil, and synthetic dyes. Yay! I feel extremely confident that you will see fast results and fall in love with this Swiss skin care line too!

For more information on Instytutum and to order products, visit their site here. Remember to use the promotion code FLAWLESSGG at check out for a 20% discount. 

xxMelissa

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Instytutum. The opinions and text are all mine.

If you want to stay updated in beauty, fashion and overall lifestyle living, check out her website and sign up for Melissa's newsletter right here.

Email Melissa or myself if you have any questions.  Keep Glowing & Be Grateful.

You're one step closer to Flawless Skin. 

CHARCOAL YOUR WAY TO HEALTH AND BEAUTY

Are you ready for a little detox inside and out? Several months back I went for my yearly physical and I requested to have my mercury levels tested. I was having neck pain, my left hand was twitching (chalked that up to way too much time on my phone...) along with numbness in my hands and feet. My husband recommended I have my mercury levels tested, he too had experienced some of the same symptoms. Both of us are healthy eaters, enjoy our workouts and love sushi, that being said too much fish, sushi especially is not a good thing. His doctor suggested reading up on charcoal and try drinking one charcoal drink a day from Kreation Organic for a week. Here's a fact about Charcoal - It literally binds to toxins, and that binding effect makes it a great cleanser, inside and out. 

Between the toxin absorbing qualities of activated charcoal and the hydrating effects of coconut, Charcoalade is also a powerful hangover remedy. Activated charcoal is also used to treat poisonings, overdoses, spider bites, and stomach bugs. It absorbs most toxins up to 60% making it ideal for detoxing. It also helps whiten your teeth!

My test results showed my levels were definitely at a high level, over 11 and Level 9 would be a much better level for me personally, my doctor recommended first of all...I lay off the sushi. Ok, Kreation here I come. Here was my routine - Three days a week, after my favorite workout class I would head to Wholefoods grab my favorite sushi while doing my grocery shopping and that would be my lunch- that's 18 - 20 pieces of sushi a month. This has been my routine for a little too long, and it was time to adjust my intake. There is so much information on Charcoal and I highly recommend reading the articles highlighted below if you haven't read up on high levels of mercury and the effect it can have on the mind and body. After a week of  Kreation Charcoalade, and zero sushi, my neck pain was significantly better, along with the numbness and the twitching of my hand. Literally after a week of drinking one juice a day things changed for the better. This worked for me, check with your doctor if you have any of these symptoms or other concerns that might lead you to think this relates to you.  It was a wake-up call on a few levels and to pay attention to what's going on with our oceans, and which fish is higher in mercury than others, along with the healing powers of charcoal, a natural detoxer. The articles I've listed below are worth a read if you're having any uncomfortable aches, pains or fogginess.

If you're not crazy about the taste of the Charcoal drink you can take 2 capsules a day with this Activated Charcoal. There are so many products out there, maybe you're not sure where to start, It's definitely worth reading about. After all, for over 10,000 years, healers from Chinese Medicine, Ayurvedic Medicine, and Western Medicine have used activated charcoal to soak up poisons and improve intestinal health through a process called “adsorption” which means “to bind to” rather than “to absorb.”  Be sure to read about dosage, you also don't want to take too much charcoal.  Now let's look at charcoal for beauty.

I'm sure you're reading about the benefits of charcoal everywhere too, even in the beauty world. It does make sense if you think about it. Charcoal has been around for centuries and cultures. Native Americans relied on it to heal wounds and treat intestinal and digestive issues. The Japanese use it for dental hygiene, it's also a teeth whitener! It was first introduced as a beauty exfoliator in 1990 by Origins. I decided to try it out myself, if I felt better on the inside with the Charcoalade why not begin the beauty experiment on the inside?

Little Barn Apothecary created this Charcoal + Aloe Foaming Face Cleanser. This activated charcoal will leave your skin feeling tone!  I first discovered this from Love Goodly - A subscription box service and shop that delivers cruelty-free and toxic free beauty and healthier brands.

Think about all the free radicals we encounter the minute we walk out the door. Our phones, computers, door knobs, etc... toxins from the world around us clog our pores. When your pores aren't clear, neither is your complexion. Activated charcoal can draw out those impurities, leaving the pores clean.

Vitamin Sea Beauty - Black Sea Mud Charcoal Cooling & Antioxidant face mask will increase the circulation in your skin, between the Black Sea Mud & the Charcoal, your skin feels so clean along with tightening of the pores.

 Active charcoal acts like a magnet,  say goodbye to oil, dirt and other environmental debris from clogged pores. After eight to ten minutes, rinse with warm water and you're good to "glow"  I'm all for drawing out the toxins, charcoal seems like a good place to begin. I'll save my sushi cravings for a later date.

My search continues in all things health and beauty. I would love to hear from you some of your discoveries along the way for becoming your best self. Here's to the sharing of knowledge for all of us. 

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Articles on Charcoal :

https://blog.bulletproof.com/the-strangest-way-to-detox/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/mercury-how-to-get-this-l_b_469358.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/autism-mercury-toxicity_b_497047.html