It's easy being green...

I'm always looking for better ways to green my life and it's getting easier and easier due to increased awareness, technology and availability.  Today on INsight I chatted with Emilie & Charity about how much easier it is these days to go organic!

Being Green at Home - I am a HUGE fan of reusable shopping bags by Baggu because they are lightweight and fold up into thin square packs making it super easy to stash one or two in your handbag or your glove compartment.

Also, I referenced the Dirty Seven list of foods to buy organic but I was missing a few!!! It's the Dirty Dozen - oops!  Click HERE for a list you can keep in  your wallet or save to your phone for quick and easy reference.

Eco Friendly Cosmetics - Gone are the days when finding natural beauty products was a challenging task.  Drug, department, big box and mainstream specialty stores now offer multiple eco friendly lines in all categories.  Of course, just because a product has the word "organic" or "natural" doesn't mean it's free of harmful chemicals.  Read the labels of your personal care products just as you would food labels.  The ingredients are listed in order of volume within the product and as always, the fewer ingredients the better...especially the hard to pronounce ones!

The site I reference on the show for checking the toxicity of your beauty products is: The Environmental Working Group Skin Deep Cosmetic Database.

I welcome any product related questions via email so please do not hesitate to email me: navigatewithstyle@gmail.com

As always, thanks for watching!!

xx
JDF

easy Halloween costume tips...

Halloween is just around the corner so on INsight yesterday I discussed easy ways to work with what you have to create fun costumes without spending too much time or money.  That being said, if you like to go all out for Halloween be my guest!  If you don't, this segment is for you...

* Emilie, Charity & I discuss Adult Halloween Costumes - here's a link to the awesome picture of the Ferris Bueller group costume I reference on the show (they killed it)!

* Here are my key elements for dressing up your LBD to create a few classic Halloween looks.  I'm still  not ready to divulge my exact costume but my lovely, GIANT, pink flower I wear at the end of the segment is a rawwwther big hint.

Thanks AS ALWAYS for watching!

xx
JDF

daytwahhh...

I spent two days in and around Detroit this week and it was a mix of highs and lows.  I am super excited to see a shift in the development of the once great city.  Yes, there are quite a few abandoned buildings downtown and in the outskirts.  However, many of those buildings are actively being restored.

Currently, Detroit is enjoying a bountiful fall where sports is concerned.  The Tigers are in the playoffs and the Lions are one of two teams still undefeated this season!!  I love that all three major sports arenas are downtown: Joe Louis Arena/Red Wings, Comerica Park/Tigers, Ford Field/Lions.  Having these venues IN the city add some cache, not to mention foot traffic (read: dollars).  

Side note: I am happy to say my first MLB game was at old Tiger stadium with my late father and my brother - what a lovely, crumbling mess that was.  It's a good thing Fenway Park & Wrigley Field are still around (and will be forevermore)...I prefer the dirty old stadiums to modern, gleaming versions...but I digress.

The city was packed with Lions fans while we were there so we didn't brave Greektown (very sad).  Nothing else jumped out at us food wise so we ended up having dinner in the dining room of our hotel (meh).  Next time I go to Detroit I'll need food recommendations FOR SURE!

More importantly, I had a hard time finding anything of note when it came to shopping.  Where are the independent shops of Detroit and the surrounding areas?  I found two malls in the 'burbs but I can shop those stores anytime and nearly anywhere.  For Detroit to flourish they'll need to do a better job of promoting the areas of their city where local food and goods are available.

Finally, I took my little boy to the Detroit Zoo.  We arrived about 1 hour before it closed and we were extended a "Happy Hour" discount which was a nice surprise since 3 year old legs can't cover much ground in 60 minutes.  We had time to enjoy the open aviary and butterfly room as well as the penguin exhibit before spending the rest of the time in the playground.  Unless you take the train, which was not running that day, you must walk by the playground before getting to the exciting animal areas.  This seems like incredibly poor planning since I've never met a kid that didn't want to drop everything for colorful slides and tunnels.  Needless to say, we did not get to see much.

I'm hoping to get back to Detroit soon as I'd love to dig deeper and explore other areas of the city.  Detroit is poised for a comeback and I'm hoping to see some major eco and sustainable innovations come to life.  I think that will be the key to the future success of "The D."

Friday's Five Favorites...fash apps!

Below are some my favorite fashion & beauty apps on the iPhone (thank you, Mr. Jobs):

StyleCaster - offers up outfit choices based on the temp outside as well as videos and related news

Sephora - literally all the major beauty brands at your fingertips and a ton of features

Fashion Network - gobs of runway shows to peruse...currently listing Fall/Winter 2011 rather than the shows that just wrapped for Spring/Summer which I think is rawwwther helpful as we're currently IN Fall/Winter, thankyouverymuch!

FIDM (Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising) - great resource for news and trends (MTV viewers might recall this is where Lauren Conrad takes classes in episodes of the Hills)

Total Beauty - product reviews, detailed information and purchasing options...BIG database

All the apps above are free so tap away and HAPPY FRIDAY EVERYONE!

DIY spa recipes on #INsight...

Today on INsight I demonstrated my 3 favorite (and super easy) DIY spa recipes...click the links below to check them out.  Fair warning:  At one point I actually say, "just...ream it."  Oy vey...

DIY Beauty Disasters - I have certainly had my fair share of bad DIY beauty experiments.  I've put nearly everything you could think of on my hair, the worst being mayo...yuck!  I stay away from at home treatments that involve chemicals and I like to keep the recipes on the simple side.  It's not very relaxing to clean up a giant mess afterwards.

DIY Beauty Tips - I have used this recipe for body scrub for  years and I swear by it.  It is so effective but so much less expensive than store bought varieties.  Plus, I love knowing that it's literally two organic ingredients - no dyes, no fragrance, no chemicals.  For the face mask, I like to mash up the avocado before adding the honey - this gives you more control with the texture of the mask.  The foot soak recipe is also really great for the whole body but use a full gallon of milk in your bathtub and eliminate the rocks/marbles (ouch).

For more home spa recipes check out the resources below!

Spa Index

All Natural Beauty

Spa Magazine

Thanks for watching!

xx

JDF

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