On The Glow | Beauty & Wellness Products & Trends
Come along with me as I attend the Natural Products Expo in Southern California! It's like the "super bowl" of natural products. Every brand is there from well known large companies to first year/just launched companies. It's where trends are made and new ingredients and products are discovered. Since I'm passionate about the relationship between beauty and wellness, you'll see the products and ideas I'm most excited about. The expo is also about connecting with like-minded business owners and I love supporting the founders and people behind the brands. I love being able to dive a bit deeper into the products, get my questions answered in-person and try products before they hit the shelves.
Watch Episode 2 here!
Undeniable Beauty For Hair, Skin & Nails, Gummie
The gummie trend was STRONG at Expo West. Beauty gummie? Check. Sleep gummie? Double check. With so many companies jumping into the space, I'm starting to look at the different formulas to understand what's inside the product. I stopped by OLLY (SF Based!) to learn about their multi-vitamins, wellness boosts and new protein powder blends. The team was lovely to chat with and they gifted me several products to test out. Stay tuned!
Dr. Bach developed Rescue Remedy more than 80 years ago to help with stress, anxiety and life emergencies. The original blend contains 5 flower remedies that are meant to be a gentle support for your mind and body. It's non-habit forming, easy to use and the travel size is perfect to keep in my handbag. I'm going to try it out along with the sleep spray!
New from Revive is a sparkling kombutcha! If you love sparkling water and you love kombutcha, this could be your new drink! I sampled Citrus Ginger which had a mild flavor compared to a regular kombutcha. It was refreshing, light and a nice change of pace from your normal fruit-infused sparkling water. Bonus: it doesn't need to be refrigerated.
Eco Friendly Reusable Food Wraps
Kitchen Find! I love this natural alternative to plastic wrap. The sheet is made of cotton, beeswax, jojoba oil and tree resin. I'm always storing half of a lemon or an avocado, so this is perfect. Each piece will last about a year and it can be washed with mild soap. I love the idea of using these to cover a bowl or container, too!
Que water bottles are so cute! The bottle collapses making it perfect for the gym, travel and outdoors. It's made from food-grade silicone and can hold both hot and cold beverages. The best part might be that it's sooo lightweight!! Can't wait to take this with me on hiking trails this Summer.
Sensitive Skin Deodorant Stick
I love Schmidt's deodorant. It was the first natural formula I tried that actually worked! I've been a fan from the beginning when the formula was a paste that you'd glide on with your fingertips. Does anyone remember that one? It's been so fun seeing the brand develop new products, stick formulas (!!) and more.
Ginger-Lemon is what I keep in my refrigerator followed by blood-orange-carrot-ginger and California grape. New flavors are coming, watch out!
New from Dang are Keto Bars. I'm not on the keto diet, but these looked pretty good. No added sugar. No honey, dates or maple syrup. The bar is 100% plant based with the focus being on low carbs, high fat and moderate protein.
Pistachio macaroons, sure. Pistachio gelato, I am there. Pistachio nutmilk?! It was clean, light and oh-so-good. Three Trees is at the top for store bought nut milks. The purity and taste is unlike any nut milk I've tried. Bring on pistachio milk based smoothies!
I quickly learned that one of the most important aspect of any "taste-a-thon" is drinking tons of water. I ran into Essentia and guzzled down several bottles of their ionized H20. Essentia is alkaline water with a PH of 9.5 which is said to be optimized for better hydration.
Coconut Yogurt
You guys, this coconut yogurt is mind-blowing good. It has a velvety texture with the perfect amount of coconut. It's dairy-free, vegan, paleo, ketogenic friendly and packed with gut loving probiotics.
Grain Free Taco Shells
Siete fans are going to go crazy for the new grain free taco shells. Crunchy, savory and everything you love about a traditional taco shell, but these have a twist! Made with cassava flour, avocado oil, pumpkin seed meal, pumpkin powder, sea salt & psyllium husk powder. Who's ready for taco night with a margi?!
If you want to switch up your daily coffee bean fix, try a mushroom coffee blend! It surprisingly doesn't taste like the mushrooms we're used to eating from the grocery store. The latte mixes dissolve instantly in water and contains 50mg of caffeine and tons of antioxidants. It's USDA organic, vegan, keto, certified paleo and sweetened with lucuma and stevia.
Organic Medjool Dates
One of my favorite afternoon snacks is a medjool date with almond butter. The creaminess and sweetness of the date makes for a sweet treat! I also love to add dates to smoothies. Meet Joolies, a new brand I discovered at Expo West with pre-packaged organic dates from the Coachella Valley region of California! Delicious!
Keto Broth
Bonafide provisions makes the most delicious bone broth with the maximum amount of collagen and nutrients to help restore the gut lining and heal the immune system. Now you can buy their keto broth cups! The broth is combined with MCT oil for a powerful combination to aid the body to be in ketosis. Personally, I'm not following the ketogenic diet (my hubby is), I just think it tastes great! (Find all Bonafide products in the frozen section at the grocery store). I also can't wait to try their soup blends.
Cauli Hot Cereal
I'm so excited for the Cauli Hot Cereals to launch (June 2019) from Purely Elizabeth. The hot riced cauliflower cups are prepared just like you would make instant oatmeal. The cinnamon almond and strawberry hazelnut combinations are going to be a fun edition to my morning breakfast routine. The cups are gluten-free, grain-free, oat-free and are mixed with coconut, chia, flax and protein powders! Bring it on!
The Coconut Cult
Coco Cacao Cream
The coconut cult makes a powerful probiotic food that's more like a supplement than a traditional yogurt. I love the fun and playful spin on fermented yogurt. The small batch fermentation process creates a naturally sour and tangy flavor. I only eat a spoonful at a time to add good bacteria to my stomach. The new coco cacao is a fun chocolate spin on coconut yogurt and is more like a sweet treat supplement in one.
B-Powered Superfood Honey
I really enjoyed speaking with the team at Bee Keeper's naturals. This honey combines energizing and beautifying ingredients like royal jelly and bee pollen. I'm looking forward to trying it out and learning more, stay tuned!
Melatonin Gummies
Gummies were a big trend this year! I think I brought home at least three different sleep gummies to test. This melatonin gummie tastes like raspberries and contains 1.5mg of melatonin per piece. Melatonin is taken to help support a healthy sleep pattern. The sweetness if from xylitol, so it contains zero sugar!
Sauces
Haven's Kitchen is a cooking school and event space in NYC. The sauces are fresh and designed to make cooking at home more fun, delicious and a whole lot easier. I love how sauce can instantly elevate a meal. Drizzle over cooked veggies, sizzle with meats, add to stews and soups...my mind goes off just thinking about the ways I can use them. You probably have a bunch of sauces in your pantry, but imagine a fresh sauce that you can keep in the refrigerator for 120 days. The chimi-churri knocked my socks off. Check out all five globally inspired flavors. Haven's Kitchen sauces are mainly available in NYC (check Whole Foods) and fingers crossed it will be coming out West soon! Love!
Plant Based Yogurt
I'm including one more dairy free, plant based yogurt because Culina is too good not to mention. It has an organic coconut base with a touch of natural sweetness. Seriously, SO good. I'm loving the blueberry lavender and Strawberry Rose flavors. It comes in the CUTEST packaging that looks like a terra cotta pot! It's lined with a food safe gloss, so you can use it to plant! It's also compostable if you choose to toss.
