Happy Holidays Beauty Mavens and Fashionistas! I am totally in the festive mood, how about you? So in the spirit of the season, today kicks off the first in a series of Rave Worthy Holiday Gift Guides for 2010. Over the next couple weeks, I will be sharing a selection of fun, inspired, and unique holiday gift ideas that I have recently discovered and found to be ‘Rave’ worthy. I hope you find them helpful and hope you discover some new and different!

Today’s gift guide is focused on all things GREEN, eco, better for you and better for the environment. These are inspired suggestions for that Green Goddess in your life, you know the type: only eats organic, checks every label for toxins, recycles, composts, has solar power at her house etc. So, if these attributes sound familiar, these gifts might be just what you have been looking for!

Redhanded Eco Bags are fashionable, high quality, green, vegan, sweatshop free handbags and computer bags. I love these inspired whimsical bags because they are cruelty free, fun, and eye catching. Plus, the company is run by a warm and passionate husband and wife team who really care about the environment, but do not want to compromise fashion or style. They were kind enough to send me some of their bags to enjoy this summer and I have been loving the Zinnia Petite clutch purse. I especially love it in black, adore the fun floral liner and have noticed that this purse is so well made that it still looks brand new! And they just came out with the most FAB CowPad computer bag that I am totally coveting, so fun and definitely a show stopper! And Romy Raves followers get 20% off all RHB from now until 12/31 with the code blogbuyer.Envirosax are beautifully designed, chic, inexpensive and compact re-useable shopping bags. They are durable, hold up to 44lbs, fully washable, the colors won’t fade, and water-resistant. These are super fashionable, artistic and fun, and don’t look like your typical reusable bag. I just adore the bags in their Graphic Series especially the Bloom Collection. 

Scotch Naturals Nail Polish is a safe, chemical free, eco-chic alternative to conventional solvent-based nail polish. It is made of a revolutionary water-based formula that nourishes and conditions nails, delivering long lasting, salon-quality color. I just discovered this polish brand last week and was so blown away by it, that I just had to include it in my eco holiday gift guide. The colors are hip and fun, it doesn’t smell, you don’t need a basecoat or topcoat and it dries almost instantly with a glossy finish (I did my nails before bed  last night and this morning they were shiny and smudge free-unheard of!) I think the Green Goddess in your life is going to love the Scotch Cocktail Trio which includes your choice of 3 colors, their special gentle remover and a buffer. I am wearing Ceasefire (a khaki green with yellow undertones) right now and LOVE IT! Romy Raves readers get 15% off any individual bottles of nail polish or free upgraded shipping on the Cocktail Trio with the code RAVES15.Organic to Green Is a lovely locally based company, run by a Green Goddess named Rianna. All of her body and skincare products are handmade out of the finest certified organic and natural ingredients, and when available, packaged in recycled glass bottles. She also donates a percentage of her annual profit to Greenpeace International-that’s a whole lotta Green Love! Checkout the delightful assortment of organic gift sets HERE.

Nissan LEAF As an added bonus and in the name of all things GREEN, I thought I would include a video I recently did at the LA Auto Show on behalf of Nissan, sharing my impressions of the 2011 Nissan LEAF. It’s the Ultimate Green Car because it’s 100% electric and the majority of the interior is made out of recycled water bottles-so cool! Check it out:

Disclosure: I was given samples of all the above products, but did not make any promises to include them in my gift guides–but I when I love something I always want to RAVE about it and share it with you. I was also paid by Nissan to host this video, but the opinions are totally my own, and I was not paid to promote it.

Over the summer, while attending Cosmoprof North America, I was introduced to this inspired new haircare line called Rahua Beauty. Rahua was one of the featured brands in the Discover Beauty section of the conference, which allows trend seekers like me, the opportunity to get up close and personal with emerging new brands and their creators.  I was fortunate enough to meet the jubliant Fabian, a celebrated stylist and the creator of Rahua, and his lovely wife Anna (head of marketing), who personally told me the story of how this brand came to fruition. 

Years ago, while traveling in the Amazon Rainforest, Fabian noticed that the native women had beautifully strong and shiny hair. He learned that these women nourished their hair with serum extracted from the Rahua Nut, indigenous to the Amazon Rainforest. Rahua nuts contain a wonderfully restorative oil that can deeply penetrate, repair, smooth and restore the health of your hair. Fabian was very impressed that a natural product could deliver such superior results and especially that over time this transformative oil has the ability to rejuvenate, protect and strengthen dry and damaged hair and bring back it’s bounce and elasticity. 

So given these impressive results, Fabian and Anna used the Rahua nut oil, along with a couple other native oils to create the Rahua Beauty Haircare line. Not only is it all natural, but even more impressive is that Rahua employs Amazonian tribesmen and women to harvest these wonderful oils and then they give back a percentage of product sales to teach the Amazonian people how to preserve their rainforest. 

The Rahua Beauty Haircare line consists of Shampoo, Conditioner, and a Finishing Treatment and I have been using this trio for several months and my hair just adores it! It heals, mends, smooths, revitalizes and just brings my hair back to life. I truly notice a difference after I use the Rahua products compared to when I use other haircare products. I have dry, parched chemically processed hair, so whenever I need a boost I use Rahua. These products area a bit spendy, but the transformative results are worth it (don’t use it everyday, more like once or twice a week.) 

Rahua Shampoo: I love the herbal fresh smell (reminds me of licorice) and how it gently and deeply cleanses my hair. I also like that it is made with organic ingredients, is free of parabens and sulfates and is 100% natural. 

Rahua Conditioner: This conditioner penetrates fast and feels like it is working right away. My hair feels hydrated but not weighted down. 

Rahua Finishing Treatment: The Finishing Treatment contains Rahua Elixir, a highly concentrated blend of Rahua and other Amazonian oils. The super-fine Rahua oil molecules deeply penetrate the hair’s cortex to rebuild even the most damaged tresses. This is my favorite product in the line because it instantly mends my dry ends and gives my hair a glossy weightless finish.  It is a wonderfully protective product that helps prevent heat styling damage and a little goes a long way.

It is a gorgeous perfectly sunny day in LA, and I am in a happy good mood. Sunny days do that for me, how about you? Anyhoo, with the sun shining brightly I am focusing my next couple of posts on some wonderful new SPF products I have recently discovered. Today I would like to introduce you to Coola Organic Suncare (I just love the name!)

COOLA is a line of suncare products made from the certified organic, natural and advanced active ingredients. COOLA’s products contain natural phyto-protectors, certified organic extracts, and age-defying antioxidants and vitamins that protect and treat the skin. And all of their products are free of paba, paraben, petroleum and phthalate and are 100% made in the USA.

What I am loving about COOLA is the cool hip turquoise blue packaging, the fact the products are delicate and versatile enough to use everyday, they smell yummy and then they are organic to boot! Here are my two favorite products in the line:

COOLA Face SPF 30 in Cucumber

I have always been drawn to Eminence Organic Skin Care products because they are made of all natural, good for you ingredients and especially because these products really tantalize my senses. Eminence’s products are colorful and grab my attention visually, but it is their amazing smells (which are all natural) that win me over every time.

These products contain the highest possible levels of all-natural fresh organically grown herbs, fruits and vegetables which are hand-picked and hand-mixed with pure waters drawn from a thermal hot spring lake containing minerals and trace elements found nowhere else on earth. Eminence products are handmade in Hungary, not mass produced, without any heating or hydrogenating processes. So they are beautifully made in addition to making a difference in your skin.  And I have a few new favorite products in the line, which I would love to share with you.

I am absolutely in LOVE with the Tropical Vanilla Sun Cream SPF 32! Why you ask? It smells deelish (kinda like berry vanilla), has a very appealing high level of SPF and most importantly it offers an amazing level of contiuous hydration and moisture for my winter parched skin. It has shea butter which is calming and emollient; zinc oxide which is an anti-inflammatory and blocks UV rays; and vanilla which is soothing and improves circulation. My skin is really adoring this product and I find myself turning to it over my other moisturizers with SPF because it gives my skin a supple and luminous glow.

I am also really enjoying the yummy berries and cream smell and gentle exfoliation of the Blueberry Soy Exfoliating Cleanser. It contatins blueberry juice which tightens pores and is high in antioxidants and phyto-nutrients; pineapple extract which is an enzyme that dissolves proteins; grape extract which fights free-radicals, detoxifies and helps to prevent pigmentation; soy milk which is rich in isoflavones and vitamin B; and a proprietary blend of vitamins and enzymes to combat free radicals. Doesn’t it sound good enough to eat? I just love how this product appeals to my foodie self as well.

IMO, Eminence has some of the best, yummiest and most effective facial masques in the skincare market. And the new Raspberry Pore Refining Masque is no expection. OMG, this masque smells like a combo of raspberry jam and cassis–love that! And then I put this yummy edible concotion on my face and it hydrates, freshens, rejuvenates and tightens all at the same time–I likie! This masque also contains more good for you ingredients like: raspberry juice which tightens pores and fights free radicals; honey which is moisturizing and nourishing; blueberry juice which also tightens pores and is high in antioxidants; blackberry juice which tightens pores and is high in vitamins B, C, K, and Omega-3;  and the same proprietary blend of vitamins and enzymes to combat free radicals.

To partake in this wonderful feast for the senses, you can buy your Eminence Organic Skin Care Products HERE. What are your favorite organic skincare products? Do Tell!

Inquiring minds want to know what this fabulous trend maven is up to and where does she get her latest scoops and insider information? Lucky you, here is a glimpse of events that I have recently attended or am planning to attend, all in an effort to share the latest and greatest with you:

Go Green Los Angeles Expo

I attended this all-things-green and eco friendly this past weekend at the Los Angeles Convention Center. I must admit that I find the trend towards all things green very encouraging, and like that many companies in all categories are creating products that showcase the best of the green movement.  A few of the products that really caught my eye at this expo were:

Vapur

A completely collapsible reuseable water bottle, that is designed to be rolled and tucked away. It is perfect for airline travel cause you can fill it on the other side of security. What an inspired eco friendly idea and I love the pink color!

 Further Hand Lotion

Both the beauty maven and the foodie in me was pretty impressed by this fully sustainable beauty product concept. This yummy smelling lotion is made out of used vegetable grease that is sourced from restaurants like Mario Batali’s Mozza (can you say squash blossom pizza? ). Basically, this used oil is turned in biofuel (which is used to drive cars BTW) and glycerin happens to be the byproduct of the biofuel distillation process. This glycerin then becomes the base of this citrusy green lotion thus taking the recycling process further–too cool!

  People Towels

A quick-drying, reusable personal hand towel that you carry with you and it is made of lightweight, 100% organic, fair trade cotton. This is an inspired green alternative to paper towels in public facilities and I adore the LOVE design (what a perfectly green V-day gift).

Bag Lady Promotions Los Angeles: Kick Off Your Heels and Network Event

This is a members only local networking group geared towards women entrepreneurs. It attracts a diverse assortment of women who all have the common goal of growing their business locally and I always meet amazing women at these events (like my new soul sista SavvySassyMoms and the addictive S’muffins created by Carmen at Gotta Have S’more) This months event was held at Focus Self Defense Fitness in Culver City and we had a lot of fun learning Krav Maga and schmoozing.

The International Salon & Spa Expo (ISSE)

I am SO excited about attending ISSE in Long Beach, California this weekend because it is the biggest professional cash-and-carry beauty exposition and educational event on the West Coast. I cannot wait to scout the latest and greatest beauty trends and products. And please make sure to follow me on twitter @romyraves for my real time trend updates from the expo floor. And stay tuned for exciting blog posts in the near future about my newest discoveries.

Natural Products Expo West March 2010

Natural Products Expo West is the premier trade show for the healthy products industry, it is attend by over fifty thousand industry leaders and it is ranked as one of the top 100 shows in the US. This is a huge intense, overwhelming and amazing show and I love every minute of it.  The foodie and healthy gal in me loves discovering the latest and greatest in the natural food world. Stay tuned for more discoveries after the expo.