PEPPERMINT PARADE OF BEAUTY BENEFITS

There is nothing as nostalgic as a peppermint candy cane. The red and white striped sweet goes hand in hand with childhood holiday memories of Santa, Frosty, Rudolph and The Grinch. In addition to being a delectable edible, peppermint has many beauty and health benefits. A cross between watermint and spearmint, the oil from the peppermint plant can soothe aching feet as well as settle an upset tummy (perhaps suffering from too much holiday cheer!). Applying peppermint oil to your scalp not only makes your hair smell good, it promotes hair growth, increases blood circulation and adds gloss. And did you know that the menthol in peppermint is good for those of us with oily skin as it controls e
VA VA VERBENA – PRESS THE REFRESH BUTTON

I was using some lovely lotion recently and wondered what that refreshing fragrance was. Lo and behold, it was Vanilla Verbena Stress Relief from Bath & Body Works. I know all about vanilla, but I knew almost nothing about verbena, a lemony flowering plant. The leaves are fuzzy but the flowers are lovely white, pink, purple and blue. The essential oils of the Common Vervain are harvested for perfumes and beauty products. Here are a few you might like to try.
PURE SCENT
Photo Credit: www.sephora.com
Feel good with pureDKNY Verbena. This pure scent adds a fresh drop of verbena to make you feel calm
CRANBERRIES – THANKSGIVING’S BEAUTY BOUNTY

Cranberry sauce – the tangy essence of every holiday dinner. But these bright red berries are also loaded with omega fatty acids, vitamin E and antioxidants, which make them ideal for health and beauty products.
Cranberries grow in bogs throughout the cool regions of the northern hemisphere. The fruit is a berry that is initially white, but turns a deep red when fully ripe. Most cranberries are marketed as a “superfruit” due to their nutrient content and antioxidant qualities. Here’s a holiday roundup of fabulous products for you to use for yourself or for stocking stuffers.
A IS FOR ARCONA
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GINGERLY SPEAKING

With the aroma of gingerbread men in the air, now is a good time to round up some beauty products made with this lovely smelling plant. While ginger, whose name derives from the Old English gingifere, produces clusters of white and pink flower buds that bloom into yellow flowers, it’s the root – young ginger rhizomes – that is coveted for cooking and medicinal purposes. They can be steeped in boiling water to make ginger tea – a common folk remedy for colds – as well as ginger ale and ginger beer for stomach settlers. Because of its aromatic properties, ginger is found in a variety of fragrant and delightful beauty products like those listed below.
ZING-A-DING
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