Congratulations to the Winners of the Utama Spice Giveaway!!

Please join me in congratulating:

Moonsword who said that she likes natural products "because they are healthier for your body and for the planet."

Alba who said she likes natural products because she "trusts my expertise and research".  (Wow!  How sweet was that!), and

Jhall who likes natural products because "they are easier on [her] skin and she prefers supporting companies that put people and product quality first." 

Please email me at kheaman@cablespeed.com with your shipping information and I will pass along to Utama Spice.  Then get ready to enjoy some great products!!

If you would like to see your product reviewed here please email me at kheaman@cablespeed.com. 

Product Giveaway: Utama Spice

You know when you open a really great skin care product. Visually it's beautiful, the smell is heavenly, and it feels rich and luxurious on your skin. This was my experience recently when I opened a box of skin care products from Utama Spice.  I picked the box up at the post office and it filled my care with the most wonderful aroma.  Even my 2 year old was asking me what was in the box. 

Utama Spice is a Balinese based, mostly skin care company.  I should say a skin healing company as they have focused their business on reviving ancient Balinese medicinal herbal knowledge.  According to Utama, "every ingredient that goes into our recipes is of the highest of quality and maintain all of their healing properties. We use no binders, preservatives, or synthetics in our products and all of our essential oils that we use to create our unique aromas are the finest available to us."  I love this philosophy.  In addition to the purity of their products, they maintain a fair trade approach and are working to empower and encourage local farmers to grow the ingredients they use in their products.  Click here to read more press about their slavery free/free trade approach. 

They have MANY products to choose from but they sent me a few to review.  These included four different lip balms, two of their body butters, a bar soap, and a package of their incense.  I will just start by saying that I loved each and every item I tried.  Each item is so very simple; but healing to the skin; and they smell GREAT! 

They have a wide array of products and there is no way I could do each one justice in just one blog post.  Take a minute and browse their selection of bath and shower items, essential oils, hair care, household items, hydrating body mist, massage oils (these are in beautiful bottles), moisturizers, and traditional scrubs and masks. 

Aloe, coconut oil, and beeswax form the base of many of their products, but from there the sky is the limit.  They have so many wonderful herbs, oils, spices and other natural ingredients it's like looking at a recipe card for a delicious meal.  Check out their ingredients page which not only lists their ingredients, but also tells you the therapeutic benefit of each.  I loved browsing this page. 
All in all, I was very impressed with this company, both the quality of their product and the passion behind what they do. 

You can purchase their products for yourself at http://www.utamaspicebali.com/.  While you are at it check them out on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/UtamaSpiceBali or Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/UtamaSpice.


As a special treat, Utama Spice is offering our readers a GIVEAWAY.  To enter this giveaway leave a comment telling us why you like natural products better than conventional products.  THREE lucky winners will receive a sample of Utama Spice body lotion, bath salt, body scrub, lip balm, and bar soap.  Can I just tell you how lucky those three winners will be!!  We will leave this open until July 15th - get your comments in!!


Karla

Product Giveaway: Revitalize Organics

Is there anything better than purchasing beautifully crafted organic soap products to use on your skin? Actually there is...it's knowing that when you purchase these beautiful products, the company will make a donation of the same products to one of 7 very worthy charities.  Have you ever heard of such a wonderful thing?  

Revitalize Organics is a wonderful skin care company started by a spa owner in my home state of Michigan.  They use all organic products and have a wonderful assortment of shower gel, castile soap, hand soap, baby wash and pet shampoo.  The first three are blended with pure essential oils into 18 different essential oil blends.  (Definitely something for everyone!) 

I had the privelege of testing three of their products and I was very impressed!  I reviewed their Get Up and Go Go Energizing Shower Gel, Castile Soap, and Hand Soap. 

 



The Get Up and Go Go is a very energizing scent which I immediately loved.  It has rosemary and bergamot oils in it.  All of their soaps are made with castile soap or saponified oils of coconut, olive and jojoba which are very mild on your skin, yet super cleansing.  They point out on their website that their soaps are tough enough for household cleaning, but gentle enough for everyday use on your skin.  I love that these soaps were created by spa owners who obviously care about the effect their cleansing agents have on skin.  Their philosphy is "care for yourself and others." 


I also love that they took the time to create a baby wash and a pet shampoo.  Both ingredient decks are as pure and gentle for the more delicate skin of a baby or pet as their other products.  They even added some aloe which is great for delicate skin. 

As a special treat, Revitalize Organics has offered to do a Product Giveaway for our readers.  They are offering one lucky reader a set of the Get Up and Go Go Shower Gel, Castile Soap. and Hand Soap.  Leave a comment below to enter yourself for a chance to win.  For an additional chance to win, check out their website and leave another comment telling me which of their yummy aromatherapy blends is your fave.  I will choose one lucky winner on Thursday, June 21st.  

Karla

Holiday Giveaway Results

Okay! Finally - let's announce the winners of our Skoy Cloth and Zkano socks giveaways! Thank you so much for all the great comments - we got some fun ones, including a song about socks! I laughed so hard! Thanks Jayne G!

For the Skoy Cloths we have two winners - they are Kstrange and mom2rian. I will email both of you to get more information.

For the Zkano socks, although I would love for all of you to win, I could only pick one. Jayne G you are our winner! Congratulations!

If you weren't one of our lucky winners - don't forget to check out the Skoy and Zkano websites where you can purchase their great products for yourself.

I'm planning to take the rest of this week off from blogging. I will be back next week with some new and exciting posts and can't wait to start the New Year. I hope that you will all have a very Happy New Year celebration with your friends and family!

Karla

Another Holiday Giveaway: Warm, Snuggly, Zkano Organic Socks

Awhile back I got a wonderful little care package full of the most wonderful socks from the makers of Zkano Organic Socks. They are a small, family owned company situated in Alabama that make their socks from 100% certified organic ring-spun cotton, grown without the use of pesticides, chemicals or toxins. All of their products are made here in the states. They are committed to providing a high quality, durable, comfortable, organic sock for consumers.

How do they feel? Really great! I've been wearing my Zkano socks around for a couple of weeks now, and they are very soft and comfortable. They also wash very well and don't lose their size, shape, or elasticity. I would highly recommend these wonderful socks!

Check out their nice selection of men's and women's socks today. They have a nice variety of crew, mini-crew and sports socks. They offer shades of natural or white.

Gina at Zkano has kindly offered a 7 pair starter pack of Zkano Organic Socks to one of our lucky readers. Just leave me a comment in the comments section below and include your email address so we can contact you if you win. (If you don't want to leave your email address just make sure you check back later this week when I post the winner).

Karla

Skoy Cloth Giveaway

Speaking of eco-friendly gifts...here is one from one of my new favorite eco-friendly companies. Skoy cloths have offered to give two of our readers a free package of their awesome absorbable, bio-degradeable, and natural multi-use cloths.

Skoy cloths are made from a natural cotton and wood based cellulose pulp. When tested they broke down completely within 5 weeks making them an incredibly green-bio-degradable product. Using these cloths to clean up around the house replaces the equivalent of 15 rolls of paper towels. They can be used with your favorite cleaners or with just water. As Skoy points out on their website, with paper towels averaging around $2.00 a roll, they are also much more economical!

These towels will last months and can be washed in the dishwasher or washing machine. You can also zap them in the microwave (make sure they are wet) to prevent bacterial growth.

To win a 4 pack of these for yourself, leave a comment in the comments section by Friday, December 18th and be sure to include your email if you want us to contact you if you win. Otherwise, check back later next week and I will announce the winner. Good Luck!!

By the way, don't you just love the adorable flower design on them - so cute!

Karla

And The Winner Is...

The lucky winner of our Bright October giveaway is

Megan Williams!!!!

Megan said that she "loves all of the play food from Haba - my DD is getting a play kitchen for Christmas and I hope to stock it with some of these adorable little goodies." Well, now you can!

Congratulations Megan! Megan will receive a $50 gift certificate to start her Christmas shopping on Bright October this year. Bright October has so many fabulous natural, eco-friendly, and organic toys at very reasonable prices!

Megan please send your contact information and email address to Living A Whole Life's email address hhnnmail@gmail.com. Everyone else, stay tuned for more great giveaways and join me in your Christmas shopping on Bright October!

Karla

$50 Gift Certificate Giveaway for Toys from Bright October

You just never know who you will run into when sitting and waiting for your daughter to finish dance class. Several weeks ago I had the pleasure of conversing with the creator of the website that brings us today's product review and giveaway.


Courtney is the mom to two beautiful girls and created a website, Bright October, that specializes in eco-friendly, naturally made, and creative toys. Several years ago when her first daughter was born, she became disenchanted with the commercialized, character-driven toy world and instead sought for toys that stimulated creative play, imagination, and fun. She also wanted safe and natural toys that taught kids to appreciate the planet. Her website, Bright October, (so named because the "day they brought their daughter home was the brightest day in October" - sweet) is the culmination of her search for the perfect child's toy.
Bright October has a wonderful website neatly arranged in categories such as age, type of toy, brand of toy, and price range to make your shopping easier. Their shipping costs are low, only $3.99 for standard or free if your purchase totals over $75. They have a wonderful 90 day return policy if you are not satisfied with your product. Sign up for their newsletter and your next purchase will receive a very generous 10% off discount.



Just look at some of the adorable toys the kids and I got to preview from her site.




This is an adorable toy for our little baby to be. It's a pram decoration from Haba. It will no doubt be tons of fun for the baby to look at and touch and my other two can't seem to take their hands off it as I keep finding it in their rooms. The figures are made of beech wood and they are connected by a sturdy elastic cord. So cute!



This my friends, in the last three days, has become my 5 year old's favorite doll. She has literally taken it everywhere we have gone including a bike ride. It's the Blabla Coral Doll.

This doll is hand-made, 100% cotton and so soft. The pictures don't do her justice as she is about 22 inches long. I'm pretty sure every little girl needs one of these! Check out all the fabulous Blabla Doll styles here.



This is a really neat toy that I had never seen before for my little guy. It's an Automoblox T9 Pickup. The body of the pick-up is constructed of solid maple and as you can see in the bottom picture, every piece of this this truck comes apart. My son, C., has had tons of fun pulling this thing apart and putting it back together. There are more styles of cars and trucks in the Automoblox line and your little one can mix and match pieces making their own creations. This is number one on my list right now to purchase for my nephew for Christmas! Shhh! Don't tell him.

Just in time to start your Christmas shopping, Courtney has generously offered to give one of our readers a $50 gift certificate to spend on her site. Entry to the giveaway is easy. Here is what you need to do.

• Visit her site Bright October and select a favorite toy.


• Leave a comment in our comments section telling us about that favorite toy and who you would purchase it for this Christmas!

The giveaway will end Wednesday, November 11th at 12 p.m. and the winner will be announced later that evening.

Thanks Courtney!

Karla

Terra Firma Cosmetics Giveaway

I am so excited to be able to bring you another great giveaway! You know how much we like natural skincare around here and thanks to Terra Firma Cosmetics we are able to offer our readers a chance to win a 6 Piece HydraSilk Dream Kit (Retail Value $64.95).

Terra Firma offers mineral cosmetics manufactured with a focus on safe, natural and healthy ingredients. You won't find any petrochemicals, synthetic fragrances, parabens, synthetic pigments or dyes in any of their products and the minerals used are uncoated (no silicones like Dimethicone or Cyclomethicone are used) and kept as close to nature as possible.

In addition, these cosmetics include sun protection (very important) which comes from a fine grade of Tytanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide that is considered non-carcinogenic due to its inability to penetrate the healthy layers of your skin. The mineral make-up is also water resistant.

The 6 piece HydraSilk Dream Kit includes: HydraSilk" Foundation - 50g (vol), "Airbrush" Prime/Set Powder - 30g (vol), "Radiance" Blush - 20g (vol), "Enhance" Bronzer - 20g (vol) and "Eliminate" Concealer - 10g (vol).

Now how do you enter to win this great prize? There are several ways...

1. Visit the Terra Firma Cosmetics site and leave us a comment about a product you like, something interesting you learned or a product you would love to try.

- OR -

2. Leave a comment on why you would like to win this great prize.

- OR -

3. Tweet about this giveaway: "I just entered to win a Terra Firma Cosmetics Dream Kit at http://www.livingawholelife.blogspot.com/. You can too!"
(Then leave us a comment that you tweeted please.)

Entries will be accepted through Thursday, April 9th at 11:59 p.m. EST. The winner will be announced Saturday, April 10th.

Good luck!

Follow us on Twitter! wholemom, karlaheaman, momogirl

And The Winner is...

It's like presenting at the Oscars! :)

It's time to announce the winner of Living A Whole Life's first giveaway. All the names went into a hat and Karla's daughter L. picked a name. That winner is....

ELLEN SCHNAKENBERG

Whoo Hoo! Way to go Ellen

Ellen, send us your address and let us know what colors you would like your decorative straws. You can email us at hhnnmail@gmail.com.

Thanks to everyone for your participation and for the great comments and ideas for future posts. We can't wait to get started writing about some of your areas of interest!

Karla and Shannan

Shopping for Organic Food

Shopping for organic food items can be a challenge both financially, as they still cost more than conventionally grown items, and due to the fact that they are not as readily available in all areas or food stores. For the past several months I have been keeping an eye open in my own local grocery store and warehouse member club for healthy organic choices. I have to say, I have been pleasantly surprised to find more and more items on the store shelves.

Here are just a few of the stores/resources for tracking down organic food items. In addition to the list below, I am sure you have some great health food stores in your area. Check them out!


Local grocery store chains:

Safeway - They have their own line of organic foods, carry other organic brands, and offer a section for locally grown produce. Safeway is known as a leader among grocery store chains in the area of organic/healthy food offerings.

Kroger - They have their own line of organic foods, carry organic produce and seem to be expanding the organic brands they carry. If you buy organic products regularly and use your Kroger card, you will get coupons for their Private Selection Organic products and/or organic produce at checkout.

Obviously these are just two of the many grocery store chains, so if you have questions about whether or not your store is expanding their organic offerings make sure you ask. If they are carrying more organic they will let you know what and where to find it. If not, express interest in them doing so!

Specialty grocery store chains:

Whole Foods - They pride themselves on the fact that they search for the highest quality, least processed, most flavorful and natural foods possible because they believe that food in its purest state — unadulterated by artificial additives, sweeteners, colorings and preservatives — is the best tasting and most nutritious food there is. The produce section of Whole Foods is beyond compare but you will pay for it. If you are on a budget, keep in mind which fruits and veggies are most important to buy organic.

Trader Joes - Trader Joe's prides itself on providing healthy foods from around the world, all at surprisingly reasonable prices. The store's impressive and delicious store-brand foods contain no artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives, and no MSG, trans fats or genetically modified ingredients.

Member warehouse clubs:

Costco - Just having been to Costco yesterday, I can personally attest to the fact that they carry some great organic produce and packaged products at reasonable prices if you have a family to feed. For instance, you can't beat the deal on organic spring mix or the little packages of organic baby carrots which are great for the kid's lunches. I also found organic free range chicken broth and organic pasta sauce. You have to look around, products change often.

On-line resources:

Until recently, I had never really considered shopping on-line for organic food items, but once I started searching around I realized that there are lots of items like nuts, dried fruit, raw chocolate, pasta, tea, beans, baking goods, etc. that lend themselves to this type of shopping. Take a look at the following sites. The possibilities are endless.

Sun Organic Farm - Find everything from baking goods, to grains, nuts, bee products and even dog food!

Sunfood - Sunfood owner David Wolfe is the Raw food guru. His store contains goji berries, raw cacao, olives, nuts, seeds, sweeteners and much more!

Fresh Roasted Almond Co. - This company carries dried fruits, nuts, granola and cereals in bulk.

Seasonal resources:

CSA - Community Supported Agriculture is the concept of dealing directly with a local farmer to buy a share of their produce for a season. If you are considering this option for 2009, most farms are taking deposits now. CSA's are a great way to not only get fresh organic produce, eggs, milk or even meat in addition to supporting local farms and environmentally friendly practices. Check Local Harvest for CSA opportunities in your area.

Farmer's Markets - If you are lucky enough to live in a warm climate you may have access to Farmer's Markets all year around, but for those of us experiencing a very chilly winter right now, we will have to wait for the big thaw. Farmer' markets are a great source of locally grown organic foods. Check Local Harvest for Farmer's Markets near you.

Coupon resource:

Mambo Sprouts - This is a site that provides free downloadable coupons for organic/healthy/natural products. In addition to the printable coupons you can sign up to receive their coupon booklet in certain metropolitan areas. Other reasons to check out this site; recipes, articles, contests/giveaways and kids activities.

Sources: CNN Health


Dont forget to enter our current giveaway. All entries due by midnight Monday, Feb. 23!

Glass Straw Giveaway

Today is a big day here for Living A Whole Life. Drum roll please... We are going to participate in our first giveaway! Remember our post about those beautiful glass straws?? Well, Daedra has graciously offered to make 4 of the decorative 6" smoothie straws for one of our lucky readers.

To enter for a chance to win, please leave a us a comment on what subjects you would like to hear more about on Living a Whole Life. The deadline for entry is Monday, February 23 at midnight EST. The winner will be drawn and announced Wednesday, February 25.

Good Luck!

Shannan and Karla