FALL HARVEST
GThese natural and organic products will leave you
fresh and ready for the autumn preholiday rush
THE YEAR’S MOST BOUNTIFUL SEASON YIELDS A FEAST
of organic and naturally infused products and treatments that will leave you
feeling beautiful inside and out. When the air gets crisper, the pace picks up, as
autumn ushers in a host of activities. In the freshness and purity of nature’s own
delicious and pampering ingredients you’ll find a sanctuary for all your senses.
Start out at Verabella in the heart of Beverly Hills for the Fall
on Your Face facial. Using a combination of pumpkin, cranberry,
and carrotinfused masks, scrubs, and serums, this treatment will
leave your skin radiant and soft. A natural antioxidant,
pumpkin is packed with vitamins C
and A. I could feel my face tingling
as the ingredients worked to exfoliate,
deage and even out discoloring
from sun damage. Plus, the
scent is so incredible and evocative
of good memories, I was immediately
put at ease.
 Next, head over to Lulur.
Intimate, friendly, and filled with
good vibes, this spa is a favorite of
Catherine Zeta Jones, Michelle
Pfeiffer, and Barbra Streisand, and is
one of the few spas in the country to
offer the Javanese Lulur Body
Treatment. Inspired by the ancient
Balinese ritual where brides are prepared
for 40 days and nights before
marriage, this translates into a session
that’s equally enjoyable for both sexes.
They use incredibly fresh and
exotic ingredients, including
ground rice and turmeric
imported from Bali to exfoliate,
yogurt to cool, and jasmine
flower oil to massage. Rose petals, strewn across the massage
table, add another beautiful touch. And I loved the bamboo Vichy
shower that simulates aromatic rainwater as it washes
over your newly silkened body.
Afterwards, walk right next door to l.a. vie l’orange.
A true spa for your hands and feet, it’s a
white, bamboo oasis on Robertson dedicated to natural,
healthy nails and a chemical–free environment.
 The OldFashioned pedicure basks your feet in
downy rose petals, milk, and honey, followed by a
freshly mixed oatmeal mask, then a hot towel wrap
and massage with the spa’s signature essential oils. A
girl regularly comes by to offer you
wine, champagne, and other goodies
to help you unwind after a hard
day’s work. Finally, a place where
you won’t mind waiting for your
nails to dry. I also like that the manicurists
are a repository of information.
Ask for Cheryl or Cherrie.
One conversation with them and
you’ll understand the pitfalls of the
$20 manicure/pedicure.
What about when you want to
experience the luxury of spa services in your own home? Here are the best naturally
infused and organic products to transform your bath into the Garden of Eden:
First, set the stage for paradise with Er’go candles. A
favor ite of Paula Abdul, Michael Douglas, Joely
Fisher, and Antonio Sabato Jr., they are
among the most incredible candles I’ve ever
experienced.You’ll be true to the season with
scents like Autumn Leaf, Pear Vanilla,
Cranberry Currant, and their bestselling
Nectar. But the two scents I fell in love with
 were Grove (Missy Elliot’s favorite), a combination
of tangerine, lime and geranium; and
Cucina, an intoxicating combination of sage,
parsley, rosemary, and thyme. Yum! Handpoured,
sootfree, and made from 100 percent
soy wax without chemical additives and only
the best ingredients, these candles are cleanburning
and able to scent even the largest
spaces. As owner Jimmy Belasco says, “They’re
clean for the environment and pure for your
senses.” We agree.
Evoking the scents and hues of Provence,
L’Occitane has been a staple for naturally
infused bath products like shower gel, body
milk, and foaming bath gel for years — and with good reason.
They are lavish and sumptuous to smell. Old standards like
Vanilla and Lavender Harvest are as wonderful as ever. But if
you want something new, try their delicious Orange Blossom
line. Fresh and surpr isingly sexy without being too sweet,
the orange is delicately laced with a hint of honey; I particularly
like the Eau de Toilette. Several people, both women and
men, complimented me on the scent.
A terrific new find for everyday use is the preservativefree
and botanically based skin care line, Boscia. Used by Vanessa
Williams and Naomi Watts, it’s dated to ensure maximum quality,
and specially packaged to prevent contamination — I love
the pumps! Made with hydrangea and rosemary leaf, peony
root, sweet almond seed, willow herb and bark, soapberry peel,
and licorice, these products left my face soft and smooth, and
evened out my skin tone immediately. They’re gentle
but highly active. I particularly like the Antioxidant
Recovery Treatment C.
 For those of you who need products so fresh it
seems as if you either made them yourself in a mixing
bowl or bought them at the farmer’s market,
Lush handmade cosmetics aims to sell the
youngest, freshest products in history. So yummy
they’re practically edible, they come wrapped in cellophane,
and are dated and stamped with a grocery
store sticker like something out of the refrigerated
section.The Fig and Leaves soap “cut off the block”
is peppered with seeds to exfoliate, packed with figs
to moisturize, and contains the aphrodisiac ylang
ylang.With real leaves on top, it’s also beautiful.The
Lush hair masks with ingredients like real egg
whites might not smell so great, but they’ll leave
your hair incredibly shiny.
Dedicated to highquality natural ingredients, Deep Steep
makes a Brown Sugar Grapefruit — Bergamot Scrub that’s divine.
It exfoliates, detoxifies, and revitalizes, leaving your skin glowing
and incredibly soft. It smells both refreshing and as mouthwateringly
sweet as your favorite dessert.Also, try steeping in their muscle
relaxing Rosemary Mint bath tea after a long day.While soaking,
rest with Du Wop’s blue I Gels for tired eyes. They actually
work! They’re reusable,
botanically infused, and conform to
the shape of your eyes as they reduce puffiness
— great for the morning after a long
night out.This is also a good time to use Jurlique’s Te a
Tree Face Beauty Mask and their Moor Purifying Mask.
With ingredients like daisy, rose, oat bran, wheat bran,
quince, and honey, these treatments are the perfect combatant
to LA smog. Billed as “the purest skin care on
earth,” it has made believers out of Nicole Kidman,
Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, and Drew
Barrymore. And if you like roses, go no further; their
rose line is one of the purest I’ve ever encountered.
After you get out of the tub, pamper your feet with
Carla’s Concoctions’ Healing Foot Butter, a line used
by the cast of Will & Grace.Every herb Carla uses is certified
organic. Now add your naturally infused body
lotion, oil, and perfumes, and you’re a vision to see,
smell, and taste.
Finish with T. Le Clerc. Their loose face powder
(used by Madonna, Donatella Versace, top models, and makeup
professionals) is particularly good. It’s made with rice starch and has
a touch of sparkle. That, along with their plum or violet mascara
and other fall harvesthued makeup will having you looking
so beautiful and fresh people will swear you’ve just returned from
paradise... and you have.
— Ally Dawson
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