Monday, November 18, 2013

Winter Skin Care in the Rocky Mountains!

b's Modern Mountain Apothecary: Guide to saving your skin from Winter!

Click on the link above to read a great blog spot GoBreck did for us this month!  Not only do we have these really fabulous skin saviors, we're bringing in more before Christmas!!!

Ambika Therapies and Breckenridge Soap Co. are two of our favorite local vendors that whip up all kinds of treats for the body and will be adding a few treasures to the collection they keep right here in the Apothecary.

Stop in for Arnica salves and body oils, bath salts with Colloidal Oatmeal, aromatherapy and much more.  Natural and effective skin care for all of your Winter woes friends!

Sneak Peek ;)

Sara Happ’s Lip Scrub:  Just what you need for dry lips. Scrub all over dry lips to eliminate chapped, flaky skin and reveal soft, smooth lips.  It’s a pretty serious pout saver in our dry climate.
Take care of dry cuticles with butterLondon.
Take care of dry cuticles with butterLondon.
butterLondon: Try Handbag Holiday, a tropical scented cuticle oil. This product is a big help for sad cuticles on hands and toes.
Skin Savior Waterless Beauty Balm: Cleanse your skin with this multitasking, waterless balm made with pure, cold pressed oils and mango butter.  You don’t need water to rinse it off so your skin gets to keep every bit of moisture. Use for dry patches, static hair, lips and more.
Lip Balms:  From natural and organic, to high shine, b’s has an array of lip balms, sticks and glosses to keep your lips looking and feeling healthy and soft.

Check it out!

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Summit Daily: Modern Mountain Apothecary, formerly B Boutique, celebrates one-year anniversary

From the Summit Daily Sept. 2, 2013  Summitdaily.com
Chapped lips and burned skin are problems that can plague High Country visitors and residents alike. In downtown Breckenridge, B’s Modern Mountain Apothecary, formally B Boutique, serves to alleviate skin-care problems with a focus on locally made beauty products.
The shelves are overflowing with colorful bottles and jars — body lotions with ingredients like olive oil, sea algae, kelp or avocado stacked next to tiny boxes of sparkling pink grapefruit lip scrubs, to eliminate dry, flaky skin.
Opened in the spring of 2012, the shop is celebrating one year in business and will debut its new name at 5 p.m. today with a ribbon-cutting celebration.
Self-described beauty product addict and shop owner Cathy Cleary said she stocks high-quality — but affordable — makeup and hair and skin products.
She said moving from her old location at 301 N. Main St. helped bring in more foot traffic, but shoppers were often confused by the old name — looking for attire, not skin care.
“We originally opened in a more obscure, off-the-grid spot,” she said. “‘Boutique’ is a general name for a shop, but people were confusing us for a clothing store.”
Small terrariums hang in clear orbs over the bright blue wall near the register, where a burlap sign on the wall reads “Gifts from Colorado” in a scrawling font.

Cleary often works with local companies to create products her customers frequently request. Breckenridge Soap Co., for example, started making organic hair masks after she asked the company to create a product for dry, itchy scalps.
“With the name ‘apothecary’ we can finally be viewed as a place to get skin care, or bath and body works,” Cleary said.
Historically, an apothecary distributed medicine, but is now frequently associated with natural or herbal products for general well-being. Modern Mountain Apothecary carries a range of skin- and hair-care items, perfumes, lotions, candles and makeup.
“Our focus is to carry local products whenever possible,” Cleary said. “We sell products from a number of little family-owned businesses around the area.”
Among perfume boxes speckled with bright flower patterns are soy and beeswax candles made in Colorado, and goat-milk lotion made by Stone Creek Farm in Divide.

For locals looking for recognizable name brands, Modern Mountain Apothecary also carries products from major companies such as Sephora and Nordstrom. Cleary said she wanted to make those brands more accessible for people living in the mountains, saving them a drive down to Denver.
Cleary, originally from Chicago, is trained in cosmetology and previously worked in the wedding business. She is constantly trying out new products at the recommendation of a friend or family member, and said she wants to keep growing to become the go-to beauty supply store in the area.
“The trend is definitely to go more toward organic products,” she said. “I want skin care lines with a good mission — no animal testing, or vegan friendly, sulfate-free, that kind of thing.”
There will be snacks and giveaways at the ribbon cutting. Samples and tester products are available for many in-store products so new customers can sniff out what they like.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony will begin at 5 p.m. today at 101 S. Main St. The entrance to B’s Modern Mountain Apothecary is on Ski Hill Road, just west of Main Street.
“Our focus is to carry local products whenever possible. We sell products from a number of little family-owned businesses around the area.” Cathy Cleary, owner, Modern Mountain Apothecary

Monday, July 22, 2013

Prtty Peaushun Skin Tight Body Lotion Review

It's Summer in the Rocky Mountains!  You've all been very good with your sunscreen, right?  Well, wether you slather on the block or work indoors during the day like Moi.... you may be in need of a little color boost when you are ready to expose those untinted limbs....may I present....TINTED body lotions... (Yes! Makeup for your Bod!)

I'm a medium/light skinned Irish girl who hasn't spent time in the sun.... in quite awhile.  Anything tinted, bronzy, illuminated is my friend.  In the case of today's subject, we cover those categories AND throw in:

 92% natural & raw and formulated without Diethanolamine (DEA), GMOs, Parabens, Petrochemicals, Pthalates, Propyl Alcohol, Propylene Glycol, Sulfates, SYNTHETIC DYES, Synthetic Fragrance, Talc, Toluene, Triclosan...... and is Vegan & Cruelty-free....phew!

Pronounced 'Pretty Potion' (Peau, (Fr.) noun meaning skin)  Get it?  This lovely Peau*shun was created by celebrity makeup artist, Bethany Karlyn, and is now available to the masses!!  Thanks a ton ;)

And I present......
                                              Plain, Light, Medium, Dark & Deep Dark

First Impression:  I need to wash my hands.  My skin looks amazing!

Second Thoughts:  After a gentle hand rinse, I asses that I can definitely see an improvement in skin tone and luminescence,  my skin feels nice & soft and not sticky.  My hands felt the same as they do when I use foundation or tinted moisturizer on my face, a little tacky. Also, you would most likely want to clean your hands and maybe dilute the moisturizer with a hand cream to maintain a tint but avoid the excess color that would stick on your palms and in between fingers.  These tints don't stain and blotch like a self-tanner can which is a major bonus.

I've been using it anytime I wear Shorts, dresses, tank tops... I even made it to the beach for a day so I used it all over and although I dipped in the ocean, I got out with no noticeable streakage or real difference at all, it just washed away.  These lotions are subtle to the eye but take a step back and see the big picture, you sure can tell!


Enjoy this stuff friends!



Saturday, March 30, 2013

Butter London Nail Lacquer in Scoundrel review

I'm a clear polish wearer most of the time, I work with my hands so much that my manicures don't last very long.  When I do wear colors on my nails, they're usually dark because I kind of like the way it looks when it does chip... the very little bit of Rock and Roll that may be a part of my appearance.  I have been lusting after the pastels of Spring this year, especially the ones from Butter LONDON.  True to my tatse, I still chose a darker pastel-y purple for my manicure this week and wanted to run a test on how long these polishes will last on a girl like me!  Scoundrel might be my favorite shade of (wearing) purple so that's what I choose.

I start with a base of their Horse Power Nail Fertilizer, which is what I usually wear as a clear nail polish because I need some serious strengthening.  P.S.  They recommend using the Horse Power on it's own for a few weeks/month to see the best results and I have done this and seen great results and less peeling, however I keep my nails very short so I didn't take before and after photos.

These nail lacquers are just a little bit thicker than an OPI polish.  I think it provides great coverage but a little less working time.  I found with my first nail, when I started from base to tip, it got a little goopy on the last strokes near the tip and I took it off to try again.  When I was in beauty school, one of my classmates had given me a few tips on how to do a pro manicure (she owned a nail salon) and I find these two gave me the best success with the Butter lacquer.

1.  Get enough color on the brush to do the whole nail, start at the top half the get coverage on the tip and then go back for a full base to tip stroke.  I seem to start in the middle, go left and then right.  If you re-dip, do so quickly... if you have too much lacquer on your brush you can always wipe a little off but I think it's better than taking the time to re-dip.

2. When using the brush, only use the tip.  If you use too much of the brush, it will tend to leave streaks, this is especially true with lighter colors.  Brush lightly and quickly with the tip and see the difference, like most things.. practice makes perfect.

I waited about 10 minutes in between coats but that may have been excessive.  The polish dries quicker than others.  I still wait another 10 minutes before applying a top coat because that's just what I do... I find rushing my manicures means they don't last even one day without chipping... no matter how fabulous the brand.

7 days of hair & dish washing, cooking, box opening.... name it...... I did it.

Here are the results:

My nails are brittle so they shred a lot at the top but the polish protected them a little, and I need a round of straight Nail Fertilizer for sure but they still look pretty darn good!  There is wear at the tips and around my cuticles but no big chips.   It's just started to lift a little at the base, catching hair a bit, so it's time for me to take it off because of my occupation but I can't wait to try the other colors!!


Happy Spring fashion !

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Skinny Skinny Dry Shampoo Review

I read a whole bunch of reviews on these organic dry shampoos from Skinny Skinny and they were all so full of praise that I felt the need to know first hand.  Yep, they are wonderful!

I have ok hair, it's fine and long, layered and colored.  My natural texture is wavy but not very cute wavy and I only get a good 'natural' hair day once in a blue moon.  I have crazy colics and even if I do my blowdry at night before bed, it's a greasy, flat, tornado mess when I awake...without fail.  In the past I've tried a few different dry shampoos, some where colored (and quite awfully in my opinion), but either they were sticky or the bottle ran out after like 7 uses.  They're not cheap either.  Baby powder pretty much leaves a whiteish hue on most hair colors except white blondes (when I was one this worked pretty well).  In the case it does work for you and you don't mind the scent, I don't see a problem using baby powder.  With all of that said, I'm picking this particular dry shampoo as my favorite!

I used the Rose & Black Pepper scented one in my experiment.  The scent combo is totally my taste, but they also do a Rosemary Lavender, Grapefruit Cardamom and Jasmine.

 I found that because of my particular hair type, using the shampoo at night before I go to sleep, works the best.  I do a little touch up in the A.M. as well and maybe even a little blowdryer action depending on where I'm headed.  It makes the most sense to me to use it at night because it's preventative but decide for yourselves.  I can even get away with two days of using this stuff, but I reserve that for vacation.  Others I know can regularly go a day or 2 in between shampoos so I imagine this product will only extend that for them... luckies. It can be used morning with or without a blowdry refresher and it's a great idea to use it before or after winter hats (a hat head helper)!!  I started bringing this along when I do wedding hair, way useful for that let me tell you!

They have a 1 ounce that's good for travel but the 4.5 oz is a better deal if you're a frequent user.

Organic ingredients and Skinny Skinny Dry Shampoo is nothing but a rave!!






Sunday, January 27, 2013

Welcome!

Beauty. Product. Addict.   Hi, that's me...

 Nice to meet you all!

Maybe you've sought out this blog and maybe you've happened across it by chance.  However you've found me, please enjoy my space.  I love knowing everything about everything and as I own a little mountain apothecary/beauty boutique, my main focus is on beauty products!!!  Hair, skin, nails, scents, salves, bubbles, tints and much much more.  My mission with this blog is to explore and document my many opinions on the products I have long loved, newly discovered, and want to try out.  Please enjoy my experience with me!!

Background:  Born a Chi-town shopaholic, a Nordstrom faithful and, later, a Sephora addict... I still find appreciation in the small batch, family owned companies that are present in the little neighborhood shops and apothecaries.  The experiences I had with the products of my mother's, my friends' mother's, my older sister's, her friend's, my friend's... ensured a vast knowledge as a youngster, leading into a life longing for more!  I am a massage therapy school graduate and an Aveda Institute Chicago graduate, licensed cosmetologist, hair stylist and shop girl!  Enough about me for now...let's get to it!


Enjoy the journey!

Cathy