Shaped like an electric razor, the Emjoi has two interchangeable textured rollers: one for coarse skin, and one for extra-coarse skin. The rollers are incredibly easy to swap out. With a flick of the switch, the roller spins at 30 revolutions per second, and gently “sands” away the dead skin on your feet. It is powerful enough to get the job done (unlike other devices that often run out of steam), and it doesn’t chew up your feet like certain “cheese grater” devices. After only a few minutes use, my feet were noticeably softer and smoother – and they stayed that way (at least, in the three days since I first tested it). The Emjoi was completely painless.

Emjoi will never replace a professional pedicure, but it is amazing for between-pedi touch-ups. I am genuinely impressed.

www.emjoi.com

Gleam is loaded with good-for-you ingredients like olive oil, jojoba seed oil, green tea and white tea extracts, and aloe extracts. I wouldn’t use it as a straight-forward body lotion, but it feels nice on the skin. Bonus: it smells of vanilla cake, but not in that cloying, nauseating way; you have to really put your nose to your skin to smell it. The scent is light and subtle, just like the shimmer.

Gleam is available in four shades. Available for $40 per tube at GleambyMelanieMills.com

Olie Biologique – Certified organic body oils with a variety of healing benefits. Argan oil for anti-aging and revitalizing; rose hip oil for scars, spots, and vitamins; etc.
Pros: Love that it is organic.
Cons: Pricey for what it is.
Price Points: $22-$39
On the Web: OlieBiologique.com

Mini Organics – A certified-organic line of skin care for moms-to-be and babies. We tried the enriched moisturizer, which is supposed to nourish and improves skin elasticity.
Pros: I am not pregnant, but this is an amazing, rich moisturizer. It healed my cracked cuticles where regular lotions have failed.
Cons: I feel a little weird buying pregnancy skin care.
Price Point: $55.95
On the Web: MiniOrganics.com

Dermacyte – Oxygen-enriched serum used as a spot treater for blemishes, age spots, scars, and other skin imperfections.

Pros: It works fast, reducing redness on an ingrown hair almost immediately.
Cons: It’s a bit of an investment.
Price Point: $84.00
On the Web: BuyDermacyte.com

Lift Lab – Using Cell Protection Proteins, Lift Lab promise to reverse signs of aging.
Pros: The moisturizers are comfortable and absorb well.
Cons: I like to believe that I don’t have many signs of aging to correct.
Price Points: $85-$125
On the Web: TheLiftLab.com

I love tinted lip balms, but it is hard to find the perfect tinted balm.  Most of the time, they have that weird lipstick taste and ultimately end up drying out your lips as much as a regular lipstick.  MAC, Fresh, Tarte, and Smashbox come to mind as disappointments.

Burt’s Bees new tinted lip balm is the dream balm.  A light, sheer touch of color in a protective, moisturizing lip balm.  Loaded with goodies like shea butter, coconut oil, soybean oil, olive oil, and rosemary extract, this actually feels like lip balm.  Available in six colors, Red Dahlia is my favorite.  The darkest shade in the collection, it is the perfect dark red for daytime.  But at only $7 each, you may just want to buy every shade.

By now, you’ve probably seen buzzwords like “all natural,” “hypoallergenic” and “patented” hundreds of times. But have you ever stopped to ask what they mean?

Beauty companies love terms like these because they suggest concrete benefits that don’t have to be backed up by science. In fact, as long as they don’t claim to change the body’s structure or function, companies don’t need FDA approval to market new products to the public and are not required to provide any research to prove their claims. These days, one would almost need a degree in chemistry to understand some of the catch phrases on skin care products. Dr. Channing Barnett is a board certified Manhattan dermatologists who wants to help consumers understand what this frequently used language means.

Gone are the days when simple statements such as “oil free” would suffice. Perhaps the most common phrase is clinical formula. As Dr. Barnett explains, “this has no real meaning. It does not necessarily indicate that the formula was produced in a medical clinic as the manufacturers would have people believe. Clinically tested could very well indicate that the product was tested, but what was it tested for? What were the results? Essentially, this marketing claim is meaningless.”

Here are six more commonly misunderstood terms to watch for:

1. “Patented” or “pantent pending”

Patents can be granted to companies that manufacture or combine materials in new ways. But just because something is patented doesn’t mean it works.

2. “All natural”

This one really bugs me! It doesn’t mean the product is organic or chemical-free. After all, chemicals are “natural,” too.

3. “Organic”

The US Department of Agriculture certifies organic food ingredients found in cosmetics, but not essential oils or plants used for cosmetic purposes. To carry the USDA Organic seal, a product must contain at least 95% organic food ingredients (read What Does Organic Really Mean in Skin Products?). Other countries have their own organic certification labels, such as COSMOS and NaTrue in the European Union and NASAA in Australia. Read COSMOS Standardizes Organic Product Labels to learn more.

4. “Hypoallergenic”

Think this guarantees you won’t have a reaction? Think again. These products can still contain ingredients some people are allergic to, including preservatives and fragrance.

5. “Fragrance-free”

These products may not have a noticeable smell, but can still contain “masking” scents to cover up ingredients with unpleasant odors. Look for the words “no fragrance added” instead.

6. “Non-comedogenic”

While non-comedogenic products are usually oil-free and therefore less likely to cause breakouts, there’s no guarantee they won’t. In fact, many contain dimethicone, a known acne aggravator.

7. Helps “pre-mature aging.”
Perhaps the most appealing of all claims from a consumer standpoint is this statement. If a product truly prevented premature aging by affecting the structure of the skin, it would be classified as a drug and therefore would require FDA approval. Manufactures circumvent this by utilizing the fact that sunscreens prevent premature aging by decreasing the damaging effects of ultraviolet light on the skin. Therefore, if a product contains sunscreen, it may state “prevents premature aging’ on the label.”

For more, visit BarnettDermatology.com

Green Tea Toxin Cleanser – A best-seller for the company, one use and I can see why. This gentle creme cleanser destroys dirt, even getting deep into those pesky nose pores. Yet it is never drying or irritating. Aloe vera, green tea, lavender, witch hazel, honey, willowbark, rosemary, grape seed oil, and vitamins A, B, C, and E all make up the very pronounceable ingredients list.

pH Equilibrant Moisturizer – This is a surprisingly rich moisturizer, yet it is light and absorbs quickly and completely. Free of mineral or vegetable oils, this moisturizer is loaded with aloe vera, shea butter, jojoba oil, almond oil, palm oil, and green tea.

Holistic Honey Body Lotion – I have tried a number of honey-based lotions, and they all feel sticky to one degree or another. Not this one. It is light, absorbs quickly, and moisturizes all day – even through multiple hand washing. Impressive. Truly organic honey is used in this lotion. Not only are the bees free of any kind of chemicals for removing honey, the bees are not killed to extract their honey, and they only pollinate certified organic or uncultivated crops.

For more info on Made From Earth’s process, and of course to order, visit MadeFromEarth.com

Fashion Hippo adores these bell bottom jeans, a favorite 2011 spring trend.

Shopping and Info loves the neutral nude designer shoes for Spring 2011! Just in time for Fashion Week.

StyleMaven gets measured for the perfect-fitting Levi’s Curve skinny jean, courtesy of Levi’s Shape What’s to Come at the Independent Fashion Blogger’s Conference held at Mac & Milk! Studios.

The Fashion Buzz checks out the Top 10 floral shift dresses for SS11 bring on the warmer weather!

The Well-Heeled Society is one happy chick, thanks to her book review on Chicklit Club!

TheFind has a crush on the See By Chloé Poya Satchel, and we gave one away at last week’s NYFW Indpendent Fashion Blogger Conference, “Evolving Influence”!

As promised, the SwirliDo held hair tightly in place, even during a workout. It did not tangle and it didn’t leave “pony lines” or give me a headache from too-tight elastics. Because it doesn’t hold too tight, it is great for a sexy-messy ponytail. I noticed two drawbacks. First, the SwirlDo is bulky, making it impractical to keep on your wrist (as I am prone to do) or to sleep in. Second, after a weeks worth of wear, the SwirliDo gets stretched out, making your updos gradually looser and looser. Ultimately, SwirliDo will not replace my standard elastic bands, but it will certainly compliment them.

$5.99 at FacialWork.com

The shower gel comes in a variety of scents that I love. They are all clean and linger, but never smell perfumey. Lavender nectar and peony are my current favorite scents. You get ridiculous amounts of bubbles – and who doesn’t love bubbles? You get a bubble bath standing up. Plus with ingredients like shea butter and olive oil, the body wash formulas are very hydrating.

I am not crazy about the sponges themselves. The regular sponge-side is just perfect, but I found the buffer side (which isn’t on all sponges) to be almost painfully abrasive. The disposable nature of Spongeables is a little undesirable, as even the largest model will last less than a month. A traditional loofah may last me a year or more. Of course, with a Spongeable, I wouldn’t have to buy a separate body wash (in its own bottle and packaging), and I could probably use the sponge with my own shower gel. I will let someone else do the hardcore analysis.

The perfect use for Spongeables is travel – I don’t think I could ever go back to packing separate body wash. With no liquid, Spongeables will pass through security with no problems, and there is no risk of leakage in your bag. Small Spongeables are good for week-long trips, and even longer trips that will necessitate a bigger Spongeable still won’t consume too much pack space. At the end of the trip, you can throw it away, and use that space for extra souvenirs.

Spongeables.com

Fresh Minerals – This line of mineral makeup is 100% natural – fragrance-free, talc-free, oil-free.  Yeah, I know, mineral makeup is like a dime a dozen nowadays.  What sets Fresh Minerals apart is their packaging.  Those loose minerals can be a nightmare to deal with.  If it is not kept perfectly level, you are asking for disaster, even with the lid on tight.  Rather than just a shaker top, Fresh Minerals has a second lid inside that snaps over the shaker part, meaning that even travel won’t mess these powders.

Christopher Drummond Beauty - Created by a bi-racial male model-turned-makeup artist, Christopher Drummond’s full line of cosmetics is all-natural, eco-friendly,and vegan, and is designed to work with any skin color. Many items contain essential oils like rose, lavender, geranium, acai, orange, vanilla, apricot kernel, lime, and clove bud. Sounds good enough to eat. Stand out product that we tried was the radiance booster, a soft powder highlighter that adds subtle glow without shimmer or glitter.

Source Toothbrush - That’s right, a toothbrush. The ergonomic handle is made of recycled currency, flax, or wood, and the large brush head is replaceable. So don’t buy a new toothbrush every few months, just replace the head. You will save money and less plastic is used.