Bionée’s line of eight products are divided into three categories: pregnancy (includes acne and anti-stretch mark lotion), motherhood (includes a body toning lotion and nipple soothing remedy), and baby (includes protective body lotion and cleanser).

Bionée founder, Eva Asmar, started the company in France after the birth of her child, and now operates out of New York. Before starting Bionée, Asmar was a product manager at The Body Shop, as well as marketing for brands such as L’Oréal, Lancôme, and Yves Rocher.

Certified Organic & Safe for Pregnancy

Asmar stresses the importance of ingredient quality and natural origin when creating products for pregnant women and children.  Bionée products are certified organic by Ecocert, a French based personal care product certification agency. Additionally, the products have received an official safety statement for pregnancy and baby.

The maternity skin care products are based on safety and efficiency, while supporting fair trade and the environment. According to Asmar, Bionée products contain 82% organic ingredients, and are just shy of 100% natural.

Bionée products have been tested for non-mutagenicity and reprotoxicity in order to claim ‘suitable for newborns’ and ‘safe for pregnancy.’  None of their ingredients contain links to birth defects.

According to Asmar, the current organic pregnancy skin care market is rather small, with only a few large brands operating in the market segment. Asmar believes that Bionée’s target market is a $700 million to $1 billion segment that sells natural products in the U.S.

Bionée  plans to sell products through direct distribution by recruiting mothers who like the product and want to sell it. By utilizing a direct marketing strategy, Bionée products will be available worldwide and sold online.

Apples

Not many know this, but apples have a lot of vitamin C, which has been shown to protect and repair skin cells. Apples can be a good conditioner and toner, and surprisingly aren’t more popular in beauty products.

Bananas

Have you ever considered placing bananas on your face?  Well, maybe now you will. Yep, mashed banana is moisturizing, calming and soothing–and can be mixed with oatmeal and honey for a face mask. Another trick is to use the banana to tame dry, curly hair.

Vanilla

Whether in extract, bean or absolute form, vanilla provides a fresh, clean fragrance to any skin or beauty product. It also helps skin, hair and lips retain moisture.

Oats

Oatmeal may not be your favorite breakfast, but your skin sure will sure appreciate it. Oats are great for softening and healing dry, itchy skin. A possible home remedy is to toss oats and some powdered milk into the tub for a luxurious and soothing soak.

Tomatoes

This salad bar staple is a great source of lycopene, which is a powerful antioxidant.

Lemons

Lemons can be used to fight dandruff when mixed with olive oil and rubbed into hair 15 minutes before normal shampooing. Citrus fruits such as lemons also are great for waking up the skin. Just be careful not to use too much to avoid drying out skin.

Almonds

There is nothing nutty about almonds. When crushed into a soft, coarse powder, almonds are regularly added to lotions and moisturizers to help exfoliate and improve skin complexion.

So, here is a great starting point for making your own natural cosmetics.  Let us know if you have any other natural home remedies you use to help your skin looking beautiful.  And of course, as always, we welcome your comments, as we want to hear from everyone who has tried any of the above mentioned natural ingredients as cosmetics.

Ten years ago if you told me that men were using beauty products, or spending $200 on a pair of jeans I would probably laugh, or maybe say, “only in Hollywood.” But not now, it is quite the opposite.

Metro-sexual males, once a fad, are now becoming the norm.  And the name, metro-sexual, is slowly fading away as the once associated traits are becoming common practice by the well healed, fashionable male.

With that said, a new fad has begun, and hopefully this will also evolve into the norm as it carries significant benefits for both the consumer and the world — organic products.  The shelves of your local supermarket or department store are stocked with 100′s of organic labeled products accompanied with a seal of approval.  And the same goes for cosmetics.

So now that we have two new markets, the metro-sexual male, and organic products, it is only logically that the two combine to form a newly popular niche market – organic cosmetics for men.  I did a little investigating as I was curious to see just how many different organic cosmetics were being sold at a high end national department store and I counted about 100 different products, of which only a few were specifically for women.  They ranged from body lotions, serums, facial cleansers, moisturizers, to shaving creams and gels, after shaves and deodorants.

It is safe to say that there is no shortage of organic male cosmetics available in today’s market.  And I predict, and hope as well, that as environmental concerns start having a greater impact on the way our products are made and bought, organic products, including organic cosmetics, will become increasingly popular.  And with the advancement of modern science and technologies, manufactures will find cost effective organic alternatives to their chemical counterpart in order to persuade the profit driven mega brands to follow suit and enter the organic market.

PURITY ORGANIC SKINCARE

This is a company which is Ecocert certified. They preferred to go through their rigorous certification process to ensure that their customers are exposed to the best organic products. Purity is 98% natural and 82% organic. The products manufactured under Purity’s name are free of all chemical and toxic ingredients and additives that could harm you. Because Ecocert is internationally known and has been certifying products for years, Purity is a brand you can trust.

L’ARTISAN PARFUMEUR

This company manufactures green, eco-conscious scents. Their first scent, Jatamansi (HImalayan NArd), exceeded certification standers when it obtained its 100% natural and organic certification from Ecocert and Cosmebio. Now with their second scent Côte d’Amour , which references the coast is also Ecocert andCosmebio Certified.

NATURELLE D’ARGAN

This is an organic and ethical skin care range, which uses Moroccan argan oil, which is rich in nutrients for the skin, vitamin E ad other anti-oxidants. Naturelle D’Argan has 4 face and 3 body skin care products, including an original exfoliating cleansing gel made of finely ground Argan seeds and apricot kernel. The argan oil is Cosmebio. It guarantees a minimum of 95% natural ingredients and 10% of bio ingredients.

KAE COSMETICS

These products contain Argan oil. Its ingredients are 100% pure and organic without any additives, conservatives or chemical components. Kae products are Cosmebio and Ecocert certified. Kae manufactures products for hair, face and body.

L’UVALLA

They are fully dedicated to providing the highest level of organic purity and accountability. Their products are Ecocert Cosmebio labeled. L’uvalla guarantees quality standards. They offer products such as hydrating mil cleanser age-defying cream, gentle foaming cleanser, sunscreen and anti-wrinkle cream.