In my “travels” from supermarket to Sephora, I came across Korres Wild Rose Instant Brightening Mask, perhaps the antithesis to Tracie Martyn’s more intense and expensive – though not necessarily more effective – brightening treatment.

Korres Wild Rose Instant Brightening Mask

The Athens-based beauty giant doesn’t use parabens, synthetic dyes, sulfates or petro-chemicals. The mask is pure white and contains wild rose oil, which is a natural source of vitamin C, as well as avocado butter, Shea butter and herbal extracts that work to lighten skin discolorations.

Skin brightening is something you can’t explain – you just SEE it. No, your freckles won’t disappear and it may take years for a scar or two to fade – but this product WILL help alleviate redness and dryness from your skin. Apply a thin layer to dry skin, breathe in the deliciously clean smell and wait for 15 minutes before rinsing it off.

I use the mask at twice weekly, and at $27 (Sephora), have never felt like anything less than a smart shopper – for this purchase, at least.

Image: Sephora

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Korres Wild Rose Mask

(Image: Sephora)

This set contains:
- 5.07 oz Sweet Orange SPF 25 Sunscreen Emulsion Face & Body
- 1.69 oz Watermelon Body Scrub
- 1.69 oz Yogurt Cooling Gel

This Korres skin care kit is a must have for a day at the beach, your pool or for those times when you know you’ll be outside for most of the day.  Start off by using the Watermelon Body Scrub to exfoliate and smooth your skin. Next step is to apply the Sweet Orange SPF 25 Sunscreen all over (don’t forget your back!). Just because you want to lay out in the sun doesn’t mean you should give in to pre-mature wrinkles and expose yourself to harmful UVA and UVB rays. After a day out in the hot sun, soothe and hydrate your skin with the Yogurt Cooling Gel. It will instantly refresh and cool you down.

Taking care of your skin this summer and every day can’t get any easier! Korres is a great product line and it’s always nice to get an all in one kit that you can easily toss in your tote bag for trips and reapplication during the day. The cute little bag it comes with is reusable too! You can pick up the Korres Summer in Greece kit at Sephora for $32.50

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Your Summer in Greece with Korres

Foundation

The lighter the better when it comes to summer foundation. Ideally you have been taking good care of your skin and don’t need to spackle on a ton of concealer to hide what is easy to solve. A mineral foundation like what Bare Escentuals has designed forms a light layer on your skin that won’t cake or smudge when you’re out in the sun.

Eyeshadow

During the day, you should opt for softer, more natural looking colors anyway- but when you’re going out at night you might want to go for a more daring look with darker, dramatic shades of eyeshadow. In either case, unless you want to see eyeshadow caked in the crease of your eyelid, you should consider applying less and choosing a more heat friendly formula like Korres eyeshadow.

Bronzer

A little bronzer goes a long way – so find a product like Tarte’s Mineral Bronzer Powder and use it sparingly. Remember – you can always apply more, but once a splotch of bronzer is caked onto your skin, it can be tough to remove without starting all over again.

Lip Color

A berry colored lip gloss like Carol’s Daughter’s Candy Paint will perk up your lips without looking too heavy or somber for outside activities. I prefer a red hue but you might be more interested in a lighter pink or nude shade. If you really feel like putting on lipstick, stick to something simple and sheer like CARGO Bontanical Lipstick.

If you are just starting to dabble in all natural makeup, then here are a few palettes and gift sets you might want to consider.

Tarte Infinite Glow $30
Bare Escentuals bareMinerals® Get Started™ $49
PlanetLove Green Goddess Collection $36
Josie Maran My Favorite Powders $45

Image: Josie Maran

This post was sponsored by Neutrogena skinID™ – The only Personalized Acne Solution made just for you.  Guaranteed Results or your money back.

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Beat The Heat With Natural Makeup

Image: istockphoto

Ingredients:

• 4-5 small strawberries
• 2 tablespoons of yogurt
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoons of honey
• 2 spoonfuls of oatmeal

The strawberries contain natural antioxidants which protect your skin from free radicals. Berries also help to absorb oil and treat breakouts. The yogurt helps refine pores and tone skin, while the olive oil hydrates and nourishes the skin.

Watch this video to see how to make this fabulous mask.

For the body, I love other yogurt-based products. For example Korres Yogurt Body Butter is really great. It leaves your skin feeling silky soft, hydrated and healthy. You can get Korres body butter from Sepora for $29 for a 7.9 oz. tube.

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Yogurt-Based Beauty Products

These gels are described as “uplifting” in scentand are formulated with no parabens, no synthetic dyes, no petrochemicals, no phthalates, no silicone, no polycylic musks, no nitro musks, no mineral oil, no GMOs, and no triclosan.  That’s a lot of very good no-s.

Korres Exotic Fresh Collection
$21 value for $12

The little gels (1.69 ounce size) are the perfect size for throwing into a travel bag. They come in a trio of fresh scents – Mint, Melon, and Clementine.

Now for the good yes stuff… The shower gels are made of 90% natural ingredients. Including aloe, wheat protein, zinc, and vitamins C and E. These ingredients work together to reduce the signs of aging, moisturize the skin, and “enhance the natural immune system of the skin.”

Image credit: Sephora.com

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Fresh Smelling & Anti-aging Shower Gels

Image: Sephora

I have mentioned before how much I adore Korres products and the Color Discovery Kit is no exception. Inside the reusable makeup bag, you will find…

• Provitamin B5 & Rice Bran Mascara in Black
• Cherry Lip Gloss in Nude
• Shimmering Eye Shadow in Sheer Gold
• Soft Eyeliner Pencils in Black and Gold Shimmer

The mascara contains pro-vitamin B5 to strengthen and condition your lashes, while the cherry, jojoba oil and vitamin E in the lip gloss will comfort and care for your lips.

The entire Korres Color Discovery kit is only $35 for $82 worth of products – that’s a great deal, and it won’t be available for long!

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Skin-Friendly Korres Color Discovery Kit

Korres Watermelon Sunscreen Face Cream has an SPF of 20 and the anti-aging affects of watermelon. The formula is rich, hydrating and contains antioxidant ingredients with the watermelon extract. Who knew watermelon could be good for your skin? It’s also available in a Sunscreen Stick, perfectly portable and applies with no mess. Pick them up and check out the rest of the Korres line at Sephora stores or online for $25 and $24.50, respectively.

(Images: Sephora)

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Korres Watermelon Sunscreens

Show above are the For Kings & Queens Body Butter ($15), Shower Gel ($9) and Shimmering Body Milk ($11).

The different scents include:
Aztec King (vanilla Pear)
Caspar (myrrh)
Chinese Princess (jasmine)
Emperor Akbar (mango)
George I I I (lime)
Nefertiti (honey)
Queen Isabella (cinnamon Orange)
Sultan Of Granada (lemon Flower)

Each scent is blended with a mix of pomegranate, blue Egyptian lotus and malachite. “The purple fruit of pomegranate ends in a crown-like top which is why it is shown on the coat of arms of many royal houses. The flower of the blue lotus was the most popular ancient Egypt symbol of glory and eternal life for gods and mortals alike, while malachite was loved by princes across Europe.”

The Korres For Kings & Queens collection can be found exclusively at Nordstrom. Prices are pretty reasonable and I imagine they smell quite wonderful.

(Images: Nordstrom)

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Korres ‘For Kings & Queens’ Collection

My face may be prone to breakouts, but it doesn’t tend to be terribly finicky. However, I do find that soap residue can be a major problem. The key indicator that there is still some film on your skin? It feels dry and almost cracked – both symptoms can be fixed with moisturizer, but does that solve the actual problem? No. The residue is still there.

Image: Sephora

But with Korres White Tea Gel Cleanser, there is no residue. With minimal lather, and a not too thick or thin consistency, this is a great basic cleanser that doesn’t contain parabens, synthetic dyes, petro-chemicals, phthalates, GMO, or triclosan. Of course, I still need that moisturizer…but not to mask the residue feeling.

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Korres White Tea Gel Cleanser

Image: beauty.com

The kit includes:

-Wild Rose 24 Hour Moisturizer
-Evening Primrose Eye Cream
-Guava Body Butter
-Guava Shower Gel
-Milk Proteins 3 in 1 Emulsion
-Lemon Refreshing Chewing Gum

Korres is known for including only natural ingredients and active plant compounds in all of their products. The entire kit creates an aromatherapeutic experience that will help you to shake off that hang over and get a jumpstart on your Sunday.

The fact that the kit includes chewing gum to help you get rid of the sandpaper taste in your mouth is hilarious…but speaks to how this kit has been formulated specifically for the recovering party girl in mind.

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Korres Party Survival Kit