Written by Abi Mogge, Staff Writer

There are some days when I wouldn’t mind being a little bit more like the fierce, edgy ‘Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’. Lisbeth Salander takes the very idea of a female heroine and turns it on its head, defying society, gender roles and beauty standards in the name of justice and vengeance for the people she loves. I devoured this trilogy of novels about a year ago and I love both versions of the film; Swedish and American. Given the chance to try a line of nail polishes based on my favorite underdog heroine, I jumped. Duri is a New York-based company committed to producing nail products that are environmentally-friendly and free from DBP, toulene and formaldehyde.

The six colors in this collection are:

Icicle – a frosty, shimmery white, reminiscent of new fallen snow.
Fallen Angel – a deep, dark eggplant – almost black – with a hint of red shimmer.
Angels and Demons –probably my favorite; a rich, metallic silver.
Dragontini – a dark, seductive purple-pink. This color is elegant and sexy, with an edge.
Black Diamond – a gorgeous, inky, jet black. Mesmerizing and spooky.
Frozen Fire – shimmery bubble gum pink, this color seems so unlikely amidst such dark ‘gothic’ shades, but even a goth girl may need a good girly color in her arsenal… in case she needs to assume a false identity and bankrupt her lover’s political rival. Hypothetically speaking.

These colors all look great on their own, but I loved Icicle and Frozen Fire layered over the darker ones. I also was impressed with how smoothly the polishes went on, no glooping or glopping or stickiness. I recommend wearing a base coat and top coat with these. My only complaint was some chipping after a few days. This line of polishes are available for $5.00 each at www.duri.com.

Word on the web for 2012 is that nail polish is the new lipstick; a fun and inexpensive way to glam up and express yourself. Maybe this would be a good year to express your inner bad girl. I know I’m enjoying it.

Abi

Morgan and I went to Burke Williams this morning for some incredible, relaxing girl time. I haven’t been to Burke Williams in a while, but it’s one of my all-time favorite “treat yo self” spas because every detail is perfect. They really think of everything – from the spa water to the plush robes to the hair and skincare products to the rosemary-infused cold wipes. Before and/or after your treatment, you can relax in the eucalyptus steam room, the jacuzzi or the cold mist room. Like Disneyland for adults. There are separate men’s and women’s areas, so you don’t have to feel weird about running around naked or in a bathrobe with wet hair and no makeup.

The products they use are cruelty free – H2V is their signature line, and there are a few other brands that they use for facials and sell in the retail area.

I had the Parafango Treatment, one of Burke Williams’ signature treatments:

Exotic name, delightful results. This signature body treatment is the ultimate moisturizing experience. It begins with a salt scrub to exfoliate your skin. Then our unique Parafango mud is applied before wrapping you in a warm thermal blanket. And as if that wasn’t enough, we also treat you to the benefits of our H2V Express Facial, designed to heal and rejuvenate the skin.

Now this is a treatment for the more adventurous spa-goer (like myself). This is definitely not a relaxing treatment – it’s more about the outcome. My esthetician, Carolina, was SO sweet (and she had AMAZING skin, so I trusted her!).

First, she scrubbed my dry skin with scrub mitts. Slightly painful for my sensitive skin, but tolerable. Then, she scrubbed my skin with a salt/oil scrub (a little painful since my skin was already exfoliated). After that, she painted on a hot paraffin/mud mixture. Now this was pretty painful in some areas. She asked me if I was okay at every step, and if it was a little too hot for me, she cooled it down. After my whole body was coated, she wrapped me in a cocoon of towels and plastic (?) sheets. She told me I was supposed to sweat. The heat would open pores and the mud would draw out toxins and provide minerals.

While I was in my heat cocoon, she did the H2V Facial – complete with exfoliation, mask, massage, extractions, etc. She would have done a peel, but I told her I was taking zinc and she said it’s not a good idea to peel, wax or anything like that when you’re taking it. Good to know! It was fine by me because my skin is super sensitive and doesn’t like peels anyway. She used the Eminence Strawberry Rhubarb Masque on me, which smells amazing. And, she recommended the Burke Williams line’s H2V Buff for my blackheads, so I bought some on the way out. You know, twist my arm…

After the facial, she wiped off the excess paraffin/mud and brought me to the showers, where I was instructed to rinse off, but not use soap. Then, she brought me back to the treatment room where she massaged me with menthol cooling lotion and finished off my facial with a Stone Crop Masque. She told me stone crop is similar to aloe but much more gentle. She said you should never use aloe on sunburned or damaged skin because it has exfoliating properties. I had never heard that before – very interesting! Then she added lotion and pigmented SPF 30 mineral makeup to protect my newly exfoliated face from the sun.

The whole thing took 80 minutes, but it went by so fast. I enjoyed chatting with her and she made me feel instantly at ease. After my treatment, my skin was GLOWING! My skin feels so soft now – I can’t stop touching it. I feel like a new person!

Morgan had a signature Burke Williams Massage:

This custom massage experience begins with a spray of our Signature blend of essential oils, and warm, moist heat pads that embrace your back to relax the muscles. Chinese herbs are used to polish the skin, focusing on the forearms, feet, and back. The service incorporates our Burke Williams massage lotion, a special blend of essential oils that creates our Signature scent. All of these elements combine to create a uniquely relaxing massage experience.

Morgan says this was the best massage she’s ever experienced. Her favorite things:

• My masseuse Sandy was considerate, polite, and thoughtful. She was thorough and applied just the right amount of pressure that I requested.
• Special treats in the ladies’ spa area were cups of fresh, sliced fruit and hair and beauty supplies (sanitized hairbrushes, a curling iron, etc).
• All staff members were friendly and attentive without being overbearing.
• Validated parking is a plus and convenient to grab lunch/coffee afterward.
• Staff members guided us to one location from another and treated us warmly as guests.

So, when you want to “treat yo self” definitely pay them a visit. It’s not inexpensive, but the steam room, jacuzzi and other amenities make it totally worth it. Great for a girls’ day. And, check out their Valentine’s Day specials (send this to your man – hint, hint, hint!).

Jen

West Hollywood It-Girl

Have you heard of ncLA yet? If not, you will. They are a cruelty free, Los Angeles-based, indie nail polish brand that (IMHO) have successfully married nail colors with high fashion. Since I live in Los Angeles, I had to try their new LA Collection. I tried a bright tomato red (Rush Hour), a deep blue-green (Malibu Beach Babe) and an intense glittery pink (West Hollywood It-Girl).

West Hollywood It Girl

I really like the small brushes that allow an easy and clean application. The formulas are amazing. They are free of DBP, toulene, formaldehyde and camphor, and they are by far the best I have ever used. Wow. Easy application. No bubbling up. No dripping, smearing, etc. It’s not all hype – this is amazing stuff.

Rush Hour

Malibu Beach Babe

This is definitely a My Beauty Bunny cruelty free favorite!

Sweek Hook

I only recently found out that budget nail polish brand, China Glaze, is cruelty free. I tried a few from their new ’80s inspired Electropop collection: Sweet Hook (a pastel purple), Make Some Noise (a dark pinky coral) and Aquadelic (a fun, sippin’ drinks by the pool teal blue). What do you think? Would you rock these colors?

Make Some Noise

Aquadelic

Jen

The Zoya Spring 2012 “True” collection is here! I’m loving the pale, minty green, Bevin, and the sparkly purple, Tru. Which shades would you wear?

Zoya is cruelty free and was the the first to remove toxic ingredients such as toluene, camphor, formaldehyde and DBP (dibutyl phthalate) from its formulations. Zoya Nail Polish has been awarded as the longest wearing natural nail polish by an independent panel in Women’s Health Magazine. Support cruelty free companies! Be sure to follow Zoya on Twitter and like them on Facebook.

Zoya Nail Polish – Cho

Zoya Nail Polish in Cho is an opaque yellow-toned light soft peachy beige with a hint of ultra fine silver shimmer. A light, creamy nude especially nice for skin tones with olive or yellow undertones.

Color Family: Beige, Neutral

Color Finish: Cream

Color Intensity: 5 ( 1=Sheer – 5=Opaque )

Color tone: Warm

Cho

Zoya Nail Polish – Farah

Zoya Nail Polish in Farah is an opaque light khaki-beige with subtle sandy, greenish undertones and a cream finish. An always appropriate neutral to add to your polish wardrobe.

Color Family: Beige, Nudes, Neutrals

Color Finish: Cream

Color Intensity: 5 ( 1=Sheer – 5=Opaque )

Color tone: Warm

Farah

Zoya Nail polish – Bevin

Zoya Nail Polish in Bevin is a dusty, medium sage green with teal tones and a creamy opaque finish.? A stylish and unique shade for when you want something different from the usual mint green.

Color Family: Green

Color Finish: Cream

Color Intensity: 5 ( 1=Sheer – 5=Opaque )

Color tone: Cool

Bevin

Zoya Nail Polish – Skylar

Zoya Nail Polish in Skylar is a medium steel blue with a softened, dusty look and speckled by visible gold and silver shimmer flecks. A soft blue that’s bold without being too dark, bright or flashy.

Color Family: Blue

Color Finish: Metallic

Color Intensity: 5 ( 1=Sheer – 5=Opaque )

Color tone: Cool

Skylar

Zoya Nail Polish – Tru

Zoya Nail Polish in Tru is A saturated, red-toned grape purple with speckled shimmer that reflects gold, orange and red. Bold and saturated warm color made even more interesting with color-shifting shimmer.

Color Family: Purples

Color Finish: Metallic

Color Intensity: 5 ( 1=Sheer – 5=Opaque )

Color tone: Cool

Tru

Zoya Nail Polish – Lotus

Zoya Nail Polish in Lotus is a very soft, dusty blue-toned amethyst purple with colorful shimmer that reflects pink, red and gold. A dreamy smoky shade for purple lovers that looks both soft and luminous.

Color Family: Purples

Color Finish: Metallic

Color Intensity: 5 ( 1=Sheer – 5=Opaque )

Color tone: Cool & Warm

Lotus