Review: Josie Maran Cosmetics

For the past 4 years Josie Maran has been creating luxurious cosmetics that are pure and contain no toxins or ingredients that will harm your skin or our beloved planet. Her cosmetics are gentle for your skin and are some of the most exceptional earth-friendly beauty products I have found in the marketplace today. I am so drawn to the philosophy behind this dynamic and enchanting cosmetics line. With this brand you can use high end beauty products, not pay and arm and a leg for them, and still contribute to being kind to the environment all at once. The products are ageless and timeless and are oh so couture! For the women with discriminating taste, who love the finer things in life, and want to green up their act, this is the cosmetic line for you. It is for these reasons that I am proud to include Josie Maran Cosmetics in my Spring Radiance 2010 Guide! Let me introduce the company and Josie Maran to you:

{Taken from the Josie Maran Cosmetics Website}

Josie's Bio



Raised in a bohemian household in Northern California, Josie Maran grew up appreciating natural, unpretentious beauty. At the time, makeup – heavy and mask-like – seemed anything but pretty to her.

"When I compared the supposedly glamorous women I saw in magazines to my mother, who never wore a stitch of makeup, it was no contest," says Josie. "My mom was, and still is, a true beauty."

Following her mother's lead, Josie opted to avoid cosmetics altogether.



Josie began modeling at age 12 after being discovered at a family friend's barbecue. Though she loved working, Josie waited until she finished high school before pursuing modeling full-time. At 17, she signed with Elite in Los Angeles, and her career as a professional model kicked into overdrive. Josie quickly earned a name for herself by landing some of the most coveted jobs in the business, including the cover of Glamour Magazine (she would go on to grace it five more times), and a stint as the iconic Guess girl. Soon, Josie was appearing regularly in top fashion magazines including Vogue, Elle, Marie Claire, and Mademoiselle.

"As I began to land jobs, I discovered what a lot of other girls already knew: the power of makeup. I'd never even applied lip gloss, but I learned trade secrets from the team of expert artists who applied my makeup on photo shoots. I was surprised to see how makeup could transform not just my look but also my mood! I saw that a little could go a long way, and I stopped seeing makeup as the enemy."



With a remarkable portfolio of commercials, advertisements, and music videos already behind her, Josie moved cross-country and signed with Elite in New York. In 1997, she landed a lucrative contract as the face of Maybelline, a title she held for nearly a decade. In another career coup, Maran was featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue three years in a row. Josie also made a successful transition into acting, appearing in feature films including Little Black Book, Van Helsing, and The Aviator.

But it was the birth of her first child that jumpstarted Josie's latest endeavor. Josie explains, "Becoming a mother inspired me to take a look at my life and ask, "What can I do for the world? How can I contribute?" Having spent so many hours in the makeup chair, Josie was ready to create her own signature line. The result, Josie Maran Cosmetics, will launch in the fall of 2007. The products, made with superior ingredients and housed in chic, biodegradable packaging, embrace eco-friendly initiatives wherever possible.



"I want to contribute to making positive change, and I also want to create something fun, beautiful, and luxurious," Josie says. "My dream is to build a brand with so much influence and popularity that my customers and I can work together to make the world a better place."

Josie Maran Cosmetics... luxury with a conscience.



BEING RESPONSIBLE

I believe in balance.

Inspired by my interest in environmental education for children, I've teamed up with Global Green to support their new Green Schools for Southern California Initiative. Green schools connect students and teachers to the natural world, reduce operating costs, and reduce overall impact on the environment. Global Green takes the kind of balanced approach to environmental issues that I respect, and I'm honored to be part of their team.

I believe that doing the right thing can be glamorous.

When creating our cosmetics formulas, I worked with the Environmental Working Group's website Skin Deep. Their vast database on raw materials was instrumental in helping me choose the most non-toxic ingredients for our products.



I believe in beauty without the baggage.

When starting the line, I knew I wanted to avoid using toxic ingredients such as parabens and petrochemicals. Therefore, I aligned Josie Maran Cosmetics with The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a national coalition of women's, consumer rights and environmental health organizations. We are a signatory to their Compact for Safe Cosmetics – a meaningful commitment to eliminate carcinogens, mutagens and reproductive toxins from personal care products. Over six hundred companies have now signed the Compact.

Josie Maran Cosmetics is just getting started, but it is our goal to be known for the responsible choices we make. Our products, packaging and processes are only the beginning, as we endeavor to broaden our scope of responsibility each day. Our efforts include small but important steps – printing only when necessary and using recycled paper and eco-friendly products in our day-to-day operations. Our display units at our retail counters have been constructed from sustainable materials and we do our best to be responsible in our manufacturing and shipping materials. We learn as we go and these things take time, but we're getting there.

I want to prove that a cosmetics company doesn't have to sacrifice luxury and performance in order to create products that are kind to the natural and social environment. And if we make the world– not to mention women's cheeks and lips– a little rosier while we're at it, even better.

MY REVIEW

I was given the opportunity to review the brand new for Spring 2010 Natural Wonder Powder Palette. I had seen a picture of this palette online and felt the colors looked gorgeous and seemed nice and bright and cheerful for Spring and Summer. It was only when I received the palette and was able to behold it in my hands that I was really able to grasp the breathtaking beauty of the colors, their rich, robust hues, that my computer monitor was not able to capture for me. When I say this is a must have collection for the warm weather season, I kid you not! The colors are magnificent, so vivid and glorious, and will add some glimmer and pizzazz to your entire Spring and Summer look! The number of different ways you can mix and match the colors, and the ways you can blend and experiment with different color combinations is only as limited as your imagination! The colors are just divine, distinctive, and will spice up your entire beauty routine in a way that will keep you looking stunning all season long! Here are the specs on this alluring palette:

Natural Wonder Powder Palette
Price: $35.00



New for Spring 10

DESCRIPTION:

Natural Wonder Powder Palette gives you tons of options so you can mix and match, becoming your own makeup artist! Create a variety of looks with the multiple shades, ranging from ashy bold pigments to classic neutrals. The palette includes five eyeshadows, two blush shades, and a bronzing powder for glowing radiance. This palette includes Eye Shadow: Daydream (shimmery apricot), Hope (bright iridescent blue- purple), Desire (iridescent teal), Trance (shimmery gold), Think (shimmery copper brown), Blush: Illusion (deep rose), Fiction (peachy pink), Bronzing Powder: Beach No. 1 (bronze).



MY THOUGHTS: This is the first time I have used Josie Maran Cosmetics. I am super impressed with the level of excellence in her products. Of course initially I was lured in by the unique and very elegant packaging. First impressions are everything and the beautiful box and case the products are housed in are extremely classy and glamorous and make you smile upon first sight. But equally impressive is the level of excellence of these fascinating products. I love applying powder cosmetics on my skin. They glide on easily, I am able to have better control of how much "pop" I want to put on my eyes, cheeks and face and for those days I want a more natural look I am apply less of the powder and for the days into nights that I want a more dramatic look I know just how much more product I need to create those more striking looks on myself. I am in love with the exotic eyeshadow colors. The Hope (purple) and Desire (Teal) colors are just amazing to play with on my eyes. I keep alternating between using the colors are liners around my eyes before layering and blending the other colors on top of them. The blush colors are so feminine, like petals on my cheeks! The texture of the powders contained in this palette are smooth silky and soft. They are not sheer, but at the same time they are not too cakey on your skin. They feel very luxurious on your skin, and a little bit of these magical colors go a long way.

I really think Josie hit the target right on when she chose to combine these colors together for this Spring 2010 palette. They all work harmoniously well together, to allow you to make your face look radiant. I love the jewel tones of the colors, yet they look so natural and pretty on your skin. I think this palette offers colors that work for all types of skin tones and will give you lots of options on how you can make them work for you to make you look your best and feel confident. This is the palette that you don't want to be shy about experimenting with. Embrace color, let it bring out your features, and show off your carefree, free flowing personality that exists within each of us. I love that feeling of being flirty and sassy and having the time of my life in the warm summer weather. This kit will help you to think outside of your comfort box, play a little with color, and reinvent and revamp yourself with splashes of beautiful color.

To purchase this Natural Wonder Powder Palette or to learn about all the couture cosmetics that Josie Maran Cosmetics offers you can visit her website by CLICKING HERE.


A very special thank you to Josie Maran Cosmetics for providing me with the Natural Wonder Powder Palette to use for this review.

Disclosure: I received the Natural Wonder Powder Palette from Josie Maran Cosmetics for the purposes of this Review . This has no bearing on my completely honest review above and was not influenced by any type of monetary compensation. The opinions and experiences I’ve shared with this product are my own and yours may differ.