We are in full-blown “go” mode. It’s thrilling, but also really scary. Turns out, our retail partner’s clients LOVE BijaBody's anti-aging Body Care and Beauty Tea Blends, and it is moving so fast through their doors, that I just went through my first inventory freak-out. Luckily, our retail partners are also awesome. “It’s a partnership Melissa, We’ll figure it out”.

Some of our new partners include:

The Skin Cafe in Mesa, AZ (I love this! I'm a total desert fan)

Right Bank Babies in downtown LA.

Gene Juarez in Seattle (all 10 locations, with 48 back-bars! You can get a professional treatment using BijaBody)

Indulgence in Bozeman, Mt

Thee Salon Paia, Hawaii

So we’re back in production mode. Hence the non-existent blogging. Do you really want me to talk about labeling and freight logistics and how very fun they are? Umm, no.

How about instead, I remind you that the sun is here! If it’s here for us, in Montana, that means it’s totally out for those of you south of us. I’m not going to talk too much about sunscreen, because I have a weird relationship with sunscreen and until I figure it out, I’ll tip-toe around it rather than get myself in too much trouble. But here’s a few other tips to start now. It's not just about sunscreen:

Exfoliate Daily, Dry-Brush a few times a week: It’ll ensure a pretty glow, good circulation, and softness ready for slinkier, skin showing clothes. Our Daily Body Scrub is the perfect grit for daily exfoliation without causing damage. And it smells delicious.

Apply a nourishing product to your skin before you apply sunscreen: It’s nice to have a little barrier between your skin and the direct sunscreen ingredients.

Avoid Retinyl Palmitate: It’s a really hard ingredient to avoid in make-up, and worth sending the companies a quick email. Retinyl Palmitate is called (anti[aging” because it’s a Vitamin A derivative, but, it’s been shown to increase chances of skin-cancer significantly when exposed to sunshine.

Avoid Citrus Oils: They have been linked with increased hyper-pigmentation, and if it’s even remotely true, it’s too true. I curse a cream I used during a summer every day when I see the pigment spots I didn’t have before that summer, and which didn’t get dark once I quit a certain cream, which began my research and obsession with ingredients connected with hyper-pigmentation.

Lycopene rich foods + healthy fats = Natural skin protection! Carrots and Peanut Butter. Serving on Sun-dried tomatoes. Avocado and Carrot Cole Slaw. Eat up, buttercups.

We’ll keep the Sun Tips coming. Here’s a Mother’s Day Tip: Trae Bodge, Independent Beauty writer, featured is in her Mother’s Day Gift List! Check out the whole list, which includes a drink dispenser I’m seriously considering: http://theinsider.retailmenot.com/mothers-day-gift-guide.html

We’re prepping for the IECSC Trade Show in June. Vegas, Baby.  Our goal: Build a whole booth without having to buy a single new item. This includes our sign. Can we do it without printing it on plastic? Can we do it using materials we find, and make it gorgeous? Even paint needs to come from a building product re-use store, rather than purchased new. We’ll see. Pics coming soon.

xo, Melissa