Earth Day. The only holiday that somehow doesn’t have a college drinking game associated with it. So, since you’re sober, why not take a moment to  save the planet. Or at least support companies that are making their own attempts to go green.

The following 5 companies are all my favorite eco-friendly brands. These are brands that include being kind to the earth in their manifesto and take steps towards “greenifying” their processing, despite the hike in cost. Often, they supply products on or above par with their less eco-minded competitors and are definitely worth a look!

Make Mother Nature proud and check ‘em out (just make sure you have your credit card handy!):

What other earth friendly companies should we know about? Sound off below!

What It Is:
LUSH Mange Too Massage Bar

Why This Should Be in Your Bag:
Body moisturizer should be an essential ingredient in your makeup bag and your life! Not only does it make your body soft and touchable (and who doesn’t want that?), but it also keeps you from practically itching your skin off in cold and/or dry weather. That’s right; dryness = itching, itching = flaking, and flaking is just bad news bears.

I only embraced body moisturizer in the past few years, but now I can’t live without it. Most of my friends buy cheap brands just because they smell nice, but trust me, when you’re buying for the moisturizing power of a lotion or butter, and you should be, you have to be a bit more picky.

LUSH is a great, fun brand. (We at CollegeCandy are obsessed with it!) Not only do they churn out quality products, but they also strive to be as “green” as possible and don’t use animal testing. I have a few friends who are LUSH fanatics, so I decided to give the Mange Too Massage Bar a test run and see what all the fuss was about! Read More »

I have an obsession with all things lips: lip buffer, lip gloss, lipstick, lip balm, Ms. Lippy…  This obsession has resulted in me trying just about any kind of product I can get my hands (or should I say my lips) on.

After spending money on a lot of products that don’t live up to their promise, I can attest that the following four are definitely some of the best products on the market. If you know what’s good for you (and your kisser), get thee to the mall and stock up on these ASAP:

Lip Buffer: C.O. Bigelow’s Soothing Lip Buffer,  made with aloe extract and coco butter, will make your lips perfectly soft and smooth. If you apply the lip buffer onto your lips and take a warm wash cloth and rub the buffer in, you will not only exfoliate your lips, but you will rub in its relaxing peppermint extract. For $4.99 you can pick up a tube that will last you months and months. Although you can buy C.O. Bigelow products through their website, Bath & Body Works also carries them.

Lip Gloss: Nothing gets better than Yves Saint Laurent’s Golden Shimmering Gloss. This YSL lip gloss stays on for hours, and it actually protects the lips with natural oils instead of drying them out like most glosses do. Each tube of lip gloss has real 24-carat-gold flecks (baller!), which cause extra shine and luster on your lips. Although this lip gloss is expensive – $30 a tube – the quality and 31 different shades make it 100% worth every last cent.  Read More »

The following post is courtesy of our gal pals over at CollegeFashion.net. Check them out for all your fashion and beauty needs!

Whether it’s a cool internship or an intense summer class that has you waking up bright and early, you know that sometimes an extra boost is necessary to get you out of bed.  Luckily, there are some fabulous beauty products out there to help you wake up and get ready to face the day, even before you hit Starbucks. Read More »

With only 20 days until I take my last Spanish exam before waltzing off campus (and into the nearest bar), Spring Break fever has taken over my school faster than H1N1 did last October. While I won’t be jet-setting off to Vegas or Cabo (sighhh) for a week of pool-side margaritas this year, I will be vicariously living through my friends that are. And knowing them, they’ll be out on the beach the whole week, causing trouble, and meeting some definite characters.

Planning to migrate south for SB, too? Here are the five people you’ll meet during your stay, whether you want to or not: Read More »

Today is National Chocolate Day.

Yes, there is actually a day dedicated to chocolate and all it’s creamy, heavenly glory. And that is about as exciting as waking up on Christmas morning (yes, my parents still sign the gifts “Love, Santa.” Don’t judge).

It’s universally known that diamonds are a girls’ best friend, but truthfully speaking, I’d rather have a heart to heart with a chocolate bar any day. (Come on – diamonds can’t possibly taste as good as these.) And I will be taking full advantage of the fact that I have another reason, besides my mood-swing-menstruation-induced-coma, to justify stuffing my face with it this month.

Take 5 bars, here I come!

But why stop at stuffing our faces? Chocolate Day only comes once a year (and for an undisclosed amount time every month, but we’ll leave out that minor detail), so we better indulge while we can, in every possible way. And, honey, there are plenty more ways to enjoy a little cocoa than in Hershey’s form. Read More »

The first time I heard about Lush cosmetics I blew it off as an expensive Bath and Body Works. Little did I know, I would become a fanatical Lush fan. Earlier this summer, for a “just because I love you” present, my boyfriend sent me a huge package of Lush products. (He’s cute, I know.)  And now I’ve found something I love more than him: anything and everything Lush.

Although I have fallen in love with Lush’s unique products and packaging, it is the company’s goals and mission that keeps me coming back (and spending the extra cash).

They make it their business to use fresh ingredients, make the products by hand (how many places actually do this anymore?), not partake in animal testing, and protect the planet by making the products ‘green’ or vegetarian/vegan friendly. With minimal preservatives in their products, I have truly been refreshed by the products I have tried and I believe that using fresh products like seaweed and avocados has made a difference in the way these bath bombs and gels work.

Buying cosmetics is important to every girl, but in the current state of the economy, spending money on lavish products may seem silly. However, with a company promising to help the environment and its customers with the freshest and hand-made products, dishing out the extra few bucks is worth it… especially when it comes to these guys: Read More »

I love being green.

But I loathe the possible side effect of smelling like a blend of hemp and granola from all my green efforts. And I hate when other people smell that way, too. Thus, I have put together a list of the best enviro-friendly bath product companies for ladies.  No hemp or granola; only cute, yummy-smelling products that also happen to be good for the environment.

So go ahead – splurge a little in these stores.   Your skin and your “mother” (nature, that is) will thank you.

100% Pure – This company boasts no animal products, fragrances, thickeners, emulsifiers, or preservatives.  Just pure, smelly, fruity goodness.  They feature a full line of bath, skin, and hair care products.  My personal fave is their body washes that actually make you smell like what it says on the bottle (genius, I know!).  They have several scents to choose from, ranging from mint eucalyptus to dark chocolate mocha. (Editor’s Note: If it’s all natural, can we eat it!?) My personal fave, however, is the Honey Almond Milk Shower Gel.  It’s seriously like taking a bath in a creamy almond smoothie, but without all of the clean up.

Lush Cosmetics – This company has stores in 35 countries across the world.  Lush hasn’t just conquered the far reaches of the globe, they’ve also become one of the green powerhouses of the bath product industry.  Their products are all natural and they have practically eliminated any unnecessary packaging from their products. Most items can be purchased by the pound and are wrapped with parchment paper upon purchase.  For their catalogs, and when packaging cannot be avoided, they make sure to use post-consumer materials to save them trees.   Lush also makes all of their products by hand (I’m talkin’ smashing coconuts with hammers kinda work), which saves energy and provides jobs.  If you’re going to give Lush a try, I strongly recommend trying their skin care line.  I personally love Ultrabland, a peanut oil based cleanser that can seriously take off ANY makeup you may put on your eyes without the painful sting of alcohol-based makeup removers. Read More »

I love St. Patrick’s Day. I love parades and shamrock stickers and Irish soda bread. I love getting very drunk and being festive on the one day of the year that anyone can be Irish. That being said I do not enjoy getting very drunk off of green beer. Something about green beer feels unnatural to me, like my insides are being coated in that slime from Nickelodeon and frankly the novelty wore off after my first pub crawl when my tongue stayed green for days.

But what is St. Patrick’s Day without green beverages? Will I be forced to drink average colored beer if I nix the food coloring? Or worse yet, will I get my “Irish and Proud” t-shirt revoked?

Well I’ve got news for whoever wants to go up against this Irish lush – I will not be taken down without a fight! Not while there are plenty of other delicious green concoctions floating around, anyway. So don’t panic, I have some St. Patrick’s day drinks that are just as fun and twice as effective. Read More »

Oh Valentines (read: Singles Awareness) Day.  Isn’t it grand? Watching your friends get flowers, chocolates, presents and fancy dinners.  You don’t have to be bitter even if you are the only lonely girl on your hall this year. You can fully delight in the romance that your friends get to enjoy, (they deserve something special) and at the same time pamper someone who truly deserves it – YOU.

If all your friends have dates, or even if you just prefer to go it alone for V-Day here are some great ways to treat yourself like a goddess! Your Valentines Day can be filled with chocolates, champagne and flowers without any help from a man.

Lush Ma Bar Bubble Bar – $7.65 lush.com

Lush’s Bubble Bars are super fun and decadent. It’s just like a bubble bath, only you crumble it under running water and, as it dissolves, your tub fills with bubbles.  They are hand-made with all natural vegan ingredients! While they come in all sorts of fun scents and shapes, the Ma bar Bubble Bar is perfect for your V-Day celebration because it combines decadent chocolate and toffee flavors.  Who needs a heart shaped box of Russell Stovers when you can soak in this deliciousness all night? Read More »