Live Webcam Class Schedule - Brooklyn Beauty

BROOKLYN BEAUTY- Curated by Carole Sabas, French Vogue & Fashion Insiders Guides. From plants gathered in the garden and distilled in the kitchen...In Brooklyn, beauty is about family and community...an Artisanal industry born from recipes gleaned online and from antique Flower Power books. These recipes are tested and improved by our pioneers of "handmade" and natural beauty. In this community, young mothers are inspired to create their own soaps, creams, balms and multipurpose perfumes bottled "with love" like traditional jams. Before opening micro-enterprises, these limited edition beauty products were first made for their children and distributed as gifts to friends and then successfully sold in the markets of New York. Labeled "artisanal products", with packaging design, meeting certification standards, social media marketing, these new skincare houses offer fledgling impressions of luxury. SPROUT- Sprout Skincare founder Adina Grigore's super-sensitive skin made it so that she couldn't use most traditional products. Not even the "natural" brands were gentle enough for her. So she decided to experiment with making her own products using simple, kitchen-cabinet ingredients and traditional recipes. She started selling the products at craft markets around Brooklyn, but after Gwyneth Paltrow discovered the line for her newsletter GOOP, Sprout quickly became a full-time business. Now, with her fiancé Adam and a small crew, Adina handcrafts weekly batches in Sprout's Greenpoint workshop for a rapidly growing fan base. PHOENIX BOTANICALS- Inspired by New York upstate forests, Irina has been making skincare from her foraging walks through the woods, or from organically cultivated plants, since 2005. She compliments her respect for nature with her experience in herbalism and ethnobotany. Irina's skincare collection includes finely crafted organic herbal moisturizers, healing balms, botanical perfumes - are appealing to a younger generation, as well as the more sophisticated. Phoenix Botanicals packaging is ultra chic, smart and eco friendly. Irina is planning on adding to the skincare collection botanical products for the face and eyes with Wild Rose and Elder Flowers, including the Phoenix Eye Cream, Face Elixirs & Red Rose Cream as well as a line of botanical perfumes. BETWEEN YOU AND THE MOON- Musician, Marie Emma Graves discovered the art of distillation while touring with her band near Cannes. She came upon a monastery that made their own essential oils from the lavender harvested from nearby fields. Fascinated, the young American visited the monastery several times in order to learn the monk's process. Afterwards, she settled in the Red Hook of Brooklyn, and earned her degree as aesthetician and herbologist. Marie Emma is also a young mother of 9 month old baby Orion. She is excited to bring to you her own collection of natural anti-acne products and she is planning to open her holistic center in Brooklyn at the end of 2012. SOAPWALLA- Rachel Winard is the founder of Soapwalla, a luxurious vegan organic skincare line for face and body. The brand was born in her Brooklyn apartment kitchen one evening, after months of unsuccessfully hunting for face and body products that wouldn't aggravate her sensitive skin issues caused by lupus, a chronic, inflammatory autoimmune illness. The ingredients she uses for her soaps, exfoliating wash, lip balms, oils and serums are food grade and hand made in her Gowanus studio. Soapwalla was named a "Champion Company" by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics in 2012. Rachel is also a devoted Ashtanga yogi and a concert violinist. She will soon be adding powder and liquid cleanser, toner, and face soap based on charcoal and petitgrain to her line. Products can be purchased at www.colette.fr Text: Carole Sabas Illustration: Caroline Andrieu, Paris