Top 5 Austin Murals

Visiting Austin and wanting to see some of the best and most instagrammable murals and street art? If you’re short on time, here’s a list of our top 5 iconic murals in Austin, TX.

1. You’re My Butter Half Address: 2000 E Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Austin, TX 78702

butter half address

2. Won’t You Be MY Neighbor Address: 1423 S. Congress Ave

Mr. Rogers mural Austin, tx

3. Hi, How Are You Address: Corner of 21st and Guadalupe St

hi, how are you mural

4. Willie For President Address: 1315 South Congress Ave

willie for president

5. Keep Austin Weird Address: 4600 W Guadalupe St, Austin, TX, 78751

keep Austin weird mural

What would you add?

 

Beautycounter

Have you ever been part of something so incredible you wish you were the one who thought of it? That is how I feel about Beautycounter.

Except I still get to be part of the company in a huge way.

It is the perfect intersection of all of my experiences and I am able to work my business from home when I want and where I want, all while having 3 kids home with me all the time.

A little background- I spent years as a fashion model, then studied and trained to become a health coach in NYC. I continued modeling, started health coaching and created my own skin care line. The skin care and cosmetic industry had always called to me, and while I was in high school I loved chemistry so much I considered going to school to become a chemist so I could develop new makeup in labs. Little did I know I would instead be working for these companies in an entirely different way by modeling for their ads and TV commercials.

The availability of face wash and moisturizer made of safe ingredients was confined to natural food stores, smelled of patchouli and wasn’t very effective. So I read a ton of books on making natural soaps and face washes and got to work. I came up with a logo, got a website and gave out prototypes for Christmas. I was on my way.

Then I had one…two…three…amazing children and my focus shifted completely. I knew I wanted to stay home with them and make them my priority, but had so much passion about health and wellness and fashion and natural parenting that this blog was born.

I dipped my toes into the waters of social selling when I discovered Noonday Collection– which I will always love.

I was so encouraged and heartened by the way my friends and family embraced my new business and supported me every step of the way. “Of course we will buy from you!” They said. I’d rather buy something from you knowing it’s helping your family than lining the pockets of CEOs at big box corporations. (Not to mention the superior products I was offering!!) I truly have the best friends and family. Why oh why was I ever hesitant about direct sales?

Then about 3 years ago I was on set at a modeling job and the makeup artist was using a new foundation by a company that claimed to put the health of its customers first. I looked into it and saw some synthetic ingredients and discounted it completely. The line I created years ago was completely natural and that is all I would ever use on myself or my children. I had learned too much about the toxins in skin care and cosmetics and and their link to cancer, infertility, and other health issues to even budge. Even if I was getting wrinkles, even if they didn’t necessarily work very well I didn’t care. I was really intrigued by the company though, and thought it must be good if a makeup artist was using it.

Two years went by and it kept resurfacing so I did some research on the company. Oh! All the ingredients they use are known for their safety, even if a few are synthetic. The skin care line is performance based- and the people who use it see dramatic improvement in the look and feel of their skin almost immediately.

The color cosmetics are beautiful, heavily pigmented, and created by a celebrity makeup artist who has seen and used the best of the best. She’s taken what she loves and made them safer.
The packaging is eco friendly and gorgeous.
Beautycounter has spent time in Washington D.C. asking for the laws to change. No new laws have been passed regarding skin care and cosmetics since 1938, and in that time 80,000 new chemicals have entered the market. It doesn’t matter if they cause infertility or cancer. It doesn’t matter if the bottle says natural or organic and the contents aren’t. It doesn’t matter that anything can be hidden in a product and labeled as “fragrance” even if it’s know to harm our health. Beautycounter is on a mission to get these laws changed.
I had an epiphany- Beautycounter perfectly marries all of my passions and background. Everything rolled into one. I can advocate for stricter laws in personal care products while working in the beauty industry, educate friends family and many many others on the importance of doing everything we can to ensure we are not unknowingly increasing our cancer risk, develop meaningful and close relationships with other women doing the same important work, stay home with my children and create my own work hours, earn a significant addition to our family income, and have rewarding and cup-filling nights out with other women. So I went for it. And I’m never looking back.
beautycounter giveaway
October is a very important month in the fight against breast cancer. On one hand, year after year I am encouraged that an entire month is devoted to bringing awareness for the cause, and raising money for its cure. However many of the companies most aggressively waving the pink ribbon are part of the problem. Chemicals in personal care products are directly linked to breast cancer. What we put on our bodies goes directly into our blood stream and many of these things do damage to our DNA. Small exposure is no big deal, but women put an average of 11 products on their skin every day, and day after day this accumulates into a giant toxic overload.
We can not control many things in life. But we CAN control what we put on our body.
Beautycounter offers amazing products that you could find at the best department store beauty counters. But the importance of clean and safe ingredients can’t be told from a shelf. This is why Beautycounter was formed as a direct retail brand, and it’s the reason I’ve chosen to be an advocate for safer beauty by sharing these products online and in person.
This October, as you’re seeing pink ribbons on everything from paraben laden lotion to sugar filled donuts, remember that there are companies that care more about people than profits. Beautycounter is one of them.
There are three ways you can be part of the solution.
***Purchase products that are better for your health, and don’t contain ingredients directly linked to breast cancer. This way you are creating less demand for toxic products! Vote with your dollar. When companies see a decline in sales because women care about their health, these carcinogenic chemicals will be phased out of the products. Remember the formaldehyde in Johnson&Johnson? It wasn’t until the public heard about it that the company decided to remove it and only because it was affecting their bottom line!! My preference is clearly Beautycounter, so click here to see what we have to offer!
***Host a casual happy hour or brunch and gather friends to sample our great products and discuss safer, better beauty. Your local Beautycounter consultant will showcase the products and share the importance of safer skincare! If you’re in Austin, that’s me!! If you’re somewhere else in the US, contact me and I will connect you with a Beautycounter consultant. We are in almost every city and I love connecting people.
***Become a Beautycounter consultant!
Earn up to 35% commission on the products you sell. When you enroll as a Consultant, you’ll receive a personal website through which all sales will be directly attributed to you. This makes it easy to share your favorite products and our mission. It couldn’t be easier.
You’ll also receive 25% off of all of your own purchases.
Beautycounter isn’t just a path-breaking beauty brand. We are a movement for making the beauty industry better. We do that with valuable information, fun socials, safer products, and your help. There is no longer a need to compromise health and safety in the name of beauty. You can do well, do good and look great. Learn more, or join my team by clicking here
beautycounter giveaway

Making Small Changes

The reason my health coaching method has worked for so many people is that we make small changes and implement them over time until they become habit. Then we build on those.

Sometimes with all of the information we are seeing, hearing, learning on a daily basis it is easy to become overwhelmed and either do it all totally hardcore, or throw in the towel and give up.

There is a third way.

I advocate for making small changes, one at a time, until they stick.
Here 4 simple ideas you can try this week to better your health, and the health of your family.
Drink more water.
Take off your shoes at the door.
Go to bed before 10:30PM (especially if you’re trying to conceive.
Get rid of the plastic in your home.

Covered Goods Nursing Cover discount + GIVEAWAY!

I have now been breastfeeding for 8 years and two months straight. Well I did have a one month break last winter before my baby girl was born, but who’s counting?
Needless to say, I have a lot of breastfeeding experience. With that experience comes lots of trial and error on what works and what doesn’t. How to deal with mastitis, how to prevent clogged ducts, how to properly time my tea and champagne so as not to affect the baby…I’ve found the best nursing bras, nursing pillow and  nursing tops. I’ve mastered the art of nursing in public while standing and getting fire ants off of a toddler. Painting a vivid picture?
Good.
Discreetly breastfeeding in public is essential to successful breastfeeding for most moms. As normal as I want it to be, reality is that we all feel more comfortable if baby is snugly covered and not distracted, and we aren’t wondering if people are sneaking a peak of the goods. Crazy world we live in, but I digress. I have 7 different nursing covers. 4 cape types, one poncho, one scarf and then THE BEST ONE.
covered-goods
Have you heard of Covered Goods? It is the original multi-use nursing cover and it is hands down my favorite. If you are breastfeeding, expecting a baby, or need to purchase a shower gift, head straight to their site to buy one and don’t look back. Here’s a 15% off coupon code good through 11/15! ORIGINAL15
The reasons I love it.
It is made in the USA- (YAY! Fair Trade!)
It is so very soft
Provides 360 degree coverage
Comes in a variety of colors: patterns and solids or both! Perfect addition to any outfit.
Bonus:
Can be worn as a scarf!
You can use them as shopping cart covers, car seat covers, and high chair covers.
Everywhere I go people ask me about my Covered Goods Nursing cover, OR they stop me to tell me they have the same one and love it.
Covered Goods has offered to GIVE AWAY a nursing cover of choice to one of my fabulous readers!
How to enter:
1. Like Integrative Mom on Instagram (we double check!)
3. Comment on this post I will pick a winner at random on November 19th.
Good luck!
Here are some shots of Covered Goods in the wild:
Love this original multi-use nursing cover! #supportthetrueoriginal

Safer Beauty is Going Mainstreamb

Have you seen Beautycounter in Target?

screenshot-9

 

You know what this means right?

Safer beauty is going mainstream! It’s getting easier and easier to attain, and gone are the days of only finding natural skincare at health food stores and risk smelling like patchouli.

Beautycounter at Target is only for a limited time, after which you will have to go to my website to purchase it again. I am so excited about this partnership, as it only proves that women in this country are waking up to the need for safe and non-toxic personal care products.

This subject is particularly important in the month of October when pinkwashing is everywhere. Things that are known to cause cancer are emblazoned with pink ribbons in the name of Breast Cancer Awareness.

beautycounter review

Oh no they didn’t! SUGAR FEEDS CANCER

 

Here’s a question- is anyone NOT aware of breast cancer? Anyone??? Anyone???

What you might not be aware of is that you are increasing your risk when you slather on lotion day after day, wash your face with cleanser that contains petrochemicals, and shampoo your hair with parabens.

You’ve heard about parabens right? A preservative used in everything? Did you know that one study found parabens in 99% of breast cancer tumors? Parabens also increase the expression of many genes that are usually regulated by the natural estrogen estradiol and cause human breast tumor cells to grow and proliferate.

No thank you. Nope. Not on my body. Not in my hair. Not on my skin.

Beautycounter lists parabens as one of the ingredients they will NEVER USE.

I am passionate about this. I would not be spending my time and energy trying to convince you if it didn’t matter. It matters. We can’t control so many things, but we can control what we put on our bodies.

Check out Beautycounter and make the switch to safer cosmetics and personal care products.