JOSIE'S PICKS For a Bright New Year

Hi Beauties!

I hope you’re enjoying a little well-deserved time off this holiday season. Now that the craze of gift buying has passed and all the presents have been opened, I have my sights set on one of my favorite holidays—New Year’s Eve!  I love the spirit of opportunity that comes with the beginning of a new year, and I’ve been thinking a lot about the new things I want to achieve and discover--I promise I’ll share once I hone in on them a bit more. In the meantime, here are a few fun finds from Etsy to keep things sparkly and bright as we usher in this brand new year of our lives together.  

Lots of love,

Josie

2013 Calendar

Happy New Year Bunting

Happy New Year Invitations

Glitter Envelope Liners

Party Blowers

Gold Sparklers

BEHIND THE SCENES Education Video Shoot

While Josie’s been working hard at QVC, we’ve been doing some work of our own here in L.A. getting ready for the upcoming year and all the (super exciting!) new launches we have coming up in 2013. A very important piece of this prep is making sure all our fab coworkers in the field have the tools they need to train Sephora’s team on all the new Argan goodies. To help them out, we put together short training videos for our newest products. This year we shot here in the office with our very own JMC ladies as our models. After all, no one knows how to get the most from our makeup than the people who helped create it!

Are you dying for a Josie Maran tutorial on a specific product? Let us know in the comments! 

WHAT WE'RE EATING Winter Parties

Other than creating the best makeup in the world, throwing a good party is a top priority here at JMC. And our annual company holiday party is legendary! We’ll be partying the night away this Thursday with a little bowling, a little dancing, and a lot of snacks. Check out the yums we’ll be whipping up for the upcoming festivities. 

Winter Salad

Cauliflower + Feta Fritters

Pomegranate Prosecco Spritzer

Roasted Chestnuts

Eggnog Cheesecake Bars

Dark Chocolate Gingersnaps

ECO STYLE Mala Imports

Through the power of natural materials like harmonizing agate, strengthening citrine, and balancing moonstone, Mala Imports has managed to create jewelry that makes you feel good AND look good. The Canadian company’s earthy necklaces and bracelets combine the healing strength of natural gemstones with rudraksha beads—traditional Balinese prayer beads created from the seed of the rudraksha fruit and known to heal the body and increase mental clarity. Each of Mala’s divine designs is imported from Bali and helps create sustainable jobs for Balinese artisans. In fact, the company is so dedicated to doing good that they also give a portion of profits to a Balinese birthing and wellness center and work to promote female empowerment around the world. We’ll be treating ourselves to a few strands!

DO GOOD Giving During the Holidays (and after)

One of the most wonderful things about this time of year is the spirit of giving that comes with it. Here at JMC, we love all things charitable, and were excited at the prospect of wrangling our team and heading out to do some good this holiday season. But, when we spoke to a local L.A. women’s shelter, they said, “Hold Off!” Why would they turn down an eager bunch of eco-warriors, laden with free beauty products? Because frankly, so many people volunteer during the holiday season that the shelter becomes overloaded with friends wanting to do a good deed. While this outpouring of support is helpful and heartwarming, the reps at the shelter told us that it also means that they receive very little support after the New Year—people get so burned out on all the giving they do around the holidays that they just stop volunteering or donating after the season is over.

So we urge you: even if you’re giving to charity this holiday, don’t forget to save a little something to give once the holidays are over. You’ll be one of a handful of people who remember that being charitable and socially-conscious is appreciated year round. As for us, we’ll be heading to the shelter as a group after the New Year to spread a little post-holiday cheer.  

Image via: Container Store

A DAY IN THE LIFE Philadelphia Style Party

 

I feel so lucky that I get to be on the cover of this month’s issue of Philadelphia Style! To celebrate the issue, the mag threw a seriously swanky party last night at Hotel Monaco in Philly. It gave me an excuse to throw on a glam dress and some makeup and hang with some of my favorite Philly peeps—even the gorgeous models who show off my Argan goodies on QVC got to join me! Here are some pics of the bash. Thank you, Philly Style! You made me feel so welcome in my second hometown.

Xo,

Josie

Images via: philly.com

ECO TIPS Happy Holidays

While scrambling to get gifts for everyone on our list before the onslaught of holiday parties, it’s easy to let our eco-conscious ways fall by the wayside. Here are our tips for getting things back on track while still enjoying the spirit of the season. 

Think Beyond the Gift Bag: Endless piles of crumpled gift-wrap makes us (and the trees) oh so sad. So what’s our solution? Eco gift-wrap! Try wrapping gifts in paper bags, newspaper, or old sheet music. Add some twine and a fresh piece of greenery and you’ve got a cute little package!

Get Smelly: We love all the wonderful scents of the holidays—fresh spruce, spicy cinnamon, warm cookies. Instead of spritzing something synthetic, scent your home the natural way by simmering cinnamon sticks in a few cups of water on the stove or placing a dish with a few tablespoons of vanilla extract in the oven at a low heat.

Decorate with Nature: Take inspiration from Josie’s Thanksgiving mantel decoration, and find things outdoors to decorate your house with. Try fresh evergreen clippings or a few pinecones as festive table decorations. Once you’re done with them, you can return your decorations to the outdoors, minimizing waste and consumption.

Images via:

House of Anais

Midwest Living

Goddess Place

BEHIND THE SCENES Harvey Doyle Hudgins

It’s official. We have a new man in our lives and we think it’s love. Meet Harvey Doyle Hudgins, the super cute new addition to the JMC family. Named after the 6’ tall imaginary rabbit in the classic Jimmy Stewart movie, Harvey, our new canine buddy was rescued from an L.A. shelter by our Manager of Product Development, Jenn. When Jenn first brought Harvey to the office, the poor little guy barely left his crate, shaking uncontrollably when anyone approached. But that didn’t last for long! After just a week in Jenn’s care, Harvey quickly warmed up to the entire team, playing long games of fetch and climbing in our laps during meetings for impromptu snuggles. Now he struts into the office every morning excited to see all his friends and destroy a few tennis balls.

To us, Harvey Doyle is more than a dog and a new friend; he’s a reminder of the importance of giving all creatures a little love and encouragement. If you had told us just a few weeks ago that the trembling, cowering puppy in the corner would turn into a happy, affectionate dog, we would have never believed you. But with just a little tenderness, Harvey has become the dog of our dreams. 

JOSIE LOVES One Part Gypsy

As if the name One Part Gypsy wasn’t enough to have me hooked, freelance artistic director Rachel Nahmias’ blog is full of the things I love: tasty raw food recipes, boho style inspiration, and beautiful photography.  Even though Rachel and I have never met, her blog leaves me with the warm feeling that I’ve just had a good conversation with a friend—a friend with seriously great taste.

Be sure to check out the blog, as well as Rachel’s Pinterest. You’ll be inspired! 

PINTERESTING FINDS Color Inspiration

We’ve been working on some seriously exciting color projects here at the JMC offices. While we can’t reveal too much, we CAN tell you that there’s something very exciting and very colorful things in the works. When we need to give our creative energy a little boost, we check out some of the gorgeous photos on Pinterest for color inspiration. Take a look! And tell us, if you could create your own perfect color product, what would it be?