The JOON Blog

We’re so in love with our Apricot Mint fragrance that we decided we’d try our hand at making Apricot Lemonade!  It’s perfect to make this time of year when it’s starting to get a bit chilly outside and you’re longing for summer to come once again.

1/4/ c. boiling water

1 c. chopped mint leaves

Juice of 6 lemons (cold)

Grated rind of 1 lemon

Juice of 3 apricots

1 c. superfine sugar

Pour boiling water on the mint leaves.  Add lemon juice, grated lemon rind and apricot juice.  Stir in sugar.   Refrigerate in a tightly capped bottle.  Pour enough of the liquid in a glass to make it 1/4 to 1/3 full; then add the fresh iced lemon juice.  Add ice.  The apricot mint syrup will keep well in the refrigerator for as long as 2 weeks.  Makes about 4 cups.

Enjoy!

I’ve been absent for a few days, but not because I didn’t have anything to write about.  In fact, I think I have too much on my mind that I want to share.  But, the other day as I sat down to write, a thought popped into my mind…Who’s is reading this blog?  Of course, the premise of a blog is to share your thoughts on the interweb (I love that word!)  with whoever so chooses to listen/read.  But those listeners or readers could be my competitors, right?  Not that I don’t want them reading my blog, but I sometimes find myself wanting to write about things that maybe I should keep to myself until they actually come to fruition.  It’s so hard to hold back when so many amazing things happen on a daily basis.

For instance, we want to align ourselves with partners who share our passion for supporting and inspiring young girls to lead healthy lives – and have fun doing it.  I came across Kids Who Rip and read the profiles of some kids who are doing some pretty amazing things.  What can we do with or for them?  At this stage, I’m not sure.  But do we want to be a part of what Kids Who Rip is doing and support their efforts?  Absolutely!  I probably should have waited to take this off of my private list of potential partners to call and put it out there for the world to read, but I can’t help myself.  I get so excited about the possibilities for JOON and the potential that we have to do some really cool things with and for young girls.

So, I guess I’ll exercise some restraint, but I promise that you’ll still be privy to some really cool thinking (and doing!).

Till later.

For a while, I went without washing my face with anything besides water and a wash cloth.  I was a little paralyzed by my options, or lack thereof.  I had sworn off conventional face wash products for obvious reasons.  I tried several natural alternatives, but none seemed to work.  One (I won’t name names) made me break out; another left a strange residue on my face.  I went through brand after brand with no luck.  I’m prone to breaking out so I was looking for a product for my ‘type’ of skin.  I’m still not sure exactly how to define my type of skin!  Finally, after a few weeks of plain water, I opened my cabinet filled with JOON prototypes and samples and cracked open a bottle of Happy Face Wash.  What do you know…it worked!  Because it’s non-foaming, it didn’t dry out my skin.  I’m not 6 or 12 (I won’t divulge my age!), but we developed the face wash to be gentle and that’s just what it is.  Problem solved.  But wait…what about a moisturizer?  That’s where I really need something that’s made for someone with older, somewhat problematic, for lack of a better word, skin.  Of course I love our Happy Face Moisturizer SPF 15 (and I wear it when I run!), but I need something for everyday wear.  One day, while perusing the aisles at Target – I’m always checking out what’s new in the beauty aisle (it’s my job!) – I saw a hot pink tube of something.  I believe I was drawn to it because the packaging was pink!  Hmmmmm…Weleda Wild Rose Day Cream.  I know the Weleda brand well.  I’ve tried lots of their products, without much success.  Still, I dropped it in my cart to try it out.  I have to say that I’m loving it!  I love the smell, the way it goes on my skin, the way my skin looks hours later.  It doesn’t make me break out.  It doesn’t make me look oily.  It’s not drying.  It’s just perfect for me.  I know this may sound crazy, and I’m not a big believer in claims like “reduces the appearance of fine lines”, but I have to say that I think this cream makes my skin look brighter and younger.  I’m not trying to turn back the hands of time, just trying my best to naturally slow them down!  They’re not paying me to say this, by the way.  The people over at Weleda don’t even know who I am!

I’m sure you don’t often read of one natural skin care company commending another.  It’s not unheard of, but it’s not the norm.  But, I applaud companies that are doing the right thing and doing it well.  And, I have much respect for a company like Weleda who has been doing it since the dialogue about natural products was even an open one.

So, if you’re in your 30s (still not giving away my exact age!) and you’re looking for a good every day moisturizer, check it out.  And, if you’re a mom of girls ages 6 – 12, keep checking out our site and stay tuned for the JOON launch!

If you watch the video on our “story” page or carefully read through the JOON site, you’ll notice the repetition of the word “healthy”.  Healthy is the foundation of our brand, our guiding principle.  It guides the products we develop, the ingredients we use, how we think about and communicate with our JOON Girls, the selection of our partners.  Healthy can mean a lot of things – physical health, mental health, spiritual health (mind + body + soul), but for us, we chose to embrace how girls internalize the word.  Before we even began formulating the JOON line, I did a lot of research with young girls about the idea of healthy beauty.  I was pleasantly surprised to hear the words that they associated with this concept:  strong/strength, free to do what you want, smart, confident, bold, playing and “just being with friends and being yourself”.

I don’t believe for a minute that JOON could be a successful business if we, ourselves, didn’t embrace our JOON Girls’ vision of Healthy Beauty.  Fortunately, it’s not hard to practice what we preach because JOON exists within us.  Here’s a little story about the JOON in me…

…last night I had to keep my 4 year old busy while dad was working (hard and diligently on JOON!).  So, I decided to let him watch a few minutes of TV before bath time.  I hadn’t been in the TV room all day, so I was so surprised when I walked in a saw a brand new road bike propped against the wall!  It’s a huge commitment to ride (and run) when  you’ve got 2 kids, a business to get off the ground and grow, friends, a husband…the list goes on.  But, riding and running early in the morning is a freedom like no other.  I can let my mind go where it wants and not have to think or worry about anything.  I feel strong.  I feel confident (you have to when you’re riding in the dark amongst the traffic that’s just on their way home from the night before!). I haven’t been riding in years and I can’t wait to get back out there.  I can’t wait to smell the ocean air as I ride along the beach and watch the sunrise on my way home from a long ride.

Because the idea of JOON is such a part of who I am, it’s effortless to tell our story and to create products that I know girls will love (with their help and feedback, of course!).

What’s the JOON in you?

I don’t want to keep our JOON Girls waiting, so I’ve been working on a few interesting JOON items for our girls to discover online!  I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag until I’ve worked out all the details.  Stay tuned!  (there will be some cool finds this holiday season!)

As I was slathering my baby in sunscreen before our afternoon walk, I was reminded of being a young girl and the ridicule that I endured when I would put on sunscreen at the beach with my friends.  My mom was a stickler not so much for sunscreen, but for staying out of the sun – period.  So, when I did venture out to the beach, which was inevitable given I grew up in South Florida, I was forced to wear a sunscreen by Clinique which had either zinc or titanium dioxide in it.  I didn’t read labels back then (most people didn’t), but I do recall that it turned my skin a horrible  ghostly shade of white with a weird hint of purple.  My friends all slathered on their Coopertone or whatever brand they used and never turned the color that I did, but I was afraid of the wrath of my mom, so I begrudgingly put on my sun block that turned my skin alien.

In trying to develop a good sunscreen for our line, I was adamant about our sunscreen being cosmetically appealing.  In order to do so, I realized that our product would have to include toxic chemical ingredients.  I learned that only one chemical sunscreen (Avobenzone) is legal in Europe.  All the others have been banned.  Why? Because chemical sunscreens generate free radicals that can damage cells; contain hormone-altering chemicals; and contain synthetic chemicals that can be toxic.

At the end of the day, we had to do what’s best for our JOON Girls.  And, what’s best isn’t always pretty.  Our Happy Face Moisturizer SPF 15 contains both Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide for the best broad spectrum coverage.  When one of our girls tried the product she said, “It turned me purple.”  I can relate.  But I’d rather be a little purple and protected than at risk for skin cancer down the road.  Girls don’t look that far into the future (why would they when the present moment is so fulfilling?), so it’s our job to make sure that they leave the house armed with the knowledge and the right products to protect their skin.

Admittedly, I don’t say thanks to my mom a whole lot, though I should.  To this day, I don’t leave home without some sort of protection on my skin – even when the sun isn’t shining.   Thanks, Mom.

Our plan is to launch the JOON brand with the original scents of Apricot Mint and Vanilla Floral in April and then give the girls something new to experiment with around holiday season.  So, I’m wondering what summer smells like when you’re dreaming of it.  In most parts of the country, it gets pretty chilly during the holidays. Some are lucky enough to enjoy a white Christmas.  (We don’t get those down here in South Florida!) I love snow sports, but after about a week of cold and snow, I have to admit that I long to feel the warmth of the sun on my skin. When it’s cold outside and you were wishing you were somewhere warm and sunny, maybe taking a dip in the ocean, what smells connect you to that time and place?  I’ve got some ideas in mind and I need to write a brief for our fragrance house pretty soon, but I just wanted to pose the questions to those of you reading this to get your thoughts.

So, I’m back from the HBA Expo and I have to say that JOON absolutely had the best booth!  Even people who weren’t interested in body and skin care for young girls stopped by because they loved the JOON packaging (!), wanted to find out what we were all about (!) and, of course, wanted to try some amazing Apricot Mint and Vanilla lemonade.  (By the way, I have to thank the adorable JOON Girls who served lemonade.  You were awesome!)

Now on to the topic of building a successful naturals brand.  Even though we haven’t launched, I believe that we’re definitely doing everything right to build a brand because brand building begins from the start, not just once you hit the market.  (notice I said “brand” NOT “naturals brand”!) What will make our brand successful is how people, specifically girls, their moms and the industry react to JOON and what we have to offer.  As we enter a market that is wide open – there are only a handful of brands that market natural health/beauty products to young girls and most have just recently launched  -  I keep my eye on all to track their goings on and their successes.  Interestingly, I’ve seen that some just aren’t gaining traction.  I believe there is definitely room for more than one brand in this space – competition is good and keeps us all on our toes, but what’s going on?

Seeing what others are doing (or not) makes us work harder.  It also makes us realize that what we are creating truly is different.  One of the speakers at the show, Jasper Van Brakel, CEO Weleda North America opened his speech with images of Apple and Mini, iconic consumer brands.  That is our goal:  to be an iconic brand for young girls everywhere.  Not an easy feat, but a doable one, in my opinion.  I suppose for girls, the standard would be Barbie instead of Mini.  Watch out, Barbie!

Welcome to JOON!  All this hard work has finally paid off!  Our web site has launched and I’m about to head up to New York to introduce the world to JOON!  Check out our new site and let me know what you think.  Of course, I’m a bit biased so I happen to think it’s awesome!

And, about the HBA show…if you haven’t heard of it, it just so happens to be the largest beauty industry trade show in the United States and it’s held only once a year!

If you happen to be in NYC September 15 – 17 and you want to check out our booth, see our products and have a tasty surprise treat, just click here and you can get a free pass to the expo! Just be sure to use PRIORITY CODE EXH350146 when you register. We’re going to be at booth #1336.  You can’t miss us…just look for the lemonade stand!

I’ll make sure to post photos of the show.  You can also follow us on twitter for updates on what we’re doing and seeing at the show!

Did you know that our main brand color – that cool pink that is technically called “rubine red” – has sparked a debate about the environment?   Who knew?

So, the story is that “rubine red” is a 5-color process that requires additional energy, labor, and resources to print.  A printer pointed out that we could minimize our environmental footprint if we switched our color to “magenta” which is a 4-color process, requiring fewer resources.  We happen to like our color and so do lots of girls who were instrumental in helping us choose not only the color, but the logo!

Being someone who considers herself a middle-of-the-road green consumer, I’m not quite sure how much of an impact we would make if we switched.  So many things to consider.

This is only one example of how complex not only this green movement is to navigate, but how it’s not enough to just say you’re a “green” company without understanding the full implications of that word.  I’m meeting with the printer so that I can become more informed and make the best decision for our company, our JOON girls and the environment.  Stay tuned…