Must Have Beauty Product???

Following is an except from a column in a personal care trade magazine:

Beauty Essentials
Finally, can you guess what beauty product consumers just can do without when they’re out of the house? Lipstick? Foundation? Close, but not quite.

Marie Claire magazine asked about 20,000 readers what their must-have beauty solution is at the office. Surprisingly, 48% cited lip balm as the must-have product, with hand cream a distant second. According to Marie Claire, seven out of 10 people use lip balm every day and most have three or four products at a time.

“They pull it out between one to 12 times a day, so why not a product that is so accessible and so affordable?”

Of course, some formulas are more affordable than others. Balms can be purchased at a drugstore for about a buck, or you can buy Crème de la Mer  “The Lip Balm” for $55. Most formulas are intended to moisturize lips, but some of the newer products contain mildly abrasive agents to exfoliate lips.

The popularity of the stuff has led to question, “Can you  become addicted to lip balm?” No, not in a physiological sense, say experts, but lip balm can become an emotional crutch.

“Applying lip balm soothes the lips, feels good, and is often comforting which can help deal with stress or anxiety,” noted one dermatologist.

Zom B Gone

We're prepared for Halloween (and for the zombie apocalypse also)

Stay Calm and Grow A Mustache

Supporting Movember to raise awareness to men's health issues!

Burning Love

Wow - I guess it's been a while since I've posted.  I ran across this discussion the other day and thought it was pertinent to share:

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles have been used increasingly in sunscreens in the last decade to protect the skin because the tiny particles directly absorb the radiation from sunlight, especially in the UVB range. But because the articles are so tiny — generally about 100 nanometers across, compared with about 3,000 to 9,000 nanometers for a speck of dust — some scientists have raised concerns about whether they might do harm by seeping through the skin and into the bloodstream.

Concerns grew when studies in mice showed that when injected under the skin, titanium dioxide caused inflammation . In addition, the International Agency on Cancer Research, part of the World Health Organization, decided in 2006 to classify titanium dioxide as a potential human carcinogen, based mostly on inhalation studies in animals, though the group called the evidence “conflicting at best.”

But research has largely dismissed such concerns about absorption, and most experts say that sunscreens containing nanoparticles can be safely used.

More recently, concerns have focused on the possibility that these nanoparticles could promote skin aging. Nanoparticles tend to heat up a little when they absorb UV radiation, says Paul Westerhoff, a professor at Arizona State University’s School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, and some research suggests that this process could cause oxidative damage to the skin, particularly with one form, called anatase, when it was delivered in uncoated particles.

Dr. Westerhoff says most manufacturers now coat the nanoparticles with silicon or aluminum as a buffer against such harm and as a way to increase light absorption. But, researchers say, there’s some evidence that those coatings can break down over days or weeks, which may be an issue for sunscreens stored too long.

“I’m not saying that titanium dioxide is bad,” Dr. Westerhoff said. But he noted recently in Environmental Science and Technology that the products have not been thoroughly studied and are minimally regulated. The only Food and Drug Administration rule for sunscreens is that the titanium dioxide concentration be less than 25 percent (most are 2 percent to 15 percent). “I’m just saying we need to figure out if we should worry.”

Brrrrrrrrrr

It's not quite 127 degrees below zero, but 15 degrees below zero is dangerously cold.  Luckily we have lip balms to help keep our lips from getting too chap in this second round of "polar vortex" weather.  We can supply your business with a variety of lip balms that you can hand out to customers...they will think of you everytime they use the lip balm....hmmmm, that's better than a business card!

When Pig's Fly...

The was a story on NPR's Marketplace program yesterday regarding popular pork dishes in New York that are utilizing unusual parts of pigs.  An except from the story follows: 
"While the supply of pigs might be shrinking, demand for pork has been flying high. "Bacon has been a very big food trend," says brand consultant Debra Kaye, author of Red Thread Thinking. Kaye says our cultural tastes have evolved and we are embracing bacon like never before. "We started to see that sweet, smoky, salty could go together... and what is better salty and smoky than bacon? And that's where it really started to take off."
Case in point: bacon donuts, bacon cocktails, bacon chocolates, bacon-flavored vodka, bacon ice cream, bacon lip balm...
All this new demand + low supply = the price of pork goes up..."

Bacon lip balm caught our eye...and yes, we are guilty...We've made numerous orders of bacon flavored lip balm....

Jump Around...

Our lip balms are traveling again.  We made an appearance at the Capital One Bowl in Orlando.  Unfortunately a resounding "Jump Around" rendition between the third and fourth quarters wasn't enough to help our Badgers on to victory.  At least the weather was nicer in Florida than Wisconsin!

This is the Season & Reason for Lip Balm

Winter officially begins this upcoming weekend, Saturday, December 21^st.  It’s also the start of Bowl Season in college football, with 35 bowl games from December 21^st through January 6^th.  Not to mention the “professional teams” have their big match-up on Super Bowl Sunday, February 2^nd.  The more intriguing discussion is not necessarily the teams slated for the game or what the final score and outcome will be?  Rather, it’s about the weather and what a possible Nor’easter might do to the eastern corridor as it prepares for the biggest game of the year. 

As preparations continue to be made for each and every bowl game, a recent Associated Press post noted that, “ticket holders entering MetLife Stadium will receive a gift bag.  Inside are a seat cushion, muffler, ski gaiters, three pairs of hand-and-foot warmers, lip balm and a package of tissues.”  That’s right—Lip Balm.  Lip balm in a swag bag.  It works for me.  Actually, you will find lip balm in many swag bags across our nation during bowl season and beyond.  Allure magazine mentioned several different styles of lip balms to be included in swag bags leading up to Fashion Week in New York City. 

So, no matter what bowl game you might be privilege to attend—hopefully in a warmer place minus the wintery conditions.  One thing to remember this season—that’s right—lip balm.  Whether (weather) the outdoor conditions are “frightful” or you happen to have the luxury of soaking up the sun.   Look for the soothing protection and comfort of lip balm. 

Now, where is my swag bag?  Oh yea, it will be at the Capital One Bowl—Wisconsin vs. South Carolina in Orlando.  I better make sure that my lip balm is SPF30.  This is the Season.    

IT'S COLDER THAN...

As we prepare for the deep freeze over the next few days, it's hard enough to smile when the temperature dips. But don't make it worse by neglecting your lips, which are especially vulnerable in winter because they don't contain oil glands.  To keep them soft and prevent chapping, keep them moisturized. And don't forget that they're susceptible to sunburn.  Broad Spectrum SPF 15 or 30 will protect your lips from the sun.

What will you give?

A simple question, yet, an impactful response.   

With so much discussion of Black Friday and Cyber Monday following a Day of Thanksgiving—our thoughts recently turned on this Tuesday to: “What will you give?”

Well, our staff here at Alliance Packaging Group, Inc., was quick to answer and responded through action on that very important question.  Through Tuesday, December 3, 2013, our efforts and community involvement reaches locally with useful lip balm samples and donations to the Saukville American Legion and a local bank to share with participants at an annual run/walk.  On a larger scale, our products, (i.e. – lip balms, hand sanitizers and sun screen) were included in care packs that are often shared with the homeless in Milwaukee through the tireless work of Mr. Bob’s “Under the Bridge” program—which was started back in 2007.  In addition, we continue to support the Milwaukee Rescue Mission, Balance Inc., North Texas Rehabilitation Services, Ozaukee County National Night Out, Advocates of Ozaukee County and Celebrate Grafton, Family Sharing of Grafton and Saukville Community Food Pantry.  Yes, a small sampling of giving back, but, on this #GivingTuesday™, it is our way to make mention on how WE GIVE and IMPACT our communities. 

What will you give? 

Have a great #GivingTuesday—EVERYDAY!

Keep A Stiff Upper Lip

A few of our favorite mustaches as we do our part to help raise awareness of men's health issues during Movember

Let Alliance Packaging be your R&D lab

We had a customer visit today from sunny California.  He had high praise for our R&D lab and our Quality personnel as we helped them develop a new product and advise on appropriate labeling to comply with  FDA label guidelines.  KUDOS to our staff for helping our customer expand their product line and ultimately increase their sales with us.

Not Just for Lips!

Lip balm is just made for lips, right? Wrong! It turns out lip balm can be used on many other body parts. Here are five surprising lip balm uses.

Joints

No one likes dry, scaly skin, but surprisingly, lip blam can me a miracle worker for more than your luscious lips. Lip balm can be used for any type of chapping. Just ask Jamie Bushman, owner of The Circle Salon in Chicago: "I rub it into my knuckles and elbows when they are dry," she says. Also try lip balm on your knees and feet.

Cuticles

Bushman and Patty Gatter of Scottie Girl cosmetics both vote for lip balm as a cuticle moisturizur. It's not messy and is easy to apply. Bushman says, "It's easy to massage into dry cuticles."
Felicia Alva, a licensed esthetician, educator and makeup artist in Los Angeles points out, "If it can hydrate lips, why not your cuticles too?"

Hair

Fingernails aren't the only things that dry out. "I will use lip balm to smooth the ends of my hair, especially in the winter when my hair is dry," says Bushman. "It is great for curly or very porous ends that need a little extra attention. A little goes a long way."

Makeup

Just because you're using other products on your lips doesn't mean you have to skip the body part lip balm was made for. "Lip balm should be used even when you're using lipstick, if fills in cracks and makes a even surface for the next product being placed on the lips!" says hair and makeup artist Heather C. Adessa.
Also try lip balm on other features. "Lip Balm can be used lightly on the eyelids with eyeshadow to give a shimmer,"says April Meese, owner of Customized Beauty Ltd.
Anne Taintor's Strawberry Daiquiri lip balm is soft, offers SPF 15 and has a nice tint.

Noses

"I know a lot of people who get dry noses from having a cold during the winter from those darn scratchy tissues!" says Adessa. "I tell people to get a medicated chapstick and simply write "N" (for nose) on the top, so you don't use it for your lips, and use that on your nose when you're done blowing. It soothes the skin around the nose so that it doesn't dry and get flaky, and since it's in a stick you don't have to put your finger to apply it to your nose for sanitary reasons."

Eyebrows

Margot Grant, beauty director of Elizabeth Grant Skincare Intl, suggests using lip balm to tame eye-brows gone a-stray.
Alva echoes this trick. "In a pinch I've used lip balm as a brow tamer, along with a spoolie brush/wand." Simply apply a little to the eyebrows and use your eyebrow brush for shaping.

Shaving during "no shave month"?

Use lip balm if you cut yourself shaving!!

Alliance Packaging Group Posts Record...

The American Small Business can not be held down.  The American Economy can not be held down.  The American Worker can be held down. Together we are stronger and better than ever.

Kudos to Shawn and her hard working crews for delivering a record setting month in production.  More product went in and out our doors in April 2013 than ever before.  Good Clients.  Good front office, good production.  All GOOD!  We had a little cake to celebrate

Lipstick versus Lip Balm-Ask Dr. Ginger!

One of our fine providers of flavors and fragrances has a great blog.  Below is a recent entry.  Sometimes this blog writes itself!
The Pied Piper

Dear Dr. Ginger-
As an avid lipstick-wearer, I’m really getting sick of the awful taste of it. Lately I’ve been switching to lip balm or lip gloss because of the nasty taste of lipstick and I’ve found the others to be a more desirable taste. Why does lipstick taste so bad and why can’t they taste like lip balm?
-Cosmetics Consume-r


Dear Cosmetics Consume-r,
You mean that your tube of “fruit punch” lipstick doesn’t taste wonderful? I feel your pain- I can’t say I enjoy the taste of lipstick either. That’s partly because you’re not supposed to eat lip stick.
There are many rumors of women consuming three to 10 pounds of lipstick in their lifetime, which has been dis-proven many times. That number may be outlandish, but it is still possible for women to consume more lipstick than they should.
The main reason for why lipstick doesn’t taste good is that is made of chemicals. There are some (not all) lipsticks out there that are not actually approved for human consumption. If you are afraid of this, you should research the product online first.
Of course, some of the non-natural lip balms that are flavored are actually full of chemicals, too, which isn’t always best for you, either. It is best to avoid these and look for natural ingredients in lip balms as these are actually beneficial to your health!
My advice to you is to look for more natural lip color products to replace your typical lipstick tube or switch to lip balm or lip gloss. Lip balm and lipstick both have their own benefits so it is really up to the wearer what product they want to use. For example, lipstick is used for coloring, and lip balm is to protect your lips from drying up.
To answer your overall question: a typical lipstick has chemicals that don’t taste so great. Look for lip balms or lipsticks that are full of natural ingredients. These are great for you and taste much better.
If you’ve got a flavor of lip balm you want, you should let your favorite flavor company know and recommend Northwestern Extract to get a specific flavor!
Hopefully this answers your question.
Write back soon!
-Dr. Ginger

Lip Licking

Of the many ways to cause your poor lips to dehydrate, lip licking is near the top.  We all love soft and pliable lips.  We love good breath and healthy teeth.  But you have to get past the dry and chapped lips first. If you your lips, use lip hydration.  One of the nice things about the 300 plus lip balm formulas we keep in the secret vault, there is a lip balm to please everyone and anyone.  Have a better formula or idea?  Find me and we will conquer the world. America's Best Private Label lip balm makers right here.

The Pied Piper

The Sun has been rediscovered!

As snow continues to clog the mighty month of March and Spring that is to come is lost some where, I thought it would do us all good to see what we can expect to see one of these days.  2013 has us with plenty of broad spectrum sunscreen for our clients and we sure hope to use some sooner rather than later.  Come on April, bring us SUN SHINE!

New Products for 2013 from our Lab

Made in America Products at our house start with made in our American Lab tests and trials.
So what is coming out of the lab for 2013?  A lot of good things! 

• A new line of high flavor lip balms that will be entering the main stream this year.
• Broad Spectrum Sun Screen has been completed and tested.
• A new base for a select line of face paints.  We are always improving!
• Some unusual masking materials to help hide the human scent.  Bow hunters delight!
• A line of high end spa products and amenities for the Boutique Hotel trade.
• A cleansing agent for Brass Instrument mouth pieces.
• Some new variants of cork grease for musical instruments.
• A revised formula bug balm for personal pest patrolling.

There are lots more but it is only month two in 2013 and we will continue to develop products that make a difference!

The Pied Piper

Used to be Lincoln logs, now it's LinkdIn blogs

Blogging about the blog itself today.

We quietly are celebrating our 5000 visitor to our blog.  This milestone as encouraging while disconcerting.  Encouraging because we are capturing some eyeballs in this experimental stage of using the medium to deliver a message.  Disconcerting in the lack of a focused voice for this blog.  We are as spinning top and you never know where you will land.

We started to blog with out a road map but rather an inclination.  As big believers in road maps and goals, it was hard to suggest an achievable or believable goal.  Maybe by 6000 visitors we can sort it out and develop a plan.  In the meantime as we once played with Lincoln logs, we now play with LinkedIn Blogs!

The Pied Piper