I came upon Mario Badescu's Spa and Salon when I was visiting my girlfriends up in New York City. One of them went in to buy a make up remover soap that she swore is the best ever. I wasn't really looking to buy anything since I was happy with the brand I have been using previously.

Now I have never heard of Mario Badescu before I stepped into his shop located on east 52nd street in New York City. But as I browsed around I noticed a lot of celebrity autographs with thanks and praises. Impressive I thought. At first the store reminded me of The Body Shop. Not because of the color scheme but because of their earth friendly policy on make ups.

As my girlfriend went to get what she was looking for I started wandering around, learning about the different skin care products they have available and like an absolute dork trying out every sample. So there I was doing my thing and I stopped at the facial cleaners and I started smelling the samples and reading the ingredients.

I was absolutely oblivious to my surroundings then when I sensed a someone behind me and I felt a tap on my shoulder. So I turned around with a bottle of facial cleanser stuck to my nose. In front of me was Mishca Barton of The OC fame. She was dressed fashionably in jeans and t-shirt (yes she looks good in anything).

I stepped aside so she could grab several bottles of what I guess was her favorite facial cleansers. She thanked me for getting out of her way and went straight to the counter.

Boy was I embarrassed. A facial cleanser up in my nose in front of a celebrity. Worse part my girlfriend saw the whole thing. And guess what? She never lets up on the story to this day and tells everyone.

In the Mario Badescu store in NYC and on their website, you can find an incredible amount of celebrity praise and reviews. Celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, Liv Tyler, Jennifer Aniston, Charlize Theron, Ashley Judd, Heidi Klum and ohhhh yes Brad Pitt. Yes they have male skin care products as well. What I liked about this is that the celebrities are not being paid to say such nice things about their products.

The list goes on and on like some kind of Hollywood walk of fame. You should really check out their website, just out of curiosity and see who uses Mario Badescu's products.

Since all of these celebrities rely on their looks as their livlihood and they trust and use Mario Badescu's products, I can feel relieved knowing that these products are beneficial.

So my friend bought her make up remover soap and I ended up buying, facial cleansers, hydrating hand cream and a chamomile shampoo that works wonders and smells heavenly. The funny thing was I wasn't even going to buy anything in the beginning.

My younger sister has some acne problem and she has a hard time clearing it up. I wanted to post up some pictures but she threatened to kill me. She was serious too haha.

I saw some of Mario Badescu's line of acne treatment products so I bought a kit for her. It cost me $46 plus NYC tax, but I think they don't charge tax if it's shipped out of state when you order online at mariobadescu.com.

This comprehensive kit comes with their world famous Drying Lotion (1oz.) that clears up whiteheads overnight while the Drying Cream (0.5 oz.) and Buffering Lotion (1 oz.) help to fight acne before it starts.

She swears that it has helped her achieve a cleaner look and I can tell it really boosted her self confidence. I think she's beautiful all the time anyways.

It took her about a week and a half to notice some great results and she's never been more happier.

Mario Badescu only uses natural ingredients in all of their beauty products. From what I've been told by their knowledgeable staff they only use a minimum amount of preservatives to give their products extra shelf life. The general shelf life of their products last from six to eight months. Some of their astringents can last up to a year. All of their products have the ingredients listed and are very easy to read. Even if I don't understand what some of them are I can easily look it up.

Most importantly they do not test on animals.