At long last, we can have our brunch, and get our yoga on too.

What’s with the 9 a.m. Sunday morning yoga classes? We’ve long maintained that there’s some sort of yoga conspiracy that wants to keep us from hitting snooze on weekends.

So naturally the convenient schedule is what initially drew us to Espace Mukti, and the laid-back vibe, challenging classes and amazing atmosphere have kept us coming back for more.

Why shouldn’t practicing be fulfilling and practical? —Christine Laroche

4051 de Bullion St., Montreal, 514-419-5272, sites.espacemukti.com/espace-mukti-yoga/home

It’s almost sandal season. Are you committing a cardinal sin?

We recently lunched with the head honcho at Lotus Aroma for the re-launch of the South Shore-based brand. There were two takeaways: First, the brand’s collection is now made from 99.5% natural ingredients and packaging is made from recycled materials, which we love.

Second, if two foot-specific products have been added to lineup, it’s because of two run-ins with gorgeous, impeccably dressed women who committed a major beauty infraction: Cracked, chapped, and altogether unsightly feet.

We have vowed not to be that girl this summer, so we’re slathering up Lotus Aroma 3 in 1 Foot Care ($16) that protects, moisturizes, exfoliates and deodorizes.

The only thing our feet will be guilty of is fabulosity. – Christine Laroche

At Jean Coutu, 1675 Ste-Catherine St. W., Montreal, www.jeancoutu.com

Good news: A new study shows a link between frequent chocolate consumption and lower body mass index.

We think this is some pretty sweet information (with impeccable timing), so let’s have it, Easter Bunny: Macarons from Point G, cupcakes from D Liche, chocolate from Le Maître Chocolatier and, yes, Mini Eggs from WalMart.

Not sold on the health benefits of the sweet stuff? Fine, just to be safe, let’s throw a handful of Eos Smooth Spheres ($3.99 each) into the basket. They’re yummy, calorie-free, moisturizing and too cute in their egg-like package. —Christine Laroche

At Chapters Indigo, 1500 McGill College Ave., Montreal, 514-281-5549, www.chapters.indigo.ca

For the next few weeks, we’re keeping our newfound tourtière top under wraps by banning all things low-rise but we’ll be hitting the mat in style nonetheless with Lululemon’s new Will pants, from $88.

We love that these high-rise leggings will prevent us from plumber-esque exposure and who can resist cute pockets?

Full disclosure: We will probably wear them to lounge around the apartment for one more day, but they’ll be downward dogging it with the best of ‘em at tomorrow’s (free) yoga class at Lululemon’s St-Denis Street location. —Christine Laroche

Lululemon, 4361 St-Denis St., Montreal, 514-849-3719, www.lululemon.com

You can always count on the Swedes to come up with a product that is more functional and better looking than its predecessors.

Say goodbye to the nose aspirator and say hello to the Nose Frida. This highly effective snot sucker works by allowing you to suck it straight out of your little one’s nose. Don’t worry, the mucus won’t come anywhere near your mouth, but it will come shooting straight out of their blocked passages. Not the most fun of tools, but you won’t complain once you’ve seen how well it works.

And after all, we want our turkeys and our stockings to be stuffed, but certainly not our kids’ noses. —Alexandra Suhner Isenberg

$22.99 at Whole Foods, 510 W. 8th Ave., Vancouver, www.wholefoods.com

As we whip our winter coats out of storage (and find the $20 bills we purposely left in the pockets in the spring for a happy fall surprise), we’re taking steps to ensure that our skin doesn’t dry out by slipping lip balms in all pockets and purses and putting hand creams on every available surface of our home.

Two of our favourite new products come from the naturally antiseptic Bella Vita propolis line, created from bee secretions, pollen and tree resin. The ingredients may sound a bit weird, but the soothing Miracle Hand Balm ($15), which also contains emu oil, castor oil and comfrey to soften and heal hands, and the Rendez-Vous Lip Balm ($7), which moisturizes lips (without dependency-causing mint), offer quick and long-lasting relief from winter chapping, flaking and itching.

Stay smooth. —Jennifer Nachshen

At Avril Supermarche Sante, www.avril.ca, and other health food stores. 

We like the idea of cleansing and detoxing. Really, we do. We just don’t like the idea of buying a juicer and 25 lbs of vegetables to make it happen.

Now we can follow in the Louboutin-steps of celeb-cleansers like Blake Lively, Julia Stiles and Olivia Wilde with the Blue Print Cleanse, finally available in Quebec and Ontario. We ordered the Renovation package ($195 plus $60 shipping) and received three days’ worth of cleansing juices, filled with about 20lbs of fruits and veggies. It took a couple of sips to get used to the Green Juice, containing romaine, celery, cucumber, spinach, kale, parsley and lemon, but by our next bottle we found we craved the fresh taste. The pineapple, apple and mint juice is so delicious, you’ll want to mix it like a mojito and call it a Friday (but don’t!). Finish every day with the comforting creamy cashew milk with a Chai-like flavour that will lull you into lala-land. Reported benefits of the BP cleanse include allergy relief, increased energy, boosted immune system, digestive relief and weight loss.

All we know is that we feel lighter and brighter from the inside out. —Jennifer Nachshen

www.blueprintcleanse.com or call 1-866-774-6831.

We usually keep our toothpaste tube hidden away in a drawer along with the other lotions and potions we don’t want visitors to see.

But the artistically retro tubes of Italian import, Marvis Toothpaste ($10), are too
cute to keep concealed. Originally designed for smokers, the all-natural, highly concentrated paste uses powdered alum to clean teeth and freshen breath in seven minty flavours including Cinnamon, Ginger, and Jasmine. We tried the Amarelli Liquorice Mint in the edgy black and silver tube and were delighted by the subtly sweet flavour (with no black tongue!).

Now our toothpaste has an amazing sink side seat of honour. —Jennifer Nachshen

At Gourmet Laurier, 1042 Avenue Laurier W., Montreal, 514-274-5601, www.marvismint.com

As summer turns into fall, our skincare routine is in for a major upheaval. New freckles, SPF-induced acne and unwanted (as opposed to wanted?) facial hair are on the outs with some of the newest drugstore products designed to SOS (Save Our Skin)!

Olay has two new products that make our skin sing: the Smooth Finish Facial Hair Removal Duo ($29.99), which rids us of that shadow on our upper lip without replacing it with red bumps, and their new 3-step Pro-X Clear system to prevent and treat adult acne. At Pharmaprix, www.pharmaprix.ca

It sometimes seems that skin creams are made either for teens or women in their fifties. Lierac’s new Initiatic line was created to treat and prevent the first wrinkles that begin to emerge in women in their thirties. The softly-scented formula combines high-tech peptides and anti-oxidant Goji fruit extract to protect mitochondrial DNA and boost collagen production, so wrinkles can wait a while. At Pharmaprix, www.pharmaprix.ca

Of course we believe in beauty from the inside out, but Functionalab Advanced Nutricosmetics takes it to the next level with their beauty supplements (think, vitamins specially designed for your skin). We doubled up with the Collagen and Opti-Tan formulas and found our skin firmer and glowier within the month! At Brunet, www.brunet.ca

Recently rebranded to include a sleek and sexy logo and packaging makeover, Jouviance’s EcoSystemic Skin Care line brings skin into balance with the elements. We love the First Defense Antioxidant Emulsion cream ($62) which lightens age and sun spots in addition to hydrating and increasing elasticity. At Brunet, www.brunet.ca —Jennifer Nachshen

We try to keep fit by doing a variety of workouts, but with our less than stable core, our downward dogs and jab ‘n bobs sometimes leave our lower back feeling rather sore.

The hour-long classes (fees start at $25 per class) at the bright and airy Essentrics Studio incorporate eccentric exercises, as well as techniques from ballet and Tai Chi, to elongate and tone muscles, creating a lithe look. After completing a one-hour class filled with flowing movements and supple strengthening, we felt one inch taller—minus any lower back woes. In fact, our back felt better than ever,

An exercise that soothes as well as strengthens? We’re in. —JN

Essentrics Studio, 3431 Stanley St., Montreal, 514-989-0236, www.essentricsstudio.com