Jada Eley decided to start an online store, she went into it with the mindset of a shopper.

She looked for items that she would be interested in buying. And she made sure to offer plenty of samples because she likes to try things before she buys them.

In December 2006, the Ohio curly launched Beautylookingglass.com, an online boutique offering everything from toothpaste to baby products.

“It’s something I really enjoy,” says Eley, who works as a chemist for a food company. “I like helping people find quality products, and it’s nice if I can make a living doing it.”

Eley says the idea for Beautylookingglass.com came from her own frustration finding quality products. She started researching ingredients in her scientific journals and searching for the hottest products containing some of the best ingredients — ingredients such as shea butter and natural botanical oils. It made sense to create a place that sold the products she discovered.

Beautylookglass.com sells a variety of quality products, including Einstein Lip Theory Cooling Relief, top, Marvis Toothpastes, and Little Twig Baby Wash.

“I wanted to create a boutique filled with the best things I’ve found,” Eley says. “It just went from there.”

Some of her personal favorites include the Marvis toothpastes, the LaLicious line of body products — especially the Sugar Souffle Scrubs — Philip B Chocolate Body Wash and Maura Peters Cocoa Tarte candles.

“I have a chocolate fetish,” she says. “I just take the lid off and smell it.”

Eley has made sampling an integral part of her business. She provides up to three samples with each order.

“I’m a big believer in sampling,” Eley says. “I like the idea of seeing what you’re getting. That’s how I found a lot of the products I like.”

Beautylookingglass.com is offering NaturallyCurly.com members a 15 percent discount. To take advantage of this discount, use the promotion code NATCURL.

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