Naturally Green Beauty

Clean Up the Environment (and yourself!)

2009-07-13T16:25:00.000-07:00

When diseases (such as swine flu) are spreading rapidly, it’s always a good idea to wash your hands frequently and protect yourself. Here are some great soaps that protect the environment too!

Kiss my Face
This moisturizing soap combines olive oil, for its penetrating emollience and aloe vera, for its hydrating properties, with vitamins a & e and herbs and flowers, each selected for their healing, nourishing and softening properties. Bonus: it comes in eight great scenes or fragrance free.
More info here!

Just Soap
These soaps are made from vegetable oils, essential oils, and organic herbs and spices and are biodegrabable. They are also not tested on animals and use recycled boxes, and minimal packaging, all of it recyclable. The coolest thing about them? They are blended by bicycle!
More info here!

Or, if you have a little bit of time on your hands, you can do it the DIY way. Not only are you sure to be using natural ingredients, you also can reuse the container to prevent extra plastic in landfills!

Recipes:

Honey Bee CP Soap
Olive Oil 32 oz. 
Palm Oil 16 oz.  
Tallow 24 oz. Totals 72 oz.  
5% Superfatted Lye Amount 9.477 oz. 
Ounces of water recommended 23.760 oz.  
At trace, add fragrance and 1 Tablespoon of Honey.
Do not insulate your soap as the Honey may cause your soap to superheat.

Easy Shea Butter CP Soap
Coconut Oil 16 oz. 
Olive Oil 18 oz. 
Palm Oil 16 oz. Shea Butter 4 oz. 
Tallow 16 oz. 
Totals 70 oz.  
5% Superfatted Lye Amount 9.815 oz. 
Ounces of water recommended 23.100 oz.

Go here for more info!

Thanks for reading everyone! Stay green and beautiful.

Boar Bristle Brushes

2009-07-11T10:27:00.000-07:00

A lot of magazines and websites have been hyping up boar bristle hairbrushes lately, leading to a lot of people wondering if there really is a big difference and they need a new hairbrush.

Actually, there is a difference. Boar bristles are easier on hair than cheap plastic brushes and they redistribute oils throughout hair, boosting shine. However, before you rush out and buy one I suggest you read on.

The major thing to consider when looking for a good brush is what you need it for most. Round brushes are great for blowouts (although it is best to avoid hairdryers and their damaging effects on hair) while paddle brushes are better at detangling.

When looking at the selection of boar bristle brushes in the store, also keep in mind the thickness of your hair. Natural bristles are best for fine to normal hair because, when alone, they can be too weak for tangles. I have relatively thick hair and was disappointed to find that my brush made with only boar bristles doesn’t do much in the way of detangling or even go all the way through my hair (it just brushes the surface). So, if you have medium to thick hair I strongly suggest you get a mix of nylon and natural bristles. If you have really coarse, thick hair, you may want to consider a stronger all-nylon hairbrush.

Thanks for reading!

Egg Mask Facial

2009-07-10T10:38:00.000-07:00

For healthy glowing skin, an awesome trick to try is an egg facial mask! The egg white acts more like it draws the oils out, while the egg yolk acts as a type of moisturizer. This is wonderful for making skin firmer as well.

Recipe:
• Get two small bowls.
• Crack one egg into one bowl.
• Separate the yolk and put it into the other bowl. Optional: Add a few drops of lemon juice if you have oily skin. It will help eliminate oil. Don't try it if you have dry skin, however, as it will irritate the skin.
• Spread the egg white around your face in circular upward motions while avoiding the eyes.
• Wait 15-30 minutes. You want it to harden on your face.
• Wash the egg white off of your face.
• Spread yolk around face in the same manner as the egg white.
• Wait 15-30 minutes.
• Wash the egg yolk off with warm water and pat dry.

Additional Tips:
Keep hair pulled back away from the face when doing this (obviously hair + raw egg = mess). I find it is easiest to do this right before taking a shower, it ensures that I get all the egg stuff after I am done.

Here’s a great video on this type of facial:

Don’t forget to use organic eggs, they are healthier and better for the environment!

Thanks for reading and staying beautiful the green way!

P.S. I am sorry for the long delay in doing a new post, I was on vacation and didn’t have internet access. I will make it up by doing a ton of posts this month though!

Pucker Up

2009-06-29T10:42:00.000-07:00

Of course everyone wants kissable lips, so here are some great natural lip balms you might want to give a try to keep your lips soft and beautiful.

Sally Hansen Natural Butter Lip Shimmer ($6 in drugstores):Made from 94% natural ingredients, including real mango and cocoa. One thing to note: this product is a “shimmer” and should not be used if you want a lot of color, it is sheer and just gives you a little bit of tint/shine.

Jess’ Bee Natural Lip Balm ($3 here):
This lip balm is natural (as the name implies) and is made with raw shea butter, sweet almond oil, beeswax, soybean oil, and vitamin E. It comes in peppermint, cinnamon, tangerine, grapefruit, lime and unscented.

The Merry Hempsters’ Organic Hemp Lip Balm ($39.60 for a case of 24 here or about $2.50 for 1 at a store near you):
This lip balm is made from organic canadian cannabis sativa (hemp) seed oil, and organic beeswax and comes in a variety of flavors including spearmint, lemon-lime, mandarin-orange, and vanilla. They also make varieties that are SPF 18 and vegan.

BeesWork ($5.95 here):
This natural lip balm is made from jojoba oil, beeswax, vitamin E, and other essential oils. Comes in mandarin peel, eucalyptus, lavender, vanilla mint, and red roses.

Eco Lips ($1.99 here)
The Eco Lips Pure and Simple balms offer delicious fruit flavors in a simple compilation of ingredients: Organic Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Organic Cera Alba (Beeswax), Organic Flavor, D-Alpha Tocopherol (Vitamin E). Cruelty Free. Gluten free. No Hydrogenated Oils. Petrolatum Free. Flavors include kiwi-strawberry, coconut, and grape.

Thanks for reading and keeping your beauty products green!

Take It Off!

2009-06-26T05:28:00.000-07:00

Since we just talked about nail polish, I guess we have to talk about what to use to remove it when you get tired of it or it starts chipping.

Suncoat, one of the nail polish brands I mentioned last post, also makes soy and corn based nail polish remover. This stuff is Non-toxic, non-carcinogenic, readily biodegradable, Paraben free, GMO free, non-flammable and not tested on animals.
More info here.

Priti Organic Spa also created a soy and corn based nail polish remover that is biodegradable, non-carcinogenic, free of any petroleum ingredients, derived from farm crops (supporting American farming), packaged in 100% recyclable glass bottles, and non-carcinogenic. More info here.

Provida makes a “Living Nails” organic nail polish remover. More info here.

Honey Bee Gardens has an acetone-free, fragrance-free formula. This is a totally odorless blend of alcohols. (Although I’m sure it’s good, this would not be my top choice due to the presence of alcohols in this one.) More info here.

Thanks for reading!

Pretty Nails Without the Fumes

2009-06-24T05:56:00.000-07:00

Doing your nails can be a great way to relax, de-stress, and look pretty, but the fumes found in nail polish can do a number on your health. The formaldehyde, DPB, and toluene in nail polish can cause some people severe headaches, dizziness, fatigue, skin irritations, sore throat, and even breathing problems if you are close to the nail polish for a long period of time (15 – 20 minutes). So, to rectify this problem, some manufacturers have begun to make organic nail polish.

Provida makes an organic top coat, more info about which can be found here.

Suncoat products makes water based nail polish in thirty-three great colors: suncoat products.

Zoya also makes organic nail polish, more info here.

Karma Organics also produces natural, non-toxic, chemical-free (no Toluene, Formaldehyde, or DBP) nail polish in more than 80 colors, including glow-in-the-dark shades: karma organics.

Priti Nails makes soy based nail polishes in 104 awesome colors: priti nails.

Want some great tips for doing your nails?
Check out julieg713’s channel on youtube! She has some awesome tutorials on doing many great styles from Christmas lights, to French-tip manicures, to Lady Gaga poker face themed. Here is one of my favorites, leopard print:

Leopard Print Nails Tutorial!
(Unfortunately she disabled embedding, so I can’t put it up here, but still check it out. I promise it will be worth your time!)

Stay green & beautiful, and thanks for reading!

A CASE for the Environment

2009-06-22T08:29:00.000-07:00

Everyone knows the saying “don’t judge a book by its cover,” but in this case I might make an exception. Here are some beauty products that work hard to make their containers as ecologically friendly as possible:

Physicians Formula Organic Wear Face Powder ($14 in drugstores):
This product’s paper compact has 93% less plastic than other compacts. The face powder is also made from organic ingredients and comes with a natural goat hair brush.

Cargo PlantLove Lipstick ($20 in Sephora stores):
This lipstick’s compostable case is made from corn, a renewable resource whose production has a carbon neutral footprint, and flower seeds are embedded in the box so you can plant it!

Aveda Rosemary Mint Shampoo ($9 at Aveda.com):
This shampoo’s bottle is made from recycled plastic.

Thanks for reading and staying beautiful the green way!

Sometimes a Pretty Face Needs a Mask!

2009-06-21T09:40:00.000-07:00

Happy Father’s Day! On Sundays, I generally like to take it easy and give my skin a treat in the form of a face mask or scrub. So, here a few homemade recipes for you to try. (These require stuff that you should have at home anyway and are much better for the environment because they do not require industrial processing or extra chemicals!)

Brown Sugar Face Scrub:

Mix ½ cup brown sugar, 2 Tbsp. olive oil, ½ tbsp of vanilla extracts and ½ tbsp of vitamin E. Apply to face and massage. Rinse off.

Note: The olive oil and vitamin E are really good for hydrating and healing your skin. If you don’t have the vanilla extracts or vitamin E at home, you can make it without them. I have also seen this recipe with milk in place of the olive oil and vitamin E, which also works very well.

Oatmeal/Honey Face Mask:

Mix ¼ cup oatmeal and ½ cup water, microwave to make a thick porridge, let cool to room temperature. Stir in 1 teaspoon honey and apply to face. Leave on for 15 minutes and rinse off.

Note: This face mask is especially good for people with acne or oily skin. The oatmeal soaks up extra oil on your face while the honey disinfects and heals skin.

Natural Skin Brightener Recipe:

Mix 1 tablespoon of turmeric powder in 1 cup of plain yogurt. Leave on for 5-10 minutes, then rinse off.

Note: This is especially good for people with dry skin or uneven skin tones. Turmeric powder is also supposed to help get rid of acne marks, so use this is you have acne scarring.

Thanks for reading and staying naturally beautiful the green way!

A Happy Brush is A Clean Brush

2009-06-20T11:42:00.000-07:00

Speaking of brushes, one important thing that people forget to do is wash them. Brushes soak up the oils and dirt on your skin and deposit them on the skin with later use. The excess oils and dirt are likely to cause acne and other blemishes. Therefore, one of the best things you can do for your skin is to wash your brushes at least once a week, if not after every use. So, to help those who are new to this, here is a wonderful video by julieg713 detailing how to wash them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PS8TAJQg6Q

While you can buy a brush cleanser, it is better both for the environment and your wallet if you do it the natural/green way and make your own. So, here is a great video by EnKore Makeup on how to make your own brush cleanser.

If you are too busy or in a hurry and can’t watch the video, here is the recipe:
Mix
1 cup distilled/purified water,
¼ cup rubbing alcohol (90% preferably),
½ Tbsp. dish soap,
½ Tbsp. gentle shampoo,
& 1 Tbsp. leave-in conditioner (liquid kind).

So, hopefully everyone will wash their brushes regularly and stay beautiful the green way. Thanks for reading!

Natural Brushes?

2009-06-19T11:57:00.000-07:00

Brushes are essential beauty tools, especially if you use mineral makeup, but unfortunately are not very ecologically friendly. Not only are their handles made of plastic, animal hair is often used to create their soft brush part. To solve this problem, manufacturers have begun to make bamboo brushes. The most popular of these seems to be EcoTools, which I have tried and am going to review for you.

Product Review:

I have the large pack of five brushes, which I really like due a few key features:

v Variety: First of all, the pack includes one of each basic type of brush that most people need (with the exception of a blush/buki brush). I have found the eyebrow/eyelash brush to be especially useful.

v Quality: In addition, the bristles are nice and soft and seem well equipped to handle use and cleaning. The other brushes I have from mineral makeup kits lost softness after about three months, while so far these are going strong.

v Green Beauty: In addition to having a bamboo handle, these brushes use animal-free taklon bristles and the metal connecting the handle to the bristles is made from recycled aluminum cans!

Overall, this product has been very useful and I strongly recommend it.

In the Beginning

2009-06-18T13:06:00.001-07:00

It seems that since the dawn of time women have been pressured to be more beautiful through whatever means necessary. During the renaissance, Italian women bleached their hair using the peroxisomes found in plants and dilated their pupils using deadly nightshade, all in the name of beauty. Today, Americans spend over $7 billion a year on beauty products. While this is fine and dandy for the beauty industry, it is not so much for our environment.

More beauty products = more plastic packaging = more waste

Now don't get me wrong, I still want to look good and am not about to run around without makeup and with hair looking like I live in the jungle, but I do care about the environment and conserving resources. So, while many people say you have to give up something to gain something, I say to hell with compromise. Thanks for reading and I hope you join me on my quest to stay pretty the environmentally friendly way!