use natural beauty products

http://www.bubbleandbee.com/
this is a great little company. try it!
they’re starting a makeup line soon.

Has anyone tried mineral makeup? What brands and did you like it?

I don’t wear much makeup and don’t feel comfortable with foundation. I do not need to cover my whole face with anything! But I do like a little under-eye concealer and concealer around my nose. So, can mineral makeup be used locally like that? Or does it have to be a total face thing?

We now use almost all natural beauty products. All my facial products, bath products (minus the surplus of soap we’re trying to use down), kitchen cleaning products, all are natural/vegan-friendly. Toothpaste, face wash, deodorant, the works. This one feels great do, because it gets so much easier with time, and in just getting what you need when you need it. It’s a bit expensive at first, but so worth it ethically/environmentally.

Due to veganism and just general care for my body and what I put in/on it, I’ve decided that I slowly want to make the transition from chemical-ridden beauty products to all natural. But friends have warned me that it can be extremely expensive if attempted all at once, so I’ve been slowly acclimating and adding new products each time I run out of something.

Thus far I’ve used the following natural products:

-Shampoo/Conditioner: Alba brand, exotic fruit scents. The boy and I love these! They smell amazing, don’t weigh hair down,and feel great. I had no idea shampoo changes would be this easy.
- Lotion: I’ve used Shikai and Giovanni brands thus far, and even though they smell great, I’m not totally sold on either. I think I will never find the perfect lotion that makes me feel soft all day long. Sigh.
- Deodorant: JASON brand, lavender scent. I love the scent immediately after it’s applied, but it fades quickly and I seem to be stinky after only a few hours. I’ve been warned about this, but won’t give up until I find one that works for me. At least, that’s the immediate goal.
- Night moisturizer: Alba brand, sea plus renewal cream. This stuff is amazing! It kind of tingles and makes my face feel insanely smooth. I highly recommend this.
- Face mask: Also Alba, Papaya Enzyme formula. An excellent exfoliator for before bedtime.
- Toothpaste: Tom’s of Maine. Eh, I accidentally bought the gel and we hated it, but used it. Next time I will try the paste, because I hear nothing but good things about it.
- Face wash: Burt’s Bees, Soap Bark and Chamomile Deep Cleansing Cream. I read about this in a magazine for my skin type and it is the greatest face wash in the world! Cleans off makeup, dirt, everything, and leaves your face feeling tight and tingly. I will never use another face wash again!
- Makeup: MAC and Aveda products. I’ve been using these for years because I knew they didn’t test on animals, and I love them.
- Hair cream: Aveda. An amazing product from the Brilliance line. Kinda pricey, but it takes a really long time to get through the whole bottle.
- Shave gel: Kiss My Face, mint scent. Love this stuff. Smells great and works perfectly.

Things I need to buy natural versions of:
- Body wash
- Toothbrushes
- Anti-frizz hair stuff
- Eye makeup remover
- Mascara
- Daytime moisturizing face lotion
- Nail polish remover
- Hand soap
- Floss? This I am wary of.
- Lip gloss/stick

And a ton of household cleaning products. I think I’m off to a good start, though.

I’m giving up on natural deoderant. I’ve tried three kinds and I just can’t do it. I need anti-persperant!
I’m sick of feeling gross at the end of the day! I’m sick of having to change my clothes after work! I’m sick of needing to wash my shirts after every wear.

I bought some good old chemical-filled degree last night and I feel great!

Natural Bug Repenlent is a complete waste of time. Then again, where we were even the scary chemical stuff wasn’t really doing much.

I found a seemingly natural sunscreen from Burts Bees. I love most of thier products, so I was excited about it. Until I looked at the price tag. $14.95 for a 3.5 oz bottle! I haven’t figured out yet if that is worth it to me, especially conidering my tendancy to do dumb things like leave bottles of sunscreen in my car on 100 degree days where they seperate and become rancid. What a waste of money that would be.

Any ideas about a natural or simple eye makeup remover?

I’ve always been kind of interested in natural products, but have become even more so since my baby came into existence. One book that has given me lots of info and ideas is The Complete Organic Pregnancy. Because of it, I have given up and given away my nail polishes, any products containing parabens (ahhhh even never or almost never used body butters from The Body Shop… sigh….). I read read read labels and check almost everything on this website—http://www.cosmeticdatabase.com/ I have even found a hair styling product that isn’t full of poisons and it smells lovely and is even made by a local company (Max Green Alchemy). Neato. Mostly I use Jason’s, Tom’s of Maine, Burt’s Bees, and Avalon Organics, all of which I am very pleased with. Lovely, lovely!!!

I bought a crystal deoderant.
I had been really skeptical about it becuase I thought is was some new age BS where you just rubbed a crystal in your pit and energy was supposed to align or some garbage. But a friend of mine uses it and informed me that you get it wet and actually do rub stuff off onto your skin.
So I got some. So far so good, but I haven’t used it on a gym day yet.