After a light morning jog, some bashing.

Today I woke up at 5 am, kinda agitated and restless. I was sleepy and dare I say, pissy. All of a sudden it hit me that I had paid 20$ for a conditioner yesterday. Holy crap! I looked at the bill and realized that the Aubrey Organics Rosa Mosqueta conditioner, that I thought was 10$, costs in fact 19.49$ at WholeFoods. Today I will go and return it, because when you go from not using conditioner to suddenly using one, I dare say that you will not want to pay 20$ for it, even if it has no chemicals in it.

I have been trying several different shampoos in the last couple of days, but a detailed report of my experience will not be found here today, as I am still deeply unsatisfied. Burt’s Bee grapefruit and Sugar Beet shampoo reminds of the way my hair used to smell like after dyeing it and it doesn’t make my hair feel that great either… But I haven’t given up quite yet.

But after a little bashing of Aubrey Organics, and Burt’s Bee I will continue with a little more bashing of Tom’s Of Maine. I was given a sample of their new SLS-Free anti-cavity plus whiting toothpaste, and frankly.. I have tried some awful toothpastes in my life, but this one wins the gross parade. Its very sad for me, because this is actually pretty natural. I am really a huge fan of Tom’s toothpastes and I use them quite regularly. I find that their Natural Antiplaque plus Whitening Gel Toothpaste actually makes my teeth whiter, its pretty natural and the taste is quite nice. I did try the Whole Care version of it, but the color of my teeth quickly changed to a shade of yellow. I tried different flavors, from peach, mango and fennel to regular mint. I must say that I can manage to get used to the Fennel taste (though I warn you about that one), but the peach was just too much.

I like to use different toothpastes for different times of brushing; I use Fluoride-Free toothpastes at night and whitening pastes in the morning. For anyone just wanting to make a switch to a more natural based toothpaste, I would recommend trying the whitening gel variety, as they are much better than any other brand (I’ll post more about that another time), but still don’t have that really really natural chemical free feel to it. For the brave readers, I would really go for ginger and fennel flavors and as for the activity the toothpaste is supposed to produce.. choose the ones most fitted for your daily dental needs. I have to say that I also tried their floss and loved it.

Ok, I need my breakfast now! More details another time.

Holy Grail Deodorant; Or the quest kinda complete

I believe this is going to be my third post about deodorants. In fact, I could have at least 5 posts about natural deodorants, only its really hot in here and I have many many school related things to do… Yet, to make an informed decision about what food you should give your hamster (Simone had tiny babies!), about who you should date and who is your true friend, information is vital. The best enabler is knowledge. So let me make the other deodorant references quickly.

Nature’s Gate Lemongrass and Clary Sage is one of the most terrible deodorants I have ever tried, if not the worse. The Skin Deep database states that its a 1 on the hazard score, and I can say that it even smell refreshing. However, applying it feels like a nightmare! It creates a sticky feeling, whereas it should create a non-sticky feel to the area and maybe even prevent possible stickiness. It also works for less than 2 hours of medium activity in a moderately warm weather. I made me constantly want to take a shower. Sorry Nature’s Gate! I do use your shampoo, but I will never try another deodorant.

Then there is Desert Essence Tea Tree Oil Deodorant, With Lavender Oil. I bought it many many moons ago, before I was even aware of the health issues and label issues one should definitely notice when buying a product. Sure enough, it does not have Aluminum inside, but the Skin Deep database marks it as a 3 hazard, linking its ingredients with Cancer and other “good stuff”. Yet, if you couldn’t care less about that, its not such a bad deodorant. I would mark it as an entry level kinda deodorant. When you know you want something natural, but you are not quite willing to commit yet.

My holy grail has been found in the shape of Tom’s of Maine Natural Long-Lasting Deodorant Stick, Unscented With Hops. I am not sure about its hazard score because the ingredients stated in SD is not the same as the one on my Deodorant, so I won’t be relating to that. However, it is easy to apply (no water needed!), it doesn’t smell and it actually works! And not just for a couple of hours, when you don’t move and the weather is nice! No, this works when you are active in a hell-like weather and lasts all day! Its so good, in fact, that I decided to buy my mom one of those!
However, I have read that it could create some allergies, but I haven’t had any and I am quite sensitive. I am totally happy with this deodorant and I can really trust it to do what its meant to do. It won’t stop the sweating and it won’t make you smell like roses either, but you will smell like yourself. Or some perfume, which I spray on my cloths and not on me.

Deodorants, like relationships, can help you or harm you. Don’t go for the guy whose bad for you, treats you terribly and enables you to be at your worse, just because you are familiar with him! Choose better for yourself in your love life, friendships and products by trying everything, until its just right. Some may work better for others and not so well for you, but don’t give up. It could be that I have found one deodorant terrible and you have found it to be the best deodorant ever! That’s very possible; our bodies are vert different, but trying is the key here.

I realize I am speaking about a deodorant and not some dire life choice… but deodorant can help you feel more comfortable around other people and with yourself. Its the little things that we choose that make our existence much more enjoyable.

Weleda V. Badger; the results are in!

The only way for me to really know if I love a product is to see if I buy it again. Throughout my childhood, my mom has consistently managed to buy me not quite the same product I have asked for, but something very similar nonetheless. So, as I grew up I realized that I like to mix it up when it comes to the products I use regularly. Only rarely do I buy the same product twice, though I do tend to stick with the brand.

So now that I have basically finished my Weleda Everon Lip Balm, I am actually prepared to buy it again! I guess it means I love it way more that Badger’s Unscented Healing Balm.

Now, this product won’t work for most Vegans because it does contain Beeswax, but I am still on the fence about Bees. The same goes for the Badger healing balm, so I don’t have a solution for Vegans yet. The rest of the ingredients are all plant based and seem decent enough; even the EWG marks it as a 0 risk (though it might cause irritations). It smells like vanilla, with a hit of rose, which I find as pretty pleasant, though a little strong till you get used to it. Also, I think its kinda girly smelling, but when you put it on it doesn’t really spread that smell around. Also, guys might appreciate the fact that it doesn’t create that “lip gloss effect’. It does not make your lips shine on through, like the Badger lip balm does.

As for effectiveness, I am sticking to Weleda. I feel that my lips stay moisturized far longer when I use Weleda’s lip balm. It makes me reapply it less during the day, because when I use Badger’s, when ever it dries up or gets whipped away, I feel the need to instantly reapply it. It makes it kinda… purposeless. When I have Weleda on, I feel like it lasts longer and in the long run really much better for my lips because it doesn’t create that annoying dependency. You know what I mean; whenever you start using a lip balm you feel like you constantly need to reapply it like some lip balm junkie! Weleda makes the experience much less Junkie like. Everon really steps closer to curing that annoying lip dryness.

It spreads less nicely on the lips though. Its quite firm and sometimes I feel like I need to struggle with it in order to apply it. That is certainly an advantage that Badger’s balm has over Weleda’s… Badger’s balm is very nice and easy to apply. I would say that If Weleda could make the Everon lip balm a little more easily applied that would make the product much better.

So, at the end of the day, which one should you use? I would recommend Weleda’s Everon lip balm. I love the Badger brand, and they do make really good natural products, but their balm is much less effective in the long run. If you are a guy, I think you would probably be able to get past the Everon’s extra sweet smell and retain your masculinity (if that’s what you are going for), while maintaining moisturized lips. I give Everon a 9 out of 10. It is just one of those natural products that actually work.

By the way, I do own Burt’s Bees Honey Lip Balm, and it would probably be nice to add that to the mix, but I cannot stand its smell so I don’t think I would be rating it any time soon… Feel free to drop me a line if you do like it!