Empties: Makeup

Empties: makeup

It’s empties time again!! I feel like I somehow have a never-ending supply of empty tubes and bottles of things recently! I am still sort of playing catch-up actually, since I organized TONS of stuff in my recent linen/bathroom closet project and I found some things still lurking around that I hadn’t gotten to throw away yet! In the future, I most likely won’t have quite as many empties on a regular basis. I will probably do monthly or bi-monthly posts then. I don’t know about you, but empties posts/videos are one of my top faves, since I feel like you really know if you like a product or not by the time you have used it all up! Continue reading “Empties: Makeup”

My Latest Vitacost Haul

My latest vitacost haul: things that were on my wishlist for a while

So if you have spent any length of time in the natural health and beauty world, you have probably heard of Vitacost. If not, let me introduce you because you are missing out! Vitacost.com is on online retailer that carries the same type of food, home and beauty products you might find at a health food store like Whole Foods, Sprouts, and now Target etc. Except the prices are SO much better on almost everything. To give an example, my favorite Acure Argan Oil Wipes are $6.99 at my local Target where I pick them up if I need them last minute. On Vitacost they are $5.89, and right now on sale for only $5.01. That extra buck or two on each product really starts to add up! Another staple I need at all times is the Acure Argan Oil which costs $12.99 at Target (and that’s the price I have paid at Whole Foods too before) and only $10.19 on Vitacost, right now on sale for $8.19! See the kind of price difference I am talking about? To save even more money, I like to shop through Shopathome or Ebates links to get cash back, and usually try to only order when I need at least $50 worth of things so I get the free shipping. Which is fast, by the way! I am always impressed with how fast I get it. All the things I got this time were items I have been thinking of getting to try eventually, based on what I have heard about them and I finally took the plunge. Continue reading “My Latest Vitacost Haul”

Empties Series: Part 3

Empties Series: Part 3

So lets dive right into the last of my huge collection of empties! I feel like all the things I tried gave me a pretty good idea of brands I tend to like a lot, and will probably explore more of in the future.

  • Shea Moisture Peace Rose Oil Complex Sensitive Skin Hand Soap: I never knew Shea Moisture (a constant favorite brand of mine) made hands soaps till I stumbled across them and I was so excited! It was actually in the hand soap isle of Target, instead of the natural section of the makeup part, where I usually find this brand. These were a delightful find and I loved both scents. This peace rose scent was very light rose, very pleasant with a little bit of a powdery finish. I loved it since I tend to like those scents the best. Very feminine. 
  • Shea Moisture Sea Kelp & Pearl Protein Nourishing Hand Soap: This smell was sooo amazing, that I checked the label like 3 times because I couldn’t believe that there was no synthetic fragrance! It says it is an essential oil blend though, so I don’t think there is anything un-natural about that. It smells so so good! Very fresh and like the ocean! I am thinking of trying more Shea products in this scent because it is so amazing. The only con for these hand soaps is that they seemed to dry out my hands a bit, but I have that problem with all liquid hand soaps so I always have to follow up with lotion since I wash my hands so frequently. 

Continue reading “Empties Series: Part 3”

Empties Series: Part 2

Empties Series: Part 2

Welcome to my 2nd Empties Post/Review! Here are some more things I tried a year or so ago that I am finally getting to talk about! As always, let me know what you think or your opinion of any of these things in the comments below, I would love to hear from you! 🙂

(Listed clockwise from top left)

  • Desert Essence Coconut Spray Conditioner: This leave in conditioner spray was pretty good and smelled nice. I feel like I am looking for a show-stopper product and none of them are quite living up to my expectation. But this was pretty good. I would spray it on after I washed my hair and before I styled it.
  • Thayers Lavender Witch Hazel: I always get the Thayers Witch Hazel in Rose, and this time I decided to try the Lavender one to see what I thought of it. I normally LOVE lavender so I thought I would love it too, but to me it had a distinctly “baby wipe-ish” scent which I didn’t love. Not that its a bad smell, just not as nice as rose. So Rose is still my favorite and the one I would re-purchase. 

Continue reading “Empties Series: Part 2”

Empties Series: Part 1

Empties Series: Part 1

I have been gradually switching over all my products in life to more natural and non-toxic options for probably about 3 years now. For the last half of that time I started collecting all my empties so I that I could review them for anyone who is interested! In that time I have tried many different things, some successful, some not so much. I have been meaning to do this blog post for so long, but now that I had a huge bag full of stuff I thought I’d better get to it! Since there were so many things, I decided to break it down into 3 posts. Without further ado, here is part 1! Continue reading “Empties Series: Part 1”

Why I switched to Natural Deodorants & My Favorite One

Why I switched to natural deodorants & my favorite one

A couple of years ago when I started on this whole natural living journey, one of the first things I changed was deodorant. And that was the scariest one of all since I was pretty terrified of being one of those “natural hippies”. You know, when people aren’t afraid of just being natural and sweating and just letting it be because it doesn’t bother them. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to judge being a hippie at all, I am just not okay with being sweaty or smelly!

The reason that made me actually take the leap? An extended family member was diagnosed with breast cancer, went through chemo and then had to have a mastectomy. She made it through it, which I am so thankful for! But it truly made me think deeply about the supposedly carcinogenic antiperspirant I was slathering all over an area with so many lymph nodes, so close to the breast region. It just made me realize that I needed to do everything within my power to remove any questionable chemicals in my daily life! Continue reading “Why I switched to Natural Deodorants & My Favorite One”

Best Clean Beauty Finds

Favorite natural & non-toxic beauty products

About 2 years ago I started making the switch over to a more natural and non-toxic lifestyle. It’s funny because I can’t exactly pinpoint any certain moment where I made the decision, it was more of just gradually learning about all the harmful chemicals present in most conventional products. I believed it progressed kind of naturally when I started learning more about healthy eating, and also trying to find effective natural remedies for my severe adult acne I was battling with.

It has been quite the journey, I must say! It is definitely not easy to kind of have your whole world turned upside down finding out about how not great most beauty and makeup products are for you, and all of a sudden you feel like you need to go out and replace all your trusty favorites! (which were hard enough to find in the first place, btw)

Continue reading “Best Clean Beauty Finds”

Lavanila Perfume Review

Lovely Lavanilla: A Natural Fragrance Review

As anyone who has started going more natural and non-toxic in their personal products will probably tell you, perfume is the most intimidating one to do. Unfortunately, it is one of the most important things to switch though because synthetic fragrance, or “fragrance” and “parfum” in cosmetics and body products, can contain some of the most hormone-disrupting substances in them. I will admit, I have not totally cleaned up my act when it comes to perfume quite yet because I am still using up my old ones and don’t want to just throw them away! I did stop spraying it directly onto my skin though, just on my hair or clothes so it is not being directly absorbed through my skin.

Perfume is one area that I did learn from personal experience just how sensitive my skin is to harsh chemicals and how much synthetic fragrances disrupt it. Let me explain!

Continue reading “Lavanila Perfume Review”

My All-time Favorite Makeup Removing Product!

So, I am totally a product junkie. Or used to be, before I decided to start going more natural and organic in my whole lifestyle, especially skincare. Anyways, that means that I usually keep up to date on all the current new products which are supposedly the greatest thing since sliced bread. And I have tried tons and tons of things over the years which usually turned out pretty “meh” and never really lived up to the hype. And all the money I spent on those “meh” things? Yeah…not cool, not cool at all!

As a long time sufferer of adult acne (and acne in general, ever since I turned 14!) I sought skincare advice from many sources. An awesome blog I came across a year or two called The Love Vitamin helped me in so many ways! The magic mitt is one product Tracy recommends on her blog. I had never heard of anything like this in my entire life! Basically, its a washcloth that you place over your hand. You wash your face with only it, and warm water and it takes off all your makeup! As in NO FACE WASH, only WATER. Crazy right?!

Pink Magic Mitt that removes makeup with water

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DIY Green Clay Face Mask

One of the main reasons I started pursuing a more natural and chemical-free lifestyle about 2 years ago was to try to clear my problem skin up once and for all. During this time I have had more success than I have every had in my life. That is HUGE news for me!

Something I think that has been really helpful in this is regularly using a green clay mask at least once a week or whenever I feel a breakout coming on, or to calm one down that has already started. It is really great and super easy to do yourself at home.  Clay masks are helpful in drawing out any impurities deep within your pores. That is especially useful when I can feel like I am going to break out, and want it to cycle through asap and get back to being clear! There are tons of recipes out there on Pinterest for ways to mix up a green clay mask but I really don’t think there is any wrong way. I usually just mix together anything I want until I get the right smoothness I am looking for. The biggest rule though, is you need to mix clay masks with non-metal utensils. If not, you will disrupt the magnetic charge it contains which is what pulls all the gunk out of your pores!

Green clay mask being mixed in glass bowl with red rubber spatula

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