Green But Gorgeous

I am so proud of myself! I made my own Herbal shampoo and it works! It was totally easy. I did use Dr Bronner Castile Soap, the almond one, which has a lot of hydrating oils in it already. Mixed with some chamomile tea. Poured it into my old shampoo bottle. So I am recycling as well! My hair is clean and soft. Here is the recipe.

Basic shampoo
½ cup water
½ cup castile (vegetable-based) liquid soap such as Dr. Bronner's
1 teaspoon light vegetable oil or glycerine (omit if you have oily hair)
Combine ingredients, mix well, and put in bottle or dispenser. This is thinner than commercial shampoo and it won’t suds much—but it will clean just as well. Using too much won’t get your hair any cleaner, and it will be harder to get out of your hair. Use a palm full or less to lather once, and rinse with warm water.

Herbal Shampoo
Substitute ½ cup strong herbal tea (chamomile, lavender, and rosemary are good choices) for water in the Basic Shampoo recipe.

Think of the money we will save! Now I need to find a recipe for conditioner.

Remember the good old days where you could just go to the drug store and buy any lipstick you wanted and all you thought about is how good it looked on you.

Well those days are truly over! I went into “Mothers” whole food super market and on a whim brought at new lipstick. A very pretty pinky color from “Gabriel' I thought “if Mothers sell it, it must be okay”, WRONG. Yes I did read the label and it looked okay, no lead or parabens. So when I got home I checked it out on Skin Deep and it was rated a “5”, moderate health concerns. It is not so bad, but I don't think I will be buying anymore of these lipsticks. I just wish that so called natural cosmetic companies/stores would commit to being “natural” 100%, not 98% or 73%. A lesson learned.

If you don't want to look like a dried up raisin, you must protect your skin from the sun. I have always used an daily SPF on my face and I have finally found a clean, natural, and non greasy one that works. DeVita Natural Skin Care Solar Protective Moisturizer SPF 30+. The Cosmetic Skin Safety Database, has rated it a “1”. Check out their page (and my review) at http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/product/116119/Devita_International_Daily_So...

I have used this product all summer and it lives up to their philosophy “ Make it clean, Make it work, Make it Natural, Make it exceptional”. I bought it at a whole food market, so it is easy to buy, and the price was very reasonable. For 2.5 oz, I believe around $25.00. Oh yeah, it also has Hyaluronic Acid in it! HA is responsible for plump, youth skin (we all want that). It is not a greasy thick white cream, it is light and adsorbs into the skin. Therefore, it works exceptionally well under make up.