PLEASE READ!!  🙂
http://branchbasics.com/blog/2015/01/fragrance-is-the-new-secondhand-smoke/
Category
Clothing
Ecotools Haul
#ecotools haul from last week. There are another pair of the exfoliating gloves in the shower because I already knew I loved those and bought 3pairs! The hairbrush I bought on a whim but it’s really made drying my ?hair faster and better. Also shown: dry brush, and two of the travel makeup brushes. I would recommend all of these. 🙂
?
TJ Maxx Pink Rose striped sweater
#tjmaxx #maxxinista Have you ever pinned something & then without realizing it bought something very similar within 24 hrs? Well yup… That happened!
Image on the left from http://jseverydayfashion.com/home/2014/12/24/todays-everyday-fashion-candy-canes
However I will say I’m also loving the texture and the colors when up close with this sweater as well. My only complaint is that the sleeves are just a hair short so I went ahead and pushed them up and they looked fine. Still worries me that it might shrink but hopefully not!
Target haul basic tops Jan 5 2015
#target #haul #clothinghaul they had light sweaters and other basics on sale/clearance so I decided to stock up. All this ended up being just under $60!
From left to right: Black Lace Trim Long & Lean Tank – Mossimo Supply Co. • Long & Lean Tank – Mossimo Supply Co. similar • Long Sleeve Vee Tee – Mossimo Supply Co. same shirt but different colors • Ultrasoft V-Neck Sweater – Mossimo this one is teal on the front and black on the back and I can’t find an exact match similar & similar • Striped Ultrasoft V-Neck Sweater – Mossimo both the grey and the blue striped sweaters
Proof (and I think I saved more than the $8 it says I saved at the bottom):
Ipsy Glambag November 2014 unboxing & EWG scores
Be A Bombshell Cosmetics Eye Base in the shade “Submissive” – no cones, no fragrance but parabens. This is a 4 with the EWG Skin Deep cosmetics database. If they were to find a healthier preservative this would be a really healthy product. I’m probably going to give this a shot just because that is the only thing in it that’s bad. Buuuuuttt … it has mineral oil in it … this not only doesn’t feel right on my skin but on my eyelids means it will probably crease badly.  Meh. Anyone try this? Is it worth the effort or am I going to have an eyelid mess by the end of the day?
Elizabeth Mott you’re so FINE Eyeliner – no cones, no fragrance but parabens. Aluminium powder… hmmm… and this has some other unhealthy ingredients. This ranks an unhealthy 8 with EWG’s Skin Deep cosmetics database.
Marc Anthony Oil of Morocco Argan Oil Volume Shine Hairspray – no cones, no parabens, but fragrance. And then some other unhealthy ingredients and it’s a spray so you’re more likely to breathe them in. This ranks an unhealthy 7 with EWG’s Skin Deep cosmetics database.
tarte deluxe maracuja oil – two ingredients, nothing bad. They say “Not all oil is created equal” and I’m excited to try this hydrating skin oil. It’s high in omeg-3 fatty acids. This ranks a super healthy 0 with EWG’s Skin Deep cosmetics database.
Wet n Wild MegaSlicks Balm Stain in shade “Lady & The Vamp”– no cones, no parabens, no fragrance but mineral oil. This is actually not that unhealthy. This ranks a not-so-bad 3 with EWG’s Skin Deep cosmetics database. But mineral oil makes my skin feel weird so I tend to avoid it.
Sign up for Ipsy:Â

http://www.ipsy.com/?refer=u-h051sec1kqq5g8p
{affiliate link – I get 250 points which points equal products but it’s still a little unclear how many points to the dollar}
Birchbox October 2014 unboxing & ewg scores
Lord & Berry Paillettes Eye Pencil soooooo this was the item I picked out this month and somehow it wasn’t in my box. I posted a photo on instagram and did contact Birchbox customer service and they’re shipping one out to me but it will be 10 days before I might get it. So without having it in hand to review let’s look at why I chose it. It doesn’t have cones (I break out with cones) and some of the other nasties I normally see. However I missed the parabens when I was checking this out and choosing it. So lets see how this scores with the EWGEWG Environmental Working Group - an organization focused on research to make informed choices and live a healthy life in a healthy environment. skin deep cosmetics database scores it. OUCH. Wow. I did horribly in picking this out. It’s a solid 10 from the cosmetics database. On a scale from 0 to 10 with 0 being the healthiest. UGHHH! And I thought this was going to be maybe a 4 based on skimming through the ingredient list and was the product I was most looking forward to trying!
Harvey Prince Petaly Noir – nope. Just no. No synthetic fragrances for me. Worse, I can smell the Harvey Prince perfumes just by opening the box and they typically give me a headache without opening them. I REALLY really hope that Birchbox will give us the option to opt out of perfumes. I particularly dislike the Harvey Prince products they have been on a roll with sending me each month too. September I complained about this. August same complaint. You aren’t going to win me over. Headaches just make me mean. Stop it. Pretty please?
ModelCo Party Proof Lipstick in Kitty –Â well another I had high hopes for but it fails. No cones but there’s fragrance. Also one of the ingredients that isn’t harmful I tend to avoid and that’s mineral oil. So with the EWG cosmetics database rating of a 9 I don’t think I’ll be trying this one. Do you know how much lipstick/lipgloss you accidentally eat? Ew.
BeeKind™ Body Lotion – The website claims “The BeeKind™ Collection features Gilchrist & Soames’ Signature formulations, which contain no parabens, phthalates, petrol-derived ingredients, mineral oil, urea, DEA, TEA or propylene glycol.” The bad news for me is that it has dimethicone in it which rules it out for me. Since I couldn’t find the ingredient list online I typed it up from the back of the sample:
INGREDIENTS: water; ceteryl alcohol; cocos nucifera oil; glycerine; ceteareth 20; helianthus annuus seed oil; parfum; dimethicone; honey; trifolium pratense flower extract; calendula officinalis flower extract; chamomile recutita flower extract; Cymbopogon schoenanthus exctract; citric acid; glyceryl dilaurate; steric acid; benzyl alcohol; dehydroacetic acid; acrylates/ c10-30 alkyl acrylate crosspolymer; sodium hydroxide; tocopheryl acetate; citral; citronellol; geraniol; hexyl cinnamal; limonene; linalool
If they dropped the added fragrance that would do a lot to make this a healthier product. Despite all of the things it doesn’t have in it, it’s a 4 with the skin deep database. This is not terrible but it’s also not as healthy as they might be leading you to believe.
dr. brandt® Exclusive Clean Up Nice Kit – This is actually just “pores no more cleanser” as the sample. Paraben, paraben, paraben. If they just went with a healthier preservative this would be a healthier overall product. As it is right now it’s a 6 with the ewg cosmetics database.
So I’m a little underwhelmed with the products in this month’s box. Since Birchbox started giving us a choice of one product in our boxes I can’t believe I picked something that unhealthy out of what was available (and I can’t remember what the other options were.) Anyway…
 Still not signed up for Birchbox? ![]()

http://birchbox.com?raf=3l3e7
{ yes it’s an affiliate link, I get 50 points which equals $5 credit – share the love! }








