Ipsy glambag February 2015 including EWG Skin Deep Cosmetics database scores

Posted in Hair, Makeup / Cosmetics, Skin Care, Subscription boxes

CARGO Cosmetics Mini Lip Gloss in Anguilla – no cones, no fragrance added, no parabens. I have high hopes for this one and it’s not too bad at a 3 with the EWG skin deep cosmetics database. I’m looking forward to trying this one and it’s a really nice basic shade as well that looks like it would work well with a lot of skin tones – very neutral but maybe a little bit light depending on how opaque it ends up being.

Eva NYC Up All Night Volumizing Spray – dimethicone rules this one out for me. It also has fragrance though and diazolidinyl urea (formaldehyde releaser) though and this ranks a 7 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 cosmetic database so I wouldn’t want to use this anyway.

Hey Honey Take It Off! Exfoliating Honey Peel Off Mask – the only negative ingredient I see on the list here is fragrance. Since all the other ingredients are all natural I decided to go see if I could find anything on the company site that might indicate natural or essential oils used as fragrance instead of synthetic (ingredient labels have certain requirements and lump all “fragrance” under the same label.) While they do have a very thorough rundown of the ingredients, fragrance is not specifically addressed in any of the main sections that would or could normally address this. Thus I’m going to have to assume it is in fact a synthetic fragrance. That said, there are some other ingredients that are “harmful” according to EWG that are included because this is in fact an exfoliating peel. A peel SHOULD take off some layers on purpose but because of some of the ingredients, it gets a higher score even though I would still consider this a fairly healthy product. It ranks a 5 with the skin deep cosmetics database. This is why I always take the EWG scores with a grain of salt. I’m going to give this one a shot … after sniffing it to make sure the scent isn’t going to trigger my sinus allergies of course.

ModelCo BLUSH Cheek Powder in Peach Bellini – no cones, no fragrance, no parabens. But it does have paraffin and talc … neither of which feels right on my skin anymore for some reason. BUT this ranks pretty well with the cosmetics database at a 3. So although I probably won’t be trying this, it is healthy. Also another reason I typically don’t jump for joy over blush is that I have naturally rosy cheeks so I tend to stick with bronzer. Blushes tend to make me look a little …. overdone or clown-like and that’s not even about the quality or shade but my own skin. It IS however a really nice shade so if blush is your thing you might want to give this one a shot.

“Pencil Me In” Cosmetics Natural Eye Liner Pencil in Amethyst (purple) – no cones, no fragrances, no parabens, everything is looking good. But apparently vitamin A brings this one’s score down – it ranks a 4 with the skin deep cosmetics database. This is yet another score I’m going to take a grain of salt. I’m going to try this product especially since I don’t think purple is going to be a shade I wear daily.

And the bag this month is super cute. 🙂

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February 14, 2015

Birchbox February 2015 “Rent the Runway” box including EWG Skin Deep scores for each of the products

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Beauty & Skin, Hair, Makeup / Cosmetics, Skin Care

This month I chose the “Rent the Runway” box because none of the other sample options were appealing and I really wanted to try the derma e glycolic scrub. I was also kinda crossing my fingers that there might be a beauty blender in the box that they hadn’t mentioned … but that wasn’t the case.

Sumita Color Contrast Eyeliner in Raina (a navy blue) – no cones, no frangrance, no parabens. It does have paraffin which I have mentioned feels weird on my skin … when it’s in blushes or eyeshadows or foundations but since eyeliner is such a small amount I’m fine with it as of of the ingredients here. So the other ingredient that’s a problem is one that I think may have been mistyped. “Isodecodane” seems to be a typo. The closest I get for that is “Isododecane” which is the ingredient that shows up for Sumita eyeliner on the Glossybox website. So this scores a very healthy 2 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. I’m looking forward to trying this one!

derma e® Anti-Wrinkle Vitamin A Glycolic Scrub – so you know how I’ve mentioned that some of the scores should be taken with a grain of salt? This would be one of them. The “fragrance” in this case is from a natural source (oils) and the vitamin A … it’s supposed to be in this product. Your skin will be more sensitive after using this because it IS a scrub. So even though this ranks a 6 with the Cosmetics Database, I’m looking forward to trying it. In my opinion the fact that it was docked points for two ingredients isn’t a problem in this case. Yes, you should be aware you may more easily burn in the sun after using any scrub, exfoliant or peel.

Fekkai Blowout Hair Refresher Dry Shampoo – no cones, no parabens but it does have added fragrance. The last dry shampoo I tried almost killed me with the fragrance. The ingredients are fairly simple though so let’s just check the ranking with EWG to see if anything else throws up red flags here. Isobutane which is what makes this an aerosol spray is also fairly toxic at a 7 on it’s own. So between the 8 it gets for fragrance and the aerosol delivery it brings the score down to a 5. Not the worst I’ve seen but also not the best I’ve seen. I may sniff and try this … but I’m not sure. It does make me think that surely someone could make a nice healthy dry shampoo though. One that also doesn’t turn brown hair white (which is another problem I’ve encountered with dry shampoos … throwing some corn starch into blond hair might work but not so much on brown hair.)

Not Soap, Radio Body Wash in “the stuff that Cupid dips his arrows in” – so no cones, no parabens BUT it does have fragrance added. And coloring (for a body wash is this really neccessary?) And DMDM Hydantoin (Formaldehyde releaser). So although the total score is only a 4 I’m not jumping up and down to try this product. Meh. Could be worse, could be better. Not going to be adding this to my daily staples anytime soon though.

theBalm® cosmetics Read My Lips™ Lip Gloss in “Bam! – Rose Pink” – no cones, no fragrance, no parabens. But it does have added flavor (usually these are going to be synthetic flavors) and it does have Vitamin A in it. In this case the product is left on the skin so having something that increases skin sensitivity and is worn doesn’t seem like a good idea to me. BUT it also contains a sunscreen (titanium dioxide) so maybe it kinda crosses itself out. This is the kind of thing that the EWG score doesn’t take into consideration. So I’m on the fence on this one. I’m not a fan of added synthetics anything in any product and I suspect that’s the case here with the “flavor/aroma.” So while I debate, feel free to make up your own mind. The EWG score for this is a 5.

So there’s also a coupon code for $30 off a $75+ rental from Rent the Runway in here too. And you know what? They have accessories and purses which I don’t remember seeing the last time I checked out this company.

Still not signed up for Birchbox?

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February 14, 2015

Don’t you just hate it when your foundation is discontinued?

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Beauty & Skin, Makeup / Cosmetics

It is SO frustrating when the foundation makeup you use is discontinued. It’s not only the shade that you have to match but also the consistency that works with your skin type that makes it SO hard to find right foundation for you in the first place. Something that lasts and looks good all day, is natural looking AND made from healthy ingredients is even harder to find.

Right now the product I use daily (Sand Jojoba base) has been sent off to the new “vintage” section but my history with Everyday Minerals involves them discontinuing the very product I use and it’s happened more than once now.

Someone has already asked which shade in the new line is equivalent and although I appreciate their honesty, it’s also frustrating that there is no equivalent to this shade in the new line.

I have submitted that question though asking whether or not they are expecting to discontinue it in the foreseeable future. We’ll see if they respond.

But if the answer is that they think they might discontinue it then I’m probably going to give up and jump ship for something that’s a little more consistent. Probably the W3LL People foundation stick even though I’ve grown fond of powder foundations and haven’t wanted to go back to a cream.

3 times … If Everyday Minerals discontinues the Sand jojoba base this will be the third time they’ve discontinued my staple foundation / base shade and made me have to find a new one.(They’ve also discontinued several of my favorite bronzers over the years as well.) I love their products but this is just one of those items I don’t want to HAVE to find a replacement shade for. Foundation is a staple and not something I change up. Even with samples though it’s a pain to go through and test. I AM ordering samples of the new jojoba base though… probably because I’m a sucker… or at least I feel like a sucker…

UPDATE: fingers crossed… they’re going to continue to make small batches of this foundation…

January 30, 2015

Zoya Haul

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Nail Polish

#nailpolishhaul I have a weakness… #Zoya tempted me with one of their deals and I ended up with 9 new shades!

Left to right: Wendy, LC, Tori, Emalia, Genvieve, Ling, Anais, Charlotte, Severine. I’ll be doing swatches hopefully soon! 🙂

January 26, 2015

Diamond shaped faux diamond

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Jewelry

Some of my all time favorite earrings. Simple, small, a little #artdeco & made from a pair of my grandmother’s clip on earrings. I think I converted them to earrings for pierced ears when I was 13 years old and I’m still wearing them today. #costumejewelry

January 21, 2015

Hair dryers – what’s your favorite?

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Hair

#hairdryer #hairstyle #stylingtools On Friday my hair dryer died. It went out with a small flame and a puff of smoke. But when I went back to my older hairdryer that was in storage I realized how much a difference this hair dryer made. I ended up ordering another one of these because they are so cheap but now I’m curious, what’s everyone’s favorite hair dryer???