hand cream

October 18, 2014

Ipsy Glambag October 2014 unboxing & EWG scores

Posted in Makeup / Cosmetics, Skin Care, Subscription boxes

Figs & Rouge Hand Cream in Mango Mandarin. So this is petroleum free, paraben and mineral oil free and all natural ingredients. Well that last one is a little fib because in my research carbomer is one of the few unnatural (but harmless) ingredients in many natural products. So the EWGEWG Environmental Working Group - an organization focused on research to make informed choices and live a healthy life in a healthy environment. score I’m going to cut some slack … because the fragrance in this instance is from natural ingredients. Soooo with the assumption that this is synthetic fragrances EWG scores it a 7. But if you assume as they say on the website that the fragrance is from natural ingredients then the score would be more realistically at … a 6? This still seems awfully high for the ingredient list. Bah. I don’t know … I’m thinking about trying it on my feet despite the score.

H2O+ Face Oasis™ Hydrating Treatment cones (rules this one out for me because cones break my skin out) but it’s the parabens and the synthetic fragrance that has me thinking this isn’t a healthy product anyway. Yup that would be an unhealthy 10 with the EWG skin deep cosmetics database.

NYC New York Color Big Bold Curl Mascara not waterproof is a deal breaker for me. Especially since I’ve found some good waterproof and healthy mascaras. So I’ll just check out the score for those interested here. 6 from the EWG skin deep cosmetics database. Could be healthier, could be worse.

Skyn Iceland Mini Glacial Cleansing Cloths I’m rather ambivalent on this – I don’t know that I really need a facial cloth, especially one with added fragrance. So this ranks a 5 with EWG’s cosmetics database.

Starlooks Lip Gloss in guilty pleasure – mineral oil and parabens … pass. Even thought this isn’t super toxic at a 5 it’s also not very healthy either.

Sign up for Ipsy:

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}

September 19, 2014

Birchbox unboxing September 2014

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Makeup / Cosmetics, Skin Care, Subscription boxes

Harvey Prince Hello – Hello seriously? I just said last month that they should stop sending me fragrances and products from this brand. Synthetic fragrance is an 8. Nuf said. Moving on (and Birchbox PLEASE stop sending me Harvey Prince!!!)

TOCCA Crema da Mano Luxe – Hand Cream – I had high hopes for this one but oh well. Anything over a 4 and I usually start questioning whether I want to use it and I definitely don’t want to use it regularly if it has synthetic fragrance as an ingredient (which this does.) It’s a little too unhealthy for a lotion for my tastes as it ranks a 5 with EWGEWG Environmental Working Group - an organization focused on research to make informed choices and live a healthy life in a healthy environment.’s skin deep cosmetics database.

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Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish™ Hot Cloth Cleanser Starter Kit – Ok so I chose this sample deliberately even though I’ve received it before. I looked at the things I could choose from this month and nothing was appealing so I figured I would add this and have a travel version. I’ve been re-purchasing and using the full size of this since the first sample I received last October and I LOVE it. Since I’ve never done the EWG ranking for it (it has crazy healthy ingredients) I figured I should go ahead and post that info now too. The few ingredients that cause this to be a 3 with the skin deep cosmetic database do not concern me. There are no parabens, no synthetic fragrances etc etc.

Skin&Co Roma SICILIAN LIGHT™ SERUM Vitamin C Brightening Face Serum – so this has dimethicone in it which rules it out for me (cones break out my skin). This is also a 5 with the cosmetics database with fragrance being one of the bigger bad ingredients.

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ewg skindeep cosmetics database score 5 TEMPTU S/B Highlighter – this has cyclomethicone which rules another one out for me personally. This is also a 5 with the cosmetics database.

ChapStick® Dual-Ended Hydration Lock Day & Night – Ok this one is going to be a weird one in that the two ends have completely different ingredients. At a glance the day side looks toxic to me and the night side looks healthy and perfectly fine to use. So let me run each set of ingredients through the cosmetic database separately:

Day side ingredients: is a 6 with the cosmetics database.

Night side ingredients: is a 2 with the cosmetics database.

So chapstick made half their product good and healthy. I’ll give that side a try. I’m not sure how much I’ll use it though because I don’t want to accidentally use the wrong side. Actually I’ve already solved this – I put some masking tape on the end I don’t want to accidentally use so it would be hard for me to make that mistake.

Still not signed up for Birchbox?

http://birchbox.com?raf=3l3e7
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January 15, 2014

Birchbox unboxing January 2014

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Nail Polish, Skin Care, Subscription boxes

Serge Normant Meta Revive Dry Conditioner – No dimethicone yay! I can try this one. But it has synthetic fragrance so boo! It ranks a 5 with the cosmetics database and a good portion of that score has to do with the added fragrance. Remember the lower the number the healthier. But I still tried it. My hair IS softer and looks less greasy but like the dry shampoos I’ve tried I’m just not wowed. Yes it will do in a pinch but one of the ingredients is starch. Starch is white and my hair is DARK brown. Used sparingly it’s ok but it does seem to make my hair look dull immediately. Use too much and you suddenly look like you’re graying. So while I’m going to keep this around, I think people with sandy and blond hair will like it better than I do. I will say though, this is the best of the dry shampoos I’ve tried (and been able to try since a few I’ve skipped due to ingredients that will cause ME to break out.)

100% Pure Hand Buttercream – excellent ingredient list! I was super excited to try this and it is the perfect wintertime hand treatment. Lots of natural organic essential oils and butters. I went ahead and ran it through the cosmetics database and it came back a 3. A little higher than expected but still not bad. And as always, look at the actual ingredients for yourself and decide. Even thought the scent is natural it is a little intense but it dissipates some. I tried this on my hands overnight and it was really good. Not a lotion I would apply before any kind of computer work but something I can see myself applying before bed.

Paula’s Choice RESIST Ultra-Light Super Antioxidant Concentrate Serum – this has cones in it. As I’ve mentioned before cones cause breakouts for me so this is a “no go” item for me personally. I went ahead though and ran it through the cosmetics database to see how healthy it is. It’s a 3 which is good. No added fragrances, no parabens … good stuff.

Nail Rock in Red Glitter Kit – I wanted to like this but there was just too much glitter everywhere after a quick test nail. Since this does not get a top coat, I expect that there will continue to be fall-out as you wear it. If you don’t mind a little loose glitter you might still like this. The nail polishes are “3-free” but as for the glitter, it doesn’t seem like anything more than dipping a freshly polished wet nail into a pot of glitter. At $7 though it’s like getting some glitter as a bonus and the red shade is still nice so I may try that solo and see how it lasts.

Under Armour Braided Mini Headbands – SO close. I wish I could wear headbands but my head is just the wrong shape no matter how good the grippy backing is. ALL headbands slide on my head quickly and try and pop off my head. This is a really cute headband though and if you like a good workout headband and know that headbands work for you, you should give this one a shot.

So I’m glad I got what I got but I find it interesting that I got no makeup this month. I’m a little concerned that I’m going to fall out of an age bracket with birchbox this year and start getting way too many face serums. We’ll see …

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! }

October 11, 2011

October 2011 Birchbox

Posted by By Hilary Baumann

Posted in Skin Care, Subscription boxes

While still fun, I’m less excited about it this month.
Two words: dimethicone and fragrance.

Almost everything I got has dimethicone in it which makes me break out. Now you might be thinking “you don’t put hair product on your face” but trust me, anytime I put it on my hair, my hair touches my face and I again break out. I’m just over trying anything with dimethicone because even expensive products with this ingredient break me out. I keep watching hair tutorials with gorgeous silky hair and inevitably they use some serum with, yup, dimethicone (usually Frizz Ease.) The painful kind of zits, not just the ugly kind. I really wanted to try the Laura Geller bronzing primer too. 🙁 But I’ll pass.

As for fragrance … really do I need to cover this one? Allergies, toxins, overpowering scent. At least the Ahava hand cream was overpowering even in the tube.

The one item I’m looking forward to trying is the “Sunday Riley Modern Skincare Juno Transformative Lipid Serum.” Amazing ingredient list. Tried a little on my hand and it’s clearly good stuff but a little … hippie smelling. And natural products don’t need to smell … hippie. I really have no better word for it. No not patchouli hippie, it’s just not exactly bad but it’s not exactly good smelling either. I don’t want them to add fragrance, no way, but I’ll be spraying my homemade lavender spray on my face to see if that helps.

Serum INGREDIENTS: Acai seed oil, Argan oil, Black Cumin seed oil, Blackberry seed oil, Blueberry seed oil, Broccoli seed oil, Carrot seed oil, Chardonnay Grape seed oil, Cranberry seed oil, Marula oil, Meadowfoam seed oil, Pomegranate seed oil, Red Raspberry seed oil.

At $125 a pop (30 ml) I probably won’t be buying this puppy unless it also fixes me coffee in the morning but the 5ml sample might last awhile. Hey never say never. If I can suddenly get less redness, more even skintone and not need foundation I’d consider it.

It’s still exciting to get something fun to sort through and that serum sample alone is worth the price of the box. I guess I just wish this were a more natural selection of products that I could really dive into more.