What's on My Dresser

There are a lot of this type of blog post/YouTube video floating around – "what's in my bag," "what's in my shower," even "what's in my fridge" (I'll spare you). I'm getting in on the action with an overview of the products currently cluttering the top of my dresser. I would love to have a better way of organizing them (although, truth be told, the best solution would probably be to hoard fewer products), but for now, I keep them roughly sorted into categories.


FACE

Juice Beauty - SPF 30 Tinted Moisturizer in Ivory: I've been thoroughly enjoying this tinted moisturizer. It gives little to no coverage, but at least the color isn't too dark – in fact, it's paler than any other tinted moisturizer I've come across. It gives a relatively glowy finish and works well under loose mineral foundation, which is how I usually wear it, as my daily SPF. I would absolutely repurchase this.

Badger - SPF 30 Aloe Zinc Oxide Sunscreen Lotion (no longer available): I was using this daily before I got the Juice Beauty moisturizer. I actually prefer the variety meant for babies, which contains calendula and chamomile, but Badger is currently reformulating their sunscreens, so it's a moot point until early next year. I definitely plan on at least checking out the new formula.

Michael Todd True Organics - Eye-o-sonic Duo (Intensive Organic Cream Eye Treatment & Sonic-Ionic Serum Infuser): I'm not the biggest fan of this eye cream. It's supposed to lighten dark circles, but I've never noticed any difference. I don't like the packaging, either: it's impossible to tell how much product is left. The consistency and color remind me of something unpleasant I won't mention. The infuser is a little wand that vibrates against the under eye area, supposedly helping the product penetrate the skin's layers. I have my doubts about its efficacy and I generally forget to use it. I've got my eye (pun intended) on Pure + Simple for a replacement when I toss this eye cream.


BODY

Acure - Cocoa Butter + CoQ10 Unscented Body Lotion: I love the formula of this lotion. It's thicker than many products labeled "lotion," but it works into the skin quite well. I will repurchase, but I'll go for a scented one. The unscented smells – at least to me (no one I've had sniff it has gotten what I'm talking about) – like tortillas. It isn't a bad smell; it's just not what I'm going for.

Nourish Organic - Skin-Softening Body Butter in Fresh Fig: This is definitely not a light moisturizer, so I haven't used it since the weather was cooler. The scent is slightly too food-like for my taste, but I wouldn't mind having it in a different scent now that it's getting colder again.

Deep Steep - Body Butter in Honeydew-Spearmint: I love this product. The smell is amazing, and it gives intense hydration without leaving the skin oily or sticky. Deep Steep has a bunch of scents that appeal to me, so, after I've used up some other products and samples, I'll be trying one (or all) of those.

Lush - Each Peach (and Two's a Pair) Massage Bar: This massage bar can also be used as a solid lotion. The hydration is relatively light and it does leave behind a bit of slickness to the skin. It contains fragrance (labeled a "safe synthetic" by Lush), but I don't find the scent to be chemical-y or unpleasant at all.


DEODORANT

Nourish Organic - Fresh & Dry Organic Deodorant in Lavender Mint: I find this deodorant very effective against odor, but I don't love the formula. It's quite gritty and despite the fact that it's housed in a traditional twist-up stick, it needs to be worked into the skin with the fingers. It can leave marks behind on clothes if it's applied heavily. On the plus side, the scent is lovely. 

Adama Minerals - Clay Dry Silk Deodorant in Citrus Blossom: I find this to be just okay. It leaves virtually no residue on the skin, but it's not super effective at deodorizing. I'm not planning on buying it again.

Milk of Magnesia (in an old reused bottle): Magnesium has seemingly magical deodorizing properties. When used topically, milk of magnesia is an anti-odor powerhouse. The brand makes no difference as long the only ingredients are magnesium hydroxide and water (no sodium hypochlorite). MoM raises the pH of the armpit, making it less hospitable to stinkifying bacteria. Magnesium oil can also be applied topically as deodorant, but it created an intense burning sensation on my skin when I tested it. Magnesium is a really powerful mineral with a host of health benefits when ingested, and some people (not me) find that they no longer need deodorant when take Mg as a dietary supplement. I've been layering MoM under cream and stick deodorants and occasionally using it on its own for quite a while now, and I still find it incredibly effective.

Miessence - Roll-on Deodorant in Ancient Spice: I'm on the fence on this one. On its own, it doesn't hold up against odor that well, but I like to use it for layering. What I'm not crazy about is the scent, which I can't quite describe other than to say it's a bit too heavy.

Bubble & Bee Organic - Pit Putty Cream in Jasmint: You can read my full review of this product here. The short version is that this is my favorite deodorant ever.


HAIR

Intelligent Nutrients - Leave-in Conditioner: I've been using this product daily for quite some time. It gives soft definition to my hair without making it look greasy or feel crunchy.

Beautiful Curls - Shea Butter Curl Reviving Tonic: To be honest, I've only used this once or twice. I got it intending to use it to "wake up" second day hair, but I just haven't been able to adjust to washing my hair every other day. My hair looks terrible – terrible – after it's been slept on. Also, the product keeps separating in a way that makes me wonder whether it hasn't gone bad.

Badger - Argan Hair Oil for Dry Damaged Hair: I've only used this a few times, both as an overnight treatment and on damp hair to tame frizz. I like it for both uses, but for the latter, I find it a bit difficult to get enough product in my hair to tame the frizz without it looking oily.

Oyin Handmade - Greg Juice Nourishing Herbal Leave-in Hair Tonic: I use this product right after the Intelligent Nutrients leave-in conditioner. It adds a bit more definition and hold. It can get slightly crunchy if too much is used, but that's easily avoided.

August 2014 Empties

Do you ever feel exasperated rather than pleased when you get free samples? Like, "Ugh, now I have another sample I have to slog through before I can use my real products." Maybe it's just me, but I had a grand plan of finishing all my blush and lipstick samples while my cream products spend the summer in the fridge, and it clearly isn't going to happen. Not by a long shot. I miss applying lipstick from the tube and having sifters on my blushes and I'm sick of the little clamshells cluttering up my life! Such a struggle. I did manage to use up a few, though, in addition to a handful of other products. 

Acure - Morrocan Argan Stem Cell + Argan Oil Shampoo & Conditioner: These are such phenomenal products, especially the conditioner. Seemingly everyone in green beauty loves them, and it's easy to see why given that, even though they're intended for normal to dry/damaged/curly hair, they seem to work on a multitude of hair types.
Verdict: When I find a shampoo and conditioner that work, I tend to stick to them. I've been using these pretty consistently for a long time and I've got more of both on the way.

Good Earth Beauty - Honey Oatmeal Scrub Unscented Soap: I got this as a free sample (sigh). The scrubby texture of the soap was quite nice, though I wasn't blown away by the base formula.
Verdict: It's good value for money, but contains honey and goat's milk, so I wouldn't purchase.

Earthpaste - Wintergreen: I continue to return to Earthpaste because it simply can't be beaten in terms of ingredient purity, though I sometimes get tired of the thin and almost watery consistency. Wintergreen is definitely my favorite flavor, though I enjoy the others as well.
Verdict: I'm ready to branch out to other products (and have), but I'm sure I'll be returning to this again.

The Jojoba Company - Pesticide-Free HobaCare 100% Pure Jojoba: I use jojoba oil as part of my makeup-removing oil cleanse (with castor and sesame oils) and also occasionally mix it into my daily SPF to up the moisture factor. I don't have any particular attachment to this brand (though they carry organic as well – it's just more expensive); I buy it because it's available at my Whole Foods. 
Verdict: Jojoba is such a great basic to have on hand for simple skincare and DIY's, so I always keep it around.

Blissoma - Restore Deep Healing Oil Serum: This serum contains a host of wonderful oils and extracts. Primarily targeted at mature and dry skin, it's also loaded with ingredients beneficial for sensitive, hormonal, and/or acne-prone skin. It's definitely not a light oil, but that's what I prefer. I feel like it helps keep my skin balanced and calm.
Verdict: I was totally ready to try out a new oil/serum, but I missed this one too much, so I've already repurchased.

Hurraw! - Earl Grey Lip Balm: Hurraw! is a company I feel really good about supporting. Their "About" page details the principles they follow in choosing and sourcing ingredients, and developing and packaging products. Their formula isn't waxy; it's just smooth and comfortable and nourishing. The bergamot scent is yummy and not overly sweet.
Verdict: I've already started on a different scent and have a few more in my stash of backups.

Zuzu Luxe - Brow Pencil in Russet: This is my go-to brow product. Russet works perfectly for my auburn hair, despite the fact that it's meant for dark blondes and brunettes (the color for redheads and dark brunettes, which I occasionally use for an ombre effect, is too dark for all-over use on my brows). The texture is perfect as well: not too creamy and not too waxy. I love that it has a spooly on the end.
Verdict: I'm already working on a new pencil.

Juice Beauty - Lash Defining Mascara: You can read my review here for details, but the short version is that this mascara gives nice length but not enough volume for my taste.
Verdict: Not a bad mascara; just not my cup of tea.

Zosimos Botanicals - Lipsticks in Burgundy & Terracotta Spice: I just posted a collection review of the Zosimos lipsticks I own, so check that out if you please. These two have gone bad, so it's into the bin with them.
Verdict: I'm not planning on purchasing any more Zosimos lipsticks.

Sample of The All Natural Face - Vegan Lipstick in Clear Gloss: This product is a lipstick without the color. Somehow, it's much nicer than a lip balm for putting over a lip liner. It has a lovely finish (not too glossy) and doesn't tend to pick up much color from any product it's applied over.
Verdict: I have a full-size as well as another sample (those accursed free samples again).

Sample of bareMinerals - Marvelous Moxie Lipstick in Be Free: bareMinerals has started leaving a bitter taste in my mouth (figuratively, that is). They've definitely always been prone to a bit of green-washing, but I feel like it's become more extensive and pervasive of late. What really cinched it for me is their cruelty-free situation. bareMinerals themselves do not do any animal testing or work with manufacturers that do. However, they are owned by a company that tests on animals and sells in China (shout-out to Rachel of All Natural Aspirations, whose Animal Testing 101 post made me think about the issue of parent companies for the first time). As for this sample, I know they were going for something cutesy (you're supposed to press your lips against the lip-shaped patch of lipstick to deposit the color – I used my finger), but I found this packaging frustrating and didn't end up using all the product. 
Verdict: I wouldn't buy this particular product because I'm not a fan of the ingredients, and I also don't plan to buy from bareMinerals anymore. 


Sample of Vapour Organic Beauty - Siren Lipstick in Chère: Vapour's lipsticks are so nice, and this color, described as a soft mauve nude, is just about perfect. However ...
Verdict: Sadly, they are not vegan. Farewell, friend.

Collection Review # 4: Zosimos Botanicals Lipsticks

Collection review time. I'm doing lipsticks yet again and I feel no shame (I lied, I feel shame because my lipstick collection is so very, very unnecessarily large). These barely-used lipsticks by Zosimos were among the first things I pulled from my collection when I initially started planning blog posts back in May. At the time, they had been in my collection less than 8 months, and already (spoiler alert: this is another one of these posts) two of them were rancid. I'm not sure I ever even wore them, and the third (the one that isn't bad) I only tried recently. I definitely have to accept some blame here. It's true that less than 8 months (how much less I can't say) is a short shelf life for lipstick, especially given that I never let them get exposed to heat. But if I didn't own so stupidly many lipsticks, I would actually have a chance to wear them all before they went bad. That's the downside to having such a large lipstick collection: some of them inevitably wind up forgotten. Strictly speaking, I'm not even supposed to be buying lipsticks anymore. But lipstick, man. It's like an addiction. I just bought one about a week ago, for no particular reason. It isn't even all that different from other lipsticks I own. I have a problem. 

Anyway. On to the review. 

As I said, these aren't lipsticks I tended to reach for. Now that I've actually taken the last lipstick standing, Redbud, out for a spin, I don't feel quite so bad about the others' demise. It isn't a dreadful lipstick by any means, but it's also not terrific. It has a tendency to settle into the small lines on the lips, especially when worn in a lighter layer. Some lipsticks give even, sheer color with one swipe. Some give bold, opaque color. This does neither. It goes on patchy when I try to create a sheer wash of color (at full opacity, the color makes me look strikingly like Lorde, which isn't really what I want for a day at the office). Applying it over a lip balm goes a long way to fixing this problem, but even when I go for a full-on look by building up the color, it still isn't quite even. The lipstick is pretty matte, which could be a pro or con depending on your preferences. It lasts for a decent length of time and leaves behind a stain on the lips. 

L-R: Burgundy, Redbud, Terracotta Spice 
(sorry for the sloppiness – the texture made the off ones difficult to swatch)

Naturally, the two that went bad are the ones I prefer in terms of color. Burgundy is particularly beautiful: as the name implies, it's the color of a burgundy wine. Redbud is maroon with a tiny tinge of brown and Terracotta Spice is a warm brick red. I bought all three as part of my quest for the perfect natural red lipstick (for the record, this is pretty much it, in my opinion). Prior to my greenification, my favorite red was NYX's Extra Creamy Round Lipstick in Snow White. It was deep and blue-based, but I could detect just the tiniest, barely perceptible touch of brown – basically, the perfect blood red. It also contained tasty ingredients like BHA (a likely carcinogen and endocrine disruptor, and restricted for use in cosmetics in the EU because of it) and polyethylene (plastic, just what I want to be ingesting), in addition to synthetic fragrances and delicious toxic dyes. The Zosimos lipsticks are a vast improvement, ingredients-wise, and they're vegan and gluten- and soy-free (Zosimos clearly labels every product to indicate whether or not it's vegan and also has a detailed resource page for customers who are vegan and/or have allergies). 

So, why did two of these go bad so quickly? As I said, they've never been exposed to heat in the time I've owned them. I bought them in the fall and they went into the fridge as soon as the weather got warm. Based on the ingredient lists from a few of my favorite brands for lipstick, I'm thinking the lack of vitamin E or another antioxidant to prevent rancidity, and/or the inclusion of ingredients with comparatively short shelf life might be the culprit(s). It could also be that these particular lipsticks were made a long time before I received them. 

There is a difference between the ones that went bad and the one that didn't: Redbud contains a hydrogenated oil (castor). I like to avoid hydrogenated oils in makeup (and definitely avoid them in food), but these lipsticks provide an example of why even natural companies might be tempted to use them: it lends a decidedly longer shelf life without including an ingredient that can't be labeled natural without blatant lying. 

This whole experience may very well have been a fluke, but, given that these aren't the cheapest lipsticks ($20 apiece), I don't think I'll risk buying them again.

Any Zosimos-lovers out there who've had better experiences than I did?

Burgundy & Terracotta Spice Ingredients: Organic Castor Oil; Organic Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter; Limnanthes Alba (Meadowfoam) Seed Oil; Wildcrafted Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax; Organic Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Oil; Castor Wax; Organic Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil; Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Butter; Organic Macadamia Ternifolia (Macadamia) Nut Oil; Mica; Iron Oxides; Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe) Butter.

Redbud Ingredients: Organic Castor Oil; Organic Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter; Limnanthes Alba (Meadowfoam) Seed Oil; Wildcrafted Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax; Organic Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Oil; Hydrogenated Castor Oil; Organic Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil; Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Butter; Organic Macadamia Ternifolia (Macadamia) Nut Oil; Mica; Iron Oxides; Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe) Butter.