Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Eco-Friendly Finds: Minimizing My Beauty Products

Sorry for the lack of giveaway yesterday and the update that there will not be another giveaway until next week, I promise!

Today I'd like to talk about a little bit of downsizing I've been doing that I'm really pretty excited about! I have been downsizing other things, as you may know. I'm working on using and needing/wanting less and (hopefully?) saving more, or at least having less "stuff." Today I thought I'd update on my beauty products that I'm working on replacing with better things and not needing!

Still working on minimizing lotion! Growing up I always had 8-10 bottles of shower gel in my shower, plus each of those gels had a matching lotion and body spray! (Can you tell I really love scents? :o) I am now working on downsizing my lotions! I haven't been overboard about lotions for a couple years now, but obviously I still have a lotion problem. I actually had four other lotions with me (from my beloved Pacifica) that I brought to Ketchikan, but I gave each one of those to friends so I could try to start whittling this down.

Because I do still like to smell good and I like having different scent options for the day, I do still have four Pacifica spray perfumes and my most favorite perfume ever, Anna Sui's original, but I don't feel like I might "need" more. (Unless I had a coconut one. Coconut would be nice. ;o)

When I have run out of lotion I am going to start using organic coconut oil as a moisturizer (for both my face and body), which is something I buy by the gallon, because I make soap with it! It's always around and it smells awesome! I was inspired by my friend Amy's post about how much she loves it. I have read other people's good reviews of it, but since I actually know Amy it gave her word a little bit more oomph for me.

I'm not sure how I'll like it for my face in the mornings, though. It IS very oily at first, so I'm thinking maybe if I just use a tiny bit it will work then dab my face to get any excess off before I put my powder on for the day.

I'm super duper excited to announce that my shampoo bars are DONE and I have listed them in my Etsy shop! They smell SO GOOD. I used Deschutes' Black Butte Porter, honey, organic coconut oil, sunflower oil, and many other good-for-you ingredients. I want to eat this bar. Seriously.

So now I'm using my shampoo bars, which is awesome because it cuts down on bottle waste and packaging. I've been using other people's shampoo bars for several months now, so it makes me feel awesome that I can finally use my own!

I love my face scrub. I do. But it is expensive and I have read about the benefits of using a face brush for light exfoliation, so I found one for all of like $3 or something and love it! I have actually had it since the beginning of this year sometime, but since my face scrub is almost out, I do not plan on buying more and just plan on brushing my face. It's free and endlessly renewable! (Obviously except for when the brushes wear out. But, hey, $3!)

Why do I have two toners? I finally was able to empty my giant bottle of toner into an empty smaller bottle, but I still have another bottle of the original toner in the smaller bottle. Why two? This is still a mystery to me. I'd love to not have a bottle of toner around, but I do like having something to wipe my face off with that isn't a full on cleanser for the times when I have just gotten done working out or riding my bike or whatnot. Any thoughts?

So this is what I've been working on! I'd love to hear other people's ideas about what you are doing to minimize your beauty products and beauty routine! I find it funny that I have as much "girl stuff" like this because I'm not even a product person. I don't usually have a bunch of extra products or bags full of makeup, etc, sitting around, but I do have my little bit that I want to work on. :o)
Posted by Brittany at 8:37 AM
Labels: , , ,

8 comments:

  1. RenaiJuly 27, 2011 at 8:48 AM

    I used jojoba oil on my face for a very long time and it made my skin awesome! For some reason I never replaced my bottle when I ran out, but I'll likely switch back when I run out of my borage butter cream. I'd imagine that coconut oil would be just as lovely!

    I've cut down tremendously on beauty/bath products in the past year or so. I actually stopped using ANY soap or cleanser on my body (just lovely Brittany soap on my hands!) and instead do dry skin brushing before I shower and use coconut oil on my body after. I don't use cleanser on my face either- just lightly scrub with a natural sponge in the shower, and sometimes I use a jojoba oil/sugar scrub that I make. I'm going to buy a few of your shampoo bars once I'm moved into my new place- I do still shampoo and condition my hair about once a week but would love to eliminate the packaging part of that.

    I still haven't found any natural hair product that works for me (ugh!) but am still looking!

    ReplyDelete
  2. BrittanyJuly 27, 2011 at 9:11 AM

    I used jojoba for a long time, too, but my face never did anything with it! Just always looked normal. I like the face oil I am using now, but if I can use something I always have a ton of around (and you need the tiniest bit) then I am definitely trying that. The coconut oil smells sooo good!

    You would love the shampoo bars! I'm not just saying that. I am really excited about them! I have been wanting to do shampoo bars forever and I'm so happy that it FINALLY happened! Next stop, shaving bars! I have just about everything I need to make them, but just finding the time to figure everything out is making my head spin. I think once I'm in ONE house for the rest of the year (more about that later!) then it should be easier since I won't be moving around all the time.

    Yeah, Jonathan and I were talking about natural hair products last night. The stuff he uses has a lot of good stuff in it, more than a lot of other stuff, but still not so great. And my stuff is sold by my friend who owns an eco-friendly hair salon (right next to the coffee shop!! which is awesome!) and she gave me this stuff and it's pretty good, but still not completely natural.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Lindsay @ Hello HueJuly 27, 2011 at 5:45 PM

    Wow, I've never heard of shampoo bars before! What a great idea! I bet it would be great for guys too since they tend to use the same stuff for their whole body. ;)

    Thanks for filling out my survey, Brittany! I'm SO happy you love your bunting painting-- it's still one of my favorites. I'd love to see pictures when you redo your spare bedroom! Also, I'm a fellow random singer/dancer but an awful sandwich maker. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. AmyJuly 27, 2011 at 6:50 PM

    I feel like I'm paring down my beauty products as well. So excited that you're going to try coconut oil as a moisturizer! A *leetle* bit goes a long way! I am also starting to experiment with pure aloe vera for a day moisturizer since it's so humid in the summer months. I'll let you know how it goes! :)

    P.S. So excited to see your new shampoo bars!

    ReplyDelete
  5. BrittanyJuly 27, 2011 at 9:20 PM

    Lindsay, I never thought to market it to guys that way. Ha! :oD

    Yes, the painting is SO happy!! I love it! Right now it is awkwardly propped in my bedroom at home, just waiting for the time when I will be back in Portland (in October sometime) and can re-do our room. I was so anal in wanting it that I didn't even add it to my favorites, thinking that someone might discover it then!

    Amy, thank you for having such an awesome blog! You have really inspired me in some beauty ideas and thinking. (And thank you for taking my makeup I wasn't using. ;o) I think today I found my skin got at least as oily as it usually does during the day when I use my usual stuff. I was curious this morning, so I went ahead and used the coconut oil instead of my face oil. So since my face looked exactly the same I'd say that is pretty good, right? :oD

    I am excited about all the soap I make, but I am REALLY SUPER EXCITED about the shampoo bars! Because I used a recipe with castor oil in it, the lather is SO thick and fluffy! I had mounds of it on my hands! And obviously one can use it on their body, as well. I am really super psyched about these bars! Next up: shave bars and a facial bar with charcoal in it!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Stina GJuly 27, 2011 at 9:43 PM

    Shampoo & shaving bars, so cool! You go girl! ;)
    I'm trying to have a bit less "stuff" around, but I'm not very good at it. I think what I get rid of is quickly replaced, despite my good intentions... :s

    ReplyDelete
  7. BrittanyJuly 27, 2011 at 10:19 PM

    Ha ha! At least you are somewhat mindful of the fact that you are getting rid of stuff but then replacing it. It has taken me a couple years to get to this point! Really! Seriously, moving to Portland and having to take stock of allllll of the stuff that beforehand had just been getting toted around from one apartment to another in Ketchikan finally had to come to the decision of "Do I want to pay to have this barged to Seattle so I can have it trucked to Portland?" That was my big turning point! And so it has taken a couple of years to get to doing things like wanting to use ONE lotion (eeeeek!), scanning all documents so that we don't have to have a giant folder full of receipts for things, going through my storage area that I have had for a decade (and more!) and mentally prepping to going through my beloved (?) kid stuff...the list goes on!

    So I guess what I'm saying is that if you're at least mindful of what you're doing then eventually, if you really want to, you have the power to make a decision to change it. Change is not easy! It sucks selling some of my stuff, making me feel like I am giving up on those memories, but I'm really not. It's just "stuff"! Some things are easier to get rid of than others. I am just at the point where I'm thinking, "Where do I want my money to go?"

    Jonathan and I are thinking about finding a house to rent in the next few months (well, few months after I get back to Portland) and will need money for that, plus, as my friendies know, October-December were OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive for us!! I am only just now (I mean, as of this past week, for reals) putting money back into our savings account. I only just now got caught up on bill stuff for "our" account. So now that I am done with that I am looking forward! We want to live somewhere else! My car is finally showing its age and we need to be thinking about getting a new one soon! I have no clue what I will be doing when I get back to Portland but I know I will need backup money while I get re-started! I want to travel! Jonathan and I haven't been out of OR, WA, AK, and BC since 2008. :o/ We want to go to the Mediterranean BADLY and I have my heart set on Antarctica and going back to Russia. So, yeah, we have things to think about.

    How the heck did I go off on this tangent while talking about getting rid of things?

    Life story over. Future life story over. This girl's getting offline and going to bed!! ;o) xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  8. AmandaAugust 13, 2011 at 3:07 PM

    Just wanted to chime in and support the use of coconut oil. I use it on my skin when I remember and it's a great moisturizer.

    Curious to hear what you think about shampoo bars. I've always wanted to try 'em since I like the concept a lot but my hair is prone to frizz. I'm not sure if I could go without conditioner?

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)