Product Wednesday-Replacements

sea buckthorn soap
Originally uploaded by mwri

Over the past year many of the brands I have been faithful to for ages were bought out by large corporations. Corporations who's business practices I don't particularly agree with.

Toms of Main bought by Colgate-Polmolive
Burts Bees bought by Clorox
The Body Shop bought by L'oreal-Nestle

So, I am once again on the hunt for products made by companies who's practices I feel comfortable with....and that really deliver. A tough combo to come by in my experience. Here's what I've found so far..........

I've recently begun using Giovanni hair products, a brand I can find at my local Natural Foods Co-Op. I have been VERY pleasantly surprised. I actually like this better than my old Burt's Shampoo/Conditioner. I tried the lighter Spray detangler first, thinking the actual cream leave-in conditioner would be to heavy, and wasn't as enamored. Although, I do think it may work well as a mid day smoother/dampener for a quick blow dry touch-up. Instead I use Giovanni's leave in conditioner on my fine, straight hair and it's never heavy or greasy...just shiny and happy. Also, bonus (and something I hadn't even thought of), using a leave in conditioner which I apply after my shower shortens the length of my showers, which in turn saves water and money.

Areas where I haven't been quite so successful are the kids bath soap and my make-up.
I have seen other bath soap products for the kids that meet my 'responsibly produced' requirements...but they fall short in other areas.

Initially we tried to just use our Dr. Bronner's...the same stuff that Chris and I use every day in the shower. There were a couple problems here. First, no real suds to speak of. This was a big problem for our 2 and 3 year olds...they weren't impressed with the slightly foggy bubble-free bath water.
Second, it's definitely not 'tear free', especially the peppermint variety. The latter is pretty much a deal breaker at this point. We can't be burning the children's eyes out to save the planet. I know in a few years neither one of these things will be much of an issue, but what to do in the mean time?

After that not so successful trial I went out in search of a more acceptable replacement to our beloved Burt's and found products that seemed as if they would meet all of our criteria, except for one crucial element....the price! I cannot pay $7-10 for a small bottle (1/2 the size of a Burt's bottle of the same price) of soap who's only purpose is to wash kids.

So, here we are, down to the final squirts of our last bottle of Burt's body wash. I hope I find something soon or it could get smelly over here.

Finally...makeup. I am really at a loss here. I need to find just a few things...lip gloss/tint, concealer, mascara, and blush. I am finishing up the last of my Body Shop gloss and then I'll have to replace it with something. If I don't figure out what that will be soon, I fear I'll break down in a moment of desperation and get some lead infested junk that was rubbed in kitten's eyeballs. I have a bit more time with the other 3 products as I don't use them every day and they tend to last for quite a while.

I know an obvious solution for my make-up dilemma is to simply stop wearing it. This would save me the headache and eliminate that much more plastic waste from our lives. But, in reality, I know I won't do that...I know that sometimes I will want to wear make-up...and that I really love my lip tint every day.

I found no replacements at my Natural Foods Co-op, so I'm going to have to branch out. Next up, Whole Foods and then the wild and crazy internet. Buying make-up online is so much more challenging than in person because I can't smell or touch stuff., but it's where the most viable options are to be found....so, I'll keep you posted.

Product Wednesday - Dishwasher Dilemma

dishwasher-GE
Originally uploaded by anamoly23

In my quest to change my family's impact on the environment I've been systematically eliminating any cleanser/cleaning product with harmful sulfates, bleach, dyes and/or perfumes. As I posted last week we've eliminated conventional laundry soap from our lives...next up, Dishwasher Detergent.

This one is a bit tougher as there are quite few prerequisites for an automatic dish washing soap.

It cannot suds up during the rather intense dish washing process.
It cannot break down the components of the machine.
It must break the surface tension of the water...or make the water "wetter".
It must be able to dissolve food particles while not being to harsh on dishes.
Finally, it must rinse away relatively easily not leaving a residue on the dishes.

After some pretty intense (for a person who has 2 & 3 year old boys in her work environment) research online I kept encountering variations on the same recipe for an alternative to store bought detergents. Aside from the fact that the recipe is more environmentally friendly than what we had been using, it's also MUCH less expensive.

The Recipe:

* 1 tablespoon Borax (I buy mine in the laundry area of my store)
* 1 tablespoon baking soda (we buy this in bulk as it is used for so many things around here)
* A dash of salt

Add white vinegar to the rinse receptacle (where you would put jet dry)

Another key component to this recipe seems to be that your hot water must be set to 130* or higher to effectively clean/rinse the dishes. Any lower and a white film and lingering food particles have been reported.


Some folks have said that this mix, the borax specifically, have been reported to be bad for the hoses of your dishwasher and should not be used. My first instinct is to question this. I use Borax as a Laundry additive because it is an antiseptic/white booster/odor eliminator and have never heard any concerns about it being harmful to my washing machine or it's hoses. I've heard/read many testimonials from folks that have been using this homemade detergent for years with no adverse effects. But, since I am not an expert on the inner workings of a dishwasher, don't take my word for it.

My plan...I will do a load of dishes using all of the many variations of the recipe I was able to collect and then report back my findings, and the best recipe variation.

If any of you have any experience with Automatic dishwasher alternatives I'd love to hear about your experiences.

Stay tuned...

Product Wednesdays....Dr Bronners

This is the first of what I hope will be an ongoing series of posts I'll call
'Product Wednesday'...

We've been using the fabulous Dr. Bronner's soap for a while now...and it's just occurred to me to try it in yet another capacity.

Laundry!

So far it's our dish soap, general cleanser for counters and floors, shower and tile cleaner, bathing soap, face soap, and carpet freshener.

If vinegar and baking soda won't do , we grab the Dr. B's.

Why not laundry? I read around on the internet and found mainly good reviews of the peppermint soap as a laundry soap...a few folks mentioned oil like stains on their clothes.

Dr.B's also sells a 'Sal Suds' which is meant more for this use, but I really don't want to have any more cleaning products in my home than Absolutely necessary. The thought of only needing ONE for everything sounds Amazing!

If you've not heard of Dr. Bronner's...It's a counterculture Classic.

It's a castille soap which is vegan, biodegradable, organic, packaged in 100% post consumer recycled plastic bottles, scented with essential oils, and not tested on animals. The crazy labels are printed with organic hemp seed ink.

There is even a documentary about the man himself and the story of how the soap came to be..called Dr. Bronner's Magic Soapbox. The proprietor, Dr. Bronner, apparently created the soap after escaping from a mental institution and seemed to care more about the soap than his own family.

Interesting stuff.

So...I did it. I washed 3 loads of clothes in Dr. Bronner's soap. I used about 1/8-1/4 cup per full load on warm water wash/cold rinse.

I tested it on one load of lights, one of darks, and one with towels/linens. It worked SO well. It not only worked, It was SO much better than the laundry soap I had been using. I had no trouble with 'oil' spots as I had read I might.

Until now I was using a 'green' brand that's biodegradable and free of perfumes and dyes. My clothes were getting adequately clean, but didn't smell so great and were a bit 'scratchy'.

The clothes and my laundry room now have a great clean smell (I used the peppermint scent). The laundry is also softer than it was with the detergent I had been using. This was a huge (and unexpected) bonus as I had stopped using fabric softener/dryer sheets quite a while ago when I found out that they contained some of the most dangerous chemicals in my home!

From the EPA:

Principal chemicals found in Fabric Softeners/Dryer Sheets are:

Symptoms of exposure are taken from industry-generated Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)

ALPHA-TERPINEOL

Causes CNS (central nervous system) disorders... "highly irritating to mucous membranes" ..."Aspiration into the lungs can produce pneumonitis or even fatal edema." Can also cause "excitement, ataxia (loss of muscular coordination), hypothermia, CNS and respiratory depression, and headache." "Prevent repeated or prolonged skin contact."

BENZYL ACETATE

Carconigenic (linked to pancreatic cancer). "From vapors: irritating to eyes and respiratory passages, exciting cough." "In mice: hyperanemia of the lungs." "Can be absorbed through the skin causing systemic effects." "Do not flush to sewer."

BENZYL ALCOHOL

Causes CNS disorders ..."irritating to the upper respiratory tract" ..."headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drop in blood pressure, CNS depression, and death in severe cases due to respiratory failure."

CAMPHOR

Causes CNS disorders. On EPA's Hazardous Waste list. Symptoms: "local irritant and CNS stimulant" ..."readily absorbed through body tissues" ..."irritation of eyes, nose, and throat" ..."dizziness, confusion, nausea, twitching muscles and convulsions". "Avoid inhalation of vapors."

CHLOROFORM

Neurotoxic. Anesthetic. Carcinogenic. on EPA's Hazardous Waste list. "Avoid contact with eyes, skin, clothing. Do not breathe vapors ...Inhalation of vapors may cause headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness, irritation of respiratory tract and loss of consciousness." "Inhalation can be fatal." "Chronic effects of overexposure may include kidney and/or liver damage." "Medical conditions generally aggravated by exposure: kidney disorders, liver disorders, heart disorders, skin disorders." "Conditions to avoid: Heat..." Listed on California's Proposition 65.

ETHYL ACETATE

Narcotic. On EPA's Hazardous Waste list. "...Irritating to the eyes and respiratory tract" ..."may cause headache and narcosis (stupor)" ..."may cause anemia with leukocytosis and damage to liver and kidneys". "Wash thoroughly after handling."

LIMONENE

Carcinogenic. "Prevent its contact with skin or eyes because it is an irritant and sensitizer." "Always wash thoroughly after using this material and before eating, drinking ...applying cosmetics. Do not inhale limonene vapor."

LINALOOL

Narcotic. Causes CNS disorders. ..."respiratory disturbances" ..."Attracts bees." "In animal tests: ataxic gait, reduced spontaneous motor activity and depression ...depressed heart activity ...development of respiratory disturbances leading to death."

PENTANE

"Danger - Harmful if inhaled ...Avoid breathing vapor." "Inhalation of vapors may cause headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness, irritation of respiratory tract and loss of consciousness. Repeated inhalation of vapors may cause CNS depression. Contact can cause eye irritation. Prolonged exposure may cause dermatitis (skin rash)."

So, to get a better than expected result from a product that I not only feel safe using, but that I actually feel good about using, made my day!

(This is a cross post from my other blog)