Since being a child I have been interested in making my own body products and finding natural alternatives to conventional chemical based body products on shop shelves.
I shall talk your through some of my favourite discoveries such as my handmade tea tree deodorant balm recipe to my favourite plastic free fake tan!
Right starting off with…
Make up
…probably as it is the topic know least so I will keep it breif! I am no make up artist, I just prefer a quick 5 min make up routine and these are my go to products:
Lipstick queen- its amazing! My lipstick is YELLOW!! and then each lipstick adapts to the PH of the wearers lips and it made from a host of natural ingredients
Body shop eyebrow definer- I use this on my eyebrows its only cost £10 I brought it 3 years ago and still using the same one today. Body shop aren’t defiantly not fawless from a ethics perspective but they certainly make a conscious effort so I recommend them if your budget is tight.
YSL baby doll blusher- nothing sustainable about this manufacturer, ingredients or packaging in this product but I always buy them 2nd hand off Ebay. Often they are half the price and completely unused. eBay is a great way to reduce the ‘fast fashion’ nature of makeup and increase its shelf life.
Make up brushes- please take care with these! I use to work in a luxury cosmetic shop which prided itself on the softness of their badger hair mens shaving brushes. Many make up brands use animal fibre in their brushes and plastic for their brush handles. Again I use body shop which have FSC wood handles and synthetic fibres for the bristles. I haven’t yet come across a brand that uses natural/recycled materials for the bristles.
‘The average woman has 40 items of make up and uses only 5 daily’ so my best advice would be to seep it simple and really review whats in your makeup bag before you purchase anything.
Goodhousekeeping.com
This is ALL my body and hair care products it covers; moisturiser, hair care, body wash, deodorant and fake tan. Virtually all of them can be purchased as a refillable or in glass bottles so almost completely plastic free.
Throughout the blog I will unpack each item…here goes!
Hair care
Its a big deal for so many…I have a lot of hair and I have played around with a couple of different things. The main thing I have tried to do is wash it as little as possible in an ideal world I would not wash it with soap but its difficult…it always gets itchy after about 10 days and I cave in. I now use a paraben-free and SCS free shampoo by faith in nature once a week as its really affordable.
It is available as refillable at Derbys The Fig and as a plastic free shampoo bar
With my children I was able to start from scratch as babies and I NEVER wash their hair with soap or shampoo and it NEVER looks greasy.
If it gets dirt in it we just wash it with water. I brush their hair once a week. Even though they are boisterous out door loving 4 and 6 year olds their hair naturally cleans itself and looks consistently beautiful and smooth.
A photo incase you don’t know me just to show you that I have a lot of hair and I am not writing all this with a giant matted grease ball on my head!
The reason I decided not to wash my children hair as babies (and persuaded my husband who religiously washes his hair daily) was because I had read some research suggesting that the conventional shampoo strips away the natural oils needed on our hair and scalp and can cause damage to men specifically in later life.
If I had curly hair I would totally be trying this!! New Wash
Having listened to many curly haired friends it seems they are much better at being able to not wash their hair- and it looks glorious! How you brush curly hair is crucial too. Brush rarely, only when the hair is wet with conditioner and never brush dry.
Hair removal
Its a painful one ;) if your wanting to do it from a chemical perspective its best to avoid the removal creams and focus on natural options such as vegan sugar wax or an epilator for hassle free at home hair removal.
If shaving is your favourite option check out all the reusable metal and bamboo razors now available. The Fig if your Derby based have a selection of reusable razors too (details on shopping with them in Lockdown are at the end of the blog).
Deodorant
As a young teenager I read an article written by a woman recovering from breast cancer. She explained one of the first instructions her consultant gave her was to throw away her aluminium deodorant. It really struck a cord with me and over the last 17 years I have tried many alternatives to conventional deodorant. There is a little hard evidence to prove this connection but something about it made sense to me…its is important to sweat out toxins so why are we applying something that traps the toxins.
Instead apply something that makes the toxins odourless. Baking powder is a great way of doing this! I can be applied daily AFTER exercise with a make up brush or here is a deodorant balm I personally enjoy making and wearing.
6tbsp organic coconut oil
4tbsp baking soda
4tbsp cornstarch
4 drops of peppermint oil
6 drops of tea tree oil
Melt the coconut oil in the microwave till soft and slightly runny add the cornstarch first and stir constantly. When smooth add the oils and baking soda, keep stirring until the baking soda is dissolving slightly and evenly distributed whilst the coconut oil cools and starts to firm up.
Store in a small glass jar out of sunlight. Apply first thing after washing and if you need to during the day wash and reapply. Apply by scraping out about a walnut size amout and massaging into the underarm.
Remember don’t apply deodorant before exercise apply it after exercise- LET THAT SWEAT OUT!
Isle of paradise fake tan drops
Fake tan
In an ideal world I wouldn’t use it..its non essential but as a ginger ninger I get really self conscious of my pale skin.
I recently started using Isle of paradise tan drops created by Strictly’s fake tan expert Jules and I LOVE IT! I mix a few drops in my hand with some Neals yard body lotion and massage in. It is a gradual tan build, smells okay and almost plastic container free!
Keeping moisturised
I love the Neals yard create you own range where you can buy unscented products in bulk sizes and then add your own scents and ingredients.
Everyone is suffering with dry hands at the moment after all the hand washing so here are a couple of great hand creams:
Burts Bees hand cream, if you have been to one of my beeswax wraps workshops you have probably used this cream!
Scence in natures moisturising body balms- these are Mel owner of The Fig in Derbys top pick for re-moisturising that dry skin!
Sanitary ware
There are loads of good eco alternates to the conventional polyester, plastic wrapped sanitary ware whether its organic cotton tampons, menstrual cups or washable pads.
Here are a few of my favourites:
Bloom and Nora- washable sanitary pads these are Mel’s top pick!
Mooncup- resemble silicone cup I used one of these for years before having children and they are great! They take a bit of getting use to but I highly recommend them
Natracare- organic cotton tampons and pads
Sew your own- reusable pads, this is defiantly on my todo list! A great way to use up cotton scraps. I found this nice blog by Little house living with a good guide on how to sew your own
Well done you made it to the end!
If you have any questions or want to know more email me!
The next post in this series will be Sustainable shopping- for your wardrobe! If you want to be the first to know when its live join my mailing list here.
Please share this blog with anyone you know looking to make their body care routine kinder on them and the earth x
List of lovely brands I didn’t manage to squeeze in!
Weleda- these guys are skin and plant magicians and based in Derby Ilkeston so you can visit these wizards and their flower fields in person - yay!
Aveda- they are the gods of hair colour and all things hair and skin- absolute pioneers of this field
Ren- wonderful body products , I love the Otto rose body wash
Dr Hauschka- established makeup and skin specialists
Bio- I love their geranium hand wash again if you have been to my workshops you would have used this!
Many times in this blog I referenced The Fig in derby- Mel the owner is offering free delivery on orders over £30 and small parcel postage up to 2kg.
I also cant recommend enough Oxfam online and inspires stock of body products and Neals yard who are doing a lovely alcohol hand sanitiser spray.
We are getting through so much hand wash and this one is my favourite so we decided to bulk buy it. I found some stock at Traidcraft obviously lots of places have sold out atm.
Its really cost effective this way it works out at 99p for 20ml which is cheaper than carex hand wash!
