June 2014 - Curious Babs

First iHerb Haul

First iHerb Haul

Check out what I got in my first iHerb haul! I ordered a number of products including 2 protein powders, liquid soap, body lotion, 2 deodorants and a toner. I hadn’t heard of iHerb until I started watching Ecoholic Beauty – thanks, Jess! This is one of my first green beauty hauls and I’m so excited! I got my order in 3 days which is amazing and I feel like to got a lot for what I spent ($74). I’ve been using the products for a little under a week and wanted to share my first impressions.

iHerb Haul First Impressions
I wanted some basic castile soap to clean makeup brushes and for an all purpose cleanser for the shower and the various sinks in our home. I was specifically looking for Dr. Bronner’s Almond Castile Liquid Soap. I didn’t see it so I took a chance on the Dr. Woods Pure Tea Tree Castile Soap with Organic Shea Butter. This is good quality product. I’m not a huge tea tree fan (a little on the antiseptic side for me) but the scent is mild enough and the product does the job. This soap was around $.30 per ounce which is about on par with Dr. Bronner’s. I’d say there’s about a 50/50 chance I will buy this product again. If I really need soap and I’m buying from iHerb, I may repurchase.

I have a protein powder fruit smoothie for breakfast 5 to 6 days a week. I find smoothies to be a great way to get nourishment into my system first thing in the morning and they’re oh so portable! Eating something healthy in the morning is an important part of keeping my daily eating in check and maintaining a stable weight.

It isn’t easy to find a protein powder that doesn’t contain stevia. Although stevia is supposed to be a more natural sweetener, things with stevia always seem too sweet to me and extra sweet things don’t help me keep my sweet tooth in check! I’ve used Jarrow’s Brown Rice Protein Powder in Vanilla in the past so when I saw that iHerb carries this product, it was a no-brainer to add it to my order. This protein powder is great! I don’t have a problem with the texture, it is not overly sweet (it’s stevia-free), it’s reasonably priced (about $.80 per ounce), has great ingredients, etc.. I also ordered MLO Natural, Brown Rice Protein Powder because I was curious about this product and wanted to try something new. At about $.63 per ounce, this protein powder is a good value and it seems to work just fine so there’s a good chance I’ll repurchase.

Here is my current smoothie recipe:
Mix all of this in a blender: 1 scoop of protein powder with 1/2 banana, 6 to 8 ounces of orange juice, 1/3 cup nonfat yogurt, 1/3 to 1/2 cup of fruit (my favorites are strawberries, blueberries and fresh pineapple) and 1/4 cup crushed ice. Whirl this in the blender for a good 3 minutes to make sure there aren’t any fruit lumps. Pour it into a shaker jar and enjoy!

I’m currently using Zion Health Adama Minerals Clay Dry Deodorant and I ordered another one since I’ll be out soon. I still love this deodorant the best out of the numerous natural deodorants I’ve tried. It isn’t sticky, doesn’t require you to wait to get dressed, keeps me dry throughout the day, doesn’t have a strong scent and is reasonably priced. I decided to try Alvera Aloe Almond Roll On Deodorant on a whim. I tried using this once. It has a strong smell I don’t really care for. so I don’t think I’ll be using this deodorant again unless. It wasn’t expensive (less than $4) so I may just toss it. You may ask why I bothered to try another deodorant if what I currently have works so well. Well…….you beauty product junkies out there can probably understand the compulsion to “hunt” for the next best product because “you never know” when you’ll discover a new favorite, right??? Whose with me on this one???

So far, I really like the Nature’s Baby Organics Face and Body Lotion. I hesitated getting a baby lotion but when I read the rave reviews, I couldn’t resist trying it out. This product is very emollient and I really feel like it’s nourishing my skin. It’s unscented and has a pretty attractive price point (around $1.10 per ounce).

I was completely out of facial toner so had to include some on this order. I struggled to decide which product to buy and ended up with Thayers Rose Petal Witch Hazel with Aloe Vera Formula Alcohol Free Toner. This is a no frills alcohol-free toner and I’m pretty pleased with it. It has a fairly mild rose scent, seems to do the job just fine and has a good price point (around $.70 per ounce).

What did get on your first iHerb haul? What products do you like to buy from iHerb? Do you have any yummy smoothie recipes to share?

-Barbara

May 2014 Beauty Favorites

As I discover the world of green beauty, I am using up the products already in my stash. I’m trending green on new purchases but need to use up what’s already in my stash.Deodorant is the first product I went “green” with. I’ve tried many natural deodorants over the years. I was almost settled on Tom’s when I read a review about Zion Health Clay Dry Deodorant.There isn’t a natural deodorant will will keep your underarms bone dry but what’s most important to me is to smell fresh throughout the day. This product is reasonably priced, easy to roll on and isn’t wet so you don’t have to wait to get dressed. I’ve been using this same container of deodorant for about 6 months and I swear I still have 50% of the product left. I’m close to declaring this my Holy Grail deodorant.

I dusted off my The Balm’s Frat Boy Shadow/Blush to give it another go for summer. This is an easy blush to wear – it provides natural looking color and goes on easily. The packaging is lightweight which is good for traveling. I brought my Laura Mercier Cheek Contour Brush back into rotation recently and it’s been working great with the Frat Boy Blush. This brush is just the right size for my face and deposits just enough color right on my cheekbone. I think I’ll experiment using this brush for contoure our in June.

Speaking of brushes, I wanted to give a shout out for the Real Techniques Dual Fiber Face Brush. I’ve been using this brush to lightly apply powder to set my foundation. The bristles are super feathery so it doesn’t cake on the powder for more of a a natural finish. The Real Techniques brushes are fantastic for the money.

The one product I won’t leave home without is corrector. The Graftobian Corrector in Soft Orange is marketed as a Blue Neutralizer and it pretty much cancels out my under eye darkness. This product works so well, I can even get by without layering a concealer on top.

I had never heard of Malloy makeup until I saw Emily from The Beauty Broadcast rave about it in one of her favorites. The Malloy Volumizing Mascara beefs up my lashes in one coat with its fluffy brush. It’s a thick consistency and I don’t notice any smearing throughout the day.

So many You Tube makeup gurus are gushing about Makeup Geek Eye Shadows. They are only $5.99 each so I couldn’t resist picking up a few to try them for myself. These eye shadows are FANTASTIC for the money; creamy and very pigmented. I ordered 4 colors and keep them in a Mac quad palate. Purely Naked is matte with a slight sheen and is great all over the lid and into the crease for an easy one shadow look. Vanilla Bean has a slight sheen for a subtle brow or inner eye highlight. Crème Brûlée is a great matte crease color and an alternate to Mac’s Soft Brown. Cocoa Bear is a rich matte reddish brown that works great for eyeliner and the outer “V”.

I found out about Mac’s Lustre Lipstick in See Sheer from one of Essie Button’s Monthly Favorites videos. Orange is THE go-to shade for summer and it just so happens that I’ve been obsessed with this lipstick for months. I like lipsticks that aren’t in your face bright or dark and can be applied without looking in a mirror. This lipstick is has a soft orange hue, has a slightly shiny finish and is totally wearable for my corporate job.

I’ve been using argan oil for about 6 months now and it’s superb. I stumbled across the Josie Maran Argan Love Your Skin Cleanse and Nourish To Go set waiting in line at Sephora. The set includes a trial size of Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil and Argan Cleansing Oil. This argan oil is silky on the face without feeling too greasy and the dropper makes it easy to control the amount of product dispensed. I’ve seen reviews that state that Josie Maran’s argan oil is more expensive than others but I love its consistency, it’s working well for me and the small size is perfect for traveling.