Showing posts with label Makeup. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Makeup. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

hmmm...

The last article, was quite dark. I thought that I cleared out my beauty closet enough until I researched for that article... So goodbye Neutrogena Oil-Free facial scrub and cleanser. I can no longer put you on my face, now that I know that I'm putting Cetyl Alcohol on my face, too. [ That goes for your moisturizers and lotions, too]


The alternatives???

Option 1: Make your own products...

  • Advantages ~ the product will be the best quality you can ever get... even the most expensive products can't compare to that.

  • Disadvantages ~ can be time consuming. Might have to rearrange your lifestyle.
My favorite websites to get supplies from:

~ I like this guys because they follow up with emails and invoices to make sure the package was delivered. They also deliver quite quickly AND give you a tracking number.

~ Located in Seattle, Wa. But they also do business online. Very nice people. They even teach classes on Certified Herbology. They have a lovely book selection. AND THEY ARE NOT CULTISH... so I don't feel like I am going into a devil worshiping store. The environment is laid back, clean and friendly.




Option 2: Alternative over the counter products, from natural cosmetic companies like LUSH




  • Advantage~ Products are natural and there are even some that are vegan!

  • Disadvantages~ A bit pricey. Not the greatest cosmetic quality compared to homemade products.


Hope this lifted up your spirit since the last post....

Painted Faces (part 2)

Have you caught your breathe, from the last part of this article? Good, cause it gets worse...






3. I found these definitions of ingredients from "Caring Consumer.com" These ones are IMPORTANT to know because they usually show up in everyday products...

  • Cetyl Alcohol (Basically Sperm from a Sperm Whale or Dolphin) ~ you can find this in some face products and more!
  • Elastin ~ Protein found in the neck ligaments and aortas of cows
  • Estrogen ~ Female hormones from the urine of pregnant mares
  • Gelatin ~ Protein obtained by boiling skin, tendons, ligaments, and/or bones with water. From cows and pigs
  • Glycerin ~ usually comes from animal fat
  • Insulin ~ usually comes from the pancreas of hogs.
  • Keratin ~ Protein from the ground-up horns, hooves, feathers, quills, and hair of various animals


There's "... confusion over whether or not an ingredient is of animal origin is the fact that many companies have removed the word animal from their ingredient labels to avoid putting off consumers.

For example, rather than use the term hydrolyzed animal protein, companies may use another term such as hydrolyzed collagen. Simple for them, but frustrating for the caring consumer...

Animal ingredients are used not because they are better than vegetable-derived or synthetic ingredients but rather because they are generally cheaper... Rendering plants process the bodies of millions of tons of dead animals every year, transforming decaying flesh and bones into profitable animal ingredients. The primary source of rendered animals is slaughterhouses, which provide the "inedible" parts of all animals killed for food. The bodies of companion animals who are euthanized in animal shelters wind up at rendering plants, too. One small plant in Quebec renders 10 tons of dogs and cats a week, a sobering reminder of the horrible dog and cat overpopulation problem with which shelters must cope... Thousands of products on store shelves have labels that are hard to decipher. It's nearly impossible to be perfectly vegan, but it's getting easier to avoid products with animal ingredients. "

~ quoted from www.caringconsumer.com





To Conclude:

There ARE products out there in the market that are vegetable-derived or synthetic- derived (if you want to go this route) products. Go to your usual store and check out the cosmetic sections. Look at the ingredient lists on the back of the containers and take note of all the ones you CAN'T understand. Then,

RESEARCH IT! RESEARCH IT! RESEARCH IT!


This makes you realize that the manufacturer isn't always honest. And that you can't always trust what someone is trying to sell you. Educating yourself on what you place onto your body is truly the GREATEST policy.


If you have a strong stomach and still want to search even deeper into this subject, check out
www.foodRisk.org

for there own reports on the subject...

Painted Faces (part 1)




I think I have mentioned this before... if not, let me say this again. We are slaves to the Cosmetic industry from before most of us can remember.

Barbie taught little girls that to be beautiful, your hair needed to be straight; you needed to wear make up and be really really skinny with big pointy boobs and long legs. Preteen and Teenage girl magazines showed us pictures of models who were in their 20's dressing their age (or little girls imitating them, with WAY too much makeup on).

For centuries, women (and... um... men) have relied on makeup to keep them looking like they have beautiful skin... sexy lush lips... drop dead gorgeous eyes... and a desirable body.

But didn't you ever wonder...

What the hell am I putting on my body?

Well let me tell you...



"WARNING! If you would like to choose to NOT know what is in your daily hygenie products... please ignore the following reports, below this warning. This list may cause readers to be grossed out and/or offended at the Cosmetic Industry. It is also possible that you may not want to wear your favorite makeup, face care products, etc, ever again..."



This part of the article has been developed from a series of different references...



1. This has been quoted from "Beauty. The New Basics" By Rona Berg

  • Human Placenta: The protein-rich lining of the womb, expelled after birth, was first used in cosmetics in the 1940s. Because of its hormone content, manufacturers claimed that placental material would stimulate tissue growth and eradicate wrinkles. When the FDA challenged these claims, manufacturers changed their pitch, but still claimed that placenta was an aid to aging skin.
  • Animal Amniotic Liquid: The fluid that surrounds and protects the cow or ox fetus, touted as a valuable source of protein and vitamins, is used in moisturizers and shampoos (some of those big scientific name no one can pronounce)
  • Fish Scale: Used in some glittery eye shadow
  • 'Live' sheep cells: used in anti aging skin treatments
  • Beetle Carapace: the shell of a beetle is the source of 'carmine', a common ingredient in red lipstick
  • Cattle, Ox, or swine brain cells: Used in moisturizers"


***

2. The following, more surprising items, have been quoted from a CNN article by Adrienne Crezo, called:


  • Sodium chloride (table salt) ~ used in many 'foamy' products
  • Oleoresin Capsicum (pepper spray) ~ in lipstick
  • Diatomaceous Earth (a component in dynamite) ~ found in natural toothpastes, deodorant, absorbent powders, cuticle cream, and in mild-exfoliation products due to its gentle abrasiveness
  • Simethicone (gas relief drops) ~ used in cosmetics during the manufacturing process to reduce the surface tension of air or gas bubbles, causing them to collect and rise upward
  • Urea (formerly extracted from urine) ~ widely used in all manner of cosmetics as a skin-softener and humectant





[end of part 1]

GASP... don't forget to breathe