No Sweat - Lemon Ester

Welcome to the fifth in this mini series about deodorant ingredients. Todays star has a reasonably pronouncable INCI name – Triethyl citrate – and bears the common name Lemon Ester. (Kind of sounds like the name of a sassy character from an old TV series, don't you think?) Lemon Ester carries the Ester name because triethyl citrate actually is an ester – an ester of citric acid.

Falling For The Wrong Type - Carbomer

Forgive me, but I've fallen a teensy bit in love. I tried not to. I tried to stay away, but I was wooed. I was ambushed!

Coconut Oil and The Core Pore Question

I've had a couple of questions about coconut oil and its comedogenic properties.

Comedogenic / Noncomedogenic – in plain English Please
If something will clog pores, it is described as comedogenic. If something will not clog pores, it is described as noncomedogenic.

This may sound pretty straightforward, but there is room for misunderstanding.

How to Make a Green Clay & Spirulina Cleansing Bar

Green Clay – check.
Spirulina – check.
Hempseed oil – check.
Let's go green!

This cleansing bar combines the greenest of green ingredients to cleanse and nourish your face and neck gently and leave your skin soft and gorgeous.

No Sweat - About Baking Soda Deodorant

Welcome to the fourth in this mini series about deodorants and what makes them tick. I have had some great input and a couple of questions from you guys that put me on an information excursion about a popular ingredient in many DIY deodorants: sodium bicarbonate (also known as bicarbonate of soda or baking soda).

Fractionated Coconut Oil - The Oil That Isn't There

If you're in the habit of checking ingredients lists on cosmetics, you've probably run into the name caprylic/capric triglyceride a number of times. The common name for this ingredient is fractionated coconut oil. Unsurprisingly, fractionated coconut oil is pretty much what the common name implies – a fraction of the whole oil.

I know what you're thinking...

How to Prepare Pressed Powder

I've had a couple of questions from you wonderfully inquisitive (fantastic, gorgeous and absolutely fabulous) readers about the method I use to prepare powder for pressing. Here's how I put together a palette with highlighter, foundation and blush tones the other day.

Comfort Zone Eye Serum - Feedback from the Giveaway Winners

A while back, I did a giveaway on my latest product for the eye area: Comfort Zone Eye Serum. The winners and my regular testers have now spoken. Thank you ladies, one and all, for your valuable feedback. I am incredibly pleased to report that I have had nothing but thumbs up on this formula. 

Here are a few excerpts from the comments I have received:

Meet The Danish EWG

Well, the cat's out of the bag. Somebody who writes in the native lingo of this country and happens to be an inquisitive and articulate beauty journalist is asking the same kinds of questions I did in this post last year of an organization I have dubbed the Danish EWG.

Thank you Katja of the blog Pudderdåserne (The Powder Tins) for bringing this up. To all of my Danish readers, I heartily recommend checking out this post. And do read the comments below. These are the same toes I stepped on last year in September – the very same toes that dismissed the information provided to her by a scientist as 'having no basis in science' (!)

A Bit About the EWG
The EWG (Environmental Working Group) has been consistently questioned by the scientific community for misleading and misinforming the public about the safety of cosmetics ingredients through – among other things – their 'Skin Deep Database' website. For an in-depth look at what they're all about, learn more here at this post at Personal Care Truth.

How To Make an Oatmeal & Clay Cleansing Bar

This cleansing bar has a nutty, buttery, oatmeal scent that will delight your nose as it cleanses, gently exfoliates, and moisturizes your face and neck – great for a morning cleanse. To top off all this goodness, it's both easy and inexpensive to make.

Does it get any better than that? What are we waiting for? Let's get started!

Hair Care Tips You (Maybe) Never Knew: 7

Here is the final tip in this hair care mini series that is the wisdom of my hairdresser.

Today, we are 100% rebels – we're going against the grain!

Are you ready? OK, because contrary to popular belief...