All Eyes On Her

I’ve been wanting to add a good beta hydroxy acid product to my regime, but I’m having a lot of trouble finding the right one. I’ve read before that salicylic acid (the main BHA in cosmetic formulations) is only soluble in alcohol or oil, and I’m not interested in using alcohol-infused products on my sensitive and dryness-prone skin.

So of course, I started keeping an eye out for BHA products that were oil-based instead… but I haven’t found a single one. Nearly every BHA product out there is chock-full of harsh alcohol that this picky complexion just won’t tolerate.

One BHA product I found which doesn’t seem to contain large amounts of either alcohol OR oil is Juice Beauty’s Blemish Clearing Serum. However, this stuff is weaker than I’d like at only 1% salicylic acid, and the texture is kind of unbearable. It goes on incredibly sticky and the sticky feeling never really leaves you.

So my search has continued. I was thrilled when I found Devita’s Acne Solution Pads, since they claimed to be 3% salicylic acid but completely alcohol free, which is obviously a rare find.

I was a little skeptical, since I’d read those solubility claims elsewhere, and since I know witch hazel (the main ingredient in these puppies) can often be chock-full of alcohol even if it isn’t listed in the ingredients. But I figured that since they make a specific point of calling out the glaring absence of alcohol, then these must be safe.

And boy, was I wrong. I opened up the jar, and one whiff nearly knocked me out. These pads CLEARLY contain alcohol, and quite a lot of it — I haven’t been able to use them on my face at all. (I still use them to exfoliate after trimming my bikini area or shaving my underarms, because the BHA helps prevent ingrown hairs. But I had intended to use them on my face, and this is simply not an option.) Normally, being the consumer-hound that I am, I’d be more frustrated that these products are using deceptive marketing. But instead, I’m just still focused on finding a dang BHA product that I can use!

Years ago, I had used Aveda’s Botanical Kinetic Exfoliant, so I looked into going back to that stuff. But my older and now wiser self noticed that this stuff also has a high witch hazel and alcohol content, so that’s out (now that I know better). It would seem that everything in a toner-like consistency is completely off the table as far as alcohol concerns go. Read the rest…

Turns out, tagetes is STINKY! My package from Nature’s Gift arrived recently, and I mixed up a little vial of tagetes essential oil in a neem and avocado oil base. I started anointing dear Grant’s toes with it, and I was wowed by how smelly it is. Not like anything else I’ve smelled, and certainly not as offensive as neem, but very… strong.  It’s also a very bright yellow color, kind of like turmeric or saffron, and it does kinda stain the skin/nail bed.

I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of results we get. I specifically designed this toenail fungus treatment for Grant, because he can’t stand the smell of vinegar. So the normal vinegar bath method was kinda out of the question, if I wanted him to be a willing participant. Here’s hoping this vinegar-free method makes all the stink worth it!

I’ve been wanting to try a vitamin C serum ever since I read about people’s glorious results on EDS.  But it’s a tricky substance: most C serums apparently oxidize really quickly, which means the highly unstable C “turns” and can actually do your skin more harm than good.  It can be really hard to find a C serum that’s stable enough to last through the whole bottle.

To complicate matters further, the base ingredients that help keep C stable are exactly the sort of thing I hate to put on my face.  (Petrochemicals and/or potentially irritating acids, to name a couple.)  One solution is to try making your own C serum in small batches, so you can control how fresh it stays.

This is above and beyond my normal level of DIY crafting, but I think I’m up to the challenge.  Thankfully, C is a little more forgiving than some other DIY actives, and I’m not that invested if it doesn’t work out.  This may be my first leap into varsity-level DIY, which should be fun!  I wonder if Maggie Bullock will seek me out again. :)

I’ve always considered myself fairly savvy with essential oils, but I’m learning more and more as I go. I had the basics down, but now I’m delving into some lesser-known oils, like manuka (below) and, this time, tagetes.

Tagetes is the oil from a type of marigold, and it has powerful anti-fungal properties. I’ve been trying to come up with an effective essential oil blend for toenail fungus for a while now, so that people can avoid taking those awful and side-effect-riddled oral medications. I had a mix of neem and tea tree, which is great for some other fungus-type problems, but which never seemed to do the trick for toenails.

But I was turned on to tagetes oil thanks to a couple of EDS members, and I started looking into it more. This stuff is renowned for killing fungi! Bye-bye, sad toenails. (Not my own, thankfully, but those of a certain someone close to me who was reluctant to wear sandals all last summer.) I’m hoping by this summer, that certain someone’s tootsies will be good to go, thanks to tagetes.

I’ve been working on my homemade deodorant for several months now, and I think I finally hit the jackpot with today’s batch. I made a couple of targeted adjustments that really improved the overall product.

I cut out the neem oil entirely, because even though neem is great for antibacterial and antifungal purposes, it’s too stinky! I also switched from tea tree to manuka oil, which has a slightly less over-the-top smell. And lastly, I added a lovely fragrant EO blend that doesn’t have any beneficial purpose in a deodorant, but that helps it smell nice (and masks the smell of other ingredients).

Combine that with better ratios of ingredients, a more finely-milled version of an herb powder I wanted to use, and a general better hand at blending all this stuff in the right order, and presto! I’m very excited by my new recipe, and I think it’s going to become my standard. Never again will I have to suffer underarm irritation, not to mention the potential risks of Alzheimer’s and breast cancer. I’m so pleased!

I was very excited to pick up this month’s ELLE magazine, even though it’s not one of my typical reads. On page 111, there’s an article on do-it-yourself skincare, and ELLE writer Maggie Bullock quoted me twice (including an ending quote, yay!).

Unfortunately, the article doesn’t appear in the online mag, but I’ve uploaded a PDF (with permission) here, in case anyone wants to check it out. (And no, it wasn’t printed that way — my boyfriend ever-so-subtly highlighted the parts with me in it.)