Crystal Madrilejos

[Photo by Lauren Crew]

For the past year or so (maybe longer, who can remember that far back?), I’ve been slowly but surely transitioning to “clean” health and beauty products. We all know that there are bad chemicals/toxins/stuff in everything nowadays. So much so, that you can’t even trust when something says “All-Natural” or “Organic” these days. Andrew and I do our best to arm ourselves by staying informed and educated, but it can be frustrating and down-right depressing to find out things that you thought were good for you, are actually not as good as you thought (I’m looking at you SIGG).

Luckily, there are quite a number of resources online for checking out how “clean” a product is. No More Dirty Looks is by far my favorite site for beauty products. These lovely ladies live for clean and green beauty products. Run by Siobhan O’Connor and Alexandra Spunt, who co-authored the book No More Dirty Looks: The Truth About Your Beauty Products and the Ultimate Guide to Safe and Clean Cosmetics, this site is a goldmine of knowledge on all types of brands and products. I used to work with Siobhan back in my NYC days and I can attest that she is one smart cookie. Also, I have tried many products based on their reviews and recommendations and have not once been disappointed. Not only are these ladies super smart and charming, but they have a following of like-minded folks that comment on their site and offer even more advice and suggestions for cleaning up your beauty routine.

One of the surest ways to know what you’re putting on (and eventually into) your body is to make it from scratch. Obviously, this works better in some scenarios than others. Recently, I came across this recipe on the No More Dirty Looks site for DIY deodorant, cleverly called Deo for Your B.O.! Andrew and I tested it out on the 4th of July and it worked awesome!

Mix equal parts corn starch, baking soda and coconut oil (we use Nutiva Virgin Coconut Oil) and, Voila!, awesome, homemade deodorant cream that keeps you B.O. free even on the hottest day of the year. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a natural deodorant option.

-c.