Important links to learn more and take action:

The Story of Cosmetics site
Safe Cosmetics Act Action (letter to House)
E-card to tell your friends about The Story of Cosmetics
Safe Cosmetics Act main info page

Everyone in my household has sensitive skin to some degree and thus, I’m very picky about what kinds of soap I buy. The conventional deodorant soaps make my husband all itchy and both my kids will get little patches of eczema all over from anything that’s too harsh.

Aside from that, conventional soaps and body washes are typically heavily scented via phthalate-laden “fragrances” and contain a laundry list unpronounceable chemicals that have been linked to various health issues from cancer to hormone disruption to organ damage. You just don’t need all that junk to get clean. Read the rest of this entry »

What: Yoreganics

Features: The Yore Laundry Trio Sampler from Yoreganics consists of three all-natural, organic laundry products. First up are soap nuts – from the Soapberry tree, native to India and Nepal, the outer shells of the dried fruit berries create a natural soap when agitated in water. Paired with them are two organic stain-removal products – an organic spray to use on fresh stains, and a non-toxic powder, Brightens and Whitens, for marks that are harder to get out

Green Factor: Soap nuts are 100% natural – you won’t find chemicals or toxins in this kind of detergent. Brightens and Whitens is non-toxic, free of chlorine bleach, fragrances or phosphates and is environmentally safe; the stain remover spray is made with USDA certified organic materials.

Bonus: Yoreganics also has a line of bodycare items, as well – check the web site for the rest of their wares!

Find It Here: Yoreganics

Win It: We’ve partnered with Yoreganics to give away a prize package consisting of one Yore Laundry Trio Sampler (includes soap nuts, Brightens and Whitens, Stain Remover) and an organic Simplement flavored lip balm, an organic foaming soap and one organic silky shea facial bar to one lucky winner!

Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter YO05 as the giveaway name and tell us what product is pictured on the Yoreganics home page. Giveaway ends 05/28/10; $28 value. Open to US and Canadian residents. Official Rules

What: LiceLogic

Features: If you’ve got kids, there’s a fair chance you will eventually have a run in with head lice (if you haven’t already) and the only thing worse than having a case of it in your household are the conventional treatments used to get rid of it. I mean, who wants to dump a bunch of nasty chemicals on their child’s head? Enter LiceLogic and their line of non-toxic products, designed to not only treat head lice, but prevent it as well.

Green Factor: LiceLogic products are enzyme and plant-based, non-toxic and pesticide-free. They’re biodegradable, safe for infants and meet all FDA guidelines

Bonus: Ingredients such as peppermint and lemon mean no nasty chemical smell! And? LiceLogic makes house calls! Check their web site for details

Find It Here: LiceLogic

Please take 3 minutes to watch A Wake-Up Story. It’s a must-see for parents, parents-to-be and anyone who cares about the health and well-being of future generations.

Find it Here: Healthy Child, Healthy World

I’ve always been kind of bothered by disposable razors. I mean, you use it a few times and then you just THROW IT AWAY. It’s absurd. What really pushed me over the edge, though, is when my husband tried the free Gillete Fusion we got in the mail and decided he really liked it. Yes, it worked nicely but the replacement cartridge heads? Cost a freaking fortune (around $25 for 8 heads). Shaving had suddenly become not only bad for the environment but ridiculously expensive, as well.

After succumbing to his pleas to buy the overpriced, ungreen foolishness a few times I decided there had to be a better alternative and I started looking at real razors like my dad used to use, also known as double edge safety razors. Usually made of stainless steel, chrome or nickel-plated brass, you use stainless steel blades that are generally inexpensive (and recyclable) and you DON’T need to replace the head or handle at all.

After much research, I settled on one and ordered it for my husband (it came with 100 blades) for $37 and change and guess what? HE LOVES IT. Even better? I love it—no more dull blades, no more throwing the whole thing away and no more buying new razor heads at an average price of $3 per head. And as an added bonus…my legs have never been smoother.

Find It Here: Amazon.com

What: Badger’s Winter Wonder Balm

Features: Natural ingredients (like essential oils, Eucalyptus, Rosemary and Peppermint) offer soothing time-tested relief from coughs, colds and congestion

Green Factor: Its USDA certified organic

Bonus: Can be used as a rub OR in a humidifier to help with cough and cold symptoms

Find It Here: Badger

Bath and beauty products that are made using all-natural ingredients and come in completely recycled packaging, from a company that doesn’t test on animals. That’s not too much to ask, now is it?

Not if you ask Danny Seo, whose line of organic skin care and body products, called wholearth, is chock full of goodness. Created by combining natural ingredients like juices and essential oils, beeswax and plain ol’ water, wholearth’s perfume spray and body specifics (such as wash, lotion, scrub and soufflé) are good for you and your bod, and our beloved Mother Earth.

What’s not in any of wholearth’s products is the bad stuff: parabens, phthalates, petrochemicals, sodium laureth sulfates, aluminum and synthetic dyes, to name just a few. The list of harmful substances found in some of the bath and beauty products out there is long and hard to pronounce, whereas all of the additives used to make up wholearth’s delectable wares are USDA certified organic. Check their web site for a complete list of what goes in to their products, along with what, thankfully, doesn’t.

Find It Here: wholearth

My name is Janet and I’m a lip balm addict aficionado. My current balm of choice is the EOS (Evolution of Smooth) Smooth Sphere. Of course, I love it because it’s 100% natural with 95% organic ingredients but I also love it’s unique shape—inside it’s weirdly wonderful round case, the balm is shaped like an egg. Well, half an egg, actually, and applying it to my lips is oddly pleasant. In fact, I think I need some right now. Stop looking at me like that. I don’t have a problem. I can quit any time I want!

Find It Here: EOS

On Our Blog: One of the Easiest Ways to Go Green

When my daughter gets bitten by a mosquito, an angry red welt shows up on the surface of her skin within minutes. I’ve never seen anything quite like it – one minute she’s outside playing and the next, she’s close to tears because she’s dotted with big, itchy bumps. The bites swell up, turn a bright shade of crimson and last for days – there have been times when I’ve deliberately kept her out of the public eye, lest folks think she’s covered in chicken pox.

I’ve been using bug spray on her this summer – sparingly, mind you – but unfortunately, it really hasn’t given her much relief. I was just saying to my husband earlier this month that I wished there was a product I could use on her without feeling like I was dousing her with chemicals, and then I heard about Bug-it-Off – a natural, organic bug repellent from Greenerways Organic that’s safe for people (including pregnant women!), pets and the environment. Bug-it-Off is the first – and only – organic bug spray to hit the shelves, and I gotta say, it’s about time!

Bug-it-Off is a mixture of pure water and essential organic oils (citronella and cedarwood). There are no additional ingredients – no soaps, glycerine or alcohol will take away from the oils. Those ingredients are added separately to each bottle so that they maintain their purest state; the end result is a product that’s not only 100% organic bur also DEET-free!

Find It Here: Bug-it-Off

A clerk in a store today said “Oh, you’re all green and stuff, huh?” with just a hint of mockery in his 25 year old voice when I handed him my reusable bag. Granted, it was a thrift store. Maybe they don’t get a lot of reusable bag people in there. Whatever.

When my son was an infant, though, I sometimes got the same kind of reaction from other parents of babies when I mentioned organic foods or toxin-free baby products. I felt like shaking them and saying “WAKE UP! The world is a very toxic place and your baby is this precious, brand new little life. You need to be aware of these things.” But I didn’t want to be all preachy or make anyone feel like crap so I would just smile serenely and let it go. Well, these days I have this site and I can talk about organic and eco-friendly baby products as much as I want. WIN!

So… As you may have guessed, I love organic, non-toxic products and as I’ve mentioned before, Miessence makes some really great ones, even for babies. Free from phthalates, petroleum by-products, parabens, artificial preservatives, synthetic detergents, fragrance, allergens, semi-natural ingredients and certified organic, Miessence delivers some of the best baby products around and even it’s packaging is 100% recyclable.

If you haven’t tried Miessence for babies yet, you just may get your chance—ON US— because we’ve  partnered with Ely Organics to give away, to one randomly selected winner, a trio of Miessence certified organic baby wash, baby lotion and barrier balm (butt cream!)

Find It Here: Miessence

Win It: We’re giving away a set of Miessence certified organic baby wash, baby lotion and barrier balm). Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter MI08 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: Name three  of the “ingredients to avoid” found listed on the Ely Organics site. Enter by 8/18/09. $85 value. Open to residents of US and Canada. Winner to be notified by email. Contest Closed.

You like green stuff, right? Yeah, we knew that about you guys (we haz powers!) and that’s why we’ve partnered with Ecostore USA to give away a $25 gift certificate to one lucky reader. Ecostore USA carries plant and mineral-based, non-toxic personal care stuff, baby stuff, household stuff and pet stuff and and it’s all “super concentrated” so that a little bit goes a long way and saves you some of that other kind of green.

Find It Here: Ecostore USA

Win It: We’re giving away a $25 gift certificate to Ecostore USA. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter ECO5 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: What is the Ecostore USA slogan? Enter by 5/21/09. $25 value. Open to US and Canadian residents. Contest closed. Congratulations to Beth!