Jen Ching

Graffiti: That Perfume Would Smell Skunky

Photo taken in Venice Beach, CA.

DIY Lip Balm

Got this fantastic video link on the Facebook page for the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. If only I could share this video with everyone I see who takes out a lip product made with petroleum-based and other terrible and chemical ingredients.

Makeup Tip: Saving Crumbled Eye Shadow

I caught a few minutes of a lifestyle magazine show on a local channel not too long ago and the host was interviewing someone who claimed to be an expert in green living on the topic of eco-friendly beauty tips. One of her tips: if your powder eye shadow crumbles, you don't have to toss it. Preventing waste--so, far so good. But her suggestion for how to save it was to blend the crumbled powder remains with Vaseline to make a creamy eye shadow. That's where my jaw dropped; using a petroleum-based product like Vaseline is not green or eco or environmentally friendly by any stretch of the imagination. Good idea, but terrible ingredient for the task.

So here's my tip: when a powder eye shadow crumbles or breaks, simply blend the remains with some shea butter to create a creamy eye shadow. I tried it with eye shadow that broke apart after a recent trip and it works. Voila.

Ugly Truth: The Story of Cosmetics

Quick: count how many personal care products you used this morning, from shampoo in the shower to lip gloss applied when you were stopped at the red light. Do you know what's in the products? Do you know if they're made with safe ingredients? I pull out the bullhorn any chance I get to encourage my loved ones to choose safer beauty and personal care products and point them to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics for info and the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep website to look up safety ratings of products. Now I can point to this video to help get the message across. Cheers to Annie Leonard, behind "The Story of Stuff," for taking on the story of cosmetics.

Beauty for Beach Days

Sunscreen:
I consulted the Environmental Working Group's Sunscreen Guide and was happy to find my favorite SPF 30 sunscreens by Badger and California Baby ranked highest for safety and effectiveness. The Badger SPF 30 sunscreen stick is also good to apply pre-surf for nose, ears, hands, and cheeks, and their SPF 15 lip balm stays put during surf or swim sessions and beach yoga classes.

Hats:
I've got a collection of hats and make a point to wear one when spending more than a few minutes outdoors. Baseball caps (Yankees AND Dodgers, showing my East and West coast support!); straw cowboy hats; cotton floppy hats. When in the water, I wear a beat-up baseball cap and tie the string on my wetsuit zipper to the hat (so it doesn't get lost at sea when I wipe out).

Makeup:
Even when I'm wearing only sunscreen on my face, I like to put a little color on my lips. My current favorite is Jane Iredale's PureMoist Lip Colour SPF18. There are no harsh chemicals or artificial colors and it's got SPF protection. My favorite is a soft and pretty red color named Nicole, which I dab on lightly for a bit of color during the day; at night, I wear it loud and proud. I have become a devotee of many of Iredale's products and also like to use some of the 24-Karat Gold Dust powder (mineral, nothing toxic) for a subtle shimmer on eyelids and cheeks or to blend it with some moisturizer or sunscreen for a pretty glow. You can find more safe-for-you cosmetics (and see how the products you already use rank) at the Skin Deep Cosmetic Database from the Environmental Working Group; for even more information on the safety of makeup and personal care products, visit the site for the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.

Beach Hair Spray:
I make my own beach hair spray. In a spray bottle, I mix 1 cup of filtered water, 1 tablespoons of sea salt, 1 teaspoon shea butter, 2-3 drops of essential oil of choice (I like jasmine and orange). Shake and spray. (Twist and braid a few pieces of hair for some waves.)

Hair bands:
Self-promotional plug! I make hair bands, from basic black elastic bands embellished them with recycled scraps of fabric (denim, hankie, chino, linen, tulle, silk tie...) and sell them on my Etsy shop, which features upcycled and vintage clothing and accessories.

Moisturizer:
Shea butter, from head to toe.

Summer Beauty: Lipstick with SPF

I'm fine going without makeup, but I always like something on my lips. It can be straight-up shea butter for a bit of moisture, but I generally go for something with a little color (or a lot--sometimes an occasion calls for smokin' hot red). This serves me well during summer or long stretches outdoors any time of the year, as lips need sun protection just like the rest of our exposed parts.

Before choosing any personal care product, I first consult the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep website, which rates products for safety and lists their ingredients. (Don't know the site? Get to it. You know you end up ingesting most of your lipstick, so it's really in your best interest to know what's inside the tube.)

The group puts out an annual report on the safety of sun protection products, including a listing of sun balms with SPF. The best-rated lipstick (3 out of 10, on a scale that deems 0 harmless and 10 hazardous) is from Jane Iredale, a line that produces makeup without the nasty chemicals found in so many other brands. The company is also a signer of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics, having pledged to meet the guidelines set by the non-profit group.

I try to choose only products with 0-2 scores but can live with a 3 for some pretty lip color. My new spring/summer color is Jane Iredale's PureMoist Lipcolour SPF18 in C.J. Like most lipsticks, it looks darker in the tube than it does on your lips. This one is pink with a hint of coral and reminds me of that pinkish, sherbert-like color you see in a sunset, like the clouds behind the palm trees in this photo.

Hitting the Right Bottle: Perfume

I've loved perfume since I was a little kid. In chronological order, I wore Love's Baby Soft, L'Air du Temps, Eternity, Flowers--then, well, then I went wild and crazy and divided my devotion among a collection of dozens of fragrances. I visited perfume blogs and ordered samples, always searching for magic in a bottle. I never left the house without a spritz or dab of something.

So when I learned a few years ago about the dangers that lurked in those bottles--to find out that something that smelled so good could be so, well, bad--it was disheartening. I'm sure a lot of others are feeling as dismayed after reading a report released this week from the fine folks at the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics: "Not So Sexy: The Health Risks of Secret Chemicals in Fragrance." In short: the news stinks. Testing shows that popular perfumes are filled with chemicals that can hurt you and/or the environment. Oh, and some of those toxins aren't even listed on the ingredients labels. I've published a blog post on the topic at the Care2 site.

So here's the thing. No one likes to hear that something they enjoy is dangerous. I don't like to be a Debbie-Downer, but I believe it's important to be informed and pay attention to this report--and to try to lobby for change in the industry. Loopholes in the law to let companies hide ingredients from labels? Come on--there's nothing acceptable about that.

But if there's nothing enjoyable about telling someone that the perfume they love contains hidden toxins, there's something delightful about talking up the alternatives out there. When I was faced with giving up my own beloved perfumes (ouch, it really hurt), I went on a mission to find scents I could wear without sacrificing my health. I had low expectations and resigned myself to settle for safe but second-best.

Boy, was I wrong. I started with pure essential oils, followed by blends. Then, when I worked at a website about green living, I had the pleasure of writing a story about Mandy Aftel, a perfumer who makes fragrances out of pure essential oils for her Aftelier line; she wrote a book on the subject that I'd recommend to anyone with an interest in perfume: Essence and Alchemy: A Natural History of Perfume. Her passion for the art of perfumery is impressive and she is committed to creating only scents from pure sources--nothing artificial, nothing toxic. Spending time with her in her Berkeley studio (pictured, photos of her studio) was an absolute treat. I recall speaking to her about a recent hike and describing the jamminess of the wet fir when she pulled "Fig" off the shelf for me. Bingo. (It has become my go-to scent.)

I am now devoted to Aftel's scents, along with others from perfume makers who don't use nasty chemicals or hide what they use in their creations--so I can smell pretty without worrying about what my skin is absorbing. (Consult the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep website for results of personal care products they test, including perfumes.) Best of all, I don't miss anything I gave up. Hopefully others in the business of making perfume will step up and figure out that it's possible to make products without the poison.

Get Out: Safe Sunscreens

A friend asked me last week about what sunscreen I use--she knows I won't use any personal care products that contain ingredients that are harmful (to me or the environment) and I never leave the house without sunscreen (and a hat for long periods of time outdoors). Sure, I can honestly say I protect myself from the sun because it's the healthy thing to do, but I'm equally as concerned about my vanity (why bring on wrinkles earlier than necessary?).

I've done my research on the topic of sun protection and will happily reveal my top sources: The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep website. The Skin Deep site turns the spotlight on personal care products by revealing their ingredients and ranking them in terms of safety. A product with harmless ingredients will get a 0 rating and one with a cocktail of toxic chemicals will get a 10; I make it a rule to use only products in the 0-2 range. The EWG's Sunscreen report has everything you need to know and reveals both the safety and effectiveness of the sunscreen products tested. My go-to products are by California Baby and Badger and they're top-ranked.

Other sunscreen products you might be more familiar with contain ingredients linked to any or all of the following: cancer; developmental/reproductive toxicity; allergies/immunotoxicity; neurotoxicity; endocrine disruption; persistence and bioaccumulation; organ system toxicity (non-reproductive); irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs); enhanced skin absorption; contamination concerns, biochemical or cellular level changes. If you don't know what any of this means, you really don't want to. (Did you really have to read anything after cancer?) Gloomy and doomy, I know. But of course you should be informed about what you're putting on your body and will want to check this out. And there's good news for users of Coppertone, Banana Boat, and other popular products I wouldn't touch with a ten-foot-pole: you can find something safer and better.

Musical aside: The song in my head while writing this is "California Sun," performed by The Ramones.

Note: post was updated after original publish date with the link to 2010's Skin Deep report.

Lip Pots: Soft and Pretty

My latest soft and pretty lips plan is simple. Step 1: moisturize lips. Step 2: give lips subtle color. On the left: Lip softener from Farmaesthetics. On the right: Lip2Cheek by RMS Beauty in a color called Illusive, which looks like brick in the pot but goes on lighter and stains my pucker with a sweet pinky-plum (bonus: it also works as a blush). Both products are made without artificial colors, preservatives, or other nasty chemicals found in many other lip products so I don't have to worry about ingesting toxins in the name of beauty. (Illusive rates a low hazard score of 1 on the Skin Deep Database.) Step 3: Smile.

Rethinking Pink: Petitioning Estee Lauder

I've made a rule about keeping toxins out of my makeup bag and use every opportunity I get to encourage others to choose beauty products made without toxic chemicals. "That's bad for you" is never a message I like to deliver, but I delight in the fact that I can suggest better-for-you products and I usually end my sermon with the recommendation to visit the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics website for more info and the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep website for ratings of products. We're deep in October and I find myself wanting to grab a megaphone, as I spot cosmetics and personal care products that contain carcinogens--on the shelves being marketed for Breast Cancer Awareness month. Slapping a pink ribbon on a product is not enough. Estee Lauder has a big campaign each year to raise money and awareness for the cause and I cheer those efforts, but it's time they started making safer products. Lauder owns Origins and Aveda, two companies that make products with less-toxic ingredients, but the their other lines (MAC, Clinique...) don't deserve to be pink-ribboned. What you can do: sign a petition asking them to do the right thing.

Lip-Smacking Good: Non-Toxic Tints

I feel naked without anything on my lips and use shea butter when I'm feeling no-nonsense and glosses when I feel glam. For in-between, a tinted balm is just right and my new favorite comes from Hemp Organics, a company that makes products without the nasty chemicals you find in most brands. The Skin Deep database, which lists ingredients in personal care products and tests them for safety, gives this product the Low Hazard label (0 is safest and this gets a 2) so I can feel comfortable wearing it.

Breast Cancer Awareness: Beauty-Buying Tips

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and you're sure to see the pink ribbon on many products. Maybe you'll think, Oh, great, I'll buy that and help support the fight against breast cancer. The pictured pink gloss from Jane Iredale would be a good grab because it does not contain carcinogens like so many other beauty products (yes, a lot of beauty products really do contain chemicals linked to cancer -- but it's easy for you to educate yourself with help from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics).

Breast Cancer Awareness Month: Picking the Right Products

Today marks the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and you'll find all kinds of products on shelves with a pink ribbon to indicate that the company is donating a portion of proceeds to groups that support the cause by helping victims of the disease and/or researchers working for a cure. Here's my buyer-beware, buzz-kill plea: be mindful of beauty products with the pink ribbon because many of them actually contain carcinogens. Seriously. Of course it's good to give credit where it's due and to be grateful for companies with big bucks that are donating money to the cause, but it's a shame that some of these companies are aware of dangers (or possible dangers) of chemicals in their products and continue to use them, putting the public at risk. Luckily, there are pink-ribboned products made with safer ingredients, like the lip gloss pictured, from one of my favorite beauty lines. Jane Iredale has been in the mineral makeup market for years and formulates products without harsh and hazardous chemicals. You can investigate the safety of other personal are products at the Skin Deep database and, as always, find more no the subject at the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics website.

Campaign for Safe Cosmetics: Roll the Tape

My love of makeup dates back to my childhood, when I found out that the mother of my best friend from the neighborhood was an Avon lady and kept her stash of cosmetics in their guest room. All those lipsticks and eye shadows and nail polishes! Such pretty colors! Sadly, I won't use those beauty products today -- or ones from so many other commercial brands -- because they contain chemicals known or believed to cause harm. Happily, so many other companies are making makeup and other beauty products without toxic ingredients. I've learned a lot from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a group dedicated to informing consumers of dangers in their medicine cabinets and makeup bags and advocating for change in the beauty industry. Their latest effort comes in video form:

Splurge: Lather Up

My new favorite soap comes from Soaptopia, a shop in Mar Vista (they also sell their products online and in select stores). How perfect is this one for a post-surf shower? Ocean's 12 contains seaweed, palm oil, coconut oil, shea butter, and lemongrass essential oil, among the all-natural ingredients. Very refreshing.

Here Comes the Sunscreen

My loved ones in NY are promised some sunshine after nearly a month's worth of rainy and grey days. Here in LA, June gloom appears to be lifting. Yep, here comes the sun!

That means lathering up. I won't leave the house without protection from the sun: SPF in my lotion for my face, a hat and sunglasses in my bag, and a tube of sunscreen for use if the rest of me might be exposed to sun's rays. Concern for health is certainly a factor but it's also vanity--keeping those wrinkles and sunspots away.

The sunscreen I use is not from Coppertone or Banana Boat and it's not from those other companies that claim to be "natural" when they pack their products with the same harmful ingredients. Products from so many well-known brands are made with chemicals linked to cancer, organ system toxicity, endocrine disruption, and more. Even worse: the products don't prove to be as effective as the company claims. Potentially harmful and not very useful? Not what I'm looking for in a sunscreen (or any skincare product).

I'm happy paying a bit more on alternative options that provide safe protection from the sun's rays and give me peace of mind--and finding one that fits this bill is easy by consulting the Environmental Working Group's "Skin Deep" site, which ranks products that have been independently tested for safety. The best ranked product happens to be my favorite: the SPF30 tube from Soleo Organics, which contains zinc oxide (the same white stuff found on the noses of lifeguards everywhere).

DIY Deodorant: Sweeter Sweat

There's a new post on Grist's website about natural deodorants, just in time for the warmer (and sweatier) days of spring and summer. When I green-cleaned my bathroom a few years ago, nasty antiperspirants were the first things to go. A bit of research into the chemicals found in most commercial brands of antiperspirant deodorants and I was scared enough to stop swiping those sticks under my pits. (As always, I relied on The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep database to find out about the safety of beauty and personal care products.) Grist's "Ask Umbra" video spot has a succinct answer to the question of why you should avoid most of these deodorants and it also reveals that Crystal deodorant is the most effective of the products they tested. I concur completely, but I've also worked some hocus-pocus with natural pantry ingredients to make an even better version. My DIY deodorant contains Crystal deodorant in liquid form with baking soda, corn starch, coconut oil, and a drop or two of essential oil (I've used lemon and tangerine). I add ½ teaspoon of baking soda, ½ teaspoon of corn starch, 1 teaspoon of coconut oil, and a couple of drops of essential oil to the spray bottle and shake before each use.

Nailing It

I wrote another blog post for Care2, this time on the topic of nail polish (a timely topic now that sandal season is upon us). Earth Day beauty tip: consider what you're putting on your body and make better choices by educating yourself on the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics website.