Welcome! I grew up in Northern California in a small community where living 'naturally' was the way of life. From a very young age, I learned how to grow vegetables and flowers, build things, paint; how to earn money selling figs from my tree outside a local toy store. I was taught to use my imagination, entertain myself, play outside, and create whatever I wanted. I was taught to never say "I can't" and that "where there is a will, there is a way." In 2006, I could no longer watch my husband suffer with the misery of psoriasis. So, 'naturally' I started creating my own concoctions in my kitchen. I drew from my 20 years in the cosmetic business and began researching, ordering, and mixing every natural, earth-grown, ingredient I could find that had ever been thought to soothe skin conditions. I already knew that the thousands of petroleum derived ingredients in the products we had tried would never help and that the 'natural' options that were available were too basic. 7 years and Hundreds of experiments later, I am the proud maker of a completely natural skin care line that is healing, soothing, richly nourishing, elegantly packaged, and lovely to use... which is what I call..."naturally luxurious."

Sunday, April 6, 2014

What do Fancy Words really mean?

During a recent trip to ‘the Mall’ to purchase a cosmetic product from what I consider to be one of the ‘best of the worst’ mainstream brands, I was given a sample of a new skin ‘care’ product to try.  The claim on the packet is “clinically-demonstrated to noticeably decrease the appearance of Marionette Lines, Crows Feet, and Sub-orbital Wrinkles, while Improving Skin Texture and Radiance – with continuous delivery of 105% Pure Vitamin C.”  This is a tall order, so of course I was dying to know what miracle ingredients were in this product!  I flipped the sample packet over and found:

Ingredients:  Propylene Glycol, Cyclopentasiloxane, Ascorbic Acid, Glycerin, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1, Dimethicone, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Lauroyl Lysine, Acrylates Copolymer, Adenosine Fmla 685275/21 Code F.I.L.:D39705/1.

Hmmmmm….Really? I just can’t wrap my brain around how these ingredients could possibly accomplish all these claims!  If you are a person who cares about what you eat, it is time to start caring about what is being absorbed into your system via your skin.  Below are the descriptions provided by the www.ewg.org/skindeep about each of the ingredients listed on the sample packet.  Take a moment to learn about them and see what you think!   Also, search any of these ingredients in google images to see what products contain them.  Click here to see an example.

1.      Propylene Glycol :  Propylene glycol is a small organic alcohol commonly used as a skin conditioning agent. It has been associated with irritant and allergic contact dermatitis as well as contact urticarial in humans; these sensitization effects can be manifested at propylene glycol concentrations as low as 2%. HIGH concerns: Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs); MODERATE concerns: Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive); Other LOW concerns: Enhanced skin absorption, Data gaps.  Propylene Glycol Fragrance Ingredient; Humectant; Skin-Conditioning Agent - Humectant; Skin-ConditioningAgent - Miscellaneous; Solvent; Viscosity Decreasing Agent; SKIN CONDITIONING; VISCOSITY CONTROLLING
2.      Cyclopentasiloxane: Cyclopentasiloxane (cyclomethicone) is a silicon-based cyclic compound; may be associated with environmental toxicity.  HIGH concerns: Persistence and bioaccumulation;  MODERATE concerns: Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive); Other LOW concerns: Ecotoxicology, Endocrine disruption, Neurotoxicity.  Function(s): Hair Conditioning Agent; Skin-Conditioning Agent - Emollient; Solvent; SKIN CONDITIONING *This ingredient is also found in WaterBabies Sunscreen! 
3.      Ascorbic Acid: Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) is a naturally occurring antioxidants. Function(s): Antioxidant; Fragrance Ingredient; pH Adjuster; Skin-Conditioning Agent - Miscellaneous; BUFFERING; MASKING; SKIN CONDITIONING
4.      Glycerin:  Glycerin (also called glycerol) is a naturally occurring alcohol compound and a component of many lipids. Glycerin may be of animal or vegetable origin. This ingredient is listed in the PETA's Caring Consumer Guide as a byproduct of soap manufacture which typically uses animal fat.  This ingredient may be derived from animals. From PETA's Caring Consumer: A byproduct of soap manufacture (normally uses animal fat). In cosmetics, foods, mouthwashes, chewing gum, toothpastes, soaps, ointments, medicines, lubricants, transmission and brake fluid, and plastics. Derivatives: Glycerides, Glyceryls, Glycreth-26, Polyglycerol. Alternatives: vegetable glycerin—a byproduct of vegetable oil soap. Derivatives of seaweed, petroleum.  *Lacey Haegen products only use organic glycerin derived from plant sources.  Function(s): Denaturant; Fragrance Ingredient; Hair Conditioning Agent; Humectant; Oral Care Agent; Oral Health Care Drug; Skin-Conditioning Agent - Humectant; Skin Protectant; Viscosity Decreasing Agent; PERFUMING; SOLVENT.
5.      Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1:   CETYL PEG/ PPG-10/ 1 DIMETHICONE: This skin conditioning agent is a synthetic chemical consisting of dimethicone, a silicon-based polymer and polyethylene glycol (PEG)-polypropylene glycol (PPG) polymer. May be contaminated with potentially toxic manufacturing impurities such as 1,4-dioxane.  Function(s): Skin-Conditioning Agent - Miscellaneous; Surfactant - Emulsifying Agent; SKIN CONDITIONING
6.      Dimethicone Dimethicone (also called polymethylsiloxane) is a silicon-based polymer used as a lubricant and conditioning agent.  MODERATE concerns: Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive); LOW concerns: Data gaps, Ecotoxicology.  Function(s): Antifoaming Agent; Skin-Conditioning Agent - Occlusive; Skin Protectant; EMOLLIENT; SKIN CONDITIONING; SKIN PROTECTING
7.      Dimethicone Crosspolymer: This ingredient is a silicon-based polymer (dimethicone) modified with hydrocarbon side chains in the C3-C20 size range.  Function(s): Emulsion Stabilizer; Hair Fixative; Suspending Agent - Nonsurfactant; Viscosity IncreasingAgent - Nonaqueous; EMULSION STABILISING; HAIR FIXING; VISCOSITY CONTROLLING
8.      Lauroyl Lysine: Lauroyl lysine is a derivative of lauric acid and lysine, a naturally occurring amino acid.  Function(s): Hair Conditioning Agent; Skin-Conditioning Agent - Miscellaneous; SKIN CONDITIONING; VISCOSITY CONTROLLING.
9.      Acrylates Copolymer: Acrylates copolymer is composed of acrylic acid and methacrylic acid building blocks. HIGH concerns: Contamination concerns; LOW concerns: Data gaps.  Function(s): Adhesive; Artificial Nail Builder; Binder; Film Former; Hair Fixative; Suspending Agent -Nonsurfactant; ANTISTATIC; BINDING; FILM FORMING

10. Adenosine Fmla 685275/21 Code F.I.L.:D39705/1: Adenosine is a heterocyclic organic compound (is a compound) has atoms of at least two different elements as members of its ring(s) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heterocyclic_compound) .  Function(s): Skin-Conditioning Agent - Miscellaneous; SKIN CONDITIONING
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