Think Dirty: App Review

My world has been busy these days, but I’m back to talk beauty because even though I’ve been doing a billion other things, I’m thinking around the clock about everything I want to share with you!

Just yesterday, a friend told me about ‘Think Dirty,’ an app that tells you how toxic your personal care and beauty products are by carcinogenicity, developmental and reproductive toxicity and allergies and immunotoxicities. You can scan your product barcode (great when you’re shopping, but potentially terrifying when the product is already in your medicine cabinet), or searching their database of 81K + products. I’m not necessarily the most committed to using all-natural and organic products, but I’m definitely open to experimenting with natural alternatives. I’m currently loving coconut oil and tea tree oil and use them regularly in my regimen, combined with my other chemical-ridden products. And while I was already expecting many of those to be pretty toxic, it was still pretty alarming to see many of them scanned in as 9s and 10s, 10 being the most toxic. And even more alarming, still, was seeing their carcinogenic toxicity - scary stuff!

My scans included my Lady Speed Stick (yikes!) and Revlon’s Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain (a current favorite — all their new balms are so moisturizing!), which came in at a 6. This was probably one of my less toxic products - go Revlon!

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Easy Coconut Oil Hair Treatment

I can always count on my grandma to be honest - careful with her words, but definitely honest. While visiting her last weekend she told me my hair looked dull. I realized that earlier that same weekend, my mom also made an attempt at telling me this, but was a little less direct. I appreciated the feedback and will not deny my grandmother’s observation was correct. I do, however, know why my hair was looking so drab. Up until a few months ago, I was a daily shampooer - like an addict. I realize now how much damage that was causing my hair - thinning, shedding, stripping of oils. But the amount of oil my scalp was producing required a daily wash, which is exactly what was causing the excessive oil production to begin with. It’s a vicious cycle.

After testing different methods and hunting for the perfect dry shampoo (that’s another post, altogether), I entered a brand new phase in my life in which I only wash my hair every 3 or so days. By day 3 of my wash cycle, I require some dry shampoo, and the dullness my grandmother was referring to was likely the dry shampoo I had just applied an hour before, it being cycle day 3.

Even knowing the cause for the dullness, I took her words to heart. The woman is 80 years old and doesn’t look a day over 70. She takes serious care of herself so her comment struck a chord. That same night I tried my first coconut oil treatment, per the advice of one of my favorite beauty bloggers (and beauty editor at Cosmo for Latinas!), Milly Almodovar Thomson of Beauty Logic Blog (follow her Instagram for tons of great tips @beautylogicblog). All the treatment requires is about 2 tablespoons of coconut oil, a tad bit melted so it’s easier to work with, and a plastic shower cap. See below:

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I did a little shopping at TJMaxx while in Laredo this weekend. As I usually do, I headed straight to the beauty section to scout out treasures. It’s difficult to find as many goodies at TJMaxx in Austin, but the Laredo location always has a great (untapped) selection. I spotted this Bass Elite Brushes boar bristle brush and its striking resemblance to the Mason Pearson grabbed my attention. It has the rubber pad, and combo boar and nylon bristles just like the Pearson. At only $25 (originally $50, still a significant difference from the Pearson’s $100 price tag), I thought it was worth the purchase and test run. I’ll likely never own a Mason Pearson (actually I may just splurge one day!), but this looks like a nice alternative. Either way, I have been on the hunt for some new brushes — below the Bass is also a boar bristle round brush I bought this weekend. I’ll be writing a post very soon about my transition to boar, its benefits and my results.