5 Natural Personal Care Must-Have’s

I used to Clinique 1-2-3, dry out my face with soap, toner-dry some more, then moisturize. I gave Clinique a lot of business in my 20s. Also, before 2002 I was a Bath and Bodyworks groupie. My friend Christine and I used to sniff and test through its Harvard Square store. I’d showered in raspberry fizzy delight. When I was chemically sensitive, all the perfume and chemical laden products went to the trash. The lightheadedness wasn’t worth it.

Ten years later, I have healed. I still stay chemical-free and have distilled my daily products to five must-have’s.

1. Self foaming hand soap. Ok, have to cheat a little. Buy a dispenser that makes the foaming soap first. I bought Kiss My Face Self-Foam Hand Soap and saved the pump. Fill half of it with Dr. Bronner’s liquid soap (organic) and the rest with water. Swirl bottle around and mix it up. Now you have a hand soap that cleans well. I dilute the Dr. B’s liquid soap by 50% because it really dries up my hands. You can play with the concentration of the soap to see what works for you.

2. Aloe Vera gel. I use it as moisturizer, for the face and body; as hair conditioner and styling gel. I have spaghetti straight Asian hair. The gel holds it up. It’s also good for treating bug bites, sunburns, skin issues (someone on Amazon.com said wart removal). I have used Lily of the Desert brand for 10 years. They changed its formulation a few years ago. It doesn’t bother me, but here is an organic gel by Aubrey. Ingested as an herb, aloe has digestive and skin benefits.

I’d use organic lotion if I need heavy duty moisturizing -I live in dry Colorado. But most of the time the aloe, drinking plenty of water, and eat lots of avocados work wonders.

3. Olive oil soap. It’s natural and its liquid form makes an excellent food stable and cleaner. A friend told me to swish the oil in my mouth for 20 minutes after I fret about eating bags of sticky rice crispies on Halloween. It ‘pulled’ the sugar and bacteria out of my mouth. I won’t describe what I spit out but you get the idea. The olive oil soap will clean in the shower too. I love the Kiss My Face soaps. I wash my face with it every other day (and with just plain water otherwise; I don’t wear much makeup). It’s good to have some natural oil on the skin, I’ve learned.

4. Oil-free, fragrance-free shampoo. I thought I am beyond the teenage break-out years. But oils in lotions and shampoos irritate my face. The Magick Botanicals shampoo is fairly low on suds, about which some complains. It lathers with a little bit more water and the grime comes off after rinse. Magick Botanicals has a line of hair care products for the chemically sensitive. You can also make your own no-poo.

5. Salt and baking soda powder toothpaste. You wonder why I have kosher salt in the photo again. Last time you saw this box here was in the recipe of a Root Soup 🙂  Mix 20% salt and 80% baking soda together, and you have your chemical free toothpaste (Diamond Crystal brand kosher salt doesn’t have additives). A biological dentist taught me how to make it. Wet your toothbrush, dab a bit on it, and brush away. Your teeth will be squeaky clean. If the mixture is too salty, adjust the amount of salt.

Do you have a natural personal care must-have? Please share.