Treating yourself the natural way
As with the majority of the American female population, my mornings are pretty predictable. Coffee, check.
Breakfast? Maybe. Shower, check. Moisturizer and perfume, check.
My life with pampering products started around the age 14. The aromas of Bath & Body Works knew how to lure me in while at the mall with friends. These products became birthday presents, both given and received. Shortly after, makeup made its way to my list of female essentials. Nail polish, cucumber melon body lotion, blush, shimmery lip gloss – I wanted it all – and the fact I was not yet working only meant one thing: Quantity overruled quality.
Years passed, and I began working more and more. After graduating college and working full time, my stress began to show in the form of acne, and no basic, commercial skin care regime seemed to help the problem. Little did I know, the toll the products I had been using for years took on my skin.
I eventually was prescribed Accutane, and I started really paying attention to the products I was using – from what chemicals were in them to how long I’d have my “face on.” Since the medicine, which was a slew of chemicals in and of itself, dried out every pore on my body, I was left feeling apprehensive to using beauty products altogether.
My skin was clear within a few months.
While I’m no longer using Accutane, I now read up on the best products for my skin. This got me thinking: Are there eco-friendly, natural products for me to use, for everything from nail polish to body wash? (Fact is, the Environmental Protection Agency classifies nail polish and some cosmetics as potential household hazardous waste, according to its website.)
Oddly enough, this was around the same time a colleague suggested I look into Perfectly Posh, an all-natural line of pampering products for women and men.
In my initial research, I perused the list of ingredients in the product line of face masks, body wash, cuticle creams and more.
With 100 percent of its products made in the United States, Perfectly Posh has grown to having more than 4,400 consultants all across the country in just two years. The company offers no petroleum-based products, uses recycled materials for its packaging and has more than 100 vegan products for consumers. All-in-all, Perfectly Posh is perfectly ecofriendly.
I spoke with Denise Jensen, our area’s consultant. She and her team meet with potential clients and encourage them to use one of the line’s many samples.
“People don’t know what’s in their products,” Jensen said, who has been working with Perfectly Posh for a little more than a year. “I’m proud to say that these [products] are paraben and paraffin free … and have no soy, no gluten,” Jensen said. (Both paraben and paraffin are unnatural ingredients widely used in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries.)
In fact, clients of Jensen have seen positive changes in skin conditions after using the product, including problems with rhodesia, eczema and psoriasis. While the product line is not medicinal by any claim, consumers are increasingly seeing the benefits from the sustainable products it offers.
My life with pampering products started around the age 14. The aromas of Bath & Body Works knew how to lure me in while at the mall with friends.”
Take Lindsay Dillon for example. As an avid buyer of Clinique products for more than a decade (calling herself a “Clinique snob”), she took Jensen up on her sample offer, despite her hesitance to do so. For years, she had sensitive skin harboring the occasional blemish, but since using Complexion Perfection, a Perfectly Posh face wash, her skin has yet to give her any problems.
“It made my face feel clean, and my pores opened up,” Dillon said. “It’s amazing, and a whole lot cheaper than Clinique – and even better!” Eco-friendly beauty products are definitely a way to incorporate sustainability into your daily regime, whether you’re female or male. Plus, it’s a no-brainer to only want what’s best for your skin. I encourage you to look into these alternative products; you might just be surprised.
For the love of your skin, go natural.
Karen Wissing is the marketing manager at Sci-Port: Louisiana’s Science Center. Part of Sci-Port’s strategic plan is to address issues of science in society, including the environment and sustainability. Email your questions, comments or suggestions to green@sciport.org. Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sciport.
Search: The Forum and City Life
