Deodorant:
So I still wasn’t happy with my non-deo self. I was happy for about 2-3 weeks but then when I was in NY recently, I smelled terrible with all that walking I was doing. So regardless of whether anyone was going to complain about my smell or not, I decided I had to look for something else because I couldn’t stand to be around me.
I stopped by Whole Foods and looked to see if they had any new deo options since I last checked and they did! Tom’s of Maine has a odor busting deodorant that includes hops and it really works. I’ve been really busy for the past 3 days and they’ve worked really well. With my upcoming trip and the possibility that I might go a few days without access to a shower (since we’ll be camping in National Parks and some of them do not have shower facilities), this seems like it might actually work.
Shampoo
I’ve gone crunchy with my shampoo. I did all the no-poo options I’m aware of. I tried the shampoo bars (burt’s rosemary, Ligget), soap nuts (which work well, but I don’t know how to use it properly since I wind up with brown stuff on my scalp that’s hard to wash off), apple cider vinegar rinse after using baking soda to wash my hair. I just couldn’t get rid of that funk feeling with any regularity. Sometimes my hair was wonderful and other times it was a gunky mess. Additionally, my scalp was just disgusting. My hair is somewhat thicker than most women’s so it might be one reason why it was hard to clean. And I have hair that goes below my shoulders. Maybe that’s why its so hard to clean it? Well I was just disgusted and bought a bottle of giovanni’s (the one for normal to oily hair) which isn’t particularly minty. Which is good since I don’t like my hair to smell minty.
I guess this is like my journey to soy milk drinking. When I first had soy milk in the late 90s I hated it. I thought it tasted like water mixed with flour. I went back to drinking milk (by which I mean its what I added in my coffee and tea). Then sometime a few years back I had some organic soy milk and was amazed and how great it tasted. So I went back to drinking soy milk.
In other words, maybe at some point in the future I will be able to switch to some non-plastic options to use on my head and my pits, but clearly that time is not now.
I’ve been reading for a while, but wanted to comment on this one. I have also struggled with personal care items. Tom’s of Maine Woodspice is the kind I have found that actually works. The other varieties don’t work as well, in my experience, but that particular scent holds up for me. I’d also recommend the Truly Herbal scent from Bubble & Bee - it’s beeswax-based with essential oils, that’s it. It’s a bit pricey, but it lasts a long time and really works. On the hair front, I use Dr. Bronner’s liquid castille soap. It’s fair trade, organic and healthy. It lathers well and smells great. It’s also refillable at many health food stores, thereby saving money and packaging, and it works great for hands, cleaning the tub, and washing clothes, too.
Comment by Chandelle — August 24, 2008 @ 3:55 pm
Thanks for the suggestions Chandelle. I’ll look into the bubble bee after my move, although I might just wind up sticking with Tom’s for now since it appears to be quite effective.
I forgot to mention the numerous deodorants I bought from etsy.com from various people that had lovely scents but didn’t work too well on me.
And I have used Dr. B’s castille soap on my hair and I wound up with a gunk problem on my scalp. I think part of it has to do with me riding my bike alot. I imagine many of these products would work well if I didn’t do activities that caused me to sweat so much. But I will be using Dr. B’s soap to give myself a sponge bath on our upcoming bike trip. I like the fact that they can be refilled but, I haven’t seen that in action in Philadelphia in either the health food stores or the Whole Foods. So till now I’ve just been envious of everyone west of the Mississippi because the refill option appears to be available only in those areas.
Comment by Beany — August 24, 2008 @ 5:38 pm
Are you the blogger I read who also tried the deodorant rock crystal thing? Some blogger I read (=I read too many blogs) said it was great, so I made my partner Jon try it because he unfortunately has ‘a smell’ but he made the rock smell bad! So that didn’t work for him.
My all-time favorite deodorant was the original unscented Toms of Maine. It had a light, pleasant scent. Unfortunately, they changed it a year or so ago so it’s REALLY unscented, and none of their other ones smell the same! I’m seriously bummed. I should’ve bought as many as I could find once I realized the change. Now I’m using one from Kiss My Face.
I use pretty normal shampoo & conditioner, but a bottle can last me about a year since I only wash my hair 2-4 times a week.
Comment by Karina — August 26, 2008 @ 7:59 pm
It may have been me who stunk up the rock. I don’t think I mentioned that here, but I think I mentioned it on someone else’s blog.
The reason I began looking for alternative shampoos originally was because the regular ones made my hair too greasy no matter what I used. And it just became worse and worse. I generally wash my hair when it gets greasy or smelly or after a long ride. So far, Giovanni’s has been working quite well for me.
Comment by Beany — August 26, 2008 @ 8:17 pm