What Do You Scrub Your Pots With?

       One of the ways I save money in my kitchen is to make my cleaning products.  It wasn't all that long ago that I would stand in the the store examining every cleaning product and try to decide which one I needed to buy.  I now very rarely go on that aisle which saves me a lot of money.

    What I thought seemed impossible is really quite simple since you don't need to add fillers and other unnecessary chemicals to your cleaners.   With a few ingredients you can make most all of your everyday cleaners.  Not only is this easier on the budget, it is a healthier option for your family.  Best of all though is that it really does work.

Despite all this there was one cleaner that I continued to use since I hadn't found a better alternative.  That was my scouring powder, although it wasn't any ordinary cleanser.  I replaced my everyday cleanser with baking soda, but could not find a suitable replacement for my Barkeeper's Friend.  I just never found anything that cleaned and scrubbed as well as the Barkeeper's Friend.  I also would boost it with those steel wool soap pads.  Oh how I hated those, the soap being slimy and the soap pads rusting before they were all used up. 

   Then just recently I was in the .99cent store and spotted something I'd never tried before.  Some of you may laugh at me if you've always been using these,  just not too hard, please.  What I saw were little balls of coiled stainless steel metal.  These always seemed weird odd to me, but for the price I thought it would be worth trying.  So here it is many weeks later and am I a happy camper.  I not only don't need to use my Barkeeper's Friend, but these little things do not rust one little bit.  They do spread out a little, but so far it's working just fine for all my heavier dish washing .

I went back to the .99 cent store to see if there were others, and there were a bunch of them.  They all basically looked the same, some were just coiled a bit tighter.  I'll be testing them out over the next few weeks to see which ones I like the best.  Some of my criteria will be first that they are cheap.  They must be able to scrub the pots well with less effort than the slimy soap pads.  They also cannot rust, or have slivers of stainless steel entering my hands  I'll of course be testing them on pots and pans and my stove which seems to be perpetually dirty. 

There was only one drawback to these that I could see, and that's the fact that they aren't made in America.  I do try to buy local or at least in the United States as much as possible.  I will keep my eyes open on that but some items are just not obtainable here.

So if you are needing to try to get away from cleanser to try to get chemical cleaners out of your kitchen, or just want to save a few dollars go spend a dollar and try these out.  I'll be letting you all know which ones I like the best, or if it even matters.  Just remember, it needs to be stainless steel, do not buy the imitation scrubbers or you may find that they rust.

 

Zaycon Chicken Deadline Is Extended for California

I jut got an email from Zaycon, and they are extending the ordering deadline so there is still time for anyone who wants to still order.  Here's the email that they sent.

---

Ordering Deadline Extended

for Fresh, boneless, skinless chicken breasts (40 lb case) at just $1.49 per lb.

We want to annouce that the ordering deadline has been extended for all Savings Events in your state. If you have not yet ordered, please visit www.zayconfoods.com to place your order.

If you have already ordered, please let your friends and neighbors know there is still a chance for them to place an order in this Zaycon Foods Savings Event.

We will accept orders through 10/28/2011 or until sold out.

Thank you for being a Zaycon Foods Customer and have a great day.

The Z Team.

Hurry For a Great Deal on Chicken Breasts!

      Hey, I just found out about a deal on chicken and thought I'd let you in on it.  I know it's a little late but you still have a chance if you hurry.  Otherwise you can wait for the next event. 

    Check out this deal!  It's called zayconfoods.  Right now they are having a chicken event.  I'm in California and there is only one more day to order.

   How does it work?  You go to the website, register and place your order, and check to see where your pick up spot is.  The event they have right now is boneless, skinless chicken breast for $1.49 a pound.  Although you have to buy the entire case, which is 40 pounds.  If you have a small family then this is the time to split the case with a friend.  The total cost for the case is $59.60.
  
     The chicken is fresh, never frozen so it's much fresher than store bought chicken.  There are no added hormones, additives or artificial ingredients.  I'm going to be trying a case myself.  I did google the company and got reviews on this and didn't find any negative reviews.  If you head over to their website there is a lot of information about the chicken, FAQ's, how it works. 

   If your wanting a good bulk deal on chicken breast and you have the space, head over there.  Need a referral name, use mine if you'd like. I used the person who told me about this as a referral name so you can use my name Jill Macias.  From what I've heard the referrals person will get a small monetary credit for referrals.

zayconfoods

Are You Judged By Your Makeup?

        I just recently saw an article about a study and poll of people that has them tell what they think of other people by how they look. The main idea was to see if makeup made a difference in how people are viewed.  I guess they mean women since I don't know too many men that wear makeup.  As a matter of fact, I don't think I know any men that wear makeup.  It did catch my attention since I had recently been talking about makeup and the chemicals we are putting into our skin. 
 
   So why do I have a picture of food?  Aren't you judging it by it's appearance?  Just by looking at it you are assuming things about it.  I know I am.  It looks fluffy, but then maybe it's just dense with air pockets.  Is it sweet or bread like?  You are judging it.
   When it comes right down to it are we putting on makeup for ourselves or for others?  I'd like to say that when I wear makeup I feel like I look better, hence I feel better about myself, and feel a bit more confident when I go out.  But then I have to ask myself why it makes me feel better.  Is it because I know I'll get treated better?  I suppose we could analyze this forever.

      I don't think there is much we can do to change the worlds perceptions but we can change that in ourselves.  It's a natural reaction to see people and start forming opinions.  But no matter what images or ideas that pop into our heads, we should try to reserve judgement until we know or meet that person. I don't know if you've seen the website called the People of Walmart, but that website is a perfect example of how the world judges people.  Okay, those are a bit wild.  I only went to get the link and ended up staring at a few pictures. 

   I do think keeping ourselves clean, is not just for appearance but for health.  When it comes to food I know I do judge cleanliness in people. I'm not talking about a messy house, more like the kitchen and restroom.  Have you ever gone to a potluck or a bake sale and the thought crossed your mind of how the food was prepared?  I have and although I shouldn't judge I have avoided a few foods that I wasn't quite sure were safe to eat.  Maybe if you knew the person and you knew they didn't know proper food sanitation methods it would make you think twice.  If you didn't know the person, then you might try to guess their food preparation based on appearance. 

  It does make us consider the ways people are and can be judged.   Maybe this is a good trait to have, as it could help keep us safe in certain situations.  We just have to use that trait wisely.

Are you judging by appearance again?  Just kidding!

Go to Daily Worth and read the article, don't worry it's short.  By the way, the survey was paid for by a large company that makes many products that Americans use, yes, including makeup.  It then makes you wonder if that information is influencing the study in any way.  Check it out.

Here is the link for the actual research.  It is kind of long and in depth.     The Research Article

 Here is the article I read that puts it in a nutshell for those of us who don't really want to read the entire research article.     dailyworth



    

Is Your Lipstick Safe Enough To Lick Your Lips?

Photo by  Nesster

     I don't know about you, but I used to have more lipsticks than any other piece of makeup.  I had just about every color too for going with different outfits and looks.  It was also an inexpensive way to get your retail fix since there was always something new.  One thing I didn't do was check the ingredients.  I didn't even think about whether it was safe or not.  I just trusted that if it was being sold that it must be safe.  Boy was I fooled and too trusting. 



Photo by Shawn Rossi



I've since realized that if a truck spilled it's contents of lipstick the haz mat team would have to be called in.  Kind of like when you hear of a train crashing that was full of some food item and they have to evacuate half the town because of poisonous fumes.






Here is what you would see in a 2006 Formulation of a Revlon Lipstick.  As seen on the EWG sight Skin Deep.  It has a rating of 9.  Scary isn't it?

ACTIVE INGREDIENTS: PADIMATE 0. INACTIVE INGREDIENTS: LANOLIN OIL, CASTOR OIL, CETYL ACETATE, OCTYL HYDROSTEARATE, CANDELILLA WAX, OCTYL PALMITATE, PROPYLENE GLYCOL RICINOLEATE, CERESIN, PARAFFIN, ACETYLATED LANOLIN ALCOHOL, CARNAUBA, PVP/HEXADECANE COPOLYMER, VITAMIN E ACETATE, ACRYLATES COPOLYMER, ROSE HIPS SEED OIL, FRAGRANCE, METHYLPARABEN, PROPYLPARABEN, BHA. MAY CONTAIN: MICA, IRON OXIDE, TITANIUM DIOXIDE, D&C ORANGE NO. 5, D&C RED NO. 21 ZIRCONIUM LAKE, FD&C YELLOW NO. 6 ALUMINUM LAKE, D&C RED NO. 27, D&C RED NO. 27 ALUMINUM LAKE, FD&C YELLOW NO. 5 ALUMINUM LAKE, FD&C BLUE NO. 1 ALUMINUM LAKE, D&C RED NO. 6 BARIUM LAKE, D&C RED NO. 21, D&C RED NO. 6 CALCIUM LAKE, D&C RED NO. 7 CALCIUM LAKE, D&C RED NO. 33 ALUMINUM LAKE, D&C ORANGE NO. 5 ZIRCONIUM LAKE, BISMUTH OXYCHLORIDE.

Here is an updated version of the same brand, different color with a rating of 2

Trioctyldodecyl Citrate, Ozokerite, Polybutene, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Octyldodecyl Neopentanoate, Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, C10 30 Cholesterol/Lanesterol Esters, Bis Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate 2, Calcium Sodium Borosilicate, Paraffin, Cera Microcristallina (Microcrystalline Wax), Synthetic Wax, Tocopheryl Acetate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate, Serica Poudre de Soie (Silk Powder), Silica, Caprylyl Glycol, 1, 2 Hexanediol, Mica, Iron Oxides (CI 77491, 77492, 77499), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Bismuth Oxychloride (CI 77163), Red 6 Lake (CI 15850), Red 7 Lake (CI 15850), Red 27 Lake (CI 45410), Red 33 Lake (CI 17200), Yellow 6 Lake (CI 15985), Blue 1 Lake (CI 42090), Yellow 5 Lake (CI 15850), Carmine (CI 75470)

Now I have to tell you, even though the second lipstick is safer, I somehow look at these ingredients and have a really hard time believing that.  Let's now find one that we will feel better about putting on our lips. 




Photo by  violet monde

 
Now here's the ingredients of a popular organic brand of lipstick:

Complete Ingredient List: simmondsia chinensis (organic jojoba) seed oil*, barbadensis (organic aloe) leaf gel*, prunus armeniaca (apricot) kernel*, cera alba (organic beeswax)*, candilla wax (wildcrafted), tocopherol acetate (vitamin E), vitis vinifera (organic grape seed) extract*, punica granatum (organic pomegranate seed) extract*; May contain [+/-] iron oxide (77491, 77492, 77492, 77499), mica, titanium dioxide (77891)
*certified organic


     Quite a difference isn't there?  On the other hand, after I saw the price I guess that cancels out any inexpensive retail therapy.  But then again, having been trying to simplify my life, not spend or buy anything more than what's really needed then perhaps it's not too bad of a price.  I shop around a lot until I find what I need, with the right ingredients, and a price that won't break the bank.   

     I hope I've given you something to think about.  There seems to be a large variety of products for your lips that is effective and safe.  Even if your little one does get into your makeup, it might be ruined, but you won't worry about calling poison control.    

Links of Interest:

organiclipstick101.blogspot--Ten Reasons To Use Organic Lipstick

ecolips.com/store-One of my favorites, including some for kids, all safe. 

albabotanica.com-I got mine on sale at Walgreens, can be found in most stores.

badgerbalm-I've really liked every badger balm product I've tried so far.  I look for them on sale.  We use the sunscreen and it's great, safe for little ones.  Their lip products have great ingredients.

100percentpure-I know I've put this fruit makeup link already, but I keep ending up at their site, so I've joined their mailing list, hopefully they will have some specials coming up. 

This next link is the FDA.Gov web page, straight from the "horses" mouth so to speak.  Yeah, it's boring stuff, but after looking at Snopes, and the metal ring myths to tell if there is lead in lipstick, why not look here.  They only govern the colorings in makeup, and it looks like there is an allowable limit of lead.  Even if it's okay and allowed now, what about down the line, or the kids.  With so many great products, there is no reason for this.

http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/ProductandIngredientSafety/ProductInformation/ucm137224.htm

Let's Not Forget Forget Eye Shadows, Liners, and Brows

By Newtown grafitti

     The next thing I needed to consider was eye shadow, eye liner or pencil and a brow pencil.
I don't mean the color, although that for me has got to be the worst part since I'm not really into wearing eye shadow too often like I used to.  Plus there are so many colors to choose from.  In fact, sometimes it's fun to look at old pictures and you can predict the year it is by the color of everyones eye shadow.  Not to mention clothing and hair styles.

       The first website I found was myearthnaturalcosmetics.  While the makeup looks like it has great ingredients I just couldn't force myself to pay $22, plus shipping from Australia.  That's just for an eyebrow pencil.  Now if I go back to some of the other websites that I do like, they do have eyebrow powder.  I've never tried that and it does seem like something worth trying.  My eyebrows are a bit thin, and to add to the problem they get bleached out from the sun.  I never bothered with eyebrow makeup until just a couple years ago. 

     Next I found this, maiasminerals which has the pencil for $18, but I couldn't find an up front cost on shipping.  I am really fussy about a retailer/store stating everything up front.  Plus, if it's my first time to use a website I always make sure to get reviews, not just on the product, but on the customer service. 
earthsbeauty has pencil for $10.50 with great ingredients. 

   Any of the places that carry mineral makeup will almost always carry the eye shadows also.  The pencil was the most difficult to track down, then also have decent colors and prices.  I'll probably have to use one of the special sites such as earths beauty to get a good pencil, otherwise I'll have to settle for an eyeliner pencil that will work for brows.  It did appear that quite a few of the sites that had the organic eyebrow pencils were based in the UK.  Come on America, get with it. 
   I never did find a perfect ingredient eye pencil/brow, liner or otherwise.  I still would use that over an ordinary makeup from the local drugstore just based on a comparison of ingredients. 
  
     Until then, I will continue my search for organic/natural ingredient eye products.
  

Links:
etsy- this is a cool place to look for most anything, great for looking for gifts

My Delight Online-  carries a variety of makeup, and it lists the ingredients.  Prices are about average to high depending on what you want to spend.  The pencil, $10.

amazon.com-Organic MakeUp-  I would have expected amazon to have a bit more to choose from

Finding A Healthy Foundation-What Do You Put On Your Face?



Photo by PinkMoose-Andy Easton


       Deciding to tackle the issue of foundation, right away I found on the Environmental Working Group (EWG) Skin Deep database a lot of mistakes.  The first foundation shown did not have the complete list of ingredients so based on that they rated it safe.  Upon further research, and the comments, it showed that it in fact was not something that I would even consider with ingredients like talc, squalane, and parabens and tons more.  Which of course goes with what I've already mentioned, we can't trust everything without checking it out. 
  


Photo by Jorge Weingrill


I scrolled through many different foundations, at this point looking at liquid and mineral just to see what was available.  There seems to be a lot more choices than mascara which could be good and bad.  Good because it's more likely I will find more suitable choices, bad because it could take longer filtering through all those choices.

I found many mineral makeups, some certified organic.  None of it has to be 100% organic to claim they are organic.  Mineral makeup really only needs a couple of ingredients, usually titanium dioxide, zinc oxide and iron oxides which being minerals I'm not sure if they can be considered organic.  It causes me to wonder if they add some essential oils, some fruits and herbs that are organic so then they can say that their makeup is organic.  That's fine if they want to add fruits and herbs, except it seems to tack on an extremely high price to the makeup. 

   I looked up the makeup I have now which is Everyday Minerals and it was rated a 1 to 2, also the physicians formula organic liquid makeup was rated a 1-2.  I'll have to say I'm quite impressed with an easy to get large corporation makeup having such a good rating.  I've also used their tinted moisturizer in the past and thought it was fine.  I would not recommend it if you have oily skin, since it did seem to make mine look oily. 

  I do recommend using as natural of a product as possible since your skin being your largest organ does absorb these chemicals.  Even if you think that it isn't all that much, if you combined it with all the other things you are exposed to through the course of a day, week, or month it can have an accumulative effect on you. 

   With so many good products on the market now for healthy foundation, this is one easy way to have one less chemical in your body.

  

   Links:

tkbtrading.- sells ingredients to make your own makeup

rejuvaminerals-organic makeup with a price tag to match

suncatnaturalmineralmakeup-minimal amount of ingredients/middle price range

everydayminerals- the one I am currently using, they have good specials so I wait for them