Physicians formula organic wear mascara review

02 Jul 2012 Leave a comment

by jadebellydance in Belly Dance, Eyes, Make-up Tags: , , , , , , ,

Physicians formula organic wear mascara

Next natural product under review is physicians formula organic wear mascara. Being a mainstream brand this is much more easily found than some of the other brands I have reviewed. I bought this one in priceline but does it hold up to stage use???

Packaging

The pack I bought was a cute twin pack – one mascara apparently was a bonus, got to love a bargain. The box contained lots of information including a table with the reasons why this was a superior product to regular mascaras (more on that below). Actually the box is a mass of claims from everything about its 5x lash boosting power to its eco credentials. The Mascara sticks themselves are a very unique design, a very fat beige body with green leaves on it and a metallic green leaf shaped lid (.26oz/7.5g each). There is no mixing this product up with regular brands!! I think they were going for a tree look. Unconventional, a bit silly but hey – I am a belly dancer and I love that they added bling and thought outside the box. The recyclable eco brush was a nice touch too and I didn’t find it any more difficult to use than a regular one.

Wearability

It works just fine for everyday use. I must confess to not wearing this product as much as others I have reviewed because I tend to favour getting my eyelashes dyed and just using that for my every day look.

I used it for a performance too. It is functional and if half the claims they make about the product are true then it’s worth the switch. I didn’t think it had as much impact as some regular brands like say Rimmel Extra super lash but when I applied one product to each eye, you could hardly tell the difference. It is a little thicker in consistency when applying though which made it fractionally trickier to apply. It will make your lashes thicker and darker but maybe not quite as much as some high impact brands. It would work brilliantly with false lashes if you wanted that bigger look however.

Safety

It claims to have 100% natural origin – straight after the words Organic Wear. On the back of the box it says certified organic by ECOCERT. I feel this could be a bit misleading to consumers. I bought it thinking it was 100% organic and certified and it turns out that it is in fact only 47% from organic farming. Same mistake was made on a youtube review of this item too!

It is interesting that they got certification for partially organic ingredients – I have not heard of this before but I am pretty pleased that a big name brand is trying to clean up at least some of its act.

So here are the claims:-

  • 100% Free of Harsh Chemicals
  • 100% Free of Synthetic Preservatives
  • 100% Free of Parabens
  • 100% Free of Synthetic Fragrances & Colors
  • 100% Cruelty Free
  • 100% Free of GMO’s (Genetically Modified Organisms)
  • 100% Recyclable Eco-Brush defines each lash with ultra-soft plastic bristles.
  • 100% Free of Clumping, Smudging, Flaking, Fibers & Dyes.
  • Hypoallergenic. Safe for Sensitive Eyes and Contact Lens Wearers.

I don’t really have any reason to doubt these claims as there has been independent testing although as with all make up products – claims like no clumping, smudging and flaking are relative. It does have fall out when you rub it hours later for example – so did the rimmel product. I also ran the ingredients list through the EWG website. Most ingredients came up with a 0 toxicity (the best), 2 ingredients got a 2 which is still very low and one of these was rice protein! I am not concerned about rice protein personally. The biggest concern was the Magnesium aluminium silicate that is ranked a 4 or moderately toxic. It is a fair way down the ingredients list so the amount should be quite small but it is implicated in developmental and reproductive and neurotoxic issues – never things you want to subjecting yourself too. If they could leave that out it would be near perfect. As I am not sure how much is in the product I can’t defiantly say this product is not toxic but I can say that overall it is of low toxicity. My Rimmel mascara scored an overall 6 from the EWG – that is moderately toxic and damn side more scary than the physicians formula organic wear product.

So, yes I would wear it again and in preference to other mascaras but I will keep my eyes open for a product as good but minus the magnesium aluminium silicate.

Ingredients: Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Fruit Water*, Glycerin, Iron Oxide, Microcrystalline Cellulose, Glyceryl Stearate, Water, Beeswax*, Jojoba Esters, Tapioca Starch*, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax*, Stearic Acid, Glyceryl Caprylate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice*, Cellulose Gum, Cinnamic Acid, Cucumis Sativus (Cucumber) Fruit Extract*, Glycine Soya (Soybean) Oil*, Hydrolyzed Oryza Sativa (Rice) Protein, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Olea Europaea (Olive) Leaf Extract*, Phenylalanine. May Contain: Titanium Dioxide *Produced from Organic Farming.

My summary: 4/5

Product: physicians formula organic wear mascara.

Effectiveness: 3.5

Packaging: 4.5

Safety: 4

Size: .26oz/7.5g each

Suitable for day wear: yes

Suitable for stage: ok not brilliant – good with falsies

Where can I buy it: in oz – priceline is the only place but in the US you should find it easy to spot it’s in so many major stores, eg k-mart, wall mart, target, drugmart, drugstore, etc

Click here to find what shops stock it near you.

Liked this review? Jade publishes natural make up reviews for home use and stage on most Mondays. Follow the blog so you can save money and buy what works best.

What’s your favourite mascara for stage?  Comment below.

Review – nude by nature ‘cover’ and ‘veil’ mineral make up

28 May 2012 18 Comments

by jadebellydance in Belly Dance, Make-up, Skin Tags: , , , , , , , ,

PRODUCT REVIEW – NUDE BY NATURE

 In my ever burning quest to find cosmetics that look fabulous on and off the stage and don’t overload your body with toxins, I ordered from the much hyped Australian brand Nude by Nature. Summary: great sales pitch, poor customer service, mixed opinions on the actual products – read on for details of what to avoid.

NUDE BY NATURE –

I was sucked in by their slick advertising and ‘FREE’ offers. It really annoys me when products are offered for free but are not really. In this case, when you rung you were offered some free samples but you had to pay postage and agree to sign up to ongoing products being mailed and billed to you – groan. So immediately I was unimpressed. Normally I would hang up on them after such antics but I had been re-inspired to clean up my make-up drawer and here was an apparently natural brand I hadn’t tried.

The pleasant salesgirl on the phone was really very good at selling and they had a number of ‘deals’ available. I wanted to try the eye shadow and mineral foundation and have no ongoing contracts. Somehow it was the best value if I purchased 2 packages. The skin package that included foundation, blush, liquid mineral concealer, mineral bronzer, mineral finishing veil, brush, lip gloss, and tinted moisturiser and a how to DVD and a separate eye shadow pack that actually had 3 packs of 3 tones of brown eye shadow and 2 little brushes.

The package arrived in reasonable time minus the DVD. Don’t bother ringing their customer service line, you get asked to leave a message and they will get back to you but they never do (it’s been months).

NATURAL MINERAL COVER – LIGHT SKIN TONE

When I purchased these products over the telephone they asked me what my skin tone was like. I said I was very fair, she said there were 3 tones and I should consider the medium tone as they are quite light. Since it is rare that I meet someone fairer than myself and am usually the lightest or second lightest tone available in foundation – I chose the light tone figuring the bronzer would surely be able to help if it was a little too fair.

Mistake!! Why have a light tone available when the only people that could wear it would be the Cullen’s? My skin is so fair that people joke that I glow-in-the-dark. I have met a few people fairer but seriously, this line of cosmetics is for vampires of Caucasian descent only!

Look to be fair, (LOL pun intended), I can get away with it but only just. I don’t look all that well wearing it and its coverage of imperfections is not nearly as good as similar products by Revlon or Minerelle that I have tried before it. So if medium is for light skinned people then dark must be for tanned types and I guess they don’t give a crap about the market for other ethnicities!

Since I was minus the DVD I was left with a tiny package insert to guide me on recommended use of their products. I should say here that a few years back I signed up for a free demo and lesson on how to use mineral products with the Minerelle range and have used mineral powder type foundations for years so I am not a newbie but still I was perplexed. The coverage of the product was so poor, I figured I was using it wrong but from what I could tell from the pamphlet I was using it correctly.

Safety

I asked about the safety of their products when I phoned. The sales girl just gave me a whole heap of spin – we are the best, blah, blah. They then put me on to their resident expert – that pretty much said the same thing. I am still not sure about their credentials in this field so I looked up the individual ingredients on the EWG website. The ingredients were indeed in the low to moderate toxicity range with scores from 0-3. This is pretty good going and would make it one of the safer options on the market. The L’Oreal mineral powder foundation I was using previously scored a 6 for some ingredients in comparison (out of 9 – 9 being the worst). So at least in this field this product did well. One concern was that the zinc oxide used is quite safe if not inhaled (then it is highly toxic apparently). Being a powder though, inevitable some is inhaled. I started using powders because of their touted safety and while I still use them, I am becoming increasingly sceptical of all brands because they are not being rated for respiratory safety.

According to the NUDE BY NATURE website, their foundations “offer natural sun protection with a high SPF guard against damaging ultra-violet rays whilst being water resistant.”. According to the Environmental working group these kind of statements are a load of codswallop. No product is water resistant and in this case the SPF factor is not even stated. What is the high SPF? 10? 15? Does it protect against UVA and UVB? I feel it would have been much more ethical to state that it is non toxic and leave the bull shit out.

The EWG is a great place to go for more info on toxins in make-up, mostly American info but you can look up major brands available in Australia too and check ingredient safety.

Packaging

It comes in a pleasant circular 8 gram container with a brown screw top lid and a plastic insert inside to help avoid spillage and over loading your brush. The lid only says nude by nature on it however and the container is the same size and look as the blush. This means you have to pick both up to see which is which. The finishing veil and bronzer are in a smaller but similar container and they are both identical looking from above too as are the 3 eye –shadows meaning putting on your Nude by Nature make- up involves a lot of picking up pots and putting them down again trying to work out what product you are holding. The screw top lid prevents spillage in transport but adds to fiddliness on an everyday application level.

My summary with 5 stars being the best

Product: Natural mineral cover – light-skin tone

Effectiveness: 2

Packaging: 3

Safety: 4 (by comparison)

Price: promotional pack I bought is no longer available online but a 15g pack is $39.95 + postage (or free Australian postage if you spend over $50)

Size: 8g

Suitable for day wear: yes (if pale)

Suitable for stage: No

Overall Star rating: 3

FINISHING VEIL

According to the little pamphlet, one uses this if you want to get that ‘airbrushed’ look. Ummm, when is there a time you are applying make-up that don’t want to haven’t airbrushed look????  I mean seriously, if you go to the trouble of putting on make-up, it’s to look flawless or as close to as you can. Using this product in combination with the mineral cover did improve coverage but felt like yet another unnecessary step. With both products in use it had a similar (barely) effect as a single use of a L’Oreal mineral foundation.  For every day wear it was a tedious extra thing to have to do. For stage? Well I used it separately to reduce shine over the top of a liquid foundation I used. For that it did OK. It came in a 3g screw top container that was much smaller than the ‘cover’ meaning you may have to purchase more before your ‘cover’ runs out if you use it on a daily basis. Does it ‘diffuse wrinkles’ as the web site spin states? Not that I could tell. Powders have a habit of doing the opposite.

BRUSH

The Nude by nature package comes with an absolutely excellent brush for applying the product. It is a really soft synthetic fibre with fine bristles. It is a lovely brush that is superior to the ones that come automatically with similar L’Oreal products for example.

***** 5 stars for the brush

As you can tell from the tone, I got off on the wrong foot with Nude by Nature – I can’t stand heavy sales pitches and spin. I have continued to use their products because I can’t afford to buy stuff and not use it if it is at least partly decent. When I run out – I will try a different brand however. I will review the bronzer, blush, tinted moisturiser and lip gloss from this pack in a different product review. I did actually like some of their stuff so stay tuned. You can buy their products here, despite everything I have said it is still one of the safer options available and better for you than most standard supermarket and chemist brands.

I aim for Mondays to become ‘Make-up Mondays’ where I tell you what natural products work and what don’t.

With online shopping most products can be purchased from anywhere in the world but if you are after American reviews then I would like to recommend the excellent “glamorganic goddess” blog.

Have you used these products? What did you think? What’s your favourite natural foundation?

Comment below.

Review of Enjo as a Chemical Free Make up remover

02 Nov 2011 3 Comments

by jadebellydance in Belly Dance, Make-up, Skin, Tribal Belly Dance, Tribal Costume Tags: , , , , , ,

Review : Chemical Free Make up Removal

A Month long trial using the Enjo face glove for regular and stage Make-up removal.

A few months back I found that usual make up removal technique (scrubbing with a face washer) was inadequate for the task when I started to develop a dermatitis type reaction on one of my eyelids. I tried a few things to get rid of it but eventually found that if I wiped my eyelids down with a pre-moistened facial cleansing wipe (I had left over from my trip to Egypt) –  it cleared up. When I stopped it came back. This was all fine except I eventually ran out of those convenient little cloths and decided it was not an economical solution for daily use.  I then bought an off the shelf supermarket face wash. It also seemed to do the trick but when I looked at the ingredients I cringed. A veritable chemical cocktail of nasties including sodium lauryl sulphate! Yuk!

Shortly after this I found myself at an Enjo pamper party and was intrigued when the body glove was slated as good for removing make-up. Still it was pricey so I didn’t buy one but I agreed to a demo later on and was given one for free. Here are the results from my trial.

Product : Enjo face mini  –Enjo is a fibre based cleaning system

From their website :- “A gentle, caring fibre for deep cleaning all skin types. Use regularly to lift grease, remove make-up, stimulate blood circulation, improve skin clarity and as part of your acne treatment regime. Apply delicate strokes around eyes.”

Time Frame: 2 months (to account for variable results from hormonal fluctuations)

Method: I used the cloth every evening in the shower instead of my usual make up removal regime. I used the cloth gently with warm water and then rubbed sunlight soap on the cloth, rinsed and hung up to dry. After the shower I applied my usual moisturiser to my face.

Result: 

Everyday make-up: Skin clearer than usual. Make-up appears to be removed adequately. No return of skin irritation on eyelid.

(Eye shadow, light mineral foundation, blush, lippy and lip liner worn)

Stage Make-up: Make up removed mostly – a small amount of residue on eye lashes and bottom inner corner of eyelid. No irritation.

(At a minimum – I usually use a lot of eye shadow, eye liner and mascara as well as foundation, blush, lip liner and lipstick for stage )(and a few variable miscellanea depending on mood !!Lol!)

Cautions:

On my first use of glove I irritated my tear duct slightly. The sensation was gone by morning but I am very light on the eyelids and avoid the tear duct area now.

One friend I know uses the glove but finds it drying on her skin and uses it for dry skin brushing instead. I did not however find it any more or less drying than other products on my skin.

Conflict of Interest: None. I do not work for Enjo and get no benefit for posting this review. I did get the mini glove for free though as a host gift but then I probably wouldn’t have bought one as I was sceptical it could do the job.

Price: RRP $30 AUD for a mini and $55 (approx) for a glove that does face and body on each side. (Enjo is sold through distributors – I normally hate to buy things but it does make sense with these products as you probably wouldn’t believe the claims made unless you saw it with your own eyes. This also means you can get products cheaper if you host demonstrations etc)

Where to buy: Enjo distributor or sometimes new items are cleared from ex consultants on ebay. Local Bellingen distributor Jenni McLennan is very friendly you can reach her on 02 66552094 or jennimclennan@bigpond.com

Value for Money: Hmmm hard to say as its difficult to quantify the long term effects of a life time of chemical cleansers many of which have ingredients that are potentially carcinogenic. But that aside -we can use the latest Big W specials catalogue for prices of regular cheap cleansers and calculate how much it would cost to use these products for 2 years. Enjo gloves are slated to last 2 to 3 years and other users tell me they often last 5.

Neutrogena deep clean make up remover wipes on special at $2.88 for 25. 30 packs are needed for daily use for 2 years giving a total of $86.40. Garnier and Nivea wipes were much dearer again

Aveeno cleansers were on special at $9.98 for what looks to be approx 200ml. I have no idea how long this would last but I have guessed 3 bottles a year for a total 2yr cost of $59.88

Wow, I personally think enjo products are on the pricey side but had never done the maths to compare! If they last as long as they say they do then it turns out they probably are a sensible financial choice as well.

Conclusion: After I made this comparison I heard of another make-up remover you can make yourself out of witch hazel and olive oil. I have not had the chance to trial this yet or price it but it could be there are other natural choices out there that may suit you better or be a little cheaper. BUT overall I am quite impressed with the little enjo face fibre. It involves no liquids to carry with you either so it is great for plane trips as you don’t have to worry about bottle sizes with all the new regulations or leakage and the weight is negligible (so more room for all your pretties!!). I would recommend this product and intend on continuing to use it myself.

What do you think? Have you got a great natural make – up remover? Post below for your comments or ideas.

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