Toxin purge - cleaning up my beauty routine

On my journey to live a healthier life this year, I'm tackling my makeup bag. I am a sample junkie and have collected way too many samples over the years. Birchbox, Sephora, gifts with purchase. You name it, I've probably purchased just to get free samples. It's fun to try new products out but you never get enough of an item for you to see the effects of the product. So I've decided to do more research and purchase products that will work well with my skin and are not riddled with harmful chemicals.

Step 1 - Identify bad ingredients

My cousin's wife is a consultant for Beautycounter, a new cosmetic company that offers great products without the harmful chemicals. The products are sold direct online or through a consultant. I was invited to a party at my Aunts's house to sample the products. But I had a baby 2 days before the party, so I had to miss it. I ended up having the consultant over a few weeks ago to see the products for myself. I was also give The Never List.

The Never List

This is a list of chemicals that you should avoid when purchasing any type of beauty product, skincare, hair, makeup, nails, etc. It's hard to find a list of ingredients for a product if they are not listed on a bottle. Sometimes you can find them online though the manufacturer's site, sometimes not. If they can't be located, is it because they don't want you to know what's in the product?

Step 2 - Purge!!

It pained me to have to discard so many products I've been using. It's a pile of money I've spent that is being thrown away, but for the right reasons. There's a couple items I haven't opened and plan to return. The rest I'll use up, then switch over to organic products and read the labels.

Here's a small sample of products that contain harmful ingredients that I need to use up. (Methylisothiazolinone and methylchloroisothiazolinone)

Step 3 - Shop conscientiously

Educate yourself on the products you are purchasing and what ingredients go into them. There's a great website that you can use as a reference offered by the Environmental Working Group called Skin Deep. You can lookup products to see if they contain chemicals from The Never List. It's helpful and there's also an app for when you are on-the-go.

I ordered some new makeup and skincare are products from BeautyCounter and will review them once I receive and have some time to try. Hope this helps you start your journey to living a cleaner life.

StitchFix - Fix #3 review

A day I look forward to each month, the day my StitchFix box arrives. If you haven't heard of StitchFix before, check out one of my earlier posts that gives an overview of the service. This is my third box and I peeked to see what was coming ahead of time:) I was excited for what was coming my way. Last month I only kept the necklace, so I hope this fix will add a few more pieces to my wardrobe. I specifically asked for no accessories or pants, only tops, dresses or skirts.

When I first opened the box, I was excited about the color combination.  

After trying them all on I'm sad to say I'm sending all but one back. I initially loved the colors and patterns, but after trying them on, they just weren't what I was looking for.

First up the 41Hawthorn Lace Sleeve Blouse. It's a cute top, but sheer and I don't think I would want to wear a cami under. Kinda blah too.

41HAWTHORN #5559-013 McQue Solid Lace Sleeve Blouse - Small

Next is the THML Kahlo top. I really like this top and have the sleeveless version pinned on Pintrest. I feel like the cut of it makes me look like I'm wearing a maternity top (something I want to get far away from at this point). Plus it's a size too small and tight across the shoulders.

THML #4565-413 Kahlo Knit Top - Small

I also have this jacket pinned on my Pintrest board and had I not purchased a similar style jacket from Gap two weeks ago, I probably would have kept this. The material is a little thicker and it fits great. 

MYSTREE #4204-502 Jackie Striped French Terry Asymmetrical Jacket - Small

I decided to keep this top. At first I thought I didn't like the sleeves, but after trying it on, I was surprised. I like the pattern and color.

19 COOPER #3857-740 Astair Abstract Print Blouse - Small

This dress really missed the mark. I had nothing like it pinned to my Pintrest board. Plus it looks like one of those bomb popsicles! Sending back!!!

41HAWTHORN #1384-654 Dita Colorblock Sleeveless Ponte Dress - Small

Overall this fix was 100% better than the past one. Now I have to wait another month before I can get another fix in the mail. Use this link to sign up and try the service out. 

Stitch Fix - Fix #2 review

As I've mentioned before, I'm looking to makeover my life this year, which includes my closet. I've seen so many ads come across my Facebook feed and friends are pinning items to their StitchFix Pintrest board, might as well try it out. I like to think I have good fashion sense. I shop at trendy stores and boutiques. I try to throw in a new color or fun pattern every now and then. Being pregnant for most of last year and wanting to only wear solid, dark colors has left my closet looking really blah. When you see mostly black, grey and navy, time to purge and refresh.

For those of you that haven't heard about StitchFix, it's an online service that sends you clothes based on the style profile you fill out. You pay a $20 styling fee each time you request a box and are sent 5 items. Decide which ones you want to keep and return the ones you don't want using the prepaid shipping label. The $20 styling fee goes towards the purchase of any items. Purchase all 5 items and get 25% off. You have usually a week to decide what you want to keep and can also add comments about what you like/don't like about a particular item. They also suggest you create a Pintrest board and pin styles or pieces you like. I recommend doing this to help your stylist pick pieces you will like. Here's an example of my board I am starting.

I received my first box back in January and it was like Christmas morning! I love the idea of not knowing in advance what you are going to receive. You can get a sneak peek once you receive the email from StitchFix with the tracking number. If you click on the link to checkout, you can search the Internet for the items that are in your box. It's nice that a lot of women pin their items on Pintrest for others to see. I'm going to start doing the same.

Fix #1 Kept the shirt I posted in my Valentines day post.

Fix #2
I was excited to receive my second fix, but was somewhat disappointed. I decided to include a note to the stylist before the box was sent to give them an idea of what I was looking for and overall my fix missed the mark. I asked for skirt in black, olive or denim and receive a hounds tooth skirt that was too long and the material was horrible.

I wanted a blazer or jacket for spring. The one that was sent was a nice style, but I would have preferred one that I could wear all day at work.

Mo-Ka Korbin Jacket

The striped shirt was cute and fit well, but the stripe pattern along the shoulders was not lining up correctly and it looked weird.

Laila Jayne Hinsdale Stripe shirt

I asked for a spring sweater and really liked the one they sent. But the material was 100% acrylic and felt cheap. Plus is was hand wash only.

Skies are Blue Galla Mesh Sweater

I did keep the necklace. I love the style and happen to have a couple similar styles pinned on my Pintrest board. I have been wanting a necklace in this color too. Perfect for spring!

Bay of Baubles Christy necklace

I suggest at least trying it once. I shared my referral link with a lot of my friends who have signed up, so I have a nice little credit in my account for future fixes. If you have friends that you think would also like this service, it's worth signing up and sharing your experience. So my styling fee wasn't a total loss. I probably need to be a little more direct when request my next box on what I want and don't want. I'll continue to post my Fixes as I receive them.