Honest(ly) Reviewing

I don't know if you remember this, but I tried out the Honest Co. a few months ago.  Okay, nearly a year.  It started innocently enough, with a free sample of diapers, wipes, and house cleaning supplies.  And then I started using their diapers whenever we weren't doing cloth, and then I got hooked in by their skin care stuff, and then non-toxic cleaners, and before I knew it, we were an Honest household. 

Toilet bowl cleaner.  Laundry everything.  Dishwasher detergent.  Sunscreen, bugspray, swim diapers, the whole shabang.  And we used them, and moved, and updated our mailing address, and kept using them.

And now, after 11 months of use, I'd like to tell you my thoughts.  Not because of anything except I talked real big about how excited I was, and I thought some closure would be nice.  In case you're curious about them, in case you think you might like to try them out, too.

And in case you didn't catch it, The Honest Company is a company dedicated to providing *stuff*, everything you'd want for your home, body, baby, etc., and doing it all without chemicals or hazardous ingredients.  Which I believe is an awesome premise.  We've just had a little difficulty in some of the application.

Beware, the following is a long list.  Putting it together made me realize how far off the deep end I went.  Some of it I regret, some I cherish.  So if you're thinking about it, here's what worked for us!  Oh, and if you do want to try them out, there's a place to click through over yonder --> or you can use this link right here and I think we both get bonuses.  If you don't want to continue after a free sample, though, you have to call & cancel - you can't do it via email.

• Multi-Surface Cleaner: have yet to use, but smells good
• Toilet Bowl Cleaner: have yet to use, no idea how it smells
• Laundry Detergent: Not recommended.  We had trouble with our clothes smelling musty even after using this and the oxy boost.  Our basement is damp, but it just didn't seem to be able to cut through dirty clothes.  
• Oxy Boost: Not recommended.  See above.
• Dryer Cloths: Not recommended.  Clothes were still static-clingy after using these, and even only using them once (claims to be able to be reused)
• Bathroom Cleaner: Just fine.  Used this on our sinks last night.  Came out clean, and I didn't have to worry about the prego with chemical thing.
• Stain Remover: Meh.  It worked okay.  We bought more Oxy Clean.  Not going back.
• Shampoo + Body wash: Great for body wash, and good for kids.  Left my hair dried out.
• Hand Soap: Just fine.  My mother claims that it dries out her hands, but I haven't had any trouble.
• Face + Body Lotion: Just fine.  Great for daily use, but definitely would not treat severely dry skin.  Sort of thin.
• Healing Balm: Good.  Haven't had much reason to use it, but it did make my chapped lips and very cracked heals feel better.
• Conditioner: Not recommended.  It just didn't go much for my hair, and it always seemed dry and lifeless after using.
• Bubble Bath: Riley recommends this one.  Bubbles right up and its nice to not worry about babies & chemicals.
• Organic Breathe Easy Rub: HIGHLY recommended.  I used this on myself a few weeks back because I can't take any decongestants.  I was able to get cleared up, and it was gentle on my skin.
• Organic Shave Oil: HIGHLY recommended.  Oh my word, people.  Its like the spa.  At least, I think it is, I've never been spa-ing.  But it made shaving my legs an experience.  Armpits, well, that makes me a little nervous since I'm not sure how the oil does with deodorant, but legs.  Yes.  Do it.
• Diaper Rash Cream: Riley recommends.  This is our 2nd choice for diaper rash cream, as there's a different one (Aquaphor, if you are curious) that works best for our girl.  But Honest is definitely a strong #2.
• Conditioning Detangler: Just fine.  My niece really liked this, said it made her curls soft and not tangly.  I'm pretty sure she stole it.
• Bar Soap: Recommended.  I like bar soap, and I won't apologize.  I'm not a shower gel girl.  This bar was great.  However, if you're buying the bundle, it doesn't really make $$ sense for this to be one of your 5, because then you're not really getting the great value out of it...
• Toothpaste: Split decision.  I think its just fine.  Handsome thinks its disgusting and doesn't work right.  You're not going to get a mouth full of foam with this stuff, but my teeth feel clean afterwards.
• Mouthwash: Same split as the toothpaste.  I like the flavor (gentler than others) and Handsome has declared it unuseable.
• Bug Spray: Useless.  Just don't.
• Sunscreen Spray, lotion, stick: Recommended.  I liked using this stuff, and when I said "Hey @honestco, you should make a stick so its easier to apply to babies" they said "thanks for the suggestion" and then they had one.  You're welcome.

In the other corner, we have the baby supplies.  Basically, the diapers and wipes.  You get to pick your patterns for diapers, and then they'll deliver them to your house every month, along with (supposedly) enough wipes to get you through.  These diapers and wipes are what got me hooked, and they're what I'll definitely keep receiving.  I love the prints, and I've found that these diapers last all night when others (cloth & disposable) fail.  They just seem much more substantial than other disposables I've used, without being bulky.  And they're adorable, which is unnecessary, but a total plus.

So there you go.  In case you were interested.  If you didn't, I highly doubt that you've made it this far.  And if you want to try out some of the laundry stuff and live in NW PA, let me know.  I've got a whole bunch for you to test :)

<3 M.

Nail Power - My Adventure as a Manicurist

I'm not really a "nail" girl, but for the sake of scientific experiment, I recently became one.

I do love a good experiment.

When my ole' friend Jess threw out a shout-out to the facebook world, asking for some people to test out the fancy pants new nail wraps she's selling (Jamberry), next to nicely manicured nails (Julep), I couldn't resist!  So I messaged Jess my address, and in my mailbox just a few days later they showed up!

Of course, since this was a scientific experiment, I went above and beyond what I usually do for a nail-painting, since I wanted to make sure I started out with the appropriately level starting ground.  You know, for posterity's sake.  I mean I went all. out.  Looked up the proper brush strokes for painting, made sure to cover the ends of my nails with paint, all of it.  I was aiming for the bigtime.

Turns out, I'm not an exceptional manicurist.

I made Handsome take the picture right there.  After looking closely at my nails, he suggested that maybe he should take another, but from, like, across the room... He wasn't real impressed with my painting skills ;)  However, the Jamberry wraps were not difficult to put on.  You are supposed to heat up the wrap before you apply it, after you wipe your nails down with an alcohol swap; I didn't feel like running back upstairs to get the hair dryer, so I used the "exhaust" from my laptop to warm them up.  Worked like a charm.  

The next day, post shower (the real magic behind every good manicure), my nails looked awesome!

This manicure experiment, which I cleverly named #JamberryVJulep, lasted for a week.  I haven't made a habit of painting my nails because the dots of color floating at the ends of my fingers were distracting to me.  This time, though, it seems that I've become more mature because I was able to resist the little floating points of color, and I kind of enjoyed having pretty hands! 

Just because they were pretty doesn't mean I went easy on them.  No sirree!  I washed dishes, picked open boxes, peeled labels off of wine bottles, etc.  So although I had pretty nails for the first 2 or 3 days, by the week's end, they were looking kind of rough...

Also, it should be noted that I don't take excellent pictures one-handed.

But, you can see that above.

The Verdict: At first, I had more fun painting my nails than I did carefully placing the Jamberry wraps.  By the end of the week, everything was wearing a little bit, but the Jamberry wraps were not showing their wear, especially when compared to the painted nails.  

If you're interested in trying them, you can check out Jess's website here.  I'm planning to place an order myself when I'm feeling particularly school-spirity, because, hello!?!  Go TIGERS!

Have you done any science experiments lately?  Tried anything new I need to know about?  Have you used nail wraps yourself?  Happy Sunday, party people.  Let's get this party of a week started!

<3 M.