When I started dating Daylon, I loved that his bachelor pad always smelled so nice, thanks to a prominent Glade plug-in in his entryway. Once I learned about what was in that air freshener, I promptly unplugged it. This meant that our apartment began smelling like whatever we’d last cooked—wonderful on the rare occasion when I baked an apple crisp, and less awesome after the more common meal of
Products We Love
What Non-toxic Products Maia Uses
One of the most frequent questions asked by readers and by clients is, "What products are actually in your bathroom?" Here's what I'm using at the moment:Shampoo: John Masters Organics Lavender Rosemary Shampoo. Conditioner: My husband's totally toxic Biolage detangler. I'm just being honest here. It smells really good, but once this bottle is gone he's promised we are switching
5 Tips for a Safer Prenatal Beauty Routine
I recently wrote the following guest blog post for a local parenting website.How do I know which skin- and hair-care products are truly safe to use while I am pregnant? Answer: As you probably suspect, many beauty products advertised as “natural” or "organic" contain lots of questionable chemicals in their ingredients lists. Sadly, this is even true for those products marketed specifically
Two Cool Things About White Sunblocks
Whenever possible, I keep Felix in the shade. When we switched from chemical sunscreens to mineral-based sunblocks, I hated the way we all looked like geishas. (Be suspicious if your "all natural" or mineral sunscreen does NOT leave a white sheen on your skin--it probably contains nanoparticles). Now I'm a convert, and when it comes to using a non-nano, all natural sunblock on Felix, there are two
What’s Wrong With Insect Repellent?
This blog entry is part of our “What’s Wrong With” series, which profiles a eifferent product each week and gives you the bottom line on its safety. Think of these as cheat sheets for our more comprehensive Safe Product Guides.Buggin’ Out About Insect Repellent Insect bites can be a mere nuisance or a serious health hazard. Gardening during black-fly season in Vermont is a maddening,
A Natural Cradle Cap Cure (I’m as Surprised as You Are)
Felix never had cradle cap, but I did as a baby, and my mom employed a bunch of different natural remedies to try to get rid of it. As we all know, natural treatments aren't always as effective as the harsh, synthetic ones (I still cannot find a natural dish soap that really works as well as Dawn--can you?). So, I was stuck with a gross crusty head until I eventually outgrew it on my own.And
Baby Food Purees Review
We've at last completed the never-ending process of reviewing baby food purees.We found only one brand of jarred food that qualifies as Good Stuff, but there is no shortage of pouches that are nutritionally sound (although I worry about the effects of the plastic packaging). Frozen baby food, while less convenient than its pouched and jarred competition, is a better bet, and there are a few
