I started using natural and refillable products in late 2019.
And the biggest question I get asked is...
Why?
"Why did you start using natural products?" "Why are they better?"
Well, I have always had sensitive and whacky skin! It goes back all the way to when I was an infant. My mom has shared stories of me having eczema and her having to put cream on and then putting socks over my hands so I wouldn't itch.
I've had eczema, psoriasis, sensitive skin, etc. I would get flare ups and itchy skin and in 2019, I started looking into reasons why my skin was having flare ups. One thing that was very common among the research was that.. INGREDIENTS MATTER!
When I really dove into why my skin was angry, I was reading about ingredients in my products such as laundry soap, body wash, shampoo, conditioner, lotions, etc. And I found that a lot of these ingredients are nasty chemicals that have effects on our bodies. Fragrance was a huge one. Did you know that companies can just write "fragrance" on the bottle and not disclose to you what makes up that scent? Well it's true. They do not! And fragrance can mean it's anything from essential oils to 3000+ chemicals making the smell you like. Fragrance was one of the biggest culprits when it comes to skin irritations.
So what lady?
Well, for me fragrance caused my skin to get angry. But fragrance is also a known hormone disruptor! These means that they can mimic, block or interfere with the body's natural hormones and cause a variety of issues for both men and women!
Fragrance can cause headaches, migraines, asthma flare ups, and more!
This is just one of the ingredients that I found that might be leading to my irritated skin.
Why Zero-waste?
When I bought my first house, one of the first things I added was a recycling bin! I thought I was doing my part and I was putting everything in the recycling. Well, my father-in-law sent me an article that was quite disheartening. It was all about how our recycling here in Canada is VERY picky. They only want clear or white plastic because it can be made into other items. However, dark coloured or black plastic is often shipped elsewhere to be used there. Anything that can't be used, ends up in landfills. I was shocked by the percentage of plastic that isn't used here or elsewhere in the world and ends up sitting for 20-500 years!
This was when I decided I would start to do refilling. I started with my laundry soap. This was an easy swap. I ditched my dryer sheets for wool dryer balls (dryer sheets are terrible for the nasty ingredients in them).
Next I started swapping refills in my bathroom- shampoo, conditioner, body wash!
And then cleaning products- all purpose cleaners, toilet cleaner, dish soap!
Personally I decided to switch over from plastic to glass containers (you do not need to do this) but plastic contains a lot of chemicals that are disruptive to our bodies as well!
Are they as effective?
I was so skeptical of if these products would actually work! Trust me when I say that. I did not think something plant based would clean my home as well. But they did! If not better.
When I married my husband, it took a while to get him on board. There's still items he can't bring himself to switch over.
But the products speak for themselves! They truly do work. And it's a transition, they work differently. The laundry detergents aren't always as fragrant, you may have to try different shampoos until you find one that works for your hair type. But once you find a detergent you love or a shampoo that makes your hair shiny and soft... you won't turn back!
Present Time
Fast forward to today and I have a little one. It seemed like everyone's reason for starting was the day they had kids and they became more aware of the chemicals in our day to day products. And prior to my mini frog, I was already aware. But my mini has my skin and I have had to be so careful with what we use at home. We now wash all mini's clothes, blankets, sheets, etc in unscented laundry detergent. We found that anything with any scent was causing a crazy eczema flare up. We use all natural lotions and ointments on mini too!
Story Time
I think this was one of the moments my husband decided that natural products were the real MVP! We won a trip back in 2020 and we finally decided to use it, well they told us we had to use it by Sept 30 2022 or we would lose it, so we used it! Well, we had a little one and on our flight back home... BLOWOUT! But of course I had put on a cute little white onesie with these cute little caterpillars on it. My husband said "I guess this is garbage" and I said "NO! We can't just throw out a onesie". So I placed it in a wet bag I had in our diaper bag and we brought this onesie home. I rinsed it out, applied the Buncha Farmers Stain Stick, tossed it in the wash and assumed we would be throwing it out cause the stain would be too far gone to keep it! Well.. when my husband switched the laundry over, he was mind blown... The onesie looked new!! No stain, no sign that there was ever a massive blow out.
If you have been into our store, you have definitely heard my husband's high praise for this item.
So there you have it. All the reasons why I have changed our products at home from my skin, to recycling issues, to my mini frog!
Cheers,
The Green Treefrog
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