Nothing is better than finding the best sulfate free shampoo for your hair. Suddenly, it’s like your hair takes on its own persona. It’s a shiny, happy person bouncing around your scalp, so much so that this article deserves its own soundtrack. So let’s give it one. 




This song is clearly about how happy Kate Pierson’s hair is.

What is it about natural, organic, and non-toxic shampoos that make our hair so awesome? First off, they generally don’t contain ammonium lauryl sulfate of the notorious sulfate family, which also includes ammonium laureth sulfate and sodium lauryl sulfate. These are the surfactants, or sudsing agents that make your traditional shampoo foam up. They are also quite drying to both your hair and scalp.

Sulfate free shampoos typically use decyl glucoside as their surfactant of choice. This ingredient, which rates a zero from the Environmental Working Group, is plant-derived and biodegradable. It’s not known to have any adverse health effects.

So what’s the best sulfate free shampoo for your hair type?

1. Best for All Hair—Harmonic Shampoo by Intelligent Nutrients ($22.00 for 15 oz.)

Intelligent Nutrients was founded by Horst Rechelbacher, who also created Aveda. Consider it Aveda’s bigger and better younger sister. This shampoo is formulated without sulfates, ethoxylates, PEG, phthalates, parabens, silicones, and synthetic fragrances.

More importantly, it performs like a champ. Using only a quarter-size cap full, you get a through wash which leaves your hair feeling like it’s had a makeover. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

2. Best for Color Treated—John Masters Organics Bare ($14.50)

When you’ve already put your hair through a color treatment, you want a shampoo that’s light on harsh ingredients. This sulfate free shampoo uses organic white tea and chamomile to detoxify hair, with jojoba oil to moisturize it. Fragrance free, it also include evening primrose for an added moisturizing effect.

3. Best Medicinal Shampoo—African Black Soap Deep Cleansing by Shea Moisture ($9.99)

Excellent for regulating sebum production, this shampoo treats psoriasis, dandruff, and eczema. Containing tea tree and willow bark extract to help detoxify the scalp, it is free of sulfates, parabens, phthalates, paraffin, gluten, propylene glycol, mineral oil, synthetic fragrance and more.

It also is highly recommended for African-American hair.

4. Best Clarifying Shampoo—Lemon Myrtle by Miessence ($24.00)

A good clarifying shampoo is a great trick to have up your hair arsenal. Regular build-up from pollution, product, chlorine, and that bad shampoo you used at your cousin’s house can leave residue on your hair that weighs it down. But washing with a clarifying shampoo removes this gunk, leaving your hair lighter. You should always follow up with a good conditioner.

This product from Miessence uses moisturizing, certified organic aloe vera as well as certified organic rosemary, burdock and sage extracts to balance hair. It leaves your hair with a lovely lemon scent, and is also great for treating oily hair.

5. Best for Sensitive Scalps—Baby Shampoo by Erbaviva ($18.00)

Our scalps can be very sensitive to product, especially when exposed to pollutants and the drying agents of winter. This light, ultra mild shampoo from natural experts Erbaviva offers up a USDA organic cleansing made with gentle, nourishing lavender and chamomile oils.

6. Best for Volume—Rahua ($32.00)

Containing both organic and 100% natural ingredients, this product best serves fine, damaged hair to add a healthy bounce. Containing quinoa, coconut and shea butter, it is formulate to cleanse with minimal sudsing, leaving hair stripped of oil and bacteria but replenished with moisturizing agents.

7. Best Treatment for Dry Scalp and Hair—Neem Oil by Dr. Haushcka ($29.95)

Sure, this isn’t a shampoo. But a good scalp and hair treatment can leave your hair feeling like you just invested in a spa day. This oil from natural skincare experts Dr. Haushcka contains neem leaf and chamomile extracts for a dry, itchy scalp.

It also adds shine to your hair while encouraging healthy hair growth. Massage this into your hair and scalp to strength brittle or damaged hair. Your hair will feel light and silky for days to come.

photo credit: eflon via photopin cc

For further reading:

7 Tips to Combat Dry Hair

Why Vinegar Is So Great for Your Hair

The post A Sulfate Free Shampoo for All Tress Types: 7 Best Shampoos for Dry to Oily Hair appeared first on EcoSalon.

Critics and audiences are buzzing about Fox Searchlight’s “12 Years a Slave,” which opens October 18th. Here are five reasons why you should see it.

“I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, sons of former slaves and sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood,” Dr. Martin Luther King expounded on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963. “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

King’s iconic speech has become the cultural cornerstone for racial equality in the United States. But are we there yet? It’s what we aim towards, but at times seems like nothing more than an inspirational dream. After the 2008 election of the nation’s first African-American president, it seemed like you could sail away on the optimistic stream of hope about a colorless society.

“The post-racial era, as embodied by Obama, is the era where civil rights veterans of the past century are consigned to history and Americans begin to make race-free judgments on who should lead them,” Daniel Schorr of NPR wrote in 2008. But then Schorr cautioned that “the nation may have a way to go yet to reach colorblindness.”

Five years later, I’m sure Trayvon Martin’s family would agree.

The United States is currently in a crisis of confidence when it comes to race. King’s dream seems just over the horizon, but still frustratingly out of reach. Why? The reasons make up a multitude of arguments and are endlessly debatable. But we can do without contest is to look backwards to examine the earliest origins of race in this country.

By understand where we’ve been, it is possible to see where we are going—and to maintain the growth towards King’s vision of an egalitarian world where people aren’t judged by race. If we face the most terrible parts of our history, we can begin to understand where we are today. And this way, perhaps we can steer the course to where we need to go and where so many of us deeply want to be.

“12 Years a Slave” is the movie to help us do that.

This movie is why cinema matters. It’s the true story of the life of Solomon Northup, a 19th-century free black man and musician from upstate New York who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841. From acclaimed director Steve McQueen and writer John Ridley, “12 Years a Slave” conveys an eloquence and horror which has critics in a frenzy, calling it “extraordinary” and “surreal in its evil.”

Why, specifically, should we invest our time and money into it?

1. Because “there hasn’t been a filmed project that engages with the subject of slavery this deeply since the television miniseries Roots.”

Or so writes Kyle Buchanan over at Vulture, who believe the film will win Best Picture. This film offers us a time portal into the brutality of living as an enslaved African American like few have ever done before.

Peter Howell of the Toronto Star gushes “Believe the Oscar buzz. Britain’s Steve McQueen (Hunger, Shame) nails the horror of America’s slavery shame but also finds humanity in one man’s determination to free himself and return to his family.”

William Goss of Film.com rhapsodizes “Northup’s story was a true, terrible thing, and by virtue of telling it, the burdens of all American slaves are unflinchingly realized by Ejiofor and McQueen alike.”

2. Because director Steve McQueen is brilliant.

Coming off his win at of the People’s Choice award at the recent Toronto Film Festival for “12 Years a Slave,” Steve McQueen is said to be “deeply grateful” for the accolades his film is receiving. But this is not the first time the British director has wowed audiences.

In 2008, he received the first-time director, or Caméra d’Or Award at Cannes for “Hunger,” his depiction of the 1981 Irish hunger strike. His second major theatrical release, “Shame,” featuring “12 Years” star Michael Fassbender as a sex addict, also received likewise high praise in 2011 and 2012.

3. Because the performances will become iconic.

Chiwetel Ejiofor, who plays Solomon Northup in “12 Years a Slave,” gives a career-defining performance. As he told CBS News, “It sort of drifts away from being this complicated tale of these terrible times into really a story about the human spirit and I think everybody can connect to it.”

Brad Pitt, who also produced the film, plays a Canadian abolitionist. Michael Fassbender and Sarah Paulson are haunting as the Epps, a couple of impossibly cruel slave owners. Paul Giamatti, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Alfre Woodard and Paul Dano also have key roles.

Lupita Nyong’o, who plays horrifically-abused slave Patsey on the Epps plantation, has been called the break-out star of the film. As the native Kenyan actress told CTV News, “At the end of the day, Patsey was my reward and everything else is welcome and overwhelming and beautiful.”

4. Because it continues the dialogue on race in our society.

“12 Years a Slave” offers up an unflinching view of the atrocities committed in the name of commerce and culture from the African-American perspective. But acknowledging this horror bridges our understanding from all angles.

So where to go from here?

A national best-seller and winner of the National Book Award, Edward Ball’s “Slaves in the Family” continues the vital conversation. Written by the descendant of slave owners and traders in South Carolina, Edward Ball embarked on a quest to understand the intertwined history of his family and the black people they enslaved. What emerges is an incredibly insightful look at how race has shaped one family—and in turn, our country at large. This book is a fantastic companion piece to McQueen’s film.

5. Because it’s a true story.

“Twelve Years a Slave,” Northup’s real-life narrative detailing his abduction and life while enslaved, was published in 1853 in the United States to wide acclaim. Abolitionists and sympathizers rallied to the book, which sold 30,000 copies throughout the north on the eve of the Civil War.

Considered one of the best accounts of American slavery ever written by a slave, it was Northup’s “shrewd observations” which catapulted the narrative into the consciousness of the American public. It described the day-to-day life of a slave as never before seen, which helped fuel the atmosphere which eventually led to the destruction of this American institution.

Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” had this to say of the memoir: “It is a singular coincidence, that Solomon Northup was carried to a plantation in the Red River country—that same region where the scene of Uncle Tom’s captivity was laid—and his account of this plantation, and the mode of life there, and some incidents which he describes, form a striking parallel to that history.”

“12 Years a Slave” will be commercially released by Fox Searchlight in the United States on October 18th.

Related on Ecosalon:

Coming this Fall: 6 Female Characters We Can Hardly Wait For

Hollywood Philanthropist Sam Simon Dedicates Fortune to Charity

Photos courtesy of Fox Searchlight

The post Top 5 Reasons to See ‘12 Years A Slave’ appeared first on EcoSalon.

I can usually tell the weather by my skin. Who needs moisturizers when there’s summer humidity to be had? When it is warm and muggy, I’m a sleek as a newborn babe. But the second the temperature drops, my skin looks like old, recycled paper that’s been run through a shredder.

There’s a reason dry, itchy, or cracked skin goes hand-in-hand with autumnal pumpkin lattes and spiced donuts. Aside from the weather, central heating, space heaters and fire places all contribute to displacing the moisture of out of the air— and your skin. Further, the hot showers of cooler nights go far in siphoning out the moisture of your epidermis. One would think that surrounding yourself in steam would be helpful—but as the Mayo Clinic shares, you’re actually breaking down the lipid barriers in your skin with too-hot temperatures.

So what moisturizers can take us through the cooling winds and drying factors of fall and winter? Check out these seven fantastic moisturizers, all of which replace toxic ingredients with high-quality moisturizing agents.

Best for All Skin Types: Farmaesthetics Nourishing Lavender Milk ($34.50)

Herbal skincare powerhouse Farmaesthetics does it again with this fantastic all-around body moisturizer. Formulated for use on both your face and your body, this 100% natural product is made with the simplest, purest ingredients. Containing certified organic soy oil, as well as calendula, witch hazel, and lavender essential oil, it offers up a light, nourishing moisturizer with a delicate lavender scent.

Best for Mature Skin: Weleda Pomegranate Regeneration Body Lotion ($16.50)

This biodynamic body lotion from Weleda is specifically designed with antioxidant-rich ingredients to help combat the signs of aging in mature skin. (Which—aren’t we all?) Containing organic pomegranate seed oil, apricot kernel oil and shea butter derived from fair trade practices, this fruity product keeps your skin extremely well-hydrated.

Best for Sensitive Skin: Erbaviva Baby Lotion ($17.00)

What better for sensitive skin than a moisturizer specifically formulated for babies? From USDA organic line Erbaviva, this lotion uses 100% natural emulsifiers and organic moisturizing oils. Containing sunflower and jojoba oils, it also utilizes shea butter coupled with organic mandarin and chamomile oils. Yes, it smells amazing.

Best Vegan Product: Malibu C Vital-Crème ($40.00)

This light moisturizer, formulated for all parts of the body, is an oil and fragrance-free hydrator. Containing shea butter and sandalwood, it is formulated to prevent redness and flare-ups in problem skin. Great for sensitive types, this 100% vegan product is also free of sulfates, parabens, DEA and gluten.

Best for Dry Skin: Dr. Hauschka Quince Moisturizer ($39.95)

Feeling exceptionally dry? This moisturizer from the old-school skin experts at Dr. Hauschka is made with 100% natural ingredients and free of synthetic preservatives, fragrances, and dyes. It contains quince seed extract, which restores moisture to irritated skin. Containing jojoba and olive oils, it absorbs quickly for an excellent hydration.

Best for Damaged Skin: SpaRitual Body Serum ($59.99)

Made with 80% certified organic ingredients, this intense moisturizing serum is made with ECOCert certified Sunflower Shoots. SpaRitual claims these shoots does no less than “rejuvenate and energize skin cells to stimulate collagen and elastin growth for firmer looking skin.” It also contains organic peppermint oil for a fresh scent.

Best for Hair: Neuma Beauty NeuRepair Argan Treatment ($22.00)

Your skin isn’t the only part of your body susceptible to dryness. Hot showers and blow driers can turn your hair into a brittle mess before the first orange fall leaf hits the sidewalk.

Made with argan oil, rose hips and green tea, this hair treatment is designed to restore your dry hair to its natural moisture balance. Light and virtually scentless, it doesn’t leave your hair feeling heavy or sticky.

This product contains USDA certified organic ingredients. It is also 100% vegan and is made using certified wind power. You can find it at select salons near you.

photo credit: Www.CourtneyCarmody.com/ via photopin cc

For further reading:

A Cleanser for All Skin Types

How Not to Eat Your Moisturizer

The post From Dry to Sensitive to Mature Skin: 7 Best Non-Toxic Moisturizers for Fall appeared first on EcoSalon.

You don’t have to be a corporate CEO or a rockstar to find strength in your own beauty. Here are five ways to feel strong and confident about your authentic, beautiful self.

“Marissa Mayer has many enemies,” blared a recent headline from Slate. Undeniably, the 38-year-old Yahoo CEO, engineer, wife, and mother is a formidable example of female power (as is Michelle Obama, above). Critics note that the former techie is “robotic” and “stuck-up” with the aforementioned enemies, while others point out that this just makes Mayer a regular Joe CEO. This character dissection might make some women melt.

But with a recent Vogue shoot, Mayer flaunted her powerful beauty, she didn’t hide it. In the piece, she poses like an inverted pin-up, flaxen hair splayed behind her, pale-blue eyes staring side-eyed at the camera, arm cocked to showcase her curves.

The Internet basically tripped over itself criticizing the CEO, called her a “tech princess” in “house-arrest stilettos.” Some even wondered if powerful women were even allowed to be beautiful, an idea as outdated as Diane Keaton’s shoulder pads in 1987’s “Baby Boom.”

That’s seriously outdated.

Lucky for the rest of us non-billionaire normals, you don’t have to be a corporate CEO, first lady (or anything else except you), to find your own power in beauty. Check out five real actions any woman can do to feel strong and confident about your beautiful selves.

1. Beautiful Body
Ultimately, there is nothing more beautiful than a strong woman who feels good in her own skin. Yoga is an outstanding way to improve circulation, digestion, and even brighten your skin—because what part of your body doesn’t look better when you’re breathing deeply and funneling oxygen straight to your organs?

If yoga isn’t your cup of kukicha, any exercise will do—Pilates, kickboxing, running, walking are all great ways to strengthen your body. Empowering your physical self—no matter your weight, height, age or skin color—can’t help but make you feel calmer and stronger (and what is more beautiful than relaxed power?).

2. Beautiful Soul

Does beauty really equal happiness in our world? Yes—but not exactly how you might think. A recent study from the University of Texas, Austin, showed that better-looking people are 10% happier than others. This was true of men and women in any country.

But the reason these people are happier is because they feel successful in what they do. At the same time, they are more successful because they project beauty. Beauty is confidence, and its confidence that will get you through life.

The so-called beautiful people instinctively tell the world they are confident and capable. People follow along and viola—a beautiful person is happier. How can anyone achieve this beauty? When we make an effort to feel good about the work, actions, and deeds we do, we’re improving our inner perceptions of ourselves—naturally, how we are perceived in the world follows, and we are seen as we see ourselves.

3. Beautiful Fashion

Shopping ethically results in feeling good about what you put on your body. EcoSalon fashion expert Rowena Ritchie weighs in: “Being curious about where your clothes come from, who makes them and the impact their production has on our environment can be empowering,” she shares. She points out that a thoughtful approach to style and looking at design from a position of interconnectedness is the heart of the ethical fashion movement.

But how does ethical fashion make us beautiful? “As the great Diane von Furstenberg said, ‘Confidence is beauty,’” Ritchie tells me. “And refining the art of the blend is what makes fashion fun. So pairing a vintage find with a piece from an under-the-radar local designer to create a look that’s all mine is a massive confidence booster.” Creating your own style that expresses who you are and works for your body and life means comfort in—and with—the world around you.

4. Beautiful Skin

There are as many ideas on achieving beautiful skin as there are beauty experts. Drink eight glasses of water a day. Moisturize with an organic, wholesome product. Wash your face with cleansers. Wash your face with water. Stay out of the sun. But get your vitamin D!

The most important? Accept the path and ditch the scalpel. If we’re lucky, we’re all aging, and nothing is more beautiful than a confident, powerful, and sexy woman who embraces the march of experience on her skin.

5. Beautiful Hair

Color us superficial, but there’s nothing like a good hair day to change the shade of your atmosphere. Think I’m wrong? Does Connie Britton’s amazing hair have its own Tumblr and Twitter? As with our skins, there’s a myriad of ways to treat your tresses.

Consider washing your hair at least every other day, as over-washing can strip important oils from your scalp. Invest in a shampoo made with clean ingredients—this one from Intelligent Nutrients is about as awesome as they come.

Want more great hair care tips? Check out several more ways to give your beautiful hair the care it deserves.

For further reading:
25 Inspirational Quotes on the Power of Women

American Beauty Redefined

Photos courtesy of WhiteHouse.gov, Vogue and MGM.

photo credit: Ivan McClellan Photography via photopin cc

photo credit: lululemon athletica via photopin cc

photo credit: Helga Weber via photopin cc

photo credit: tokyos via photopin cc

photo credit: DioBurto via photopin cc

photo credit: Pauline♡ via photopin cc

The post Powerful Beauty: 5 Ways to Rock Your Strengths appeared first on EcoSalon.

It’s a golden age of television, and these are the 7 of the best TV shows to prove it.

I love TV. I also enjoy NPR, macrobiotic teas, and Instragramming the ingredients on natural beauty products. By all accounts, shouldn’t my TV stand now be a planter for my indoor organic herbal garden? Instead, a large flat-screen remains. Except it now streams more TV than the East River floats Doritos bags.

So when people tell me they don’t watch TV, I want to drag them to my herbal-planter-TV-stand and sit them down until they understand. What exactly? That we’re living in the Golden Age of best TV shows. That Tony Soprano is more than just a thug. That Walter White’s ambiguous morality matters. That Carrie Mathison’s cryface really is epic.

Really, what I want to do is to introduce them to binge watching.

With the advent of Netflix streaming, Hulu, and multiple seasonal DVD releases of shows, binge watching has inevitably taken up a spot in our cultural lexicon. Sure, some people frown on the act of mass-consuming a TV show all at once. In the most first-world, fin de siècle fashion, Slate recently bemoaned that “we’re ruining TV.” They sniffed that the binge-watching bandwagon destroys the integrity of a single episode, alongside other horrible, unnamed, possibly kitten-murdering deeds.

But I’d argue that binge watching a brilliantly-written or entertaining show is no different from going to the movies. For the movies, factor in travel, popcorn pit stops and the time it takes to glare at the person texting right in front of you, you’re looking at a minimum three hour investment. All the while, you’re (hopefully) not thinking about work, not checking your phone, not worried about the state of all things.

Stay in for an evening and indulge in two or three episodes of any hour-long drama, and it’s the same experience. And best of all, you don’t have to deal with travel, popcorn pit stops and the time it takes to glare at the person texting right in front of you. Are they trying to land a plane with their cell phone light beacons? Who is really to say.

Binge watching has, in fact, become so popular that the more recent television shows are starting to structure their entire seasons around this undertaking. “Arrested Development”, “Orange is the New Black”, and “House of Cards” were all released new seasons this year on Netflix streaming—and “House of Cards” recently received nine Emmy nominations, which Netflix trumpeted as a “win” for all Internet television.

But not every television show out there is worthy of a binge. You need stellar characters, engaging episodic arches, and a general ability to glue an audience to his or her seats. So what to watch?

1. “Breaking Bad”

Set in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Walter White is a high school chemistry teacher recently diagnosed with cancer. He turns to producing and selling methamphetamines to provide a financial legacy for his family. Currently airing its fifth and final season, “Breaking Bad” is available online on Amazon Prime. 

2. “Orange is the New Black”

Piper Chapman is a wasp-y New Yorker who once, years ago, transported a suitcase filled with drugs for an ex-girlfriend. Now she’s sent to prison for 15 months in Litchfield, New York. Based on a true story, the show is hailed as a “barrier-breaking” dramedy which incorporates the narratives of black, white, and transgendered women. Produced by Netflix, it’s available through the site.

3. “Game of Thrones”

Winter might be coming, but HBO’s critically-acclaimed “Game of Thrones” shows no signs of cooling. Based on George R.R. Martin’s fantasy novels, the show incorporates multiple story lines roughly set in the kingdoms of Westeros and Essos at the end of a decade-long summer. Sex, violence, and mythical creatures combine to make this a standing hit for the cable network, now three seasons in. You can watch it online at HBO Go.

4. “Downton Abbey”

This Masterpiece Theatre phenom for PBS relays the saga of the post-Edwardian Crawley family and their staff at their Yorkshire country estate. The Titanic sinks, World War I rages, and the Spanish Flu decimates, while romance and tragedy throw around more suds around than a washing machine in this soapy classic. The series is gearing up for its fourth season. You can watch it online at Hulu.com.

5. “Orphan Black”

The BBC scores another hit with this sci-fi Canadian import depicting the lives of several identical women, who all turn out to be clones in (what else?) a deadly illegal cloning conspiracy. The show is centered on Sarah Manning, a tough British con-artist who assumes the life of fellow clone (and cop) Elizabeth Childs after Childs commits suicide. The first season, which recently wrapped, is currently available on DVD from Netflix.

6. “Homeland”

This series for Showtime takes us through the life of Carrie Mathison, a bipolar Central Intelligence Officer on a quest to capture Sergeant Nicolas Brody. Carries believes that Brody is a former prisoner-of-war for al-Qaeda who is now brainwashed and threatening national security. What could go wrong? The series, which is two seasons in, is available on Amazon Prime.

7. “Portlandia”

Why should you watch IFC’s sketch comedy show “Portlandia,” which is also available streaming on Netflix? See above.

Do you binge watch? Follow Katherine on Twitter and tell her what shows she missed. 

photo credit: Alba Soler Photography via photopin cc

For further reading:
5 Happy Endings We’d Like to See for Breaking Bad

The 5 Best Beauty Products for a Downton Abbey Look

The post The 7 Best TV Shows to Binge Watch appeared first on EcoSalon.

Dry, oily, or sensitive skin? Here’s a great natural cleanser for your skin type.

With most of us still sweating through our makeup—or just not wearing it, writes the woman with invisible eyelashes—it is hard to believe that fall is just around the corner. So before visions of warm pumpkins doughnuts and spicy apple cider start dancing in our head, let’s take a moment to attend to the most basic of our beauty ritual.

Let’s wash our faces! From oily to dry to sensitive to mature, here’s a natural cleanser for seven different skin types to purge the summer sweat right off your skin.

1. For All Skin Types: Organic Virgin Coconut Oil ($5.99)

The hottest trend in natural skin care will remind you of the beachy, sun-soaked days of your youth. Coconut oil is being touted from blog to shining blog as an excellent makeup remover, moisturizer, and natural cleanser all in one sweet-smelling product.

Our EIC Laura Klein is a devotee of using coconut oil to remove eye makeup, saying there was “no turning back” once she discovered the product.

Others rave that coconut oil is highly moisturizing and even an acne remedy, though some caution that its comedogenic nature can clog pores.

2. For All Skin Types, Part II: Fine Herbal Cleanser by Farmaesthetics ($34.50)

Looking for a lovely cleanser so simple that it contains only five ingredients? (Seriously, you woke up thinking this, right?) The Fine Herbal Cleanser from Farmaesthetics offers up a thorough cleaning for a product that feels as light as water.

Good for all skin types, this 100% natural offering from this top-shelf sustainable line combines geranium, witch hazel, and lavender, leaving your skin hydrated and smooth.

Further, it is designed to work with the line’s sweet milk exfoliate series, which can be added to help brighten your complexion.

3. For Dry Skin: Creamy Pumpkin Cleanser by MyChelle Dermaceuticals ($9.69)

With cooler temperatures and winter winds just a few weeks away, this Creamy Pumpkin Cleanser is a great staple for those suffering from dry skin.

Specifically formulated to moisturize and hydrate, this vitamin-rich cleanser combines the anti-oxidant effects of pumpkin with the extreme hydrating powers of blue green algae. This pleasantly-scented product is cruelty-free, vegan friendly, and also gluten-free.

MyChelle Dermaceuticals also offers a comprehensive line of natural cleansers tailored to each skin concern, including Youth-Blemish, Sensitive, Hyperpigmentation and more.

4. For Oily Skin: Cool & Clear Facial Cleanser by Elemental Herbology ($46.00)

When your skin is oily, the last thing you feel like putting on it is any product. But this oil-control offering from Elemental Herbology promises to cleanse, purify, and even “pacify” irritated skin.

Free of fragrance and soap, it works to bring balance to your sebum-clogged skin while calming and clearing out pores.

The line, which uses only premium-grade herbs, flowers, and minerals, only uses 100% biodegradable SLS-free surfactants while supporting ethical harvesting and responsible packaging.

5. For Normal/Dry Combination Skin: Rose Foaming Face Wash by John Master Organics ($22.00)

From one of the best-performing lines out there using organic ingredients comes this light, fun, foamy cleaners from John Masters Organics.

Containing no GMOs, sodium lauryl sulfate, parabens, DEAs, MEAs, or TEAs (say that three times, fast), the Rose Foaming Wash offers up a light hydration to deal with problematic dry patches.

This gluten-free product is made with seven certified organic ingredients, including hydrating aloe vera and rose water.

6. For Sensitive Skin: Ultimate Moisture Facial Cleanser by Mineral Fusion ($12.99)

For skin prone to redness, irritation and more, finding the right cleanser can be something like diffusing a bomb—you want to get in and out without causing any kind of lasting damage to the area. Using marine clay, cucumber, chamomile, and aloe vera to cleanse and detoxify the skin, this gentle cleanser does just that.

A vegetarian product, it is also free of gluten, parabens, SLS, phthalates, artificial colors and synthetic fragrances.

7. For Mature Skin: French Clay Cleanser with DMAE by Clairvoyant Beauty ($32.00)

Ready for detoxified, smooth, and toned skin? Oui oui! This French Clay Cleanser is rich in DMAE, which the makers at Clairvoyant Beauty claim “extends the life of cells.”

It also uses clay from the Vienne region of France that has been a favorite beauty tool for locals for the past 200 years.

Containing biodegradable, natural and organic Ingredients, this product is also vegan-certified.

photo credit: martinak15 via photopin cc

For further reading:

Can You Fight Sunspots Naturally?

5 Tips to Fix a Hangover Face

5 Fantastic Anti-Aging Products

The post A Natural Cleanser for All Skin Types: 7 Seriously Awesome Products for Dry to Sensitive to Oily Skin appeared first on EcoSalon.

For the woman who covets the fun and funky braid hairstyles of her youth and has no idea how to pull it off, here are some great braid styles.

Short braids, long braids, loose braids, tight braids. The procession of best braids in my mind reads like a Dr. Seuss picture book, with an assortment of lovely styles on parade. Tragically, my braiding skills are about as adept as a cat diving into a pile of yarn—something happens, and it usually involves a lot of tangles. Maybe because this skill has always been completely beyond me, I’ve always loved elaborate braid hairstyles.

Or maybe my early obsession with braids is 1000% because of this.

Throughout my life, the second I had longer locks, I was asking someone to braid my hair. But as I got older, I started dialing back on the Heidi-inspired braid hairstyles. Yes, this was partially due to my own braiding skill level (see: cat/tangled/yarn), but it was also because I was working. As a woman in a TV writer’s room, you already walk in with a giant “Judge Everything about My Appearance” sign over your head. Fun and quirky hairstyle went the way of my soul, crushed under the heel of Hollywood.

And for the record, if you’re proudly sporting elaborate braids in the courtroom or under your surgeon’s cap, rock on. But for the woman who covets the fun and funky braids of her youth and has no idea how to pull it off, I am you and you are me. Because as I got older, my braids became smaller. Subtle. A wisp here, a strand there. They practically disappeared.

And then my niece Katherine was born.

Katherine, you see, is a braiding savant. If she were a chess player, she’d be Bobby Fischer. If tennis were her game, she’d be Serena Williams. Now that she’s a teenager, she can spend a few minutes in front of the mirror and emerge looking like she wandered off the set of Lord of the Rings.

In case you doubt me, I recently showed her a picture of the Khaleesi braids from Game of Thrones. She appeared a half hour later, sporting this braid hairstyle.

It is possible that she has dragon eggs hidden somewhere in her closet.

Katherine and her nimble teen fingers have become my ambassador back into Braid Land. So I recently asked her to share her thoughts on braids, her favorite styles, and to remind us why braids are completely awesome.

ES: Katherine, tell us why you think braids work so well as a hair style.

Katherine: Well, I like braids because if I’m not wearing a fun outfit, I can wear fun hair. French braids are the best because you can tweak them, making them messier, tighter, or whatever you want. You can really make them your own.

ES: Good point. How do feel when you’re doing braid hairstyles?

Katherine:  When I do them myself, I feel proud. And it’s fun when my friends like them too, because it makes me want to share them. So I really like to do my friends’ hair too. It’s something I can do to help them to feel good about themselves.

ES: That’s such a good reminder for us Olds—fun hair makes you feel good. So let’s talk style. What’s your favorite braid for long hair?

Katherine: I have pretty long hair right now, so I like to wear it up out of my face. French braids always work well, because I can wear them with a bun or a pony tail. It’s great for summer. Lately, I’ve really been into the Fishtail braid. Here’s a great video showing you how to do one.

Also, I think a really great style for longer hair is the corset braid. It’s a big more formal and subtle, and I think can work well on grown-ups. Here’s my favorite video showing how to do it.

ES: Love it! So what is your favorite braid style for short hair?

Katherine: I really like the headband braid for short hair. And you don’t even need a lot of hair to do it. Here’s a video that shows you how to do a really cool one.

ES: What about a braiding style like cornrows? Can you do that on long or short hair?

Katherine: You can do cornrows on both! Here’s a good video on how to.

ES: Say you were going to wake up 35-years-old tomorrow. What style would you choose?

Katherine: I really like the nested side braid. It’s very simple and you can wear it for any occasion.

ES: Even at the office?

Katherine: Why wouldn’t you want to feel good about yourself at work?

ES: Excellent point, Katherine. Excellent point.

photo credit: chantel beam photography via photopin cc

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Jill Clayburgh’s portrayal of a divorcee in the 1978  film An Unmarried Woman, helped redefine marriage and sexuality.

In 1978, Hollywood came up with its own answer to the shifting roles of women in a newly-feminist society. In An Unmarried Woman, Jill Clayburgh made real the newly-single woman, redefining her sexuality and identity after the end of her 16-year marriage.

Clayburgh scored several accolades for her role as Erica, including an Academy Award nomination. Her role epitomized the growing sexual revolution of the 1970s. Clayburgh’s Erica struggles after her husband leaves her for a younger woman, but eventually finds her voice in a renewed sense of emotional and sexual liberation.

An Unmarried Woman hits on what are now touchstones of divorce – the angry moments with a therapist, the nervous excitement of casual sex, the painful confrontations with the ex, and the touching commiseration with a disappointed child. But what was spectacular about Clayburgh’s performance is that it was the first of its kind. Never before had audiences seen a woman quite so modern as Clayburgh’s Erica.

If a woman divorced less than four decades ago, she was left in a precarious state. For instance, it was legal in this country for creditors and banks to deny credit to a woman. Women simply could not access credit in their own name – they had to apply through their husband or as an “appendage” of their spouse. In 1974, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act made it illegal for banks to deny credit based on gender, marital status, race, religion, age, nation of birth or prior residence. Divorce became more socially acceptable – but still a serious event with potentially devastation economic consequences for women.

And so, Erica became a role model for liberation. After Clayburgh died of cancer in 2010, ABC News went as far as to dubbing this the “Clayburgh Effect.” In other words, women on screen are still redefining what it means to be on their own, as evidenced by Meryl Streep in It’s Complicated or Diane Keaton in Something’s Gotta Give. To be over 35 years old and newly single is not a social death sentence, but a rich possibility for an ambitious start in middle life.

While it is more common today to see richer portrayals of mature female sexuality, woman are still defined by their age and, at times, marital status. Cultural roles continue to shift for women – which is why it’s important to remember where we came from. Waving our credit cards in our own names, we can see just how far we’ve come and how far we can still journey.

For more Jill Clayburgh, click here.

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Nichelle Nichols’ Lt. Uhura was an inspiration in a time of racial strife.

Before Halle Barry, before Beyonce, and before Zoe Saldana – there was Nichelle Nichols, who boldly went where no African-American woman had gone before. Nichols played Lt. Uhura on the original Star Trek, contributing to Gene Roddenberry’s utopist view of a multicultural future in space. Nichols’ Uhura was an breath of fresh air on the lily-white television screens of America in 1966.

But 1966 was also a year marking increasing racial tensions in America. To many, Uhura was more than just a TV character—she was an icon of inspiration, setting a standard of multicultural womanhood on television. Nichols was no housekeeper or “mammy,” but an intelligent space traveler working in a world of equality. Her fans include the first African-American astronaut in space Mae Jemison, who cites Nichols as her inspiration to go into space.

Nichols was born in 1932, in a small town near Chicago. Discovered by Duke Ellington as a teenager, the singer and dancer toured with Ellington and Lionel Hampton. She was cast on Star Trek after appearing in creator Gene Roddenberry’s initial foray into television, The Lieutenant.

During the first year of the series, Nichols considered leaving the show to perform on Broadway. However, Martin Luther King, Jr. himself convinced the actress to stay on as Lt. Uhura. She met the iconic Civil Rights leader at a NAACP event in 1966. As Nichols recalls the meeting, “He was telling me why I could not [resign],” she told the Daily News. “He said I had the first nonstereotypical role, I had a role with honor, dignity and intelligence. He said, ‘You simply cannot abdicate, this is an important role. This is why we are marching. We never thought we’d see this on TV.’”

Nichols decided to stay on the show and continued making milestones, including kissing William Shatner on the original Star Trek. This was by most accounts the first interracial kiss between a black woman and a white male on television. Here you can see Nichols discussing the kiss.

After Star Trek’s cancellation in 1969, Nichols went on to appear in all six film follow-ups. She has since served as recruiter for NASA to encourage women and minorities to join the program. Nichols has appeared on several boards and organizations to promote space travel and was present for the final liftoff of Atlantis, the last shuttle to fly into space. Today, she continues to be honored for her work both in television and advocacy.

The post Women on Film: Nichelle Nichols of Star Trek Broke Barriers appeared first on EcoSalon.

Here at EcoSalon, there’s no Team Edward or Jacob. There is only Team Katniss.

Picture this: the end of modern civilization is upon us. The Mayans have gotten it right and the shifting Earth’s axis has thrown us all into space. Or Yellowstone’s super volcano has erupted, coating us with ash and inspiring cannibalism. Or, Rick Santorum has been elected President. Who do you want at your side – the wily, survival skills of Katniss Everdeen, huntress, tribute, and all-around hero? Or an emo teenager pining for her hybrid werewolf-vampire boyfriend while all the good action happens around her?

Here at EcoSalon, there’s no Team Edward or Jacob. There is only Team Katniss.

Now, gather around young ones, this feminist writer has something to confess. I’m turning 40 years old in mere days. I think this finally means that when I talk about the “good old days,” they actually are the good old days. When I was a young feminist, things like birth control and health care access for all women were not up for debate – they were something established and hard won, rights that we took for granted.

Sure, we revered the stalwarts like Gloria Steinem and Naomi Wolf, and we were grateful for their feminist revolution. But we thought we had earned our independence, our rights to an equally fulfilling life in or out of the home. We were the third wave feminists, enjoying the spoils of the sexual revolution.

So color us shocked some two decades later. Young women who use birth control are now called sluts. Abortion bills excluding rape and incest are being debated all over the country. Women’s rights are not only under constant assault at all times – they seem destined to be erased completely.

So when we see a young character like Katniss Everdeen of The Hunger Games up on the screen, it’s impossible not to be deeply inspired and, frankly, relieved to see this next generation of strong women.

Jennifer Lawrence, who at 21 is the quintessential Millennial, brings a wonderful level of quiet dignity to Katniss. Lawrence says she was drawn to Katniss because of her strength as one of the first women to challenge the oligarchical Capitol. As she spoke of the role, “Katniss is so special to me because she’s so strong and willful, and stands up for what’s right.”

And this is exactly what makes Katniss a character you’re proud to show your daughter, niece, or young friend. She’s a cornerstone of strength in a society trying to place individual rights behind the “good” of government decrees.

We hold up three fingers in salute to Katniss and most especially, to Lawrence.

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