Nubian Heritage - Black African Soap

Since Burt's Bee had brutally discontinued my beloved Garden Tomato Soap, I was forced to find another natural facial wash to control my acne.

Introducing Black African Soap (note: there's nothing racist about the name).
Black soap is traditionally made in west Africa, typically Ghana, from secret recipes, and has long been used to heal problem skin including acnes. It usually made from the ash of locally harvested plants and barks such a plantain, cocoa pods, palm tree leaves, and shea tree bark.

I particularly choose this brand because it's available locally from an online sellee for 70.000 idr (US$8), and it has good review on the web. It's also available on iHerb and the websute ship internationally. I've been using this soap for almost a month now, so it's about time to write a fair review.

The soap is black. It's the first time that i see a black soap. The size is huge for a soap bar (5oz), so it can be used as a facial wash and last forever. Or you can also use it for a body wash if you have a body/back acne. I personally stick to my main purpose, cut it into tiny pieces and use it only on my face, twice a day.

The scent is nice, a fruity candy smell. It can be too overwhelming though, as I used it on my face, near my nose. But if I rub it on my palms with water first, and then applied it on my wet face, the strong smell can be reduce. It lathers well, and produce white foam (I thought the foam will be black too LOL).

Overall, I love this soap. It's an good subtitute fot the Garden Tomato Soap. Didn't break me out so far, or dried my skin (maybe because of the shea butter). It didn't prevent acne from appearing, but I notice that my active acne heals faster than usual, and I don't even need to put anything on my blemishes. The only downside is that it sometimes leave a greasy film on my face, so I usually wash my face twice. If I finished this soap (and only GOD knows when), I think I'll try another facial wash.


RIP my dear fellow. Your greatness shall be remembered..

Burt's Bee - Baby Bee

Ok, this is a good example of how obnoxious I am. I really hate the idea of exposing my baby son to all those potentially harmful chemicals. So I try to raise him as organic as possible, including organic foods and toiletries. Some chemicals is fine once in a while, but not on regular basis. We're living in a dangerous dangerous world nowadays, aren't we...

Left-Right: Baby Bee Buttermilk Lotion 4oz, Tear Free Shampoo & Wash 12oz, Diaper Ointment 3oz, All Better Balm

The main reason I choose this particular brand is only because it's affordable enough for me, and there's a local online seller who would provide me these straight from the US. But honestly, since this company is bought by Clorox, I started to have my own doubt. And also for whatever reason, they discountinued some of their best selling product like the Baby Bee Buttermilk Lotion and All Better Balm above.

Will review the individual items later.

Yes To Carrots Lip Butter - Melon

As you may already know, I'm an organic lip balm maniac. Just keeping myself logical, lip balm is a stuff you put in your lips (and quickly transferred to your mouth, stomach, blood circulation, etc) a zillion time a day. I found myself reapplying my lip balm every 15 minutes, how much toxic will I gain if I use a chemical lip balm (you do the math!)

Anyway, I usually use the famous Burt's Bee lip balm in Acai Berry (hate the original beeswax), but recently read somewhere that Yes to Carrot is more moisturizing. Bought it for £3 at ASOS. They have differents flavour such as carrot, mint, citrus, berry, and melon. I was hesitant between the berry and melon ones, and decided to try melon first (who want a carrot flavor for their lipbalm? Yuck)

It turns one that I like Burts Bee Acai Berry more than this one. This one is more moisturizing but didn't last very long, and won't give me a healthy lips look like the acai berry. It has a softer texture though, and a nice smell. So if you have a very dry dehydrated lips like me, I think Burt's Bee gives you better result (just stay away from the Beeswax one).

Ingredients: 
Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Beeswax, Flavor, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil*, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Extract*, Cucumis Melo Cantalupensis (Melon) Seed Extract*, Cucurbita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seed Extract*, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Root Extract*, Limonene, Linalool, Citral.

Dr Bronners Almond Liquid Castile Soap

I'm still searching for my HG body wash brand. It must be SLS - paraben -EDTA/TEA free, since I use it daily. Had tried Burt's Bee (of course) and a local organic brand called Green Mommy, but still not very satisfied.

This brand have a lot of hype in the US. It's so famous that they make a movie about the founder: Dr Bronner. So when ASOS sell this on sale, only £5.85 for 8 oz of liquid soap, i have to try it.

I bought the almond variant, although their peppermint is the best seller one. I wanted to try the peppermint at first but it probably not a good idea since I live in a cold city. Can you imagine taking a cold shower in the morning with a peppermint soap? Brrr...

I choose the almond because it has the highest rating in makeupalley, and someone said it smells like marzipan, yummm. It does smell like marzipan, so I'm glad that I made the right choice.

I have no idea why they stated this soap in 18-in-one because I couldn't find those 18 purposes in the website. But they say that you can use this soap for body wash, shampoo, toothpaste (what?!), house cleaning, and laundry. I think I'll stick to number one, and as a hand wash. And maybe to clean my makeup brush, because it's gentle enough.

The consistency is clear and runny. It has brown color like umm, almond. The best part is this soap is very concentrated, so you need to dilute before using it. Otherwise, it will be too strong for your skin. I dilute 1 part soap with 3 part of water. Doesn't dry out my skin, make me feels clean and fresh after showering. Plus it lathers well. So if I bought a 8 oz bottle, that means I got 32 oz of liquid soap haha! I guess this would last very long. This is not my HG yet, but now I have a 32 oz of soap to finish before searching for a new one.

Oh, I forgot to mention that this Dr Bronner guy is very eccentric. He was an european jew who was forced to move to US in World War period. His family was a soap maker, so he continue the family bussiness there, and became very success. Yeah, his life was tragic, but why on earth do he need to put these moral preach on the packaging -which I couldn't understand any of them.

Ingredients:
Water, Organic Coconut Oil*, Potassium Hydroxide**, Organic Olive Oil*, Organic Hemp Oil, Organic Jojoba Oil, Natural Almond Fragrance, Citric Acid, Tocopherol

Pacifica Solid Perfume - Indian Coconut Nectar & Tibetan Mountain Temple

When I was pregnant, i read somewhere that perfume is a very dangerous thing for babies. It could damage their immature lungs and cause respiratory problem due to the nasty chemical spray. And that was the time to say adieu to my precious perfumes.. *sob...

So, you have no idea how happppyyy I am when I found out about this brand. Pacifica is a brand known for their natural fragrances with no artificial ingredients yaaayy..

They come in spray, roll-on and solid perfume. They have body butter and body wash to compliment their fragrances line. At first I was hesitate to buy perfume online, but I kept reading good review about them. I end up bought the Indian Coconut Nectar and Tibetan Mountain Temple solid perfume. Dunno why I choose the solid ones, I guess because the packaging is so fancy and I never tried a solid perfume before. It cost me 90000 idr each at a local online seller (US$10).

This is the fragrance notes from Pacifica website:

Indian Coconut Nectar:
Pacifica’s Indian Coconut Nectar is a sensuous and delicious blend inspired by travels to faraway destinations. This warm, sultry blend of coconut and delicate creamy vanilla is pure ambrosia.

Tibetan Mountain Temple:
Vetiver and Indonesian Patchouli are the base of this tranquil, incense-like blend, while Ginger sits lightly in the middle and Orange provides expansive lift for these distinctive essential oils.

This is how the solid perfume look like:

Ok now my own review:
Althought the price is super cheap, these smell like a high end brand perfume. The essential oils are carefully blend to create an unique smell, strong but not over the top. Each perfume has a strong individual character so make sure you read the description carefully before you buy, otherwise it won't suit your tastes.

The Indian Coconut Nectar has a hint of coconut smell (real coconut fruit - the kind that won't make you dizzy), but the smell of vanilla is very strong (which I like), and I think they put some indian spices in there. It reminds me of an exotic coconut drink with vanilla syrup and some spices. I wish I could eat this thing haha.

The Tibetan Mountain Temple is a very zen fragrance. So if you're not a yoga person, I wouldn't recommend this. But since that's what I am, I loooooove this perfume. It smells like ummm.. a chinese temple (sorry but i've never been to tibet). My mom said that it smells like the little orange fruit they use in the chinese new year celebration. It's very relaxing and spiritual. Maybe because they added the Indonesian patchouli in it (apparently our patchouli are famous, never knew that).

The downside, the smell doesn't last very long. So I think I'll buy the roll-on one next time.

Ingredients:
organic cocos nucifera wax (coconut wax), organic glycine soja wax (soy wax), parfum (Pacifica’s own perfume blend with natural and essential oils), prunus armeniaca wax (apricot wax), caprylic/capric triglyceride (coconut source).

Burt's Bee Naturally ageless Night cream

I don't know if this has to do with becoming a mother, but everytime I look at the mirror I feel OLD. Dull skin, fine lines, dark circles, my face was a mess. So I thought it's about time to start using anti-aging skin care. Better be safe than sorry Note: I'm only in my late 20's :(

I've always wanted to try Burt's Bee Ageless Series. They had good review. And apparently, the night cream was the best seller from this series. So I ordered it from ebay. It cost me US$22 included shipping charges. A lot cheaper than their website price.

(the box was damaged in the shipping process :()


The main ingredients is pomegranate. I love pomegranate fruit, it's has a weird texture but very sweet, juicy, and fun to eat. Used to love it when I was a kid. Too bad it's very hard to get lately. Have no idea they are great for your skin until i read this:

Short review, I LOVE this cream! I think I finally found my HG night cream.

Let me started from the packaging. It comes in a nice glass jar. The cream is white and thick but doesn't feel greasy. Just make sure that you only use a little, because it's very rich. I found that it best to tap the cream to my skin, instead of rubbing it. It'll absorb better. A jar goes a loooong way. I've been using it for three months, but the jar look barely use. It's like I've only use 1/5 of it.

The result after 3 month of usage: my face look fresh, vibrant each morning when I woke up, despite the sleepless breastfed night. My skin feel smoother and ..ehm.. younger (no kidding). And the best part, it didn't clog my big pores at all. So no breakout or disgusting tiny bumps (I have combination-acne prone skin). Didn't do anything for my fine lines though, but I'm happy enough with the result.

Note: I got the "Hydrating Night Cream" version, but when I checked on Burt's website online, they're selling the "Firming Night Cream" one. I think I got the old version because both is in the cosmetic database website, with slightly different ingredients. Mine has more natural ingredients (99% natural). I have no worries because it still sealed, and no weird odor/texture whatsoever. If someone could tell why they changed it, I'll be very glad.

Ingredients:

aqua (water, eau), helianthus annuus (sunflower) seed oil, glycerin, stearic acid, cetyl alcohol, ricinus communis (castor) seed oil, sucrose stearate, alcohol denat., betula alba bark extract, punica granatum extract, acmella oleracea extract, salix nigra (willow) bark extract, butyrospermum parkii (shea) butter, tocopherol, hydrolyzed jojoba esters, jojoba esters, lecithin, parfum (fragrance)*, xanthan gum, citric acid, sucrose polystearate, glycine soja (soybean) oil, propanediol, phenoxyethanol, cinnamal, citral, eugenol, geraniol, limonene, linalool

Burt's Bee Beeswax lip balm tin

I have a mixed feeling about this lip balm. It was my first Burt's Bee product, the beginning of my long term relationship with this brand. It's also their signature product and 100% natural.

I love it's vintage packaging. Easy to open, and pretty enough to keep after the product ran out. When I first tried it, the strong peppermint shock me (yes shock). I have no idea why someone put peppermint on a lip balm. It's like you put a mint toothpaste on your lips.
However I get used to it and begin to love it.

What I really hate is it's texture. It's freakin damn hard. As hard as a chapstick but they put it in a tin. It's almost impossible to get the product, I've tried with my fingers and a lip brush, but didn't get as many product as I wish and didn't show any sign of melting (FYI I'm a lip balm abuser). I end up scooping it with my nails, yes ewww, because it's the only way to use it.

The balm itself is a lot nicer than those chemical balm that feel very plasticky on your lips. But it didn't do anything to my dry lips. It didn't moisturized nor absorb to my lips. It just sitted there and give a weird white cast look.

Anyway, I definitely won't repuchase this but didn't regret for trying it. At least I got a nice tin which I can use once I finish it. Oh, I bought it for US$3 for 8.5g on ebay.

Ingredient:
cera alba (beeswax, cire d'abeille), cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, prunus amygdalus dulcis (sweet almond) oil, mentha piperita (peppermint) oil, lanolin, tocopherol, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract, glycine soja (soybean) oil, canola oil (huile de colza), limonene

Burt's Bee Lemon butter cuticle cream

Having a baby gives you laughter, joy, and damaged cuticles -- from washing your hands 50 times a day.

If you have experienced a chaffed cuticle, then you know how painful it is. Feels like someone stuck a needle at the edge of your nails. In my case, I can not use any hand cream or other toxic chemical cuticle treatment on my hands as a relief, because --of course-- it could be harmful for my baby.

I wasn't aware of this product until I found a review somewhere, and apparently it's one of Burt's Bee best selling product and it's 100% natural. So what choice do I have? Bought it online from a local seller for 81.000 idr (about US$ 9). I can't wait to get my poor fingers on it as it arrive.

Burt's Bee Lip shimmer

Despite all the pretty lip colors lies out there, I found myself allergic to most of them. On almost every cheap drugstore lip glosses to high end lipstick try out, I always end up with a bitter swollen lips. I though beauty is pain ha!


Until I found this!


Made from 100% natural ingredients, this lip shimmer is a tinted lip balm with a touch of gloss (not shimmer). It is very moisturizing, and suprisingly very very pigmented. Although the color won't last you very long, maybe 2-3 hours top. And the best part is, no sign of allergy reaction occurs on my lips. Yay!
Love those natural products.

Available in 11 pretty shades, but so far I've only found 4 shades that matches my medium olive skin tone.
• Peony: a pretty nude pink, almost invisible in my lips, just a very sheer splash of color that make me look fresh. Very useful whenever I wanted to pull an innocent-nice-girl look (yea rite)
• Rhubarb: a dark pink color. I usually wear it with others cool tone color makeup.
• Fig: MLBB color! A warm earth tone red. I wear this whenever i'm too lazy to put a full makeup, because it blend nicely with my skin tone.
• Raisin: a bold berry red. My favourite! I grab this whenever I want some attention.

Swatches:

Left to Right: Peony - Rhubarb - Fig - Raisin

Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you that they included peppermint oil on this one. So you'll get that fresh tingly sensation when you first apply it, just like their original lip balm. I personally love it. It's just like you've eaten a mint gum and accidently licked your lips.

Price? Bought mine for US$4 each on ebay for 2.6g. So it's a bargain!

Ingredients:

Sunflower Oil, Castor Oil, Beeswax, Candelilla Wax, Lanolin, Cocoa Butter, Tocopheryl Acetate & Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Peppermint Oil, Carnauba Wax, Comfrey Root Extract, Rosemary Extract, May Contain: Iron Oxide, Mica, Carmine, Titanium Dioxide