Review: Spa Ingredients organic soaps

So, this is actually the second time that I've bought a batch of organic soaps from Spa Ingredients. It's a local brand that makes handcrafted organic soaps and other organic products.

I've finally gotten my hands on a decent camera, and here are the photos:

Organic soaps from Spa Ingredients

I must say, these soaps smell heavenly. Honestly, it's like you wanna eat them! (My friend Stephanie pointed out that I like food-inspired products.)

A bar of soap only lasts a few days though. It's okay for me, since I like how it lathers up in my skin, but I figured this might be an issue for some people.

This are labeled "indulgent bath treat." Blueberry cheesecake, cookies and cream, dark chocolate, and chocolate vanilla.

Spa Ingredient soaps with variant labels

Spa Ingredients organic soaps have a lot of variants. My favorites are blueberry cheesecake and cookies and cream. These are the indulgent bath treats. They also have a lot of fruit variants such as papaya, kiwi, watermelon, green tea, among others.

The soap costs Php60 each, but if you buy 10 soaps you get 2 soaps for free (that's what I did). For a minimum of 30 soaps, you can get them for a much lower price of Php45.

They do meet-ups in SM Bicutan if I remember correctly, or you can opt to have the products shipped for Php95 if within Metro Manila.

You can check out the Spa Ingredients website to check the list of soap variants (as it's too long to be posted here). The site also features photos of the organic soaps as well as other products.

Since I'm a fan of these, I do hope the brand gets better marketing.

Don't you think these soaps look yummy?

Parabens: Are your make-up and cosmetic products safe?

It's not true that what you don't know won't hurt you. Ever heard of parabens?

Look at the ingredients in your face and skin products, meaning, lotions, cleanser and moisturizer as well as creams, as well as shampoo and toothpaste. See the word "paraben" in there? Tip: this can be ethyl-, methyl-, butyl-, heptyl-, or prophylparaben.

Okay, if you see it printed there clearly, you might want to reconsider using that product again.

Why? Because you might have unknowingly exposed yourself to paraben dangers: you see, parabens are chemical preservatives linked to certain diseases. If applied on skin, given enough time, these can be absorbed directly into the blood stream.

Check the skin care products you're using!

Why are parabens so controversial?

There's a reason informed customers are shying away from products with paraben and brands are suddenly touting "paraben-free" labels on their products. Parabens are associated with premature skin aging, early puberty and decreased sperm levels in males, and, more importantly, breast cancer. The Breast Health Magazine lists some interesting studies concerning parabens that you might want to check out.

Of these paraben dangers, breast cancer gets perhaps the most attention and focus. Simply put, parabens mimic estrogen, and for decades, it has been known that estrogen is linked with the development and progression of breast cancer. Furthermore, through scientific examinations, parabens were found in breast cancer tissues. You can read more about that in Breast Cancer Fund.

You will be surprised to see that a lot of famous local and international comestic and skin care products use parabens. I have tried browsing around the local department store (SM and Watsons) and checked the known brands we see in tv and billboards, and yes, paraben is almost always listed in the ingredients.

Although for safety purposes I won't mention brands. :)


Does that mean that you should ban the use of parabens?

To be more clear, it is not yet proven whether parabens actually cause breast cancer, but the fact that parabens were found in breast cancer tissues is enough reason to be worried. Paraben might be the cause or simply a contributing factor, but the bottom line is, parabens are there for a reason. Therefore, I think that the mere association of parabens with these is enough for us to be cautious on what products we use, especially us females who are undeniably vain when it comes to our skin.

In simple terms: follow the precautionary principle. It's terrifying to continuously use a certain product only to discover later on that you had been inadvertently exposed yourself to long-term harm.

If you look around stores more carefully, there are always paraben-free products. I think we can all agree that it is always better to be safe than sorry.

Review: Nanay Rose's Sticks & Pulls honey wax

OMG, this is my first product review. :)

I purchased Nanay Rose's Sticks & Pulls honey wax months ago at the Department Store in Mall of Asia for Php224.00 because I am a late bloomer and had just enough of shaving; it causes dark underarms that take so much effort (as well as products and product testing) to whiten.

Nanay Rose's honey wax comes with spatulas and washable pulls

I bought this because the label says "all-natural hair remover," and like I have mentioned before, I am a fan of organic and natural products. This one uses honey, sugar, and lemon juice. The tub contains

1.  200 grams of all-natural honey wax (there are other tub sizes)
2. reusable, washable pulls; and 
3. wooden spatulas. 

It can be used hot or cold, which means that you can use it as is or after heating.


How to use

I follow the instructions on the back, from washing the area with soap and water to the proper way of pulling the strip of cloth (against the direction of hair growth). From my experience, Nanay Rose's honey wax works best when heated: the wax is softer and easier to spread, and it removes unwanted hair more efficiently and also hurts less. Using it cold is not bad, but it's definitely way better if you go the effort of heating the wax for a few seconds in the microwave and waiting for it to cool down just enough to be applied.

Repeat the application as needed, and presto, you have smooth and hair-free skin.

The washable strips are also useful and very convenient, and they worked better for me than the separate pack of hair removal paper I've bought.


TIP: A common problem when applying this product is the heating part. Just put it in a microwave for a few seconds and use it immediately when it is cool enough to the touch. Test it first so as not to burn your skin. Also, do not overdry it because if you leave it out for too long, it will be crystalline solid (at least for a small isolated heap).



CONCLUSION: Does this honey wax works?

Nanay Rose's Sticks & Pulls honey wax is good the first few times and I honestly actually loved it, but after several months the honey wax has lost its stickiness, which basically means it has become useless. :( I still have a lot of wax left since I only use it for underarms, but like I said, it won't pull out any hairs anymore, except maybe one or two strands every application.

There are favorable and not-so-favorable reviews about this wax, so if you want to try it, buy the smallest tub.

In general, what I like about this wax:

• All natural: your skin is safe from chemicals and irritation
• Complete package: comes with wooden applicator that, yes, looks like a popsickle stick but effectively spreads the wax unto skin, as well as washable cloths
• Local: available exclusively in Watsons and SM Department Stores

And what I don't like:

• Repetition: you have to apply the wax a couple of times to completely clear out the hair, but the pain is minimal and it doesn't hurt much unlike those you see in TV
• Effing useless after several months: Maybe it was made to be consumable the first few months/uses, but I didn't see anything like that on the label, so *shrug.*

Organic soap: Why it's better than commercial brands

Following from my previous post, I'm going to talk about organic soaps, which are all the rage nowadays. There are a lot of emerging brands, small businesses selling this, especially online.

Cyleina tomato soap

Ilog maria carrot soap

Spa ingredients mango soap

Organic soaps are an alternative to market-brand, non-organic soaps. The main difference is that organic soaps are made with natural ingredients, which means that there is little synthetic and chemical ingredients used, or none at all. Instead, organic soaps rely on essential oils (or honey beeswax, you really have to check websites to see what they use), which are rich in vitamins.

Here in the Philippines, most of the organic soaps can be purchased online. (As it happens, I just rummaged Watson and they do have a brand for organic soaps, but one costs more than P100, which is really, really overpriced if you ask me.) Just try Sulit; there are organic soaps that are branded and unbranded, and most of them hand-made.

There's Cyleina, Spa Ingredients, Zen Zest, and Ilog Maria, to name a few.

Normally, organic soaps are made in small batches. The soaps are fused with various herbs and fruits such as papaya, strawberry, mango, kiwi, green tea, carrot, pineapple, and so on. Essential oils are added, as previously mentioned. The good thing about organic soaps is that you can experiment and be creative on what ingredients to use.

Unlike commercial, non-organic soaps, organic soaps are perfectly harmless to your skin; your skin will feel nourished and smooth without all the chemical stuff. (Note: an exception is when you have an allergy to the main ingredient used, i.e., almonds, so obviously you should not use that soap variant.) It also solves specific skin problems such as rough or spotty skin.