Beauty products wishlist.

Click to enlarge. :)

1. BIOselect Olive Hand Cream RICH TEXTURE / 2. SpaRitual Resurface Smoothing Primer for ridged nails / 3. Castor Oil - not this brand (to make my Cleansing Oil with the Oil Cleansing Method) / 4. The Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector / 5. BIOselect Hydroprotective Day Cream FOR DRY AND SENSITIVE SKIN / 6. E.L.F. Eye Blending Brush

7. Jack Black Intense Therapy Lip Balm / 8. NOW Foods Better Stevia (just a stevia powder really so I can try out stevia) / 9. Coconut Oil / 10. Desert Essence Coconut Shampoo (yummy!) / 11. Mastic Spa Masticdent Hios Herbs toothpaste / 12. Essence Quick Dry topcoat / 13. Mavala Super Base Coat 5ml

These are some of the things I've been wanting and/or needing the past months. A few of the things are quite highly raved by other bloggers like the E.L.F. blending brush and the Jack Black lip balm. I don't think I'm going to get everything on this list, that's for sure! It depends on what I really need to get and how badly I want a certain product. Like the base coat for example, I might splurge on the SpaRitual one but I'll probably get the Mavala Super Base instead first, just because it's much cheaper and more affordable for me at the moment. I need to see if I can find it in my local drugstore, but BEAUTYBAY stocks it at a great price (I imagine it's maybe around 1 euro cheaper! lol)

I really want to try something from the brand BIOselect which is a Greek brand, whose highlight ingredient is Dictamelia, a combination of Dictamo (a super amazing endemic plant of the island of Crete) and extra virgin olive oil. I've had my eye on the face cream for so long! Plus, I'm in need of a hand cream so I might get the hand cream just to try out the brand, instead of the TBS's Hemp cream.

Also, I'm looking for a more natural toothpaste, let me know if there's any you tried and liked. So, do we share any of these things? Have you tried any of the above? I'd love to know if you have!

Toxic ingredients in tampons?

Today I was on the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics website (which is a collaborative effort of more than 100 non-profit organizations working to protect the health of consumers and workers alike by trying to eliminate the use of dangerous chemicals found in many cosmetics and personal case products).

I found out that even tampons can pose a risk to our health. I am shocked! :/ And saddened, too! They have an article called Cumulative Exposure And Feminine Care Products (here's the same article in PDF form for easier reading) in which they present "facts" regarding the safety of tampons.

There is a possibility that "tampons may contain traces of dioxin from bleach, pesticide residues from conventional, non-organic cotton, and mystery “fragrance” ingredients." Shocking, right? I don't think they are trying to "scare" us to be honest. I think they're just putting it out there so we can have an idea of what's going on with tampons, in this case.

Personally, I use tampons almost every month, the brand I like and use is o.b. I just went to their FAQ page and they state that "Production of o.b.® tampons involves only "elemental chlorine-free" bleaching processes, which do not cause the production of dioxins. State-of-the-art testing of tampon fibers that can detect even trace amounts of dioxin has shown that dioxin levels are at or below the detectable limits, posing no risk to tampon users' health." Huh, what does that mean? Elemental chlorine-free bleaching?

But Campaign for Safe Cosmetics says that even trace levels are concerning because dioxins are cancer-causing agents; can disrupt the hormone system; have been linked to endometriosis; and can affect the body at very low levels. They also say that tampons come in contact with some of the most sensitive and absorbent tissue in our bodies. 

Regarding the presence of pesticides in tampons, they write: Are there traces of pesticides in tampons? We don’t know, because the FDA does not require companies to test for harmful chemicals or to disclose their presence. The FDA just recommends that tampons be free of pesticide and herbicide residues.

The third possible culprit is fragrance. According to Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, fragrance may contain allergens, sensitizers, phthalates (a class of chemicals that has been linked to hormone disruption, which can affect development and fertility), neurotoxins and synthetic musks.

So to recap, there are three possible culprits. Dioxin(s) from the bleaching, pesticide residue from the cotton used (yuck!) and fragrance (which I think is a bundle of substances/ingredients & we can never know what it's truly made of). That's truly worrying. I would like my tampons to have organic cotton at least; that would be a bit better.

I knew that tampons already pose a risk for Toxic Shock Syndrome (which of course can be prevented with proper use of the tampon) but now I find out they could be toxic and unsafe? What do you think, what are your thoughts on this matter?

I haven't done further research so excuse me for not knowing more on this. 

Snitchel & Roasted mushrooms.

Saturday's dinner was delicious! We made chicken snitchel with roasted mushrooms and some round chips to go along. A simple tomato salad with balsamic vinegar in it and some yogurt with herbs and pepper seemed fitting for this dish.

The dish came out fragrant because of the lovely mushrooms! I found the recipe here and I knew we had to make it soon! It's filled with gorgeous herbs such as rosemary, sage and parsley and we drizlled them with balsamic vinegar. Plus, it's so easy to make! You have to try this, people! :)

Also, the snitchels were really tasty because they had big bread crumbs sprinkled on top and walnuts and we made them in the oven instead of frying/grilling them.

Preparation of a meal.

The next day, I used some leftover snitchel to make a wrap! I added cheese, lettuce, red peppers and a white 'hot cheese' sauce. Nothing fancy! haha

Thanks for reading!

Clouds and coral.

I tried to do some nail art today. I'm so bad at nail art it's laughable. 

I'm not 100% pleased with the results but I thought I should post it, anyway. I wanted to do what Michelle Phan did in her Beach Beauty video and I failed lol! I thought her cloud manicure was so cute! Unfortunately,  I ended up making the clouds on the nail and not with the tape method. :/ And I didn't have a light blue polish so I went with a coral polish by Greek brand Seventeen, which is not one of my fave brands to put it this way.

In the first two photos the color is washed out. I edited the last one to show the true color.

I hope you have better luck than me if you try her Happy Clouds nail tutorial. :)

Rice pudding.

Nail Files: Bare All Tag

I saw this tag on Angie's blog and I think it's such a fun and interesting tag! The tag was started by girlintheglasses's blog; here's the original post of the Tag.

I really liked the idea of doing it, although my answers are a bit on the boring side. :) Please, excuse that!! So basically, you only have to post a photo of your adorable (LOL) bare nails and then answer some fun questions. yay! Here they are, freshly filed.

Nail Files: Bare All Tag:

• Include a photo of your clean, product free, natural nails.
• Preferred length: Short
• Preferred shape: Square with slightly rounded corners (I used to do them squ-oval, not anymore!).
• Favorite base coat: Never tried a base coat so I'm planning on getting one soon! :)
• Favorite top coat: Never tried a top coat either (I've never been a big polish wearer, that's why).
• Favorite cuticle cream/oil: I use olive oil.
• Favorite hand cream: The Body Shop Almond Hand & Nail Cream (I haven't tried the new packaging/I'm referring to the "old" one).
• Favorite nail clippers: A random but sturdy pair from the drugstore that I have had for over two years now.
• Favorite nail file: A random gray one which is supposed to be for false nails, medium grittiness
• Favorite remover: Haven't found one.
• Self or professional manicure: Self, of course!
• How often do you polish: Once a month or once every two-three months, yes really! (LOL!)
• Most wanted nail product: Mavala 002 or 001 Base Coat, basically a base coat.
• Be sure to include the nail files bare all tag in your post or video response as I have below.

TAG… you’re it!