Have you ever loved a Diva? Wait. Let me rephrase that : Have you ever been a Diva's slave? Sometimes they're one in the same. Oooooooh how they love to torture their minions. "French Press my coffee! I want Peanut Butter with PALM OIL DAMN IT!!!!! Is this water Evian? IT BETTER BE EVIAN IF YOU WANT TO LIVE THROUGH THE DAY!!!!!" Ahhh yes. Those were the days. And I'll tell you one thing : there ain't no way in hell I'm ever gonna let anyone tell me that I haven't paid my dues! Oh I've paid! Many, many, many times! But the trauma is another story.
Diva's can be very useful, even beneficial creatures to have around. Scourge at the hand of the beast can make you strong, thick skinned and agile for any task or inanimate object that might come hurling towards your head. And they usually have exquisite taste in all arenas : clothes, shoes, beauty, food, wine, etc.. Which means that one of their greatest gifts to you will be exposure. I'll tell you, I never cared about Truffle Oil or Pink Himalayan Salt until I worked for a Diva. But while I did, I ate at the best restaurants, drank superb red wine and sampled some of the best beauty products I've ever used. Which makes me very proud to induct our first Diva Select product! Diva Select will be a new section of Beautility! Focusing on products, life beauty and the general fabulousness that I've garnered from my own relationship with a very classy lady. Enjoy and remember : whats good enough for a Diva is even better for us!
Product
If you work hard enough, a Diva may learn to trust you. And if she trusts you, she just might hand over the keyes to her palace....for you to house sit of course. It was while my Diva was away that I lived in the lap of her luxurious and sometimes scary-at-night mansion in Topanga Canyon. Equally stunning to the views of lush green hills, mountains, and morning deer....was her bathroom! Two Sinks, a jacuzzi tub and closet to die in! And the perfect shower : a glass box, large shower head, vintage fixtures, and a shower seat to boot. "I could live in here!" I squealed out loud to myself. And of course the piece de resistance! A BEVY of products! Shampoos, oils, candles, scrubs, cleansers and more! There was only one thing to think, "JACKPOT!!"
So the product that impressed me the most, on this trip, was Jason Naturals Satin Body Wash in Chamomile and Rose. That's right. Diva's have not one but several choices when it comes to body wash. And these are delectable, down to the last drop. They smell absolutely wonderful and contain natural Rosewater and Calendula extract. Vitamins B5 and E nourish and revitalize your skin while gentle botanical surfactants clean the skin without over drying. They are mineral oil, petrolatum and Lanolin free. They also DO NOT contain animal products or participate in using animals for testing. Each wash comes in large, recyclable 30 oz. bottles with a pump and in a variety of scents. Herbal, apricot, lavendar, tea tree, mango and cranberry!
Even better, they are free of Parabens, Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfates or Phthalates. Why should you care about this? Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfates or SLS, is a cheap chemical surfactant. You will find it in shampoos, bubble bath and other soaps or products that are supposed to "lather up." It is used in lower concentrations in many cleansing products to strip oils of the skin and leave you feeling clean. Its also used (in high concentrations) in car garages, car wash systems and other industrial agents to dissolve grease on car engines and as a powerful wetting/foaming agent. And of course there is major controversy as to whether or not its hurting you.
Well studies have shown the following :
Studies on SLS have shown that:" (Judi Vance, Beauty To Die For, Promotion Publishing, 1998)
- "Shampoos with SLS could retard healing and keep children's eyes from developing properly. Children under six years old are especially vulnerable to improper eye development. (Summary of Report of Research to Prevent Blindness, Inc. conference."
- "Sodium Lauryl Sulphate can cause cataracts in adults and delays the healing of wounds in the surface of the cornea."
- "Sodium Lauryl Sulphate has a low molecular weight and so is easily absorbed by the body. It builds up in the heart, liver and brain and can cause major problems in these areas."
- "Sodium Lauryl Sulphate causes skin to flake and to separate and causes roughness on the skin."
- "Sodium Lauryl Sulphate causes dysfunction of the biological systems of the skin."
- "Sodium Lauryl Sulphate is such a caustic cleanser that it actually corrodes the hair follicle and impairs the ability to grow hair."
- "Sodium Lauryl Sulphate is routinely used in clinical studies deliberately to irritate the skin so that the effects of other substances can be tested." (Study cited by the Wall St Journal, 1st November 1998)
And you know my philosophy on these types of queries : I'm not going to wait another five, ten or twenty years to find out that what I've been using really is causing cancer, or drying out my skin and hair follicles. If you can find a more natural solution to getting clean and pretty, go for it.
As far as Phthalates are concerned:
taken from : http://www.ourstolenfuture.org/newscience/oncompounds/phthalates/phthalates.htm
"Intentional uses of phthalates include softeners of plastics, oily substances in perfumes, additives to hairsprays, lubricants and wood finishers. That new car smell, which becomes especially pungent after the car has been sitting in the sun for a few hours, is partly the pungent odor of phthalates volatilizing from a hot plastic dashboard. In the evening's cool they then condense out of the inside air of the car to form an oily coating on the inside of the windshield...."
yeeeeah think about pouring THAT all over your body and you do the math. For me--not happening.
One last note : if you scan the ingredients, do not be alarmed when you see Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate. It is a natural organic salt that increases foaming capacity and helps to form emulsions by reducing surface tension of the substances absorbed by or used on skin. In 2004 it was assessed for a second time by the Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) and found to be a safe cosmetic ingredient.
I purchase my Jason products from Whole Foods Market. I believe you can also find it at Gelson's. Usual retail price is $13.99
