Syndet bars

There is a lot of crap floating around as information !That too zealously !
There are advocates who can't differentiate between good chemicals,better and worst ones !
Like SLES ,Syndet bars seem to be getting a bad rap !
Why have I switched to bodywashes and Syndet soaps ?
Simple,they are mildest !Syndet bars like Dove , Olay and Fiama gel bars ,...yes in that order are mildest,can be used on face  and in climate like ours in India doesn't requires moisturising every time !
I am one of those people who don't moisturise regularly !
I forget sometimes,mostly I am in hurry or because I don't feel the need !
As I grow older,saponified soaps which are amply available in India don't hold my interest and the handmade, so called mild just burns and makes my skin stretchy !
I love soaps  and bodywashes like Dove and Olay is what I put my money because while travelling I need to carry only 1 bottle !
I preserve small 100 ml bottles after cleaning them and sterilising them in boiling water !
These I use to carry body wash and lotion !
But bar soaps of Olay and Dove are my go to!
I have stopped buying facewashes I just use Syndet bars or body wash on my face !
In that way ,I am back to square one- one product from top to toe !
And yes I have washed my hair with Syndet bars and applied conditioner like dove or tressemme and my hair is quite good like any shampoo !
I no longer DIY especially when it comes to cleaning products for body and hair !
Life was never simpler or better !

make up removers ,..….anyone ??

I don't understand hue and cry about removing makeup,especially this day and age when foundation and  base double up as rich lotions,sunscreen and are light porous,fluid !
Now pan cake is completely different - the kind used for media,television and cinema.it is thick enough to coat a spoon and its main job is to create a  blank canvas.
But most ladies who buy  drugstore make up these days are not buying  pancake type makeup.
Recently I have seen a slew of makeup removing  products running in hundreds of rupees.
They are mild sure ! But does an average woman in India need them.
Quite by accident, I applied  a pink coloured Ayur lotion - herbal moisturiser.
I hadn't applied a lot of make up and just wanted to clean my face quickly,splash water and go to sleep.But I had applied waterproof eyeliner!
As I wiped my face ,I was surprised that all make up came out in one single go.
Ayur moisturiser has paraffin liquidum I.e mineral oil.
I suspect all moisturiser  can work as makeup removers and since then I have also tried to use Boroplus lotion.
That one to works fine.
I follow up to wash face only if required.
Waterproof makeup comes out in a jiffy.

Auntyness

Even though I am 35 and kiddies call me aunty,I am not aunty like in my thinking.At least that's what I feel though others may differ on that.
I have always serious,studious kind,usually did what I was told by parents and really didn't have a life while growing up.
So,now when some one calls me Aunty I don't feel like one.
In India, everyone is an auty and uncle.And usually people just see the body,grey hair or not to call some one aunty.
However there are some specifics and behaviour patterns which means one is an aunty,no matte the age.

1. You start mothering everyone 's children and not just your actual nieces and nephews.
2. You start giving advice,in fact you itch and ache to give advice.
3. You have an strong opinion on everything and no amount of facts make you change your thoughts.
4. You automatically know how children should be raised without raising any .This is different than having mere opinions on how children are brought up these days.
5. You discuss food recipes and eating healthy. Young people are not into health though they might starve to become thin.
6. You skin is drying and hair thinning,...first sign of advancing age.
7. Followed by aches and pains in joints,mood sswings.

OMG ........,Wtf?

Have you  ever seen blotches ,mash of colour ,dull rough cloth tiny bobbers under arm area of your favourite cotton Kurtas or even shirt? At first,I thought they were sweat stains,....but then again I don't even sweat so much.
I read up on Google  and it turns out your favourite anti perspirant is damaging your clothing.It doesn't wash out with detergents,the textile around the underarm area blotches,get discoloured.
I have spoiled many Kurtas....and I didn't even realise.
It seems if you want to continue using deodorant and antiperspirants then this cannot be prevented.The only option it seems is to apply aerosols and if applying roll one,...one needs to wait till it dries completely.
Gosh,.....an important thing like deodorant is messing up my clothes.
Aerosols too may not completely prevent this damage.

Update: It seems roll one which are  just deodorants and Not antiperspirants as well do not spoil the fabric.So ,I have been using only Fa does  and not antiperspirants which seems to not cause this problem.

Do you waste food?

Do you consider  hip to not complete food on your plate?Do you throw away vegetables and fruits from your fridge without pangs?Do you pile your plates in weddings and then throw away half eaten cake or kulfi,or Gulab jamun?

Did your parents forget to teach you not to waste food and water?
Or have you forgotten your parents  teachings to appear cool in your posh and hip crowd of friends??
......
I belong to Dawoodi bohra community which loves food,feeding people and then getting together to eat.
But one thing which other people from other religion and communities do not know is ;We consider wasting food criminal.We teach children to eat with their hands and finish the food in their plates.We have a custom of sitting in a thal and volunteers serve food to us....we are obliged to only take that much in the thal that its 8 members can finish.
Nowadays many people in their ego sometimes do not finish the last morsel in the that but thankfully others implore,suggest and ask each other to finish so that not a single grain on the thal ,dal or curry goes waste
....
Personally I store vegetables in containers,buy only for week and don't buy if I know I won't be cooking.I process vegetables when I buy I.e pick palak,methi leaves ,dry them on the newspaper and then put it in dry plastic containers. My curry leaves stays green in plastic containers for 2 weeks.
I use vegetables depending on requirement and how soon they can go bad.
I make one pot meals and pulaos...I.e make only that is required. I store leftovers properly and finish them immediately the next day.
I don't let leftovers sit more than 3 days in the fridge.
I store extra rice or chapaties in air tight containers so they remain fresh.

In my house,everyone eats leftovers not just women.

Chemicals and lifestyle.

My aunt uses only shampoo,soap,toothpaste,hair oil,and laundry detergent.She eats regular traditional food,home cooked. - I don't think she knows MacDonald's,KFC etc.She doesn't like burgers,noodles or maggi .

In short ,she is an aberration.
 She used a lipstick probably 2 decades ago,no face creams or sunscreen,no nail polishes etc.She is 'natural' all with super dry skin .She has never dyed her hair and neither does she apply henna.
She thinks All chemicals are bad....not just SLS,phthalates,parabens,formaldehyde etc.She used wash hair with soap for last 55 years ,its only from last 3 years she is using shampoo.
Her exposure to chemicals is 10 percent of an average well maintained city woman.
Once when I was talking about formaldehyde,pesticide in food and water which enter our bloodstreams via food and water,....and that a little moisturiser and body lotion, a little lipstick will probably be a speck on her.....given all the chemicals we consume  by food and water.
She said: I can't stop eating food or drinking water so I am probably doing the right thing by limiting exposure to chemicals.( by not using creams,conditioners,makeup etc)

Going natural means dry,wrinkly skin,grey hair,combed into a bun or pony tail always...because 'natural' in the bottle is not completely natural  and I doubt it'll ever be minus hefty price tags
..….................
I don't really use nail polishes regularly,neither am I crazy about it.So,once I finish my current polishes I'll buy only couple of colours for occasional use..probably pthhalates etc free.
We can just limit the exposure to chemicals ,choose to go grey,dry  because food and water is mostly out of our control.Is it viable?..….its a choice.

all in one products

Earlier 2in 1 shampoo and conditioner were very common and popular especially people who came from foreign lands.Then suddenly India became a favoured market and we were taught face,body and hair requires different products.Now a person has a face wash,a body wash and a shampoo and conditioner...and in some households its for 1 person.
For men,shampoo and body wash in one is still available but there is not a single all in one product for women.
I am now tired with multiple bottles in bathroom and shelves.I have decided to stop using  bar soaps and face wash tube will be only in my handbag for travel.Body washes are now available in big bottles...so I search now for face and body wash in one and will spend on formulations which work as both.
I really am waiting for shampoo,body wash in one since conditioners are best applied after shampooing.
By the way ,I am already using body wash as face wash and am not worse for it.
Just think,an all in one product will reduce expenditure and travel issues-one bottle will serve as body wash,shampoo,face wash and hand wash.

Coconut oil

We Indians love coconut oil.And with good reasons too.Coconut oil is great for 2 main reasons:original virgin oil is very mildly fragrant and it contains lauric acid rather  coconut oil is triglyceride of lauric acid (fatty acid)
Lauric acid is naturally antibacterial. That means you can moisturise your skin with coconut oil on daily basis.
Coconut oil is the only oil at present that can enter hair shaft therefore can improve the feel of your hair along with scalp moisturization.It prevents protein loss from hair.
Its available everywhere and is cheap and can be eaten too.What else do you need -a multitasker.
I use it mixed with a plain basic lotion,or cetaphil lotion post shampoo on the sacalp. I mix it with plain lotion for application on skin.

SLES or SLS ?

I have read so many times how SLS and /or sles is bad.I am just tired of the drivel.The problem with rumours is it is spread by people who have just heard from someone else....that means no individual thinking goes into it !.
There was a time when they were no ingredient lists at all on the bottles.
Now that we have full disclosures on most branded bottles...new age unfounded marketing drivel has become truth.
I am OK with people who want to go completely natural and use handmade soaps for everything and oils for moisturization.
That's probably how much you can go 'natural' and still be clean without irritating the skin and hair too much.
There are  dishonest companies promoting 'complete natural' and those are the ones which have abundant sles /SLS.
For those who don't know ,
Sles- sodium lauryl ether sulphate is Completely different than SLS - sodium lauryl sulphate.
In your shampoos these are cleaning agents- surfactants.They foam,and clean your hair.
SLS is an irritant but not carcinogenic. Sless is gentle and if at all choose products with Sles than SLS.

all drugstore shampoos are good..

Yep, manufacturers use standard products these days and whether drugstore/high end the ingredients used are same.So no brand can really jusify high prices for haircare products.
Don't spend a tonne for fragrance and irritating plant oils and packaging .You can spend that money on a great anti aging formulation for your face and body.
Fragrance free or mildly fragrant products applies for your hair too.

Choose a shampoo for your hair  type and you'll get same results across all established brands. While choosing products,remember....HAIR IS DEAD...DEAD...that's why it can be chopped off.Hair cannot be repaired...why because it is dead!All the conditioners and oils in the world cannot repair it ..they only make it look good till the next shampoo.
Don't listen to claims that marketeers highlight while making ads..check and compare the ingredient list and in most cases the chemicals are same...only the order is changed a bit.
Like I have used and changed so many shampoos over the years...and the reason a shampoo didn't work for me was because it was not for my hair type.