The following is a special guest post by an awesome Junior Greenist.

These products smell like lotion and lavender. They feel like face soap. I like to use them so I don’t get acne and I do get beautiful skin. It is important to me that these are all natural so they don’t harm me or the environment. I expected beautiful skin. The result was beautiful, smooth, shiny, and natural skin. I recommend Good For You Girls.

By Sophie, age 8

We just remodeled our bathroom.  I hadn’t taken a bath in almost 7 years.  Mind you, I was showering.  This isn’t some kind of big horrifying confession.  Our old bathtub was impossibly small and didn’t allow for any kind of comfortable soaking.

When my friend Lady heard that we were getting a real bathtub, she sent me some bath goodies.  Along with them, a jar of Tired Old Ass Soak bath salts from Little Moon Essentials.  Read more…

Still looking for the perfect gift?  If you’re planning to get your holiday shopping done tonight, here are a few last minute gifts you can find at a local store. Read more…

Mmm. Coconut.

People, if there are two things I love in life they are freebies and coconut.

Okay. That’s not completely true, but it’s not completely untrue either, and you can’t prove anything so just roll with it please. I LOVE COCONUT AND FREE THINGS.

Ahem. Anyway, the lovely people at Desert Essence Organics sent me samples of their new Coconut Shampoo and Conditioner. And not those baby trial-sized samples, either, but full bottles. Bonus points! Also, very convenient, since I had just run out of both the day before and they saved me a trip to Whole Foods.

Both the Shampoo and Conditioner were thick and creamy, which is important to me because I have thick hair and I like to feel like my hair products are really doing their job by coating themselves in my hair in a luxurious fashion. Afterwards when I went to style my hair it felt healthy and strong, there were hardly any of my trademark frizzies, and I really enjoyed the scent of tropical beaches wafting around me with the warmth of the blow dryer.

It wasn’t until halfway through the day that I realized I could potentially get tired of smelling coconut. The smell was still delicious, but it definitely lasted much longer and was stronger than most scents I use. If you’re sensitive to smells I would test this one out with a trial size before you buy the full bottles. But for $8.99 (and they’re 25% off that right now if you check them out!), the cost is relatively cheap compared to most of the organic shampoos I usually buy at Whole Foods.

Overall, I give this shampoo/conditioner combo an A-. If only they had Pineapple Conditioner to go with the Coconut Shampoo, I could be doing it up pina colada style.

Image credit: Origins.com

I spend most of my day staring at a computer, and that often causes dark circles under my eyes. Sometimes I’ll catch a glimpse of myself in a mirror and can’t believe how tired I look, even if I got plenty of sleep the night before. So a few weeks ago, I went into an Origins store to see if they had anything that could help.

Read more…

My friend Jamie is one of the most ambitious people I know. Combine that unending drive and energy with her passion for environmentalism and organics, and it seems there’s very little the woman won’t do in the name of saving the planet or guarding her health.

Jamie’s efforts are admirable but often experimental, which means they sometimes meet with confused looks and mixed results. Those of us who remember when she wanted to replace the full-sized fridge in her condo with a tiny dorm-sized one weren’t particularly surprised when she broke her toilet by placing a jug in the tank to save water (Note: That tip is a valid one, I think, but only if your toilet isn’t already the low-flow variety) or when she decided to make her own yogurt at home. But we were perhaps understandably skeptical when she started talking about mixing up her own natural, organic shampoo and cleaning products. I mean, yes, yes, we should all be a bit more conscious about the mystery chemicals we use, but can’t we just buy natural products? Is it really worth the time, effort (and, in some cases, the expense) to make them ourselves? Jamie was determined to find out, and since I’ve got a green cleaning beat to follow, I was more than happy to help her. Read more…

I get a lot of questions about paraben-free mascara.  It’s hard to find, but not impossible.  My current favorite is Jane Iredale Longest Lash Thickening & Lengthening Mascara.

It doesn’t flake, it’s really hard to smudge (I have a bad habit of forgetting I’m wearing mascara and rubbing my eyes) and it comes off really easily when I wash my face without the need for any special makeup remover.

I’ve always hated the chemical smell of a lot of mascaras, but Jane Iredale’s mascara has a light, natural vanilla scent.  It’s lovely.  Jane Iredale products are a little pricey, but I’ve never been disappointed by any of the products I’ve tried.  I think this mascara is very worth it.

I’m going to extend the Vivesana giveaway another day and give you a second chance to enter to win a tube of Vivesana Solar to Polar Ultra or Solar to Polar Baby sunscreen.  Check out Dan’s interview – the story of Vivesana is so inspiring!  Then Tweet or blog about the Vivesana contest, linking back to this post or last week’s post.  Then come back here and leave a link to the post or tweet below for an extra entry in the giveaway.

How did Vivesana get its start?

Vivesana is giving away a tube of their fabulous sunscreen to two lucky Allie’s Answers readers!

To enter, go to the Vivesana website and read about Vivesana’s products and green practices.  Then come back here and leave a comment to tell us what feature of Vivesana’s sunscreens is most important to you.

I’ll draw names using a random number generator on Tuesday, June 2, 2009.  Winners can choose Solar to Polar Ultra or Solar to Polar Baby sunscreen.  Comments that appear to be spam will not be counted.  Only one comment per reader per post will be counted.  Stay tuned.  I’ll give you a chance for a second entry later this week.  US Residents only.

Also, Vivesana is offering 25% off to Allie’s Answers readers.  From now through June 20th, when you shop at Vivesana.com and use the code allie&vive25 at checkout, you’ll get 25% off your order.

CONTEST CLOSED

I take my pastey appearance seriously, and I am a sunscreen fanatic.  But it’s hard to find a sunscreen that isn’t full of icky ingredients and doesn’t spread on like library glue, and even harder to find one that doesn’t come packaged in plastic.  That’s why Vivasana Sunscreen is so awesome. Read more…