Frugal and Energy Efficient Living

I don't buy as much 'natural' stuff as I should. And I like strong smelling stuff. So for shampoo it's generally conventional stuff - usually Dove since that works best for my sensitive scalp. I tried a shampoo bar once (homemade by a small online soap business) and it did NOT work for my hair. LOL, it was awful. Put it this way - I know what to try when I decide to put dreads in my naturally straight and fine hair.

I used to buy homemade cold-processed soaps (from the same place that made the shampoo bar) and used them almost exclusively. However, they didn't work well for my kids so now I buy them Dove, and I use whatever - the homemade soaps are pricey and I am now a single parent so money is tight - so if I have a bit extra in my paypal account, then I'll splurge. There's a new brand I found in our local organic food store and it's very pricey, but one bar lasts a long time and it's very smelly - I LOVE smelly soaps (it's scented with essential oils and all ingredients are fair-trade). It's called the Sweet Leaf Bath Co (www.sweetleafbath.com). Again, really pricey but I love that it's fair trade (and smelly!) The patchouli bar is my favorite.

I like smelly body wash too, but I tend towards conventional stuff because of the stronger scents. I'm going to start trying some homemade ones off of Etsy and see if I can find some nice ones.

For perfume, I found a nice 'natural' perfume. It's called Ganesha's Garden Solid perfume and you can get it at www.betweenheavenandearth.ca. My current favorite is 'India' but I like patchouli too. They have a lot of scents I'd like to try. The cool thing about this perfume is it comes in a pretty container that you will want to reuse.