I don't know what it is about coconuts & me. I love to eat things made with coconut, drink coconut (& rum) drinks, love the smell of coconuts and recently found the healing & somewhat magical properties of coconut. I've been obsessed with the Caribbean since I was a little girl, the beaches, the weather, the people, the music, the sea, pirates, mermaids and now as an adult, rum. It's my go to drink and, swear, I didn't pick it on purpose, it picked me lol. Somehow I feel connected to this place, maybe I'm from the Caribbean in a past life? Wait where were we? Oh yeah the Natural Deodorant Fresh n'ot Funky Challenge.
I'm challenging you to leave behind your old deodorant for 1 month & give the natural side a try! I'm going all out, balls to the walls, go hard or go home & making a VERY simple concoction, but feel free to dabble in deodorant au naturel at your own comfort level. I've been using natural, non antiperspirants, for about a year or 2 now. I wanted the change because it just didn't feel like I was doing my body good by putting all these harsh chemicals (especially aluminum) into my body for the sake of not sweating. It just seems counter intuitive, my body sweats for a reason right? BUT I didn't want to be FUNKY doing it. If I could find a natural deodorant that kept me smelling fresh at the end of the day, I'd be soooo in!
Are you up for the challenge? Here's the details:
1. Choose what natural deodorant you want to try
2. Start using it this week 7/4-7/10 (NOTE-if you've only been using antiperspirants know: it's gonna get worse before it gets better. Your body kinda does a detox when you switch so the 1st week you might be extra funky, that's why this is a month long challenge)
4. Keep us updated weekly on how it's going on our Facebook (I'll be posting to ask for updates & sharing mine on FB & here every week)
5. Everyone who makes it to the end (7/31) gets a prize!
Let's Celebrate our Independence from harsh chemicals this 4th of July!
Here's What I'm Trying
So I started with my natural deodorant journey with Tom's in lavender, then apricot when they didn't carry that at the store I went to anymore. They worked pretty good & by the end of the day were only slightly funky. But every now and then, I'd have a day where Tom's just didn't cut it. So the next time I went to buy deodorant I saw Degree had a new option out, Degree natureffects deodorant in Honeysuckle & Tea Tree Oil. So I tried it, worked like a charm! At the end of even my stankiest day I still smelled fresh! WHOO HOO yay! Uh wait, no. I go to pick one up when I run out & it's gone, disappeared! I check online, can't find it, can't find it, wait there it is only $6 with shipping. Ok no, I'm not paying $6 for a deodorant that I'm still not even sure is 100% natural. So I go back to the internet and I come across an interesting discovery: a simple & easy (cuz if it's not I ain't doing it!) homemade deodorant that has got rave reviews by a fellow blogger. There are 3 ingredients: coconut oil, arrowroot powder or corn starch & baking soda! Here's her blog about the challenge they did: simplehomemade.net/
follow-up-the-simple-organic-natural-deodorant-challenge/. And here's the HOW TO on making the deodorant I'm trying: passionatehomemaking.com/2010/
Coconut Oil Rocks
So I discovered coconut oil this past year while on another natural challenge: my lovely daughters curly hair! Following the advice of a blog i follow (HERE at BeadsBraidsandBeyond.blogspot.com), I got it to help with her dry scalp & hair. Turns out this stuff is awesome!!! I have psoriasis on my scalp which makes it extremely scaly flaky & itchy. Not wanting to take the prescription filled with steroids, I had been trying other natural products (shea butter, homeopathic etc) which helped but didn't fully make my problems go away. Ding, ding, light bulb moment when I thought to try the coconut oil!
The first week of using it (about every other day) most symptoms where gone! And by the end of the month I was only using it once a week. Now I just use once a week. Try it for yourself if you have any skin problems. Just note: it is VERY oily & got my hair looking greasy at the roots after applying it. So my solution was to spray just the hair with a dry shampoo & voila, problem solved.
The other thing i recently found coconut oil was great for was ringworm! I know what your thinking, YUCK. it's actually not a worm but a fungus and yeah it happens to the best of us. I work with young kids teaching dance, music, yoga & art so I am exposed to a lot of different ailments in the business. Anyway, it was all over my torso (due to my apparently non breathable work out tank, which doesn't make sense but that's another story). My doctor said to get an over the counter anti fungal & it would go away in about 2 weeks. So 'ol natural me got on the google (lol) & it said try coconut oil for ringworm. The estimated time of departure (for my symptoms) was the same as the over the counter med, soooo...I decided it couldn't hurt to try. I put in on every night after my shower & by 2 weeks it was gone. Ok I was like this rocks! So now I also use it for moisturizing my really dry parts (feet, hands, face etc). It's been gentle enough on my face too & does not break me out. i do have pretty dry skin tho, so keep that in mind.
Soooo, that's my story. You can see why I'm all in. So get started folks, let's do this!
I'll be posting UPDATES & pix here soon!
UPDATE 1:
I'm using Nutiva brand of organic extra virgin coconut oil 15 oz. I buy on amazon & a lot of times they have a BOGO special or free shipping & discount thru amazon mom. :)
UPDATE 2:
Here's Day 1 mixin' up my homemade deodorant! Very easy to make:
It says that consistency is supposed to be the same as store bought, but mines a lil melty, I reread the directions: coconut oil is supposed to be in the solid state when mixing! (it melts at 76 degrees):
So then I mix in a little more baking soda & corn starch & let sit in fridge for a bit & it came out like this:
Then (as suggested on the blog) I put it in my old deodorant container:
Then put the rest in an old Body Shop (yep coconut) lotion pot (i knew that someday i would reuse it lol):
UPDATE #3: End of Week 1 Challenge
So it's the end of week numero uno & i have to say I'm shocked that this deodorant is working so well!!! It's kinda awesome. I was skeptical at first but i am SOLD. I have had not 1 FUNKY day & I've never had to reapply throughout the day!!! NOTE-if you've only been using antiperspirants know: it's gonna get worse before it gets better. Your body kinda does a detox when you switch so the 1st week you might be extra funky, that's why this is a month long challenge. I've already gone thru the detox since i've been using natural deodorants the past few years.
Day 1: applied after shower (out of the pot, with the spoon i still had in my bathroom from mixing, but you can use fingers), there was a lil extra left under my arms so i just wiped with a wash cloth lightly to remove excess (most of it was absorbed, so it was a lil powder that i dabbed off). I applied in the evening so i tested it a full 32 hours. It was a hot day & at the end of the 32 hours i was just a tiny bit musty! Amazing!
Day 3: i work with kids (teaching dance, music, yoga, art classes) so i sweat a lot throughout my work day, so this would really test the deodorants strength. End of day smell test: surprisingly sweet smell of coconut oil!!! I think i applied a lil too much or forgot to wipe off excess cuz it got a lil on my tank top.
Day 5: after telling 2 of my co workers about the challenge i was doing, they wanted to smell the pits. The verdict: smelled good, no stank! Thank goodness cuz that would have been embarrassing :)
Day 7: End of the day & first week and still no smell!! Also gave the smell test to my man a few times throughout the week, passed with flying colors!! And that's really saying sumthin, cuz if your man's like mine, he will tell you the real whether you like it or not!
So here's my PROS & CONS:
CONS
- can be a lil messy on application
- could be challenging to travel with (due to the melty nature) I would take in jar and not deodorant stick for traveling
- you do sweat (as with any non-antiperspirant)
PROS
- toxin free
- keeps you fresh & NOT funky!! stank you very much!
- works all day long
- smells sweet
- easy to make
- keeps a long time (non perishable)
- a lil goes a long way, keeping the cost down (my total cost was around $10 for the supplies and i have lots extra to make a few more batches). The blog that i found the recipe on said 1 batch lasts around 3 months for 2 people, so thinking 6 months for 1. So if I get 3 batches out of my supplies, it should last around years or about $6.66 per year. Now that's a good deal!!!
How did your first week go????? Leave us a comment on our FB page & let us know!! facebook.com/RootsMamas
UPDATE #4: End of Week 2 Challenge
Hey hey! I'm still going STRONG with my deo. Haven't had a funky day. I'm in LOOOOOOVE! I put the deodorant that i put in my old deodorant container in my fridge (due to the meltiness) & so i'll have one deodorant upstairs and one down. I leave it out of fridge for a few minutes after i use it so i can just roll it up a little before i put it back. That way it's all ready for the next use. Otherwise it's too hard to roll up when i first take it out of the fridge. The other thing i started using this week was a wide wooden popsicle stick (think waxing stick lol) to apply deodorant from my jar. After eating a fudgecicle the idea came to me (perfect size & width), so a washed it good & went to town. Works well & is also good for stirring since sometimes the ingredients separate a lil bit.
How'd week 2 go for ya?? Leave us a comment on our FB page & let us know!! facebook.com/RootsMamas
UPDATE #5: End of Week 3 Challenge
Nothing new to update except this great resource for many other uses for coconut oil: HERE
http://www.passionatehomemaking.com/2009/03/all-the-wonderful-uses-of-coconut-oil.html
How'd week 3 go for ya?? Leave us a comment on our FB page & let us know!! facebook.com/RootsMamas
UPDATE #6: End of Week 4 Challenge; Finito!
Yes, yes I'ma lil late on updating you guys but hey, i'm a mom, you know how it is! No real updates besides this deodorant is rad & i'm never going back to store bought!!! One lil note I did have one slightly funky moment when I forgot to put on the deo, then after I had sweated a lil i applied it. So don't forget to apply it right away :) Other than that i've been FUNK FREE, yippee!
Here's a pic of the popsicle stick i've been using to apply sometimes:
And oh, if you are just now finding out about the challenge, it's not too late to try it. Simply start on your own & keep us posted via facebook. We really wanna know how it works for you!!!! facebook.com/RootsMamas
Here's a few tips from fellow challengers:
"I actually don't mind using my fingers to apply because I just massage into my hands and nails after, then rinse and have super soft hands ;-))." good info! i'd heard u could leave it on ur hands, but because of grainy baking soda etc was like huh? it makes sense now: just rinse off & ur left w/ coconut oil!
"Crunchy Betty has awesome homemade deodorant recipes on her blog. I started making my own about 2 months ago. Baking soda, arrowroot, coconut oil, Shea butter, 20-25 drops of essential oil. This had even worked awesome in SC humid 100 degree heat lately. I'll never go back to store bought deodorant."
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