Buzz | Ear | Chin

**MandyBeth** · March 5th, 2011, 10:11 AM

Jaine, for laundry, have you tried soapnuts? I am allergic, but sounds like you have more chemical than plant allergies so they might work for you.

**jaine** · March 5th, 2011, 10:31 AM

Well...my own laundry is fine at the moment (I recently switched to John masters Organics shampoo to wash my clothes - same thing I've used for years to wash my hair). All new things must be patch-tested and that's a pain so I'd rather stick with what works.
I'm more worried about my boyfriend's laundry...I was itching all night in his bed and it smelled very strongly of perfumed detergent. I don't want to ask him to spend $75 on a 32-ounce bottle of shampoo like I do, but I might buy him the smaller sized bottle of it and ask him to use it just on his sheets.

**RancheroTheBee** · March 5th, 2011, 10:31 AM

Originally Posted by Monkie

I have this section of hair on the back of my head, and it feels fine after I wash it, but when I wake up in the morning, without fail, it's a dreadlock. Does this happen to anyone else? I think I need to invest in a sleep hat.

What kind of pillowcase are you using?

**Monkie** · March 5th, 2011, 10:46 AM

Originally Posted by RancheroTheBee

What kind of pillowcase are you using?

It's some kind of cotton, not really sure actually, but betting a silk pillowcase could do the trick nicely.

**Monkie** · March 5th, 2011, 11:24 AM

Originally Posted by jaine

Yeah ... I've been on a mission lately to remove as many allergens and toxins as possible from my house and clothes. It's kind of daunting but I think it's paying off... my skin rashes stopped and itching decreased dramatically and my migraines stopped. the air purifier is the latest purchase in a long line of things I've bought ... shower water filter, organic cotton clothing, "irritant-free" laundry detergent (which turned out to be a dud - very irritating), slowly replacing all plastic and new items in my house with old wooden or metal things to minimize VOC's, hmmm. yup, I'm kind of OCD. I'm actually surprised I didn't buy the air purifier sooner since I'm so OCD about this type of stuff.

Beauty product impulse purchases are pretty much a bad idea for me unless I want to get a rash ... I have to stick to my "safe" brands or at least limit to brands whose ingredients look the same as something that doesn't bother me ... Everyday Minerals makeup, John Masters Organics or Max Green Alchemy for hair, organic carrier oils for my body.

This pretty much describes me and my friends. I am in the process of picking a new color for the kitchen, and am adamant about low-voc paint, boyfriend doesn't understand why. I am perhaps not as sensitive as you though - I find that avoiding petrochemicals in general is good for everybody and the environment. Trader Joes laundry soap does me fine, but every 6 months or so I break out in 'mystery hives' and have to go on an elimination diet until they stop, lanolin is a big hive trigger for me ( also cutting out dairy usually works best). My BFF is campaigning in our neighborhood to get all the restaurants to switch to biodegradable takeout containers, and I've been slowly replacing all my cookware with cast iron. Also I want to add that John Masters Organics line is amazing, the Avocado-Lavender conditioner is so good, and smells really wonderful.

**RancheroTheBee** · March 5th, 2011, 12:18 PM

Originally Posted by Monkie

It's some kind of cotton, not really sure actually, but betting a silk pillowcase could do the trick nicely.

It worked well for me last time my hair was long and I was getting the dreaded, uh... dread.

Before that, I used an old silk shirt buttoned onto my pillow. It created an unfortunate optical illusion that made my pillow look like a disembodied torso, but you can't win 'em all. Worked like a charm, though.

**jujube** · March 5th, 2011, 05:40 PM

Monkie, do you use cones? They should help with the tangling.

I've had dreadlocks in the past (on purpose, lol) and my hair definitely didn't start matting after only a few days... My brother, also, had this phase where he wouldn't detangle his hair and ended up having a few dreads, but after months, not days.

**KrissyKitty** · March 5th, 2011, 07:40 PM

I'm so jealous that john masters organics works so well for you guys! I used to use it and it made my hair feel so nice... but my skin broke out in terrible acne and sores. My scalp and my back. Never again. But my hair felt fantastic and it smelled so good...

**jaine** · March 5th, 2011, 07:49 PM

Originally Posted by KrissyKitty

I'm so jealous that john masters organics works so well for you guys! I used to use it and it made my hair feel so nice... but my skin broke out in terrible acne and sores. My scalp and my back. Never again. But my hair felt fantastic and it smelled so good...

That's a shame ... what did you switch back to that didn't bother your skin?

It's fascinating to me that different people have such different reactions to the same things ... especially since I tend to think of products that irritate me as genuinely "harmful" and non-irritating products as "harmless." Sometimes it's hard for me to wrap my head around the concept of an allergy where the body is having an immune response to a "harmless" ingredient. for whatever reason I end up thinking of my skin reactions as genuine reactions to chemicals that are truly toxic and harmful. I might be wrong about that I just have a lot of trouble visualizing irritants as non-toxic. But your perspective brings an interesting twist to this because you react to a product that's on my "harmless" list.

**jujube** · March 5th, 2011, 08:11 PM

I get what you mean, jaine. Not only in terms of skin sensitivities, but all allergies as well. what causes some people to react to something when most others don't? I always seem to think that we're more alike than we are different, but things like that make me wonder. We are, after all, talking about something as normal as shampoo.