Sensitive skin and allergies - both baby and adult

Please be very careful how you are treating it.
Also, watch what you use on your skin and most especially be mindful of what you use on a baby's skin.

This is a photo of my hand.
I have a connective tissue disorder that is very hard on my skin as well as my muscles and joints... .
So, I have to baby my skin.

so I will...

Be careful what you give your baby AND what you put on your baby too.

Many folks like to use chamomile products on their baby and it is a wonderful herb for the skin, but it is in the ragweed family and so you should be very careful about using it until you know if your baby has any allergies.

The same thing goes for Shea nut Butter.

It has similar properties to latex so if you or baby has a latex allergy - do not use anything with shea in it.

Did you know that most corn and corn products (including the old standby that many folks use for a baby powder - corn starch) these days is GMO -genetically modified organism

This does not mean that it is simply a cross-bred crop - it means the scientists took genes from other organisms like animals and fish or unrelated plants.

There are many GMO veggies and other items on the market and they are becoming more and more common so be careful when you shop.

To be sure and make sure the one you want to use isn't GMO, look for organic corn which must be non-GMO to be called organic.

Look for all natural products with very few ingredients so you can better monitor any reactions with your baby's skin.

Generally, soaps with goat milk, calendula and organic corn silk are fine for little ones skin (unless there is an allergy to one of those which is rare) and are even well loved by grown-ups too :)

Just remember that when if comes to delicate skin - like baby skin, less is usually best when it comes to ingredients - even all natural organic ones.

It is your choice what you give your baby and what you will use on yourself and him/her of course.

I am not here to judge you, I just want you to be able to make an informed choice.

If you choose natural and organic because you want that for your baby or for yourself, you should know what to look for on the labels and in the descriptions.

Just because the company (seller) says that their product is called "natural" or "organic" or makes claims that it will cure x, y and z (which by the way is not allowed unless the person making the claims is a doctor) - does not mean a thing because they could be selling you a load of snake oil.

Read the labels to see what is there and in what order the ingredients are listed.

* I just did a show and you can see in the photo that every product had an ingredients sign right with it to help my potential customers make a good choice for themselves or loved ones.

** Also, I let folks sample a few products, but before they did I had them read the ingredients list first - because it is so important for folks to take responsibility for what they are using.

Read about the company.

What do the owners believe ?

What is their motto or slogan ?

Do they live like they care about their products and you ?

Feel free to read anything I have writen and you will see what I stand for.

Read my products ingredients lists and read about how I garden and how I make my products.

I suggest that you do the same for every company before you buy - Then decide.

I want my customers to know what is in my products, so I list the ingredients in my product listings.

http://OrganicGiftsByDiana.ecrater.com

... but do not scrub it raw as if you are angry with it

Use gentle all natural soaps and stay away from store-bought detergent/facial bars.

Also, stay away from "fragrance" and fake colors... too.

Use a soft washcloth in which you have soaped up and wash in small circles all over just enough to get clean.

Usually, the washcloth alone will give you enough exfoliation so you wont need to do more very often.

Make sure you rinse well and towel off by patting dry instead of rubbing.

There, now don't you feel clean AND pampered ?

Heres a two-step facial that will give you naturally clean, clear & happy skin

Using a mud or clay mask will pull the impurities out of your skin naturally.

Mix about a 1/8 - 1/4 cup of clay or a dry mud to a few tablespoons of pure warm water and then apply to your face and neck spreading it evenly while avoiding the eye area.

* This can be used on your back, legs or arms... if you wish.

Allow to dry (probably 20 minutes or so) and then rinse off with warm water and PAT dry (do not rub) your face with a towel.

Follow with the honey mask below.

Use no more than once a week for oily skin and about once a month for very dry or sensitive skin.

To moisturize and to fight the germs that can cause acne, a weekly mask of raw organic honey can do the trick to keep your skin clear, soft and happy.

So, do the mud mask or a clay mask facial and then rinse off well with warm water. Then follow up with the raw organic honey facial mask as your moisturizer if you have time for both.

If not, then just do the second one with honey, and rinse it off with warm water and PAT dry (do not rub) your face with a towel.

Sounds good doesn't it ?

Guess again:

U. S. Food and Drug AdministrationCenter for Food Safety and Applied NutritionOffice of Cosmetics and Colors Fact SheetDecember 19, 1994; revised October 18, 2000

HYPOALLERGENIC COSMETICS

Hypoallergenic cosmetics are products that manufacturers claim produce fewer allergic reactions than other cosmetic products.

Consumers with hypersensitive skin, and even those with "normal" skin, may be led to believe that these products will be gentler to their skin than non-hypoallergenic cosmetics.

There are no Federal standards or definitions that govern the use of the term "hypoallergenic. "

The term means whatever a particular company wants it to mean.

Manufacturers of cosmetics labeled as hypoallergenic are not required to submit substantiation of their hypoallergenicity claims to FDA.The term "hypoallergenic" may have considerable market value in promoting cosmetic products to consumers on a retail basis, but dermatologists say it has very little meaning.

...not torture it with manmade chemicals

Read the labels to see what is in that stuff you are putting on your skin.

I have a simple plan for me and my family - if the ingredient could not be part of my lunch, then I do NOT want it to be part of my body either.

In other words, if it can't go IN my body - I will not use it ON my body !

This is why I do not make lotions - they must have preservatives in them due to the water content so I wont make them or sell them.

Instead I make several kinds of balms with various herbs and flowers... in them.

I don't need lotion anymore anyway because - since I have been using my soap and balms - my skin hasn't been stripped down and tortured by store-bought soap (detergent) in years.

I get teased about the statement of not wanting to put anything on my skin that I would not eat sometimes and so to demonstrate that I mean what I say - I have been known to eat a bite of my all natural products that I made from my balms to my perfumes... .

Mind you, they were not designed to taste good, but they wont hurt me at all - LOL

Still though, even in my products - if there is something you are allergic to then you must avoid it.

This is why learning what things are (and what they are related to) and then reading labels is vital - even in all natural products like mine.

I am in the testing phase of my newest body balm.

This one is called "Baby My Skin"

It is a very mild balm that I made without shea butter and other all natural ingredients that some folks can't use.

Several folks requested a balm for them as they cannot use the other ones due to an allergy.

This newest balm has very few ingredients in it to lessen the chance of a reaction and as always - I have listed every ingredient I used.

So, check the label to see if it will be good for you to use.

I will post an update here when I have it listed in my store.

UPDATE July, 2014:

"Baby My Skin" luxury body balm got side tracked due to my Mom's illness and then loss. I hope to be able to get back on track in a year or two :)

I hope I was able to be of a little help.