No suffering, promised, resources

There's a saying in French which goes: "Il faut souffrir pour être belle" (one must suffer to be beautiful). Which, you know, I buy into up to certain extend (what can I say, I'm a sucker for heels, and will always put style before comfort -that's a little stupid, I know), but also think is a bit ludicrous. Especially when it comes to your beauty routine, which just shouldn't be painful (eyelash curlers scare me, and so does waxing (ouch)).

With that being said, lately my suffering has been more of the mental kind, as I became more and more aware of possible toxicity concerns associated with products, tried to transition towards natural/organic brands, but scrambled to find viable alternatives for everything. In the end, I've come to terms with the fact that in this range your options will always be limited, and that some things are nearly impossible to find: mascara, eye shadow and eyeliner, antiperspirant... But oh well. I can still do my best and comfort myself by saying that my exposure is at least certainly much lower than it used to be, which is especially good with a little one on the way.

Nail polish, for instance. I had simply stopped wearing it. But with the nice weather and open-toe shoes season the longing for pretty painted nails kind of crept back on me. I know that the high VOCs (volatile organic compounds) make it a red flag during pregnancy, especially during the first trimester when all the organs are forming... But I found a brand which toxicity index in the EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database is 1 out of 10 (when a brand like Maybelline Express Finish ranks at 7 and Sally Hansen, 8). It's water-based, odor-free, and they have plenty of beautiful colors, from the traditional to the totally funky!

The brand is called Acquarella, and since I couldn't get it shipped to Canada from their website (argh), I sent them an email. They replied promptly and directed me to an online retailed called Mint & Berry, which does ship to Canada and only offers organic products which EWG database index is 2 or lower. I can't wait to receive and try it. It's supposed to: wash off completely and easily while wet (great if you mess up a nail or spill it somewhere), last much longer than other polishes, and not turn your nails an unsightly shade of brittle yellow.

After some research I also encountered two Canadian-friendly websites: drugstore.com, and well.ca. I've now been using them a couple of times each, for anything from makeup for me to stuff for LP -sunscreen, toothpaste, body wash/shampoo... Both sites are nearly identical: their search function is great, the shipments arrives quickly, no problems with the orders... They both carry all kinds of products, but each has an extensive "Green & Natural" section from which I've been ordering.

Also, someone recently asked me if I had recommendations for shampoo... I like Kiss my Face (great brand, there's a complete line for kids, they also have skincare, makeup, etc.) but lately my greatest discovery has been the Live Clean one, which you can find in drugstores here. It was suggested to me by a friend, and it's great: inexpensive, smells nice, perfect amount of suds, washes off well, leaves hair looking supple and shiny (and not too poufy, which is my main problem). Oh, and it's free of parabens, phthalates, sulfates, silicone and al...