http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2009/04/06/daily21.html
I have never used the Jane cosmetics line but is nevertheless saddened that a well-recognized brand has been impacted by the recession.
Do you love the cosmetics line?
10
Mar
Methylparaben, or hydroxybenzoate, is one of the parabens and is the methyl ester of p-hydroxybenzoic acid. It is an antifungal that is widely used as a preservative for food, drugs, and cosmetics. Methylparaben is readily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract or through the skin. (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methyl_paraben) As a result, it can trigger skin allergy and irritation; they are known to cause itching, burning, scaling, hives and blistering of the skin. (source: http://tinyurl.com/adtxn7)
It may also be linked to hormone disruption and breast cancer. According to http://www.greens.org.nz/node/17692, methyl paraben is known to be oestrogenic, and it has now been found in high concentrations in breast tumour tissue, thought to be as a result of absorption through the skin. Sodium methyl-paraben has been banned by the EU because of the dangers of parabens combined with sodium include de-pigmentation of the skin (http://tinyurl.com/adtxn7).
In lieu of synthetic chemical such as methylparaben, there are safe and effective alternatives like natural vitamin E and grape seed extract.
Go to Methylparaben (score: 8 - high hazard) in Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database for details on potential health concerns associated with this ingredient.
* IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please read our terms of use and this warning - Information on ingredients used in cosmetic products appearing on this blog (part of SHE 2.0) is not intended to be, nor should be interpreted as, advice or recommendation concerning the use of any cosmetic product. If you have questions about your use of a cosmetic product, please review the labeling appearing on the product and/or consult a physician.
6
Feb
Iron oxides are chemical compounds composed of iron and oxygen. Iron oxides have been one of the most commonly used coloring agents for cosmetics for a long time. Manufacturing iron oxides as a coloring agent for cosmetics began around 1900. (source: http://www.chemistryquestion.com/English/Questions/ChemistryInDailyLife/16c_iron_oxides_cosmetics.html)
At present, iron oxides are the most commonly used pigment for coloring cosmetics such as foundation and eye shadow. Iron oxides have various colors which are classified into three major color groups: the yellow iron oxide (yellow), colcothar (red), black iron oxide (black). Various skin colors are produced by mixing these three groups of iron dioxide in different ratios. (source: http://www.chemistryquestion.com/English/Questions/ChemistryInDailyLife/16c_iron_oxides_cosmetics.html)
Go to Iron Oxides (score: 1 - low hazard) in Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database for details on potential health concerns associated with this ingredient.
* IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please read our terms of use and this warning - Information on ingredients used in cosmetic products appearing on this blog (part of SHE 2.0) is not intended to be, nor should be interpreted as, advice or recommendation concerning the use of any cosmetic product. If you have questions about your use of a cosmetic product, please review the labeling appearing on the product and/or consult a physician.
25
Jan
Glycerin is a chemical compound also called glycerine or in its pure form, glycerol. It is a natural byproduct of soap manufacture, which uses animal or vegetable fats (both animal and vegetable fats contain from 7% - 13% glycerine). (source: http://www.pioneerthinking.com/glycerin.html)
Glycerol is used in medical/pharmaceutical and personal care products, mainly to improve smoothness, provide lubrication and as a humectant, meaning it attracts moisture from the air to moisturize the skin and also promotes the retention of moisture in the skin. It can be found in toothpaste, mouthwashes, skin care products, shaving cream, hair care products, soaps and water based personal lubricants. (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glycerol)
Go to Glycerin (score: 2 - low hazard) in Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database for details on potential health concerns associated with this ingredient.
* IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please read our terms of use and this warning - Information on ingredients used in cosmetic products appearing on this blog (part of SHE 2.0) is not intended to be, nor should be interpreted as, advice or recommendation concerning the use of any cosmetic product. If you have questions about your use of a cosmetic product, please review the labeling appearing on the product and/or consult a physician.
20
Dec
Micas are natural ground minerals coated with titanium dioxide for a shimmer effect. They are considered safe to use in cosmetics and personal care products and are often found in makeup, nail and skin care products (source: http://www.cosmeticsinfo.org/ingredient_details.php?ingredient_id=607).
Go to Mica (score: 2 - low hazard) in Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database for details on potential health concerns associated with this ingredient.
* IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please read our terms of use and this warning - Information on ingredients used in cosmetic products appearing on this blog (part of SHE 2.0) is not intended to be, nor should be interpreted as, advice or recommendation concerning the use of any cosmetic product. If you have questions about your use of a cosmetic product, please review the labeling appearing on the product and/or consult a physician.
Here in the US, we count on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to protect the general public from harmful chemicals used in cosmetics and personal care products, just as it does for nearly all food products - unfortunately, this is not true.
Although cosmetics are regulated by the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, the same branch of the FDA that regulates food, the agency isn’t authorized to approve cosmetic products or ingredients before they are released to the market. Furthermore, it doesn’t require manufacturers to perform pre-market safety tests on their own products.
What this means for the general public is that the burden is on us - you and I - to understand the various ingredients used in cosmetics and personal care products and to know which ones to shun away from and which ones are more natural and better for your health. For this reason, I have created a new category “Ingredients 101″ to share what I am learning along the way. I am starting with very little knowledge, and invite you to join me on this critical journey together. At any time, please feel free to share your knowledge and/or comments!
P.S. Please note that a new field titled “Ingredients List:” has also been added to the “Add a new product” form so we can all apply what we learn right away and pick safer products for ourselves and our loved ones.
SHE20 is now simplified! We know our audience are busy (who’s not?), so we have worked with our design studio to redesign our reviews section to make your life easier! To highlight some changes:
- With 1 simple click, you can organize your beauty cabinet and wishlist! (you no longer have to go to the product page to add or remove the product to your beauty cabinet or wishlist!)
- Writing a review is now easier than ever, one click of “add review” button from the list is all you need.
- Now you can view four different rankings all on the front page (each ranking is using a different sorting method, so if one product is truly popular, it will for sure be on the front page!).
- Adding a new product link is accessible from the front page as well, so you no longer have to go into product listing view to add a product.
As you can see, we focused our redesign to make your user experience as simple as possible - you can accomplish many tasks without ever leaving the front page!
Now that we have done our part, please try it yourself and give us your feedbacks (you can just reply to this post). We will continue to improve our site and add new features to make service more useful to you.
Happy surfing, ladies…and happy Thanksgiving.
SHE 2.0 is happy to share that starting from this month, we will be rewarding our monthly top contributor with a prize! Of course we are thankful for any contribution our members make to SHE 2.0, but we want to show our special appreciation to the top contributor. This is our way of saying “thank you” to her for making our site a more valuable resource for all other fellow members.
Below are some answers to FAQs you may have:
- How is the monthly top contributor determined? We have implemented a reward point system to keep track of your total contribution to SHE 2.0. For almost any activities you do on SHE 2.0 other than viewing, you will receive reward points. The table below explains the point system:
- How would I know how many points I have so far? When you go to your profile homepage, you will see two points fields next to your name: “Total points” and “This month’s points”. The “Total points” reflect the cumulative points you have earned since you joined SHE 2.0 while the “This month’s points” is reset at the beginning of every month and is the field used to determine the monthly contributor winner (so new members can also have a fair chance at winning the prize).
- How would I know if I won the reward? You will be notified via email if you are the top contributor so you can provide us with your mailing address (will only be used for us to send you your prize and not be stored in SHE 2.0 database).
We hope you will take this opportunity to participate, share and learn, and perhaps win our top contributor reward for the month!
The SHE 2.0 Team
SHE 2.0 is about finding the best beauty product works for you and people like you. As such, our development team is currently planning on making a Facebook application for SHE 2.0 members to easily share their beauty tips and thoughts on beauty product so your friends who use facebook will quickly get up to speed on your findings. The current features in our release 1 planning are
1. Status update. All your activities at she 2.0 can be shown as Facebook status update, such as “Jane has written a beauty product review for Lancome Tonic Toner at she20.com.” Because your status update will be automatically sent to all your friends, your friends can follow the link to view the details of your activity. So you friends will never miss a new product you loved.
2. List all the beauty product that your friend have reviewed or added to their beauty cabinet or wishlist, so you can choose to view the details of those product, and even better,add product to your wishlist or beauty cabinet from within Facebook.
We plan to roll out this exciting feature by the end of October. Stay tuned for the update on this. If you have any suggestions regarding how to make this feature more useful to you, let us know!
There seems to be some confusion as to whether a community member can add product to Her-Views for review or not. The short answer is: most definitely! As you each are owner of SHE 2.0, we encourage you to add and review as many products as you like.
Unlike many beauty product review sites where the products listed are censored (for example, e-commerce sites that list only the products they sell), SHE 2.0 believes in a complete, unbiased, and open listing where any beauty product can be and should be added. Therefore, we make the beauty product submission totally open, where any registered user can add your favorite products to the listing for review (by yourself or others).
There is only one exception: to reduce potential typos or duplicates in product brand names and product line names, only SHE 2.0 team can add new brands or product lines. Most of today’s popular brands and/or product lines are already in the list and you can just select from the list; if not, please let us know (email us at support@she20.com) and we will add that for you.
With our easy product submission process, what are you still waiting for? Whether you want to be a evangelist or cop for certain beauty products you have used, or are curious about other products you have not tried, add these products into SHE 2.0 now and and let other ladies share their experiences!
