Top 5 Favorite Non-Toxic Products

As some of you know, I am a consultant for Beautycounter, which is a safer beauty brand. I share lots of Beautycounter favorites on my Instagram, but I also have some favorite non-toxic products that are not Beautycounter brand and wanted to share those with you guys. I am all about trying to limit the amount of harmful chemicals and toxins in my life as much as I can, but still enjoy a good quality product. I am so happy that I have been easily able to swap some things out one-at-a-time in efforts to make my home a safer environment. I definitely believe in balance and not being extreme, but my motto is: every time you run out of a product, replace it with a cleaner, safer option! Here are my top 5 favorite non-toxic products of the moment:


1. Norwex Mop System

This thing is seriously AMAZING!! I have been using a cheap little mop with wet pads over the past few years and I love how well they work to clean my floor, but A) The pads are expensive and B) They are made with harmful chemicals and synthetic fragrances. I saw my IG friend from @paisleyprintsspokane post on her stories about this Non-Toxic Mopping system that looked like a more heavy-duty version of what I had been previously using. She said it was Norwex, which I had heard of before, but didn't know much about it besides the fact that it was non-toxic. She gave me the run-down on all of the details behind the product and how everything works. If you are interested in learning more about it you can research it or reach out to her on IG (the science/mechanics behind it all made perfect sense to me, but I want to make sure you get all of the bases covered, so make sure you ask someone who sells it!). It's basically a special cloth material made up of fibers that you just have to add water to and it effectively removes dirt and germs from your home/body/etc. She has been using it for years and said she had saved so much money on cleaning supplies because of the fact that you only have to use water and the quality is so amazing. I think it comes in a pretty rose gold color too! Seriously guys, this thing is amazing and makes me feel SO much better about my 1 year old crawling all over the floors and my dog eating scraps of food or chewing on toys that have touched the ground.

Lindsey's Norwex Link
http://www.lindseyjones3446.norwex.biz


2. Everyone Soap

This stuff is so great! It is really affordable and easily accessible, too. I see it at Target and the grocery store, which makes it nice because as much as I love to order stuff online, sometimes you just run out of something and need to run to the store ASAP to grab it! My favorite scent is the Coconut & Lemon scent. The soap is a 3-in-1 product so you can keep it anywhere that water is running! We use it in our shower as a body-wash and Chris uses it as a shampoo. We have it in our guest bathroom too and can also be used as a baby wash. Such a great product!



3. Doterra Lemongrass Essential Oil

My mom is a distributor for Doterra and she gave me this oil to put in my diffuser or add to a spray bottle for cleaning. I am not super brand-loyal on essential oils because I haven't really gotten super into them or anything, but I know I have a lot of friends that sell both Doterra or Young Living. I just really freakin LOVE this scent! It is sooo fresh and lemon-y. I put it in my Amazon bamboo color-changing diffuser and it just makes my house feel fresh and clean without spreading toxic fragrances into the air we are breathing!



4. Primally Pure Deodorant

I have only used the Charcoal Deodorant, but I know they have a bunch of other ones to pick from. I had messaged them before I purchased it and they said their best sellers are the Charcoal or the Blue Tansy, so I might try that one next. I just love this stuff and it actually works for me. I was super disappointed in a brand that I had tried prior after I found out they use Fragrance/Parfum in their products. I immediately found Primally Pure after this and have been obsessed. This is one of the first things you should change out in your beauty routine because conventional deodorants have so many toxic carcinogens in them. No one likes a stinky, sweaty armpit, and I think you guys will really like this brand!

https://primallypure.com/products/charcoal-deodorant

5. NKD SKN Self Tanner

I did a blog post a while back on this product (go to my beauty tab to read the whole post), but I have been using it for a lot longer now and have come to seriously LOVE this stuff! I don't know about you guys, but I feel 100% better with a nice tan on my fair-skin! I used to do the booth spray tans, which are nice because you don't have to apply anything yourself, but I know they use synthetic fragrances in the ones I was doing and some toxic preservatives too. Getting sprayed as often as I want to be tanned is also pretty expensive! The Dark Shade of the NKDSKN tanning mousse has been my favorite. It is so affordable and accessible, too. It runs about $20 and you can pick it up at Ulta! They have a bunch of other products too, but this has been my favorite. I actually just recently had to repurchase for the first time, so it lasted me a long time. Highly recommend!!

5 WAYS I KEEP COZY IN THE FALL AND WINTER

Fall is my favorite season when it comes to fashion, but where I live it quickly turns into winter! We get lots of snow and chilly weather, along with dark evenings. It is so important to keep your home a bright and cozy atmosphere year round and it becomes even more important during these darker, colder months. I wanted to share my favorite ways that I stay cozy and enjoy these months!

Such an inexpensive way to freshen up you home. I usually just head to my local grocery store or Trader Joe's and get whatever is on sale. I like to match my home so I usually go for neutral, lavender, blush, or greenery. Roses are always my favorite, but since they don't last forever I try to just stick to what is reasonably priced! I pull off all of the leaves on the stems (it makes them last a little longer) and put them in vases around the house. Tip: go to the thrift store, they have soooo many glass vases for a couple of dollars and you can even spray paint a mason jar with chalk paint for a more rustic look!

I never had a robe until a few years ago and I use it sooo much in the fall and winter! I wear it over my clothes when I am cold and just hanging out watching TV or doing chores around the house. Something about a big fluffy robe just makes me feel like I am in a hotel or something. Another one of my favorites would be matching pajama sets. I looovveee these. They are such a great gift to give someone too because usually people don't spend money on pajamas. I have had all of mine for years so they are a good investment as well. It's nice sometimes to actually look cute instead of my usual pajama outfit of sweats and a hug t-shirt!

I mentioned this on my Instagram a week or so ago, but I have recently switched over from coffee to tea because coffee was breaking out my skin really badly. I have fallen in love! It's so much lighter on your stomach and I can get away with drinking a few extra cups without feeling really jittery. This is the best way to start my day on a cold, fall morning! And why not drink it out of a cute mug too? My favorite teas recently have been: Celestial Tea Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride, Vanilla Breakfast Tea and Chai tea. I put Califia Farms vanilla almond milk creamer in them all and it's sooo good!

Any excuse for extra throw pillow and blankets! This instantly makes any room feel so much cozier. A faux fur or shag rug would also be a great idea, but I have a 90 lb dog that gets wet and muddy outside and I know he would destroy one. I love having extra cable knit or fur blankets laying around all of the beds and couch, they are a nice touch for guests too!

Probably my favorite way to cozy up my home by making it smell good! I have recently tried to switch over all of the scents in my home to more healthy ones. The Illume brand has really great candles that smell amazing and have pretty good ingredients! I think most are made with essential oils and are soy based candles. I love my oil diffuser too and peppermint is probably my favorite scent to diffuse! It smells really fresh and delicious. Another thing you can do too is go on Pinterest and find different combos of oils that you can mix with water and make room sprays with to spray on all of your linens and around the house. I have a coconut lime one that was made locally and I am so sad I am almost out! I always like having my house smell good, especially for when guests come over! 

DIY CHALK PAINTED PUMPKINS

If you are anything like me, you are really particular about colors when decorating for the holidays or seasons. I think once I have kids I might be a little bit less OCD about this, but for now I really like decorating with neutral colors for the holidays. I have seen a lot of rustic fall decor on pinterest and some of the home decor accounts I follow on Instagram, but a lot of the decor is so expensive. So, I decided to do a quick and easy DIY project with my favorite color chalk paint. The kind I used is Americana Decor Chalk Paint in Primitive. It's an off-white color, almost a little taupe and gray. In my opinion it is the perfect color! I have almost white walls so it is just the slightest bit darker than those. I used plastic pumpkins I picked up in the dollar section at Target for $3 each so that I can reuse them for many years, but you could also just do this with real pumpkins. I didn't use any sort of a primer or anything and used a sponge-type brush to paint it on. You can do more coats if you like, but I just did one because I like the distressed look. I included a few other things I painted with this chalk paint too! It's seriously the best color! I had a dark brown metal mirror that I was sick of and some really cool giant candle holders I picked up from Goodwill that I used as wedding decorations. Enjoy!

DIY Pinterest-worthy dressing area

Pinterest Inspiration:

My Take:

Hey guys :) I am obsessed with home decor and being creative to make my house my own (my husband always rolls his eyes because I am always rearranging things in our house, but that's just the creative side in me!). I wanted to share a really easy and (can be) affordable way to create a pinterest-worthy dressing area. Our second extra bedroom is currently being used as my closet and get-ready room pretty much, so this is where I have my dressing area set up (the pictures I posted were actually in our living room because we are painting and the house is a bit of a cluster). However, you could totally put this in a corner in your bedroom or wherever you have space! It really doesn't take up much space and it's not only cute, but serves a purpose! If you are a clothes collector, like myself, you know that sometimes things can get buried in your closet and you can honestly forget they are even there. A clothing rack (mine is from Home Depot and is $20) is a great way to put all of the pieces you want to wear for that season and give you inspiration for outfit ideas! Same with the shoe rack (this shoe rack is linked below, super easy to assemble, and only $14).

In order to create your own dreamy dressing room, first pick the style you are going for! I like light and airy, with a little bit of rustic charm to it--but you could totally do modern, romantic, industrial, pretty much whatever you can dream up! Secondly, LOOK AT WHAT YOU ALREADY HAVE! Look around your apartment or house, in your closets, in your garage, wherever you might have random things lying around that you could use to dress up this area and make it more aesthetically pleasing. I found the actual rack in my basement (my husband was using it to put "gear" on it--whatever that means lol), I found the lantern in my garage, and the candle sticks I spray painted from black to a matte grey (tip: check out your local thrift store for candle sticks and baskets you could easily spray paint and make them look super cool for really inexpensive!). Thirdly, you need a full length mirror--very necessary for trying on your outfits to see how they look together! I got this one from Target for somewhere under $100, but you could honestly use just one of those cheap $10-20 ones and lean it against the wall or hang it. Next, put some baskets below the clothing rack to add some more interest and to throw in accessories (or more shoes). Finally, a cute rug to finish the area off and section it off (especially if it is in your bedroom). I hope you guys find this helpful! Send me pictures if you try it I seriously love seeing stuff like this! And if you need help let me know as well! 

Create Your Own:

Master Bedroom Inspiration

If you guys follow me on Instagram, I have mentioned a couple of times that we are painting our interior of our home right now. We bought our home about 3 years ago & at the time we painted it a darker tan color. It goes with all of the lodge-y woodwork in it, but made the house seem pretty dark overall. It was definitely time for a change! We also have put off finishing our master bedroom for so long, just because we are the only ones that see it, so it didn't really seem like a priority. Your master bedroom is such an important part of your house and for me, my overall calmness. When you wake up in a clean, bright room, it really sets the tone for the rest of the day! I love white bedding in bedrooms it just feels so airy and timeless (makes me feel like I am waking up in my favorite hotel room on vacation!). We aren't totally done (lighting & wall decor is next), but I wanted to share the progress and some reasonable priced bedroom furniture & decor. Also, why are King beds soooo much more expensive than queens!? We had such a hard time finding a really nice bed within our budget, but we finally found one we absolutely love and agreed on. We found ours at Walker's Furniture, but I linked some similar ones below! I hope you guys enjoyed this post :)

             Shop this look:

Dining room table and chairs

I am a huge bargain shopper, but for me at least, I think an important piece to invest a little in is your dining room table. We saved up for this shortly after we got married and it is probably my favorite piece of furniture in our house. I highly recommend checking out World Market (where we got ours) because they have really great prices for really unique and high quality tables. Also, they always have 25% coupons if you sign up for their email list (what we did for our whole set). Since our house is pretty masculine with all of the dark woodwork, I wanted something that matched, but instead of doing an industrial style farmhouse table I wanted something a little more "feminine"...not sure if that is the right word, but the details of the legs is what I am referring to :) I LOVE how much of a statement the legs make and it also has two leaves that you can add to either end (which I plan on doing as soon as we get a few more chairs.) I couldn't find my exact table and chairs, but I picked out some really cool ones that are reasonably priced for how beautiful they are. And remember, you don't have to buy everything at once! We bought two chairs at a time and still haven't gotten around to getting anymore. I love the look of light linen covers over chairs, so I figured it you have some ugly chairs around you can always add the covers below to them! I also love topiaries and lanterns on top of the tables, so I picked out some cute affordable accessories to decorate around the table area as well. I love getting inspiration from photos so make sure you check out my Pinterest account if you haven't already because I have a bunch of really cool pictures with my similar style of home decor on it. Thanks for following along :)