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Ecocentric Mom Box Review

 My Ecocentric Mom Box is always full of an interesting and surprising array of product options I never knew existed. Here's what I discovered in the March/April box:

For your body:

Bach Original Flower Remedies - Bach has distilled 38 flower and plant essences into concentrated clear liquids, each of which is reputed to help deal with some kind of stress. My box contained a bottle of the essence of elm. It smells good enough to use as a perfume, though the recommended application is on the tongue.

Treefort Naturals Comfrey Salve - My hands always seem to be on the dry side. This salve soothes and softens and leaves no greasy residue.

MarieNatie All-Natural Lip Gloss - It's free of parabens, sulfates, synthetic fragrances and dyes, petro-chemicals and phthalates. I also like how moist it is on the lips. The company also makes eyeliner, eye shadow, blush, lip balm and mascara.

Oatmeal Grapefruit Face Wash Powder by Homespun Northwest - This powder consists of freshly ground organic oats, Kaolin clay and grapefruit essential oil. Put a little in your hand, add a few drops of water until it makes a paste, and scrub. Easy peasy, and safe as can be.

House Blend Organics Coconut Body Wash - I already use coconut butter as a body lotion because it is so moisturizing. This body wash both cleans and moisturizes, too.

Essio $10 Gift Card - Essio is an aromatherapy diffuser for the shower and uses 100% USDA-certified organic essential oils. Wouldn't a lovely essential oil be so much better to smell than chlorine when you take a shower?

To help you relax:

Organic Caffeine-Free Roman Provence Rooibos Tea - This tea is full of rooibos, elderberries, blueberries, rosehip pieces, lavender blossoms, and even rose petals. It is just as soothing to smell as to sip.

Powernap 2-CD Set - The lovely ambient music on these CDs will help revive you in the middle of the day with a powernap that works with your schedule. Choose from three longer naps to two five-inute programs. Each nap ends with chimes and a gentle voice to away you from a refreshing sleep.

2 Degrees Food Bar - Unlike many power bars or energy bars, this snack actually tasted like real food. It includes heritage grains like quinoa, cia and millet. Plus, they're gluten-free, vegan, GO-free and kosher. An added bonus: For every 2 Degrees bar sold, the company donates a meal to a hungry child in the US and abroad.

PLUS:

Bluapple for Produce Preservation - I've been wanting to try one of these for a while, so I'm glad to have a chance. It is a small plastic ball that resembles an apple. Inside, you add small pellets that absorb the ethylene gas that fruits and vegetables emit as they age. By absorbing the gas rather than leaving it in the fridge, the Bluapple aims to preserve food freshness and extend the life of the produce. I've just put it in my veggie drawer. I'll let you know how it works.

Sport Suds Laundry Detergent - This detergent is specially formulated to remove stubborn stains and odors. I'm not sure exactly what is in it, but happily it doesn't contain phosphates, dyes, or synthetic fragrances. It could be very effective on t-shirts, socks, shorts and sweatpants that take a beating when you or your kids are playing sports, out biking or hiking, or otherwise working up a sweat.

Acai Seed Bead Hair Barrett - All of the jewelry made by Terri Jean's adornments, including this barrett, are vegan, with a particular emphasis on organic nuts and seed beads.

Get Your Own EcoCentric Mom Box - It's easy to sign up to get your own box. You'll find all the details here.

Note: Big Green Purse earns a small commission on any boxes ordered through our site. Those fees help make it possible for us to provide you with expert content at no charge. Our editorial opinion of the products remains our own. Thanks.

 

EcoCentric Mom Box: Soap, Serum and Chocolate

EcoCentric Mom pulled together a fun and helpful collection of new green products to try this time around. They included:

 Soap - Not just any soap, but a full-sized bar of Wildly Natural Seaweed Detoxi Cellulite Soap featuring coffee and cinnamon to help cleanse and nourish the skin. Like most Ecocentric Mom products, it's also paraben, sulfate, gluten and dye-free.

Lip Balm - This may be the last lip balm you ever try, because it's so soothing, nothing else will ever feel as good. LIPS by Healthy Houseful uses coconut oil, shea better and quality essential oils to moisturize and protect against chapped lips. Plus, as they say, "Nasty chemicals not included!"

Facial and Hydrating Serum - Two sample bottles of Pure + Remedy serum included Vitamin C Facial serum, formulated with pure vegan hyaluronic acide to moisturize and plump skin cells; and Precious Drops, a super hydrating serum to firm and tone the skin.

Butter for Your Hands, Not Your Bread, Plus Much More from EcoCentric Mom

 It's that time of year when my hands are starting to feel so dry, you'd think I lived in the desert. Nope, it's just winter setting in, along with its prescription for cracking skin and painfully tight dryness. Happily, this month's EcoCentric Mom subscription box included butter - hand butter that is, made by The Seaweed Bath Co. from shea butter, neem oil and bladderwrack seaweed extract. I'm not sure what a bladderwrack is, but this balm feels great, and smells yummy, too, with a hint of citrus (or maybe that's what bladderwrack smells like...).

Not to leave lips at the mercy of winter, either, the subscription box also included both the 3 Little Girls Holistic Oange Pop Lip Gloss, and lip scrub and lip colour from Lauren Brooke cosmetiques. The organic sugar in the lip scrub helps smooth chapped lips, then moisturizes with organic lecithin and shea butter. The lip colour is infused with organic pomegranate and non-GMO vitamin E. And of course, the lip gloss is organic, too. Winter or summer, I actually put lip gloss on top of lip colour for extra moisturizing, so am glad to try out both these products.

EcoCentric Mom Box Delivers Non-Toxic Make-Up & Cleaning Products

This month's EcoCentric Mom Box arrived just as I was tackling a big kitchen cleaning project. Cupboards, countertops, light switches, walls - the works. Fortunately, the job was made easier with Tru All-Natural Multi-Purpose Cleaner, made from purified water, botanicals from organic citrus, and food-grade carbonates. My box included a travel-size spritzer, but you can buy it in a concentrate that will make 128 fluid ounces.

 Also in the cleaning category: Eve Organics "Dirty Hands" Hand Sanitizer. I'm personally not one to use hand sanitizers, but if you are, take a look at this one. It contains essential oils of lavender, lemon, peppermint and tea tree, and promises not to promote drug resistant "superbugs" as more conventional hand sanitizers do.

After cleaning the kitchen, I needed a great moisturizer for my hands. Turns out, Eve Organics also makes a terrific skin cream: light, non-greasy, and full of therapeutic essential oils.

For a snack, I munchedon Beanfields Bean and Rice Tortilla Chips - gluten free, vegan, Non-GMO Project verified. Very crunchy, too.

EcoCentric Mom Box Review: Natural Lotions, Snacks, Soaps, and More

Even though the summer can be humid, my skin seems to stay dry all year long. I'm always on the prowl for plant-based skin moisturizers that soothe dry skin without staying sticky or clammy. This month's EcoCentric Mom Box filled the bill, with samples of two different moisturizers from Pure + Remedy. Though designed to be light enough for your face, I've been slathering them on my hands and enjoying instant relief. Both the Gentle Hydrating Facial Moisturizer and the Vitamin C Concentrate Facial Moisturizer are rich in natural oils and anti oxidants.

 I'm enjoying the other personal care products EcoCentric Mom sent as well, including:

Possum Hollow Farm Soap - Made by a small family business in Pennsylvania, this non-irritating soap contains a variety of oils, including coconut, palm kernal, oilve, rice bran, soybean, and blood orange. There's shea butter and nutmeg, too, so you get nice and clean without drying out.

Suncoat Sugar Based Natural Mascara - If I use mascara, I want to avoid the nasty chemicals found in many commercial products (vinyls, acrylics, parabens, glycols, I'm talkin' to you!). This option from Suncoat relies on kaolin clay and vitamin E to build lash volume and length. Plus, it doesn't seem to smudge.

Eco-Friendly Soaps & Lotions, Plus Organic Energy Drinks & Honey

The July EcoCentric Mom Box offers lots of interesting goodies you're either going to want to put in your body or on it.

IN Your Body

 I hate to admit it, but the first thing I do when I get an EcoCentric Mom Box is to see what foods it contains. Maybe that's because it usually arrives around lunch time! In any event, I've really enjoyed this month's taste treats. They included:

Honibe Honey Lozenges and Honibe Honey Delights Candy - The lozenges are made from 100% pure dried honey - and they sure taste like it. They're also infused with menthol and eucalyptus; I can imagine using them in the fall and winter if I get a sore throat or stuffy nose. The Honibe Honey Delights are also made with 100% pure dried honey - and that's eat. They taste delicious and are just sweet enough to satisfy my sweet tooth.

Natural Mosquito Repellent to Ward Off Summer Bugs & More

My Ecocentric Mom Box has arrived just in the nick of time. Summer is in full swing, which means so are the mosquitos. There are lots of ways to reduce mosquitos around your home, but most of us still need to use some kind of repellent when we're in the garden, at a picnic, or taking a walk. This month's Mom Box included Herbal Insect Repellent from Turtle Moon that's worth giving a try. Made from essential oils like lavender, eucalyptus and wild geranium, it smells great to me (though not to bugs), sprays on so you can rub it in, but is not greasy.

I was a bit skeptical of another product in the box until I tried it. It's a lip scrub, believe it or not. This is a terrific solution if you have chapped lips that you just can't seem to keep moist.  Essence of Antiquity Pomegranate Lip Scrub works like hand or body scrubs you might have tried. Organic sugar provides the grit that gently wipes off rough skin cells, leaving lips feeling surprisingly moist.

Afterwards, I tried the Lauren Brooke Cosmetiques Lip Colour, a lip stick made with shea butter, coconut oil, jojoba oil and pomegranate oil (NOT lead, which is found is a surprising number of lip sticks). All those oils left my lips feeling soft and healthy. NOTE: this lipstick is pretty shimmery, so if that's not for you, you can use it as a base and put something more subdued on top.

Another healing product in this month's box was the Brigit True Organics Magic Healing Skin Balm Stick. This balm claims to help heal skin irritation, bug bites, and dry skin. I wasn't able to verify those claims independently, but given the ingredients - extra virgin olive oil, beeswax, calendula - I can imagine that it does a pretty good job moisturizing and soothing.

EcoCentric Mom Box Review: Ooh, Aah, and Yum

Every Ecocentric Mom Box comes packed with a selection of interesting, useful and tasty treats that help me make healthier, more eco-friendly choices when I shop. Here's the lowdown on what's in this month's box:

FOOD FIRST

Kallari Organic Chocolate Bar - I've written before why it's so important for chocolate to be produced organically. And when you shift your spending to organic chocolate, you encourage more conventional manufacturers to become more organic, too. Your purse power aside, Kallari chocolates make the shift worthwhile just because they taste so good. The 70% cacao bar included in this month's Ecocentric Mom Box was smooth, creamy and very flavorful. Plus, I love the fact that Kallari is produced via a cooperative of 850 indigenous Kichwa families in the Ecuadorian Amazon basin. The cooperative shares 100% of their profits among 21 rainforest communities to "maintain our way of life in one of the most diverse ecosystems on Earth." Try a bar!

Ecocentric Mom Box: Put on Your Best Face (Mask)

An EcoCentric Mom Box is both dependable and surprising. Dependable because you can count on the sample products it contains to be non-toxic, low impact, and a great bargain. Surprising because every box introduces a whole host of healthy personal care products, shampoos, soaps, and even foods that you might have no idea existed. I like the box because it constantly gives me fresh ideas for ways I can practice my Big Green Purse commitment and shift my spending to greener goods to protect myself, my family, and my community.

  This month’s box is no exception. Here’s a rundown of the dependably surprising items I found. (NOTE: If you’d like to receive your own Ecocentric Mom box every month, you can sign up here. Big Green Purse readers get a 10% discount on any subscription plan you choose.  Be sure to enter code ECOMOM10 at checkout.)

7^th Heaven 100% Natural Face Mask – This mask uses Moroccan Clay infused with fresh fragrances of apricot and orange to hydrate, cleanse and tone skin.  After you use it, moisturize with…

Natures Gate Rice Bran Facial Moisturizer – This light lotion smooths on easily and leaves no greasy film behind.  It complements perfectly the…

Biotin Shampoo and Conditioner, and Acai Body Wash – Also made by Nature’s Gate, all these products combine botanical, herbal and floral ingredients to create personal care products you’ll feel good using, even more so if you brew a cup of …

Fragrance, Fitness and Fig Bars? Only in this Month's EcoCentric Mom Box

  If you like surprises, an EcoCentric Mom Box is just the thing for you. Every month, this box full of eco-goodies shows up at my door and I have no idea what's going to be inside. I hate to admit it, but I always hope there will be some new food try, and generally there is. But I'm also likely to find new cosmetics, some new kind of soap, coupons that offer significant discounts for e-stores I didn't know existed and lately, perfume. This month's box contained all that and more. The biggest surprise was a $50 gift card to itrain.com, an online source for downloadable workout programs, music, and HD videos.

I decided to use the gift card when I would need it most: after I snarfed down the food.

Nature's Bakery Fig Bars - These are not your normal gummy Fig Newtons! The actual cookie (see photo)  is made from stone ground whole wheat flour; yes, it tastes "healthy" - but it's delicious, too. The filling is thick, hearty and flavorful. Fig filling is what you expect for a fig bar, of course. But the raspberry-filled bar was just as tasty. Other benefits: these bars are dairy free, contain zero transfats, are kosher, and are made in the USA. Definitely something I'd put in my or my kids' lunch or take to the gym with me instead of a power bar.

Go Raw Spirulina Energy Bar - I was expecting this crunchy snack to taste, well, icky. But it's light, flavorful, and the faint banana taste might make it very popular with kids. PLUS: it's free - as in gluten, wheat, nut and GMO free. Organic, too.

EBoost - Here's an alternative to the powdered sugary energy drinks you might be mixing up. EBoost is sugar-free, contains no artificial flavors, and has only 5 calories per serving. Add it to still or sparkling water for a refreshing drink.