Of crunchiness and caution labels

I found a "caution: keep out of reach of children" label on my facial scrub yesterday. I'm not sure why I hadn't noticed it before. I have to admit, up until now I've been a bit skeptical of all the hype surrounding the dangers of conventional personal care products. I love the idea of having perfectly safe soaps, cleansers, makeup, and lotion, but the reality is that they can be expensive. In addition, many "natural" brands aren't necessarily much safer than the conventional ones. They're just much more expensive.

I rationalized yesterday that I'm just washing the scrub off right away, not allowing it to linger on my skin. I've used it for years and I love the scent. But it terrifies me to think about it being a danger to my children. If it's dangerous for them, how safe is it for me? I've tried the en vogue method of facial cleansing, the oil cleansing method (OCM) which is simple, easy, and inexpensive. However, I have yet to find the right balance for my skin - I break out like crazy whenever I use it for more than a couple of days. So that's a possibility. I'm just not sure how long the breakouts will last, hence my resistance.

I've come across the same thing when purchasing products for Emily and Erin. It's hard to know which is safe and which is just labeled as such. It's also hard to resist the traditional clean baby aroma from that familiar pink bottle. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. After all, the bottle makes a lovely changing table distraction, so we'll be keeping it even if just for that.

I read the book Organized Simplicity a few years ago and was enthralled by the idea of using simple household ingredients to make your own personal care products and cleaning supplies. I've realized, though, that unless I take a week's vacation from household chores and work, it's unlikely to happen. I might have the time to mix up one or two things, but there's just too much going on to make that work consistently. (See yesterday's post.) So, for the moment, I do my best to buy what's safest for us, while still trying to purchase things that are enjoyable and functional enough to get used. Sometimes that means striking a balance between that yummy clean-baby smell and the castile soap. Sometimes it means bleaching the white laundry - including a badly stained cloth diaper. And sometimes, like with the OCM, I take the plunge and make my own. It doesn't happen very often, though - this mama just isn't that crunchy ;)

What about you? Where do you strike a balance? What are your favorite conventional, green, and homemade products?