Review It Wednesday -- If only it worked on stinkbugs!

Awhile back I mentioned ditching my deodorant and switching to plain old distilled white vinegar. It worked so well for both my husband and me, I couldn't see us ever going back to a commercial roll-on or solid or, god forbid, aerosol spray!

Then someone in the GG community alerted me to the wonders of baking soda as a deodorant. Wonderful. I had choices. Baking soda was a nice, albeit messy, alternative after shaving, as the vinegar had a tendency to burn a bit. Plus, even though we were free of body odor, we did tend to smell a bit like salad dressing when we started to sweat! Still, anything was better than slathering our armpits with toxic chemicals. Have you ever read the ingredient list on your deodorant? Scary, scary stuff!!

One evening, while perusing the shelves at Right by Nature, one of Pittsburgh's real treasures, we picked up a light purple container and started reading the label.

All Natural Protection

CRYSTAL

Body Deodorant Stick

Hypoallergenic

Fragrance & Paraben Free

Boldly printed across the domed cap beside the pink breast cancer ribbon: NO Aluminum Chlorohydrate

Hmmm. Turning the container around, I continued reading:

Natural Deodorant Protection. Crystal Body Deodorant is made of 100% Natural Mineral Salts which eliminate odor by leaving an invisible protective barrier against odor-causing bacteria. It is fragrance free, non-sticky, non-staining, leaves no white residue and can be used by bothe Men and Women.

I looked at the price and hesitated. Then I kept reading:

Crystal Body Deodorant can last up to a year of daily use.

I didn't need a calculator to figure out that, in the long run, this deodorant was a heck of a lot cheaper than the deodorants we used to use. Granted, it was costlier than the vinegar, but still...

• Safe for the Environment
• Endorsed by Cancer Treatment Centers

It just kept getting better.

Ingredients: Natural Mineral Salts, Ammonimum Alum

That's it. No fragrance. No dyes. Nothing unpronounceable. Cool. We put it in our basket.

What made this an even sweeter deal that night was when my name was called over the loudspeaker as a winner of a gift certificate to the store. Nice.

Then came the real test. For the past 6 months now, Bill and I have been using nothing but Crystal Body Deodorant and we love it. With both of us using it every day, you would assume we'd be nearing the end of the crystal, since it was to last about a year for one person. But we're nowhere near the end of the line for this one. It just seems to last and last and last. As does its protection. Not once, during the time we've been using it, have we noticed any body odor. None.

There are some downsides, however. For one thing, this is a deodorant, not an anti-perspirant. So we still do sweat. Of course, we did the same when we were using the distilled white vinegar and the baking soda...and quite often with the Mitchum, now that I think about it. But you have to wonder something about that -- is preventing perspiring actually good for us anyway? I mean, really. Our bodies were created to sweat. I'm thinking it is not a good idea to apply something to our underarms to prevent that, although, quite honestly, I have not researched the matter.

Then there is the matter of messiness. You have to wet the crystal before applying. Wetting leads to dripping. I just keep a washcloth handy to catch the excess. If you are one who showers every morning, you can simply keep the crystal in the shower and apply it before stepping out of the stall.

Since this is mineral salt, it will start to dissolve with time. Have you ever felt dissolving salt? It's messy as well, so I recommend finding a lid to place the deodorant stick container in to collect the residue.

For us, the cons are so minor compared to the pros for this product. Stink-free and chemical-free. What more could we ask for? Well, maybe a natural product that would make the world stinkbug-free, but so far that is an undiscovered treasure.

But don't let the last two cons about the mineral salt stick deter you, because I was just on the Crystal website and guess what...the deodorant comes in roll-on, spray and 100% biodegradable wipes! And the price really isn't so bad after all. So check it out. Or head over to their Facebook page and find out what others are saying about this safe alternative to the toxic products you may be using.

Keeping it green on Review It Wednesday,

Hana