To combat static and dry winter air, my naturally straight, fine hair needs moisture. I thought it would be difficult to find a natural shampoo that strikes the perfect balance between gentle hydration and maximum volumizing power, but then I discovered EO's Volumizing Rosemary and Mint Shampoo.

EO Volumizing Rosemary and Mint Natural Shampoo costs $9 for an 8.4-ounce bottle. Photo Courtesy EO.

EO Volumizing Rosemary and Mint Natural Shampoo combines essential oils of rosemary, peppermint, hibiscus, plantain, nettle and ginseng to add volume and shine to hair and scalp. Aloe vera and vitamin A restores moisture and softens hair. I like this natural shampoo because it leaves my hair feeling lightweight yet hydrated with a healthy amount of shine. The packaging is chic and easily recyclable (and made from 50 percent recycled content). Another great product from one of my favorite companies!

EO's line of natural shampoos and natural conditioners offers natural hair care products for almost any hair care need: chamomile and honey restorative natural shampoo for damaged hair; rose and chamomile protective natural shampoo for color-treated hair; sweet orange clarifying natural shampoo for hair with lots of product buildup; and French lavender everyday natural shampoo for daily use.

EO offers a variety of natural shampoos and hair care products to suit your specific hair type. Photo Courtesy EO.

As always, EO products are paraben-, polysorbate-, disodium EDTA-, SLES- and SLS-free. EO Volumizing Rosemary and Mint Natural Shampoo delivers a decent lather with a plant-based surfactant. EO doesn't test its products on animals and is a small, family-owned company from Marin County, California. To learn more about EO, follow founder Brad Black's blog.

Have you tried any of EO's hair care (or other) products? Tell me about it in the comments section.

I’m continuing my search for the best natural shampoos. I’ve been using Eco Nature Care Natural Hair and Body Wash this week. 

Eco Nature Care natural shampoo appeals to the masses and is priced accordingly—$10.99 for 10 ounces. Photo Courtesy Eco Nature Care.

Eco Nature Care’s packaging is neat. This natural shampoo is housed in a thick aluminum, cap-topped container that adds an industrial look to your shower. The labeling is thorough, though the type is tiny. I appreciate Eco Nature Care’s willingness to list all ingredients on the label. 

While I admire the sleek design of the container, I do find the material choice inconvenient because this thick aluminum container is not squeezable—how will I get the natural shampoo out of the bottle when it’s running low? This also isn’t a container that is conducive to storing upside-down to let the natural shampoo slide to the opening for easy dispersal. The twist-off cap is a nuisance to me—it may seem hypercritical or lazy, but a pump would be more convenient than a twist-off cap. But, as Eco Nature Care points out on its website, pump tops are difficult to recycle, and making a product in easy-to-recycle material from top-to-bottom is more beneficial to the earth.

Eco Nature Care’s natural shampoo formula is pure. Eco Nature Care pledges that its products contain no parabens, phthalates, SLS or petroleum-based ingredients (what we like to call “the bad stuff").

“Natural aroma” is low on the ingredients list. This “natural aroma” consists of benzyl alcohol, limonene, citronellol, geraniol, linalool and citral. Benzyl alcohol is linked to allergy concerns and is a common ingredient in hair color, mascara and shampoo. It has a “high hazard” score of 7 from the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database. (The EWG also scores products as a whole, but Eco Nature Care has not yet been submitted for review.)

Though this is shocking, Eco Nature Care makes no attempt to mask this—the ingredients that are potential allergens are marked with an asterisk. The other ingredients in the “natural aroma” are perfuming agents that may irritate sensitive skin. Use caution when considering products that contain perfumes and fragrances, but remember, even natural and organic essential oils can be irritating—and the ingredients in this “natural aroma” may occur naturally in essential oils.

Eco Nature Care has a convenient ingredients list and descriptions online that details possibly irritants. Eco Nature Care points out that benzyl alcohol is on the UK Soil Association’s list of preservatives approved for use in organic cosmetics. (Check out the Soil Association’s list of non-organic health and beauty ingredients to get an idea of what ingredients to avoid.)

Overall, I think Eco Nature Care Natural Hair and Body Wash is a good, green product for a new company (founded in 2008). This company’s puts the health of the planet and the consumers first.

How do you choose your natural beauty products? What ingredients are you allergic to? Tell me your standards for evaluating personal-care products.

After a week of using Caudalie Gentle Conditioning Shampoo, I’ve moved on to testing a new natural shampoo: Yes To Tomatoes Tempting Tomato Volumizing Shampoo. 

This natural shampoo has a faint scent and a soft lather. Photo Courtesy Drugstore.com 

Yes To Tomatoes Tempting Tomato Volumizing Shampoo has a big challenge with my medium-length, baby fine, oily hair. Shampoos (natural shampoo and conventional shampoo) loaded with heavy conditioning oils and thick proteins weigh my hair down, but without some kind of moisture, my hair gets unruly. 

Yes To Tomatoes Tempting Tomato Volumizing Shampoo strikes the perfect balance. Laced with ginkgo biloba for light moisture and Dead Sea mud and mineral natural cleansers, this natural shampoo provides an equal amount of moisture and natural cleansing ingredients to produce a smooth lather and baby-soft locks. Yes To Tomatoes Tempting Tomato Volumizing Shampoo is also packed with vitamins from tomatoes (obviously), rooibos tea and watermelons—namely lycopene, vitamin C, vitamin E and carotene. These rich vitamins and antioxidants provide protection from harmful free radicals and pump up your hair’s strength. Yes To Tomatoes Tempting Tomato Volumizing Shampoo is a great choice for oily hair that needs volume and strength. 

Besides all the good stuff in Yes To Tomatoes Tempting Tomato Volumizing Shampoo, let’s talk about what’s not in this natural shampoo: parabens, SLS, animal byproducts, or phthalates. This natural shampoo line contains only the best natural and organic ingredients and boasts a 99.6 percent natural seal. 

One of the most exciting things about the entire Yes To line (Yes To Carrots, Yes To Tomatoes, Yes To Cucumbers) is that it’s easily accessible to everyone. Buy Yes To Tomatoes Tempting Tomato Volumizing Shampoo for about $9 at Walgreens, Target, Longs Drugs, Ulta, Duane Reade, Safeway, Rite Aid and other national stores. Too often, natural shampoo and other natural beauty products cost upwards of $20 a pop (believe me, I read your comments and price complaints every time I review a pricey new natural beauty product) and isolate conscientious consumers who want to bring healthy personal-care items into their homes, but also need to be conscientious about their budgets. I think this is a win for us all—natural beauty products are becoming more and more affordable without compromising quality.   

Have you tried anything from the Yes To line? What did you think about it? Where did you buy it? Share your natural beauty reviews with me in the comments below! 

Next week: Billy Lowe natural shampoo

I switch up my shampoos every few months. For summer, I’m experimenting with three new natural shampoos. 

This week, I’ve been using Caudalie Gentle Conditioning Shampoo. It’s the latest addition to the luxurious Caudalie line. This natural shampoo is 100 percent plant-based (no SLS or SLES in this stuff!) and is suitable for natural or color-treated hair and fine or thick hair. 

A bottle of Caudalie Gentle Conditioning Shampoo is 6.7 ounces and costs $18. Photo Courtesy Caudalie.

Evident by the name, Caudalie Gentle Conditioning Shampoo is a more sophisticated version of the “2 in 1” shampoo and conditioners that you see on the market today. Caudalie Gentle Conditioning Shampoo cleanses with palm oil and protects and moisturizers your hair with sunflower oil. The fatty acids in sunflower oil amp up your hair’s strength and shine.

Also packed into this natural shampoo are wheat proteins (for strength) and grape seed oil for additional moisture and nourishment. Caudalie Gentle Conditioning Shampoo even has a bonus ingredient—white vinegar, which we always sing praises for—to add shine to your hair. This natural shampoo has a soft, gentle lather and leaves your hair feeling clean but not moisture-stripped.

The natural shampoo’s light scent is perfect for humid Kansas summer—not too intense, but just fresh enough. I’ll be stashing this bottle of natural shampoo in my beach, pool and overnight bags this summer, because it’s just better for me (and the planet) than those conventional “2 in 1” shampoos. Grab your bottle of Caudalie Gentle Conditioning Shampoo when it hits shelves and the web in August.

What natural shampoo is in your shower? Leave a comment and let me know what to try next!

Next week: Yes to Tomatoes natural shampoo.

I’ve found another great reason for indulging myself with great Aveda products. Seven of the company’s products have received Gold Cradle to Cradle certification, making Aveda the world’s first beauty company to receive certification for its sustainable products. 

Cradle to Cradle certification is a way to measure achievement in environmentally intelligent design. To receive certification, a product must use environmentally safe and healthy materials, design recyclable or compostable products, efficiently use renewable energy and water, and institute corporate practices that promote social responsibility.   

Among those receiving the highest marks were Aveda’s Smooth Infusion shampoo and conditioner, Dry Remedy Moisturizing shampoo and conditioner, Pure-formance shampoo and conditioner for men and Green Science Firming Face Cream. While the products meet the Gold level certification requirements, the product and package are certified together at the Silver level. 

Aveda's Smooth Infusion shampoo and conditioner and Dry Remedy Moisturizing shampoo and conditioner received some of the highest Cradle to Cradle certification marks. Photos Courtesy Aveda.

This certification is hardly the first of Aveda’s environmental accomplishments. Since its founding in 1978, Aveda has strived to create products that are as beneficial to planet as to its customers. Aveda has also received certification for its Green Ingredient Policy from the Environmental Protection and Encouragement Agency, an affiliate of MDBC, the company offering Cradle to Cradle certification. Aveda describes green ingredients as being: 

• Sourced from organic, sustainable or renewable plant-based origins

• Providing fair compensation to suppliers

• Not negatively impacting the ecosystems from which they are sourced

• Biodegradable

• Involve environmentally responsible processing (for example, steam distillation rather than chemical extraction of essential oils)

• Animal friendly (and not tested on animals) 

Throughout its history, Aveda has been at the forefront of initiating green policies. It has formed partnerships with indigenous communities around the world to sustainably harvest ingredients; it was the first company to incorporate 85 to 90 percent recycled HDPE plastic into all of its products; and it was also the first company to manufacture with 100 percent certified wind power. 

I think I’ll go wash my hair.