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Hoooo-boyyy, it has been a stressful time here at Highland Fashionista HQ since Hurricane Ian plowed right over us in Charlotte County. However, I hasten to add that our experience pales in comparison to what many Floridians are going through. The stories being told around the state right now are both terrifying and heartbreaking. This was an absolutely catastrophic storm for many, many people, and despite being directly in the path of the storm, all of the people we know have emerged safe and sound. Our house weathered the storm well, and miraculously we did not experience any flooding. Do we have damage? Yes. Absolutely. You cannot endure 160 MPH winds without getting your hair messed up a bit. Will it be expensive? Undoubtedly. But bent pool cages and loose shingles can be repaired, and we are still standing, bent but not broken. Escaping Hurricane Ian Before it Hit We weren't actually in residence when the storm hit. My husband was back in the UK working, and I had only just left Florida a week prior having cleaned the place in anticipation of some fall rentals. I'd packed up as much of my stored shop inventory as I could carry and departed for the UK, blissfully ignorant of the coming chaos. In one week's time, I would be glued to the tiny screen on my iPhone, mainlining the storm tracking feature on my NOAA app while I watched this behemoth slowly change its predicted course and position itself for a direct hit as a Category 4 hurricane. There's a reason those of us with ties to Florida pay so much attention to exactly how these storms approach and make landfall. You may have heard Floridians refer to the "dirty" and "clean" sides of a hurricane before. Granted, there is no literal "clean" part of any hurricane, but what this does refer is best boiled-down in this handy infographic that was put out by Orlando's WFTV9 in 2020 in the days before hurricane Laura. You can read the full explanation on their page. Basically a hurricane has four distinct anatomical parts that each have slightly different impact on whatever is in its path. Front Left: This is where storm surge can be most significant Front Right: THE WORST. Winds, smaller storm systems within the storm, rain bands, lightning...all of it. The front right side of a hurricane is the everything bagel of storms. Back Left: the weakest point, still not a lot of fun Back Right: the strongest winds of the hurricane When Ian made landfall, our place was pretty much in the front to front left quadrant, and we spent a good chunk of time in the storm's eye wall, the condensed area surrounds the eye and packs the most powerful punch. In the case of Ian, that eye was thirty, yes...thirty miles wide. This clip was recorded by my next door neighbour, who captured the fury of the eye wall as it passed over. Like a lot of Floridians, she and her husband rode out the storm at home. Phew, right? At this point our pontoon boat had blown off the lift and floated away. You can see the empty lift in the background. Since 2002, homes in Florida are built to code that dictates they withstand hurricane force winds, referred to as the FBC (Florida Building Code). This change happened on the back of some of the lessons learned from Hurricane Andrew, which pretty much took out Punta Gorda in 1992. If you look at Punta Gorda (situated directly across the Charlotte Harbor from us), a majority of their homes and buildings are still standing. This is because so much of that city was rebuilt to the new Florida building code. Our home, built in 2016-2017, was built similarly. Our community has a canal system that leads to a lagoon, which then joins into the Charlotte Harbor, which then feeds into the Gulf of Mexico. Normally, when a hurricane approaches it sucks all of the water out of the harbors that flow into the Gulf, only to have it come rushing back with force once the storm passes over. It was this phenomenon that caused so much catastrophic damage throughout Southwest Florida. Unlike with the Florida building code upgrade of 2002, there is no code or amount of sand bags that will keep the raging Gulf in check when it gets tossed ashore by a CAT 4 hurricane. This was a major cause of so much of the destruction and loss of life we are seeing with this storm. We are lucky where we are situated, because the lagoon that connects our community to the Harbor via a series of canals is surrounded by mangroves, and most importantly, has a lock that opens and closes so boats can pass through. The water cannot freely just flow in and out from the lagoon to the harbor, it has to work a little harder if it wants to flood. This is a big reason we didn't get hammered by the surge as badly as they did in other places. This reverse surge phenomenon was observable in the Charlotte Harbor as Ian approached. The Aftermath of the Storm In the immediate aftermath of the storm, with literally no communications working, it felt like a loooong wait until we could get some news on our friends, neighbours and property. My husband's BFF is a concractor stateside, and he offered to go down to our house, take stock of the damage, and secure the roof to repair any shingles and make sure it was watertight. We were so relieved and grateful to him for this offer that when we finally did get a text from our neighbour shortly thereafter, it took me a full minute to process it. After reassuring us that all was well and the property came through like a champ, things took a turn for the weird. At the end of her text was the following note. "you have a couple from the UK staying in your house. Very nice. Didn't ask how long they were renting. No power or water still." Wait....what!? Our October rental showed up. From the UK. The day after the storm. They had booked through the home management company for the month, and apparently not wanting to miss their holiday and not having gotten any correspondence from the management company, flew from the UK to go to a rental house in a town where literally 24 hours prior, a CAT 4 hurricane had made landfall and left destruction and chaos in its wake. We were stunned. We had not even been able to get in touch with our home management company ourselves at this point. No comms were working anywhere near us. We had no idea if the people who manage our home were even accounted for at this point. We figured the British holidaymakers must gotten a welcome email from the rental company with all the codes to get in, and I guess just figured they'd just pitch up and hope for the best. But I'm not gonna lie, Im having a hard time wrapping my head around it. Laying aside the appropriateness of the whole thing, Just to arrive there, they had to have driven through a lot of heartbreaking devastation. At that point there was still a lot of flooding and debris on the roadways. It is actually kind of a miracle they arrived without being stopped, or worse yet without having gotten themselves in serious trouble or killed by a downed power line or some such. Like everyone at that point, we had no power in the house. No water. No AC. No sewer. At the time of this posting, we still don't have power, a week later. We did for about a day, then a damaged transformer blew. So power may be a bit of a wait. In addition, most of the screens were blown out of the lanai, and parts of the cage were twisted and loose, making opening any doors to the house an invitation to every bug in Charlotte County. But by golly these people wanted to stay. There was no way to cook or bathe. They had apparently picked up enough info to know to flush the toilets with a bucket of water, but what they couldn't know is that the houses in our area have mini sewers, a septic-type system that fills to a certain point, then a pump kicks in to suck the waste out to the main sewer. If you have no electricity, you have no pump. Eventually if you keep flushing toilets with no power, that sewage is gonna back right up into your drains and come shooting out at you through your shower drain while you're in your bathroom, unsuspectingly plucking your eyebrows. This was not the post hurricane problem set I was anticipating, and my husband and I were quite literally stunned into silence. With no comms working and our management company AWOL, how can we even begin to approach this? Renters in the house with no power! When there's no light people burn candles! My imagination was running through house burning down scenarios on a loop. My husband did finally get to speak to the people in our house, thanks to our neighbour. I have to say, it took my husband considerable time and energy to convince them that they needed to pack up and vacate our home until we could secure it and services were restored. That not so fun job fell to him because of the two of us, he is the diplomat. If you need conflict resolution, he's your man. If you need someone to reach into the chest of your enemy and pull out his beating heart while looking him in the eye à la Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, that's my department. In the end, common sense prevailed, and the couple, who were reportedly very nice, moved to another property, or maybe got refunded...I actually don't know, and I don't care. The point is they vacated and allowed us to get on with the task of damage assessment and repair. But that whole completely unanticipated and utterly weird experience did provide me with a rather stark reminder that in life, not everything is always as clear and obvious to others as it may be to us. So that's it. That's our brush with Ian. It is absolutely small potatoes compared to what many people in our area are going to have to endure for a very long time. If you wish to contribute to the ongoing relief efforts, I'm leaving some links below. If you wish to support us directly, the best way to do so is to make a purchase from the Highland Fashionista Etsy shop, or contribute to the blog. Stay safe everyone, and check the weather before you go on that vacation! Feeding Florida: coordinating all of the food banks in the state to help provide food for displaced people in the state of FL World Central Kitchen: providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises Direct Relief: works to equip health professionals in resource-poor and hard hit communities. American Red Cross: the Red Cross is focusing on providing safe shelter, meals and comfort to victims of Hurricane Ian.

Last week was awful. We had to suddenly say goodbye to our nearly 16 year-old bearded collie, Fergus. Fergus has been a central part of our lives the entire 15 years I have been in Scotland. With a (very) old dog you know that every day is a blessing, but that doesn't make losing a pet any easier. I've had the makings of a few posts sitting on my desktop for over a week now, but quite frankly, I'm just not feeling it. Eyeshadow can wait. Clothing can wait. It can all wait. It'll get done soon. In the meantime, please enjoy these photos of our beloved departed boy, and I'll be back after the massive hole in my heart has a chance to heal at least a little bit.

Hey fashionistas. I'm happy to report that after many of us who sell on the Etsy platform enquired about ways we could support Ukrainian artists on the platform, Etsy has come up with a stratgegy to help try and give these sellers a boost in trying times. There is some really lovely stuff that comes out of Ukraine, and a ton of sellers who up until recent events were earning their keep on the platform. You can read about Etsy's strategy here and lend your support!

**UPDATED JUNE 2023** Ahoy there Internetters!  Yes, I know that for many of you, this seems like a strange time of year to be providing an update to my periodic safe sunscreens postings, but I'm afraid this is just the way it is with me. When you live between Scotland and Florida, summer is winter, winter is summer, and spring and fall are more theoretical constructs than times of year, so I really pay no mind at all to the changing of seasons. I am led completely by necessity, and this past few weeks, I needed sunscreen. First off, if you're new or need a refresher, have a read-through of my previous safe sunscreen postings: The original post - Sunscreen Safety can be found here The follow-up - More Safe Sunscreens can be found here As with my two previous postings, I always check any product I am trying-out for the first time against the Environmental Working Group's Safe Sunscreens database. They have amassed an incredible amount of data and have reviewed just about every major brand you can think of that is readily available - particularly those in the US. If you have never visited this website, you simply must. Every year, they test a raft of sunscreens and rate them, giving the consumer a tidy list of some of the safest and most effective products on the market. And some surprising recommendations of products to steer clear of as well (seriously, if you're still using those aerosolized sunscreens, or worse yet any of the Ambre Solaire products - I strongly encourage you to visit this site and read-up!) Generally speaking, the safest sunscreens are always going to be the mineral-based ones -  the zinc and titanium dioxide sunscreens. Yes, they tend to leave a bit of a whiteish cast on the skin, but if safety is what you're after, there simply is no alternative. There are some good "hybrid" products out there (sunscreens that are a combination of a chemical sunscreen and minerals), but as far as effectiveness, sensitivity, and side effects go, your mineral sunscreens are always going to be at the top of the list. A Slightly Different Approach to Safe Sunscreen This time around,  I took a different tack than I have in the past when looking at sunscreens. Normally, I would look at the EWG recommendations, then order a handful of their top-rated sunscreens and take them for a whirl. However, a lot of their top-rated versions are not readily available in stores, particularly if you live in a place with limited access to more "natural" brands, which a lot of these top-rated mineral sunscreens tend to be. Added to that I get sent a lot of stuff for the blog, so I always have a few products laying-around that I did not come by because of the website. With that in mind, I made my selections this time based on things that were more readily-available in stores. Sure, I cheated a bit to make sure that the ones I was choosing had been reviewed, but this time, you should be able to walk into a Walgreens or a Boots and put your hands on the product without having to order it from Amazon. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Amazon has literally been here to the house in FL about eight times in the past two weeks as I fly into a panic preparing to return to the UK. But I digress. Here's the intel, and a quick reminder that with the EWG, the lower score is what you want - think of it as a "demerit" system -  a 1 is their highest rating. The higher the score, the less safe the sunscreen. Think Baby SPF 50+ Sunscreen $17 US / £14 UK I mention this one again because it is my hands-down favorite sunscreen of all time. I've been using it for years. It goes on easily (for a mineral sunscreen), does not leave you looking too much like a ghost, can be used on your face with ease, smells amazing, and stays on forever, even in the pool (that's not to say you don't need to re-apply, but I'm a medium-olivey skinned girl so I likely get a little more time out of it than some). This one will probably always be in my cache here in Florida.  This one gets the top rating of 1/10 from the EWG. And from me. A+ UPDATE JUNE 2023: This sunscreen is consistently in my top picks, and probably always will be. I have no notes on this. Still one of the best. Neutrogena Sheer Zinc Dry-Touch Sunscreen SPF 50+ $11 US / £21 UK While this sunscreen isn't the cheapest you'll find in the drugstore, it is without a doubt probably one of the best. This pure mineral sunscreen gets a top rating of 1/10 from EWG (the face version gets a 2/10) goes on easily, and it definitely does have less of a whiteish cast than your average mineral sunscreen. One of the best things about this sunscreen is that it dries-down on your skin and doesn't leave you feeling like a piece of walking fly paper. Need to buy some sunscreen in a pinch? I reach for this, every time. A JUNE 2023 UPDATE: This Sunscreen really hasn't been in my rotation, really only because it really doesn't represent a particularly great value for the amount of product you get, as good as siad product is. You get so much more product with just about any other drugstore sunscreen, and a UK price tag of over £20 for 3 oz of product? Eek!! If you're looking for a great option that really dries down and sinks into the skin (particularly for the face), I like the Simple Kind to Skin Light Moisturizer With Sunscreen. Granted, it's only SPF 15, so you may want to step it up a bit and try the Raw Elements Daily Moisturizer, SPF 30. Banana Boat Kids Tear-Free, Sting-Free Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50+ $8 US / £8 GBP (similar mineral-based product for babies) If affordability is what you're after, this is an excellent option - but tread lightly. Make sure you are purchasing the Tear-Free, Sting-Free Kids formula, and not one of the other many variations that Banana Boat has out (like the Kids Sport, which unfortunately is much more readily available on shelves). This tear-free formula gets a 3/10 from EWG (while the other permutations get a 6/10 and more), and it has great protection. Granted,  it's a bit more difficult to spread evenly than say, the ThinkBaby sunscreen. However, if you can find this in the store, it will only set you back between $8-10 USD, a bargain when you compare it to some of the pricier "natural" options. If you are going to be somewhere where you think you'll go through a lot of sunscreen, this is a great option. B JUNE 2023 UPDATE: At the time of the original writing, Banana Boat was in the midst of changing a lot of their formulas and branding labels, so their offerings are quite different now, and sadly no longer carry any that I would currently recommend you try. A better sensitive/kids option is the Earth Mama Baby Mineral Sunscreen Lotion.

Ahoy there summer people. Yes, I know I should have posted this at the beginning of the summer, but these days things just sort of happen when they happen. In my quest to update the blog, I have done updates on all of my sunscreen safety posts, so if you're setting out on a late summer vacation or just hanging out in the blistering heat, I've got fresh recommendations. In the USA, the Environmental Working Group has a fantastic database of safe sunscreens (as well as other cosmetics and household products), and several years back I ordered a slew of products they recommended and trialled them on various trips. As it turns out, many of my favorites are still my favorites. There are a few that are no longer available or just really hard to get, and I've offered some alternatives to those. For those of you living in the UK, things are a bit more difficult. By and large, sunscreens available to the mass market in Europe are actually slightly better than the mass market offerings in the US, yet it's pretty hard to find an accurate ingredient comparison that gives much detail about what the ingredients are and what they do, so as the consumer you are a bit on your own to do the research. Additionally, pure mineral sunscreens are always more expensive than their drugstore counterparts, and in the UK, they are ex-pen-SIVE; some that I've found cost as much as £40 (thats about $51!), and are often meant to really only be used on the face. Thankfully, my ever-vigilant husband happened upon a pretty good option for those of you in the UK, and it costs a mere £3.50! ASDA's Protect Sensitive sunscreen is a hybrid sunscreen (that's a combo of chemical sunscreens and titanium dioxide), and I can vouch for the fact that it is not only pretty darn effective, the formula goes on really smoothly, and even after 12 straight days of heavy use I did not become sensitive to it (something that often happens to me with heavy use in a humid climate). Incidentally, if you go to the ASDA site, I strongly recommend you ignore the reviews of this sunscreen, which appear to mostly be written by people who don't understand the fundamentals of how sunscreens containing mineral components actually work. The ASDA sunscreen has no smell and is devoid of all the most common "bad" ingredients like oxybenzone, relying instead on a combo of less potent, safer chemical sunscreens, combined with the mineral ingredient titanium dioxide. I found that this sunscreen applied really smoothly for a mineral hybrid, and it did not dry my skin out, like many natural sunscreens do. I used both the SPF 50 (my go-to) and SPF 30. My only beef with this product is that the titanium dioxide is a nano particle formulation, so there is potential for uptake. You can read more about that and other common problematic ingredients at the EWG site. One last point - If you are using one of those aerosol spray sunscreens, stop now. These are the worst of the worst. Even the mineral versions of these sunscreens pose a risk of inhalation, and quite frankly, they're messy and disgusting. Most of the contents of the can gets lost to the atmosphere, and there's nothing worse than chilling in your beach chair and suddenly tasting someone else's sunscreen. A Quick-Click Reference to Safe Sunscreen Reviews Below are links to all of my updated sunscreen review posts with updated recommendations. Sunscreen Safety: What Every Outdoor Enthusiast Needs to Know Save Your Skin with More Safe Sunscreen Reviews The 2018 Safe Sunscreen Update - Get Vacation Ready!

You may have noticed a lot of new little things popping up on the blog of late. I've been slowly sifting through a lot of old content, tossing some of it out and keeping and updating the good stuff (subjective, I know). If you've seen something you like suddenly disappear, have patience friend. It will reappear. But if it doesn't, drop me a line and tell me you want it back! One of those new things that has popped-up is the newly-minted Highland Fashionista Library of Books Banned in Florida. Okay, it's not really a library, it's a collection of links and a brief description to each of the banned works, a lion's share of which have won literary accolades. As most of you know, I am a part-time Floridian (sort of like a reverse snowbird), and the recent havoc being wreaked on the educators of our state is terrifyingly (but predictably) authoritarian in nature, and quite frankly, simply un-American. So I've decided to do whatever small part I can to try and help reverse the damage being done to the young minds of Florida, all in the name of protecting the children. From books. Protecting children from books. Not gun violence, mind you. Committing a violent act with a firearm is now easier to do than it ever has been in Florida, thanks to another round of incomprehensible legislation. No, we're protecting young minds from reading and books, and I can't even with this s**t. So you'll find links on the website's menu and scattered throughout that will take you to the (ongoing and in progress, probably forever) collection of mostly young adult (but not exclusively) books that to date, have been pulled from the shelves. Why Should I be Interested in Florida Book Ban Activity, It Doesn't Affect Me Doesn't it? If I had a nickel for every time I heard that come out of the mouth of an acquintence or neighbor who may not agree with what's happening in Florida, but doesn't have the energy or foresight to realize that these kids are going to be our cardiologists some day, and will have far-reaching influence not limited to the state of Florida. However, I think the best way to sum it up is what I have written on the "library" page itself: At Highland Fashionista, the freedom for anyone to tell his or her story is sacrosanct. Recent far-right legislation signed into law in the U.S. State of Florida has started a cascade of book removals from school libraries, leaving bookshelves barren and educators feeling like they have targets on their backs. Unsurprisingly, the materials being removed largely represent stories by and about the LGBTQIA+ community and people of color. ​These bans vary by county, and often are enacted after one (yes, just one) complaint. They say knowledge is power (true), but knowledge is also compassion, joy, ecstasy, empathy, pain, fear, sorrow, anger, forgiveness, and love. Sometimes gaining new knowledge may push your buttons a bit. It's supposed to. That's how we grow. Exposure to stories about people whose life experiences may differ vastly from those of our own enhances our innate human ability to connect and learn. To put it plainly, learning to hold space for other people is essential in cultivating a society not populated by idiots. ​If you'd like to do your part in helping the up and coming generations hear the diverse and amazing stories of the diverse and amazing humans of our planet, I'm happy to help. ​This list is based on an article from the Miami New Times, 25 April 2023, is a work in progress, and will be periodically updated.

Last week I posted a pair of rhinestone star earrings (almost as an afterthought) to my post about minimalist summer dressing. After getting a few questions about them in my inbox, I decided to give them, or perhaps more accurately the trend that is behind them, a bit of attention this week. Style experts have been declaring maximalism as the look of the minute for a while now, and I'm here for it. While I don't necessarily consider myself a maximalist when it comes to accessories, equally I wouldn't describe myself as a minimalist. I fall neatly in the center, fuelled by my highly artistic and painstakingly cultivated process which basically consists of me looking at some jewelry pieces and thinking "well now this is cute" and kind of going from there. The savvy vintage seller in me also feels the need to point out that lot of the maximalist jewelry trends in circulation right now draw pretty heavily from the styles of the 80s. Styles such as button earrings, abstract "artsy-fartsy" shapes, and unconventional materials are all appearing in mainstream shops again. Really, it's sort of a free for all out there right now; the one unifying factor being that most of these pieces are full of fun. Like I always say, this is supposed to be fun, right? Here are three types of maximalist-inspired jewelry that I am really loving for summer, with some pretty fantastic offerings brought to you by my fellow Etsy sellers. Maximalist Jewelry Trend No. 1: Real Shells There's a part of me that has always been inclined to dismiss real shell jewelry as tacky tourist fodder, despite my absolute love of beachcombing. However, you can save the energy that you were about to expend on lecturing me about my own hypocrisy, because this summer's beach-inspired maximalist shell jewelry trends have completely disabused me of that notion! These pieces are at once bold and organic, luxurious yet recognizably commonplace. All I can think of when I look at these pieces is sitting in a breezy tropical climate in a maxi dress sipping an adult beverage. A person could do much, much worse. Maximalist Jewelry Trend No. 2: Fringe Jewelry Any of you who have been hanging around the blog for a while already know I love anything with fringe on it! These pieces give you a bit of a glow and have a swooshy, luxurious feel to them when you're wearing them. What's more, many of these fringe pieces are extraordinarily light to wear, so if like me you love a swingy statement chandelier earring but are starting to notice that inevitable gravitational downward trajectory of the holes in your earlobes, lightweight chain fringe pieces are an excellent choice! Maximalist Jewelry Trend No. 3: Oversized Whimsy My star earrings (the aforementioned original inspiration for this post) fall into a category of maximalism I've dubbed "oversized whimsy." This is perhaps the most 80s-derivative maximalist trend on the go, drawing wearable design inspiration straight from the more-is-more nature of the "me decade." Oversized whimsy is a broad moniker, encompassing anything and everything big, whimsical and fun: stars, hearts, lightning bolts, rainbows, unicorns, sea urchins...anything that catches your fancy can fall into this category. Even those of you who aren't fans of huge jewelry pieces can enjoy the maximalist trend. Swap-out some of the chunk and heft of a solid statement piece for the color and shine of a slightly smaller, but infinitely more colorful one. Don't like chunky pieces? Choose a layered "fringe" look made from a handful of delicate pieces. The thing I like best about this trend is how flexible it is - there is truly something for everyone.

Greetings again fashionphiles! Last year, I trialed a few of the Environmental Working Group's top-rated sunscreens on a trip I took to Greece, and came up with a few solid favourites. I am pleased to announce that a few months ago, I did the same thing on a trip to Southwest Florida, and have a few more names I can add to the mix if you are looking for some top-rated, safe sunscreens. Getting your sunscreen game right is becoming more and more important by the year, so hopefully this will help you find something that works for you, as it has for me. **JUNE 2023 - UPDATED** Safe Sunscreen Reviews for Your Upcoming Vacation ThinkSport SPF 50+ Sunscreen (US) / (UK) This is the "sport" version of the sunscreen that is made by the same people who make the ThinkBaby sunscreen, which was the trip favourite of my last sunscreen review post. To be honest, I didn't notice that much of a difference between this formulation and the ThinkBaby formulation, but that may have been because a lot of time elapsed in-between. Perhaps the ThinkSport was very slightly drier (and therefore thicker), but that may just have to do with the age of the product or shipping exposure and whatnot. Overall, I would definitely purchase this one again, and found it very effective, although I am not entirely convinced that it would hold up to "sport" the way I engage in sport. I have yet to meet a sunscreen that will not run into my eyes while running or sweating on the tennis court. Grade A+ JUNE 2023 UPDATE: Nothing new to add here. This is a safe and very effective sunscreen, I prefer the Think Baby to the Think Sport, and didn't find that much difference onther than the slightly drier formula of the sport. Raw Elements Eco Formula SPF 30 / (UK) This was the highest-rated of my husband's safe sunscreen reviews of our trip; his criteria for being that by far it was the easiest formula to blend-in. To be fair, this is something that can be quite a chore with natural sunscreens and can really make or break your experience with them. Although I agree with his assessment, I thought that it didn't soak-in as readily as some of the others I'd tried, leaving you a bit shiny and "wet" for longer that I'd like. However, that didn't stop me from ordering 4 more bottles for our upcoming trip to the Bahamas, because it worked really well, and at the end of the day, that's what matters. I will also add here, that despite the "fragrance free" formula, there is a very distinct fragrance to it (likely form the natural ingredients) that I liken to the smell of the inside of a health food store. It's not unpleasant, just rather different.  Grade B+ UPDATE JUNE 2023: This sunscreen is a little harder to get your hands on in a pinch, but it's lovely and moisturizing, and reef safe! Beyond Coastal Natural Sunscreen SPF 30 This one was my favourite of the trip, so naturally it is also the most difficult one to find - especially in the UK. This one had good spreadability, a light formulation, lasted all day long (yes, I know you're supposed to re-apply…don't judge!), and best of all, it soaks into the skin within minutes of application, making it easy to get dressed again and get on with your day. It was my intention to grab a bunch of these for our Bahamas trip (to add to the three ThinkBaby sunscreens we already have), but I left it too late what with all the holiday-related bank holidays they have over here. One note, if you want to try this one, be sure you get the "natural" sunscreen version. They make some chemical and hybrid sunscreens too that while really good, are not top-rated like the natural one.  Grade A+ JUNE 2023 UPDATE: Sadly, this one has gotten too hard to find. Instead, try the EWG-verified Babo Botanicals Sheer Mineral Sunscreen, or the Babo Baby Skin Formula.

Yes, it has taken me nearly two whole weeks to get around to doing the post I meant to do when I returned from Kefalos on the Greek Island of Kos. And yes, I realise that this is the end of the summer and you are probably not wanting to be thinking about sunscreen safety, but trust me, you need to think about it. We all do. And until recently, I never realised how much. **UPDATES ADDED JUNE 2023** Sunscreen Safety: Why it Matters This past summer, I spent some time getting to know the Environmental Working Group's Sun Safety Campaign webpage, and had a pretty serious education about the composition of the sunscreens I have been absent-mindedly slathering on my corpus. Despite the fact that I work in a healthcare profession and consider myself pretty well-informed, I came to the realisation that a lot of the things that I had been led to believe were safe products actually appear on the EWG's "Hall of Shame" naughty list. Yes, they have a naughty list, and some of the products on it will surprise you. You are probably using at least two or three of them right now. Naughty you. Dissecting the finer points of what makes a sunscreen safe is too long a process to go into all in one post, but allow me to direct you to the EWG's 2015 Guide to Safe Sunscreens, where you can learn all about the things that a lot of the mass-marketed chemical sunscreens have in them, like ingredients that can cause organ system toxicity (including hormonal, developmental and reproductive toxicity! I know, right!?), and issues with filtering out UVB radiation without adequately protecting against UVA (a common theme among many mass-marketed chemical sunscreens). Even the old-school, mineral sunscreens that are supposedly the safest are not immune to poorly-conceived ingredients. Among the most prevalent problems with some of these types of sunscreens are nanoparticles. Apparently our advanced technology that has improved cosmetic formulations by leaps and bounds has done so in part by creating these tiny particles that can actually be taken-up into the body via the skin and absorbed, creating all manner of chaos once they build up a presence in the body. Gaaaah! Armed with this new evidence-based information, I decided that my most recent vacation was going to be one where I road-tested some sunscreens, all of which that had a #1 rating from EWG. All of the sunscreens that I tried were mineral-based, and most are easily found in the USA. Those of us outside of the US may have to work a bit harder to find some of these EWG-rated sunscreens, but if I can do it, anyone can. I am also going to be shamelessly inserting my vacation photos into the narrative here, just because I can. Thinkbaby SPF 50+ Sunscreen (US) / (UK) Usually I like to build-up to the best product, but what the heck. This ultra-gentle mineral sunscreen was the winner of the trip by a long shot. I often buy sunscreen for babies because they tend to forego the heavy perfumes and dyes and keep it simple and gentle. This sunscreen spread incredibly easily for a mineral sunscreen and blended-in better than any mineral-based sunscreen I've ever used. It stayed on well, and left a minimal white cast on the skin. You are always going to get a bit of a cast from a mineral sunscreen, but this one was pretty much undetectable on me, and I have quite medium to olive skin. Especially in the Greek sun. The scent was a lovely natural citrus that dissipates quickly, and even my husband, who is generally not a fan of mineral sunscreens (they stick to all his man hair) really liked this one. They also make a Thinksport version which I aim to try the next time I'm in Florida. I would definitely buy this again. Grade: A++ JUNE 2003 UDATE: This is still one of my favorite sunscreens of all time. It goes on really well, it's smooth, it lasts, and it smells great! Babo Botanics Clear Zinc Sportstick Sunscreen SPF 30 (US) / (UK) I have to say, this one was a bit of a surprise to me. When I uncapped it, I thought I was looking at a big lip balm. The formulation is very shea buttery, exactly like a natural lip balm. Although it says it is unscented, it has a very light, almond-shea-buttery scent, which I actually really like. At first, I was hesitant to use this on my face (its intended location), thinking its heavy emollient quality would clog my pores, but I did it anyway. Not only did I never burn once, my skin was soft and smooth as a baby's butt the entire trip, and I did not break out. This stuff stays on well in the water due to its very emollient nature, but I don't think it would be possible to wear this for intense sport or under makeup - too thick and slippery. However, this is a great portable option for the face if you are going to be in the pool or sea, as it really protects the skin. I really didn't notice a white cast at all, and I even used it on my décolletage towards the end of the week, with much success. I'd buy it again, yes. Grade: A JUNE 2023 UPDATE: They've changed the packaging since I first reviewed this in 2023, but I still love this product as a great portable opton! Elemental Herbs All Good Sunstick SPF 30 (US) / (UK) Sunscreen Only This is really pretty much the exact same formula as the Babo, right down to the "unscented scent". I think maybe the Babo had slightly more glide and was a bit easier to spread, but that might just be because that was the first one I opened and used in the hot weather. Whatever the case may be, this is pretty much an identical product to the Babo, but I'm giving it a B+ instead of an A because of the possible spreadability issue. But really, there is no issue. Everything I said about the Babo applies to this product as well. Grade: B+ **UPDATE 2020** This product is now in a coconut oil base, so it has a light coconut scent . All Terrain AquaSport SPF 30 Spray Sadly, the pump did not work on this bottle (a common problem I had read about in the reviews). Because of this, we had to sort of pour it on ourselves, and ended up using way more than we probably would have in one go. The bottle only lasted one day, and one proper application each. This sunscreen spread really well and didn't leave too white a cast, but the thinner formula makes it necessary to reapply more often. To be honest, I think if my pump been working, I may not have put enough of this stuff on to be adequately protected. That said, it worked well, stayed on well, and I would be interested in trying it again. They make a formula in a tube, so maybe next time I'll try that, although I hear the tube version is quite thick and pasty; probably exactly what makes it effective. Grade: B- JUNE 2023 UPDATE: This product is no longer available, and I can't say I'm all that sad about it. A much better alternative to try is the Bare Republic Gel Mineral Sunscreen, pictured below. It's lightweight, spreads amazingly for a mineral sunscreen, and gives good protection. One thing I noticed about this sunscreen, it's best applied on clean skin. If you have certain types of hyaluronic acid moisturizer on underneath, it has a tendency to pill-up on you.

This post originally was published in 2012. You may notice a lack of quality with some of the images due to a data error during migration to the new site - no need to adjust your screen. Well, its done. The gray hair journey is complete. The last few inches of dyed hair has been placed in its final resting place in the trash bin at the hairdressers. No more telltale line drawn in the follicular sand that marks the end of the dye and the beginning of my real hair.  I have officially gone natural. And you know what the kicker is? My husband says that he thinks he likes the new, chopped-off version of me better than before version of me, thereby shattering the myth that men only "see" women with long hair, and the rest of us will just have make due with reruns of Downtown Abbey and a carton of Chunky Monkey (which, incidentally,  I hate...why I used that as an example is beyond me....I'm more of a mango sorbet gal myself). So if you're new to the blog and/or have not yet read about my transition to my natural gray hair, here is a quick photographic recap, starting in about 2010 (please forgive the grainy photos.) The entire process took about 18 months from the first photo to the haircut. Photo Progression of My Gray Hair Journey So that's it. That's me finished with the journey. It sort of feels like there should be some fireworks or a cake or something. I should definitely have planned for that. Will I keep my hair natural like this? Color-wise, yes. Cut wise, I'll probably grow it back to just above my shoulders. I have really thick hair, and it tends to go all mushroomy when it is short if I don't style it meticulously. This is my hair with a whole lot of product in it to get it to lie down and behave. More on that in a forthcoming post.Now on to the philosophical stuff Things I Learned on my Natural Gray Hair Journey You have to be ready. If you are the type to worry excessively about what others might think, you're not ready. Hang in there. Many of your female friends will think you're insane to want to do something that is so "aging".  They,  or maybe even complete strangers may say things to you because they want to "help" you.  Ignore them. Your haircolor choice is not a medical condition. When people do say things to you, remember that this is a reflection on them and their personal insecurities, not on you and yours.  If they persist,  speak to them from the heart about your reasons for wanting to go natural. You will know your reasons well when you are ready to go natural,  so it should come easily.  If, despite your heart-to-heart,  they continue to persist and badger, well...that person may just be an insensitive a-hole. They have shown you who they are. Move on. Have fun with products and fashion. Give that unforgiving fuchsia lipstick that you were never braveenough to wear a try, you will be amazed what looks good on you now that you have less colour next to your face. Also try on your clothes and assess what still works in your closet, and maybe what doesn't. Open your mind to new colours (says the girl in the gray sweater), really, colour is your friend. Hair product is your friend. Gray hairs are wirey little bastards with a life of their own. I will be reviewing products I try in many, many forthcoming posts. Probably for the rest of my life. Your input here is most welcomed. I would say that I am finished here and sign off, but that would not be true. I have finished the technical part of the going natural process. Now for the finer details...finding what works. I feel like a teenager who, by way of heavy experimentation,  is still struggling to decide if blue eyeliner and violet mascara is really the way forward (it isn't). So with that, I set off on another set of tasks; finding stuff that works with my new hair, from clothing to beauty products. And for those of you out there in a similar situation, feel free to drop me a line...particularly if you have found the Holy Grail of Frizz Control. I know I've said this before, but I'm serious....if you have the Holy Grail of Frizz Control  I will follow you... I will follow you Monty Python: Life of Brian-style, just about anywhere, so great is my desire for frizz control. Just sayin'.

This post originally was published in 2012 on a different platform - you may notice some lessened quality of photographs that were compromised in the data migration. So the hair thing. It has become quite a popular topic indeed. I have gotten many enquiries and comments from women all different parts of the world who are either jumping on the gray hair bandwagon, thinking about joining our ranks, or at the very least, are talking about it. One of the most frequent emails I get is from those of you in the early stages of growing out your gray hair. And believe me,  I feel you, ladies...oh yes.... I feel you. Those first three months can be the most difficult months to bear. Those first few inches of growth make you feel as if the world is looking at you and thinking "what's going on there", or "she really needs to get herself to the hairdresser".  After three months or so, your regrowth looks intentional, like you meant to do that.  In today's post I will share some of the ways I have soldiered-on with hairstyling during my transition back to my natural state, which, I should add, is still an ongoing process. I've been at it now since October of 2010. My hair is not that straight naturally. I feel I should point that out. This is day two without a shampoo. I mention this only because, if your gray is like mine, it is drier and frizzier than the other hairs on your head, and therefore needs a little more TLC. I try to wash every other day, although workouts, high winds, and just life in general ultimately dictates how frequently my follicles are acquainted with the shampoo bottle. There is also the matter of distribution. My gray seems to be concentrated at the front of my head and at the inner temples. see? So because of this distribution, when I pull it straight back off the forehead, there is still a lot of dark, natural colour underneath. This is key in how I got through the first three or four months of no dye. Small Helpful Actions for Growing Out Gray Hair Wearing Headbands I like to use a smaller headband with teeth now that I have grown out well beyond a few inches. But if you are just starting out, you might want to experiment with wide headbands or scarves. I find scarves too fiddly, personally, but they look fabulous on the right person. Also beware of too-tight headbands. I have been out and about more times than I care to remember and suddenly thought I had been stricken by a migraine. I don't get migraines. What I do get, as it turns out, is a headache induced by a too-tight plastic headband. So try before you buy ladies. Trying A Half-Updo with (or without) A Messy Part Another permutation on this style, something I still use when I need to look more professional and pulled together, is the pinned-back crown half-updo. If you are struggling with length or perhaps are just starting out, you can always go for the zigzag or messy part look. I used that when I had about two inches of growth. It creates a wee bit of visual chaos right where that telling line is between nature and dye. I would mess up my part, then pin it so it would hold. Probably not a look that's clean enough for the boardroom, but fine for a weekend. Using a Lighter Hand With Your Makeup Lastly, as you get more and more gray nearer to your face, you will find that you will have to shift your makeup palette. There is a lot written all over the net about what colours are appropriate for women with gray hair and how orange is to be avoided and bronzing powder is evil...blah, blah, blah. What looks good on you and your gray hair is something that nobody else can really tell you without seeing you. Kind of like a doctor diagnosing you over the internet....it can't be done. This is especially true if you, like me, still have a lot of your natural colour. Yes, I have had to rethink some of my lipsticks, but I still use my bronzing powder (sparingly), and do not have a problem wearing warm colours or even oatmeal or beige, colours that are supposedly verboten for women with gray hair (whatever). So these are the things that have worked, are still working, for me. Really you will have to experiment. I am still doing it too. And if you happen upon a product that actually tames frizz effectively and lasts all day without having to heat style, email me immediately. I want in on that action! (Seriously) And so, dear readers, I will leave you with just one last happy discovery I have made during this process. Bright fuchsia lipstick is your friend. Who would have thought?

Author's note - This post was originally published on another platform in 2012 - you may notice a distinct difference in photo quality as data was lost when the blog migrated platforms. Okay, so we should talk about the hair. My hair, to be exact. I get a lot of questions about it, so I'll give it to you straight. I have gray hair. I am a young person with gray hair. Well, almost. It's not quite done cookin' yet - about another three inches of dye to grow out. Granted, maybe I'm not young...not like, Justin Bieber young, but young enough. And yes, it is on purpose.  I have been off "the bottle" now for over a year. But unlike other people who kick the bottle, I am not going around and apologizing for it. Au contraire. I'm quite proud of it, actually. Here. Proud enough to post all of these less-than-flattering photos on the internet. Below I've documented the progression. Transitioning to My Natural Gray Hair So. You are undoubtedly asking yourself why. Why would a young(ish) person want to have gray hair? It is something I get asked a lot. I understand the confusion, really I do....societal norms and all that baloney. But I would also like to remind the public at large that this is haircolor that we are talking about here. I have not made the announcement that I am planning on gaining fifty pounds and taking up chain-smoking, I am simply changing my haircolor. And really, I wish I had a better rationale for doing it than I do, but my initial reason for letting my natural gray hair show really boils down to the fact that I thought it would look cool. Nothing more, nothing less. Pure vanity, people. Really. This may seem counterintuitive, but let me explain. A gal's gray hair will grow out in a pattern that is unique to her and her alone. I will not see myself coming and going when I walk down the street.  I will look different, unique, and a little bit like I am thumbing my nose at convention. At least, that is what I am hoping.  Is it ego-driven? Absolutley. But I like the confused looks and the double-takes at my head that I get when I walk down the street (and I do get them). They're fun. It's like being famous for a wee second but without having to date John Mayer. A Supermodel with Natural Gray Hair as Inspiration The realisation that I could be free of dye and still retain a chic, edgy style (today's mid-blog photo notwithstanding) dawned on me after seeing the August 2010 issue of the U.S. and Italian editions of Vogue magazine. specifically, this photo. I mean, look at that, people. That is the awesome Kristen McMenamy (you may remember her from the 1990s..one of the first supermodels to do the "no eyebrows" thing). She is well into her 40s.  Whether you love it or hate it, the awesomeness and impact of this editorial cannot be denied. And if you think that one is amazing, get a load of this. That is Vogue Italia (also August 2010), and that is why Steven Meisel is Steven Meisel. Vogue Italia really sets the bar for haute-editorials. This editorial is titled Water and Oil, and it is a commentary on the oil spill that happened right about that time. If you are a fan of fashion photography and you have not seen it in its entirety, you really must, it's breathtaking. So I thought to myself, I can do that! "Real" women (sarcasm) can achieve this! It's easy. And even better, it's a look that is easy to maintain as we get into our 50s and 60s. No more pink glow off of your roots when you go into the bright daylight with your dyed hair. No more brassiness next to your face. No more wig like, over-styled helmet head from so many colourings. I could hardly wait to get started and, well....basically do nothing to my hair.  Ready, set...wait. It's okay. I was in the military. I know how to hurry up and wait. I'm good at it...mostly. Communities Encouraging Women to Rock the Silver And as it turns out, I am not alone at this. There is a whole community online that are doing the same. Check out the Facebook community for Going Gray Looking Great for others just like me. This community was established after the book Going Gray, Looking Great!: The Modern Woman's Guide to Unfading Glory by Diana Jewell inspired the women of the world to ditch the dye and go natural. You should see some of the amazingly beautiful Real Gals and their silvery manes of glory. So there it is. No major health scare or emotional trauma. No allergic reactions or religious restriction. And to answer the most frequently-asked question that I get...no. No,  I'm not afraid that my hair will make me look older, because as Gloria Steinem once said "this is what forty looks like, we've been lying for so long, who would know?."