Lab Muffin @labmuffin - Tumblr Blog

Skincare Routine Update 2022 (with video)

It’s been a while since I talked about my skincare routine, and with all this discussion about “skin cycling” being a new trend, it seemed like a good time to revisit it. It turns out my last video on it was in 2020! So I thought I’d have a look at what’s changed and what’s stayed the same. Here’s the video version where I reacted to my 2020 video, which was reacting to my 2019 blog post talking…

View On WordPress

#review #skincare #video

Guest Appearance on The Proof podcast with Simon Hill

I recently chatted all things skincare with Simon Hill on his podcast The Proof for about three and a half hours. You can listen to the first part on sunscreen here and the second part on skincare, clean beauty, haircare… basically everything else – here. The Proof is a great listen if you’re looking for deep dives on pretty much everything – you can check out the rest of the episodes (over 230!)…

View On WordPress

#critical thinking #guest #podcast #science #skincare #sun protection

You don't need to freak out about benzene in dry shampoo

You don’t need to freak out about benzene in dry shampoo

There’s been another beauty product recall because of benzene. This time it’s dry shampoos produced by Unilever, including products from Dove, TRESemmé, TIGI and Suave. I’ve talked about benzene contamination in products before, specifically sunscreen. It’s a very similar situation this time. The key points: Benzene is not intentionally added to products. Rather, it’s a trace contaminant that’s…

View On WordPress

#analysis #controversial ingredients #hair #mythbusting #science

High School Science Investigations Involving Cosmetics

Over the years I’ve gotten a lot of questions from students and teachers about investigations and demonstrations related to cosmetics that could be done in class or for independent research projects, with limited equipment access. Here are some chemistry-heavy suggestions that might be helpful. Saponification, soaps, detergents Different oils used for saponification have different fatty acid…

View On WordPress

#science

My Top (Mostly Cheap or Free) Haircare Hacks (with video)

I’m pretty lazy with my haircare and I’m bad at sticking to routines. But I also bleached my hair so I could play with pretty colours, which dramatically increased the effort involved to keep my hair looking decent. So in the last few years I’ve been trying out a lot of haircare hacks – these are the ones that’ve changed my routine. They’re all pretty low-effort, and they land at lots of…

View On WordPress

#hair #tips #tutorial #video

Reacting to More Unpopular Opinions (Video)

Here’s part 2 of me discussing people’s unpopular opinions about skincare, and beauty in general – this time we’re talking about: 0:24 Paraben-free was pushed so products would go bad faster 3:46 Everyone gets Botox secretly and pretends it’s skincare 6:28 You can use non-essential products / people get nerdy about skincare and makeup as a way to feel less vain 8:27 All products should have…

View On WordPress

#beauty #skincare #video

"100% mineral sunscreens" using unregulated chemical filters (with videos)

“100% mineral sunscreens” using unregulated chemical filters (with videos)

There’s a sort of industry secret with mineral sunscreens: a lot of them contain unregulated chemical sunscreens. Which isn’t always a big problem… but it also kind of is. Today we’re talking about inactive ingredients in sunscreens that aren’t really inactive. The video is here, keep scrolling for the text version…. SPF boosters It’s not that easy to make a sunscreen. It might seem like all…

View On WordPress

#analysis #rant #science #skincare #sun protection #sunscreen #video

Oily Skin Skincare and Makeup Tips (with video)

My skin is oily / combo and I complain about it quite a lot, so I often get asked for my best tips for controlling the inevitable flood of oil. I also sweat easily which apparently means I’m fit, but this adds to the oil and I end up a bigger mess. I’ve spent a long time trying to get the right balance of products and routines to combat the oil – here are my best skincare and make-up tips! The…

View On WordPress

#make-up #skincare #tips #tutorial #video

The Science of Hair Products: Shampoo and Conditioner (with video)

This post is based on a sponsored video. Sulfates, fatty alcohols, silicones, preservatives… what are they doing in your shampoo and conditioner, and do you need to avoid them? Today’s post is a deep dive into some of the key ingredients in haircare products. The video version is here if you prefer that format! Science of Shampoo Let’s start with shampoo. To me, the best way to approach…

View On WordPress

#active ingredients #analysis #controversial ingredients #hair #science #The Ordinary #video

Reacting to Your Unpopular Opinions (Video)

I asked on Instagram for all your unpopular opinions a short while back, and filmed a chatty video discussing a handful of them – check it out here! Topics covered: 0:19 Body moisturisers are good face moisturisers 1:10 Skincare is unnecessary 2:32 Physical exfoliation is terrible for sensitive skin 5:20 Hyaluronic acid causes inflammation 8:23 Hyaluronic acid dries skin out 11:44 Vitamin C is…

View On WordPress

#active ingredients #controversial ingredients #skincare #video

SkinCeuticals Chat: Career Advice and Product Development Insights

I recently had the chance to sit down with Rabi Sahiti, who works as a Senior Chemist at SkinCeuticals! We discussed: How did you end up working for SkinCeuticals? What do you do at SkinCeuticals? What goes into making a SkinCeuticals product, from start to finish? What are you excited about with SkinCeuticals? What do you personally use in your skincare routine? Do you have any advice for…

View On WordPress

#guest #skincare #video

Top Sunscreen Recommendations 2022

It’s time for an updated sunscreen recommendations list! This is also available as a video here – the video also shows the texture and packaging of each sunscreen, but if you prefer reading the text version keep scrolling. Preamble First a bunch of disclaimers, because I do not have the self confidence to give my opinion without them. (I am working on that.) This list is obviously subjective.…

View On WordPress

#review #skincare #sun protection #sunscreen #video

Nail Polish, Miscarriages, Cancer? Not So Pretty Episode 2 (with video)

Not So Pretty is a HBO documentary series about supposedly dangerous beauty products. It’s a very persuasive, slick-looking documentary. A lot of people chucked out their products after watching it, and as someone who breaks open bottles to use the last three drops at the bottom, this cut me deep. As a scientist who uses a lot of beauty products and cares about her health, I’ve gone through the…

View On WordPress

#controversial ingredients #nails #science #video

Korean Sunscreen Reviews: Beauty of Joseon, Isntree, Innisfree, Mary & May

I recently review a bunch of popular Korean sunscreens for a sponsored video, because most of you are heading into summer in the northern hemisphere. Conveniently I’m heading out of summer, so I’ve actually been trying out tons of sunscreens, and there are some really nice ones in this batch – including a few you’ve probably seen hyped up a lot on social media. Related post: Reviewing Cult Asian…

View On WordPress

#review #skincare #sun protection #sunscreen #video

Talc and Asbestos in Makeup: Not So Pretty Episode 1 (with video)

HBO has a new 4 part documentary Not So Pretty which talks about supposedly dangerous beauty products. This kind of documentary comes out every 6 months or so, and everyone panics and throws out their products. Like pretty much everyone I think, I’m concerned about my health, but not so into people trying to exploit this concern for attention, or for profit. So I watched this documentary with…

View On WordPress

#analysis #controversial ingredients #make-up #science #skincare #video

Answering (Almost) All Your Sunscreen Questions (with video)

I’ve talked a ton about sunscreen over the years, but I’ve found that on every sunscreen post I get asked questions that I’ve answered before, and I think it’s because I’ve gotten a lot of new followers (hi, welcome and thank you!). So I thought I’d do a post where I try to cover every sunscreen question that’s relevant to wearing sunscreen – which I realised, 4500 words into the script, is a…

View On WordPress

#science #skincare #sun protection #video

1,4 Dioxane Ban for Beauty Products? (With video)

If you’ve ever looked up sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) and sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) in a clean beauty app, like me, you might be surprised to find that SLES is dirtier than SLS. These apps are terrible and based on pseudoscience: SLS and SLES are both safe in your products. But if you’re a skincare nerd, you’ll know that SLS is considered harsher on your skin than SLES. So… what’s with these…

View On WordPress

#analysis #chemistry #controversial ingredients #critical thinking #science #video

Trending Blogs

Recently Viewed Blogs

Lab Muffin