RENOVAR SALON UPDATE, JULY 2012

As of July 13, 2012 we have not heard back from the IRS on our tax exempt status.  Granted, we could go ahead and open the salon now but because we are asking manufacturers for donations of our initial products we feel they should be able to get a write off .  Its only fair.  The IRS website states that they are currently working on applications received in October 2011.  Our application was submitted on October 28, 2011.  We will keep everyone updated on our progress.   

BEAUTY FOR A BUCK?

I was wandering through a local Dollar Store when I happened upon a long row of beauty and personal care products. Curious, I started looking at the ingredient labels of many of the products and what I found was rather profound.

I've done some research on Parabens in products and what I discovered was parabens are most hazardous when they are in products that are designed to stay on the skin such as Face creams, Makeup, Body lotions, and Hair styling products. There is no other product that is of more concern than that of Deodorant.   

(Parabens can mimic the hormone estrogen, which is known to play a role in the development of breast cancers and affects the secretion of testosterone and the function of the male reproductive system.  British researchers have found traces of chemicals called parabens in tissue taken from women with breast cancer.  Their tests suggested the chemicals had seeped into the tissue after being applied to the skin)

The reason deodorant is such a concern is that it is applied to the underarms where some of the most active follicles and sweat glands are.  Plus, the underarms contain lymph nodes.  The lymph nodes are a part of the lymphatic system, which is connected to the immune system.  It is thought that there is a direct connection between parabens in deodorant and parabens found in cancerous tissues.

I’ve looked at many popular deodorant labels only to find that almost every single product contained at least one form of paraben where many had up to 5 different parabens. 

But when reading the ingredients listed on almost every (stick formula) deodorant at the Dollar Store I did not find any parabens whatsoever.  Not only did I not find any parabens, I noticed that the ingredient list was much shorter than the other brands.  After purchasing a stick I found that it worked as well if not better than some of the big name brands.

This got me thinking about other personal care items that were offered at the Dollar Store.

I started comparing shampoos and conditioners, hairsprays, detanglers (my daughter needs it every day), styling products, shower gels, basic moisturizers, toothpaste and fragrance.

Although it’s a hit or miss situation to find the same products every time to visit the Dollar Store, I did find that many of the “copy cat” items contained the same or better ingredients as the more expensive brands. 

I found salon quality shampoos, conditioners and hairsprays that were as good as Paul Mitchell and Sebastian products.  I picked up a case of spray detangler (12 for $12.00) for my daughter that was safer and more effective than the $15.00 a bottle brand I was buying.

I found a big jar of Cocoa and Shea Butter Body Cream that is so natural you can eat it.   

I think the best find was fragrance.

We’ve all seen them; “If you like Calvin Klein Obsession, You’ll Love……”  Well, I did, and I do!

A while back I did a piece on this blog on how dangerous fragrances are.  It talks about the numerous hazardous chemicals in brand name perfumes and fragrances and that by law the fragrance industry does not have to list the ingredients in their products.  It is said that there are hundreds of ingredients that are used in fragrances that are known to be dangerous to humans. 

I noticed a display at my local Dollar Store of various “copy cat” fragrances.  One of them was my favorite, Obsession by Calvin Klein.  I thought what the heck; it’s only a dollar, so I bought one.

I tried the fragrance and could not tell the difference so I decided to wear it to work one day.  I work in the cosmetic department of a large department store chain.  As I was working many of my coworkers commented on how nice the “obsession” smelled on me.  I even had a couple of the fragrance sales people comment on how nice it was.  I didn’t tell any of them it was a $1 copy cat. 

The fact that it was a convincing copy cat was secondary to what else I discovered. 

I noticed that the ingredient list had only 3 ingredients listed; Water, Alcohol and Fragrance. 

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing so I called the company and asked them if all of the ingredients were in fact listed.  What I was told was “yes, we list every ingredient….”  The reason their fragrance was so inexpensive was precisely for that reason.  The company that makes the copy cat fragrance does not use the expensive chemicals that are added to other fragrances to make them last longer on the body or evaporate quicker. I did notice that when you spray the copy cat fragrances on, they do not dry as quickly as the other expensive brands.  But who cares?  I’d rather have a fragrance that takes longer to dry than one that may potentially kill me.

My love for the Dollar Store hasn’t stopped with personal care and beauty products.  I found that I can get cleaning products, detergents, hair clips (again my daughter goes through a lot), and other home needs for a lot less.

Granted, at the Dollar Store there aren’t as many choices available as the department store, and you have to visit regularly to see what’s available but what I did find is, there are some awesome and cheaper alternatives available for only a buck.

RENOVAR SALON UPDATE

Many of our followers have asked us whats happening with the new salon, so we thought we would fill you all in. 

We have applied for Non-Profit Tax Status with the IRS but have not gotten the final OK.  Hey, its the government, what can we say.  We expect an answer any day now. 

Once we have the "Go Ahead", we can start soliciting donations from vendors and supporters.  As soon as we have enough donations, we will start interviewing hair stylists and manicurists. 

Our goal is to have a unique, high end salon without the high end prices.  All of our services and products will be the safest available.  We will NOT have any harmful chemical services such as Perms, Chemical Relaxers, Harmful Hair Color (we found an awesome organic hair color system), Acrylic or Gel Nails, or Bacteria Producing Pedicure Chairs.   Everything we do will be safe enough for pregnant women, people going through chemotherapy, children etc.

We will have the safest and most effective skin care, hair care and makeup available at extremely affordable prices.

Our recycling program will be the most aggressive ever.  Our clients can bring in their clean, empty containers (that they purchased from us) to be refilled at a discount.

All of our profits (after running the business) will go to local charities that are nominated by you, our customers.

Our goal is to open at least 1 new location a year.

Other services we will be offering through our Mother Non-Profit company (The Saf Salon Project) will consist of, Free haircare, skincare and makeup services to women in shelters that are trying to find work.  We will work with other Non-Profit organizations that help these women to develop resumes, assist in interviewing and find free clothing for their interviews.

We are also raising money to purchase wigs for women and children going through chemotherapy.  We will also maintain the hairpieces for them at no cost.

We would also like to offer Medical Corrective Makeup Artistry training to makeup artists.

This project will show that you can have a successful salon without the rediculous amount of waste and hundreds of harmful chemicals associated with most salons. 

We promise to keep you up to date on the progress of these programs and the opening of the salon.

Thank you for your interest and support.