How can that be true, you ask?  Researchers from Tabs Group who were commissioned to do the study, point to three major problems:

1. Price. It costs more money to make a product out of natural ingredients rather than synthetic, and consumers pay for it.  “The price for non-organic products is often 50 per cent lower than an organic equivalent…”
2. Efficacy. Consumers are not getting the results they want from so-called organic products.  They are paying a large premium for products they find equivalent or less than traditional products.
3. Give a damn. People don’t.  We think recycling our plastic bags is important, but don’t much care about our shampoo.

Horst M. Rechelbacher

I have a fourth variable the researchers didn’t get to: Smell.  Real, natural, certified, no-bull-organic products smell terrible.   They have no fragrance and no fragrance-blockers. Frankly, decomposed plant matter just plain smells bad.  Case in point – salon brand Intelligent Nutrients by Horst M. Rechelbacher.  Released with great fanfare as the truest, most natural, cross-your-heart-and-hope-to-die, certified, organic hair and skin products ever produced, Intelligent Nutrients are gathering dust on salon shelves because folks can’t whiff without wheezing (I did!).  Rechelbacher is the founder of the fabulous-smelling Aveda products, which are quite natural themselves.  He sold Aveda to Estee Lauder back in 2003 and used at least some of his proceeds to buy a farm in Wisconsin where he grows his own plants to use as ingredients.  But nonetheless, his good intentions have not paid off.  His loss stinks.

Mintel, a research company that provides intelligence on a variety of consumer products, including beauty trends, says we can expect eco-friendly products with descriptions like “free from” and “sustainable” in 2010.   “Nu Natural” is the description they give the vision of companies and consumers who are “less focused on certification and more focused on results”.

And they will smell better, too.

Of course, the idea that it actually DOES something could be all in my head. It could be the skin care industry’s version of a placebo. The primary ingredient, after all, is water.

Personal care product manufacturers tout toner as Step 2 in the daily face care routine. Used after cleansing, it clears away residue, helps re-balance the skin’s natural pH and closes the pores, making it harder for dirt to get in.  The Cosmetics Cop, Paula Begoun, consistently refers to using toners as part of a daily routine. Estee Lauder has one for every skin type. Burt’s Bees has jumped on the bandwagon with a “Tomato Garden” toner for oily skin. There are several for sensitive skin which are water, with little else.

So you can’t really blame the skeptics, who say that a good cleanser won’t leave a residue anyway; the skin restores its own pH within a couple of hours of cleansing and closed pores also prevent moisturizers from penetrating the skin.

The Beauty Brains likens toner to your appendix – you have it, but you don’t need it. An article on Smartskincare.com says it’s only essential for people with oily skin, noting that many contain alcohol or witch hazel, which can have a drying effect.

Still, my skin – which leans to the dry side — feels cleaner, softer and most importantly, quenched after using toner. I have lots of options in the do-it-yourself category including chamomile tea, green tea and even red wine.  It may be worth giving them a shot, especially the wine.  But chances are, you’d have to pry that from my cold dead fingers, too.

• DHC has about a thousand different kinds of toner.
• So does Estee Lauder.
• But, Burt’s Bees Wax Tomato Toner?  They sure have expanded since they were bought by Clorox!
• And of course, we have to give you a link to the red wine as toner reference.  Gets all over my face all the time!