You’ve started using a bamboo toothbrush, switched to shampoo bars and wouldn’t be seen dead without your reusable shopping bags, water bottle and collapsible coffee cup. The reduced-plastic life is going well – but there’s still one hurdle left to overcome.
That’s how it was for me, anyway. And that hurdle? Deodorant.
Ok, so l I knew all those aerosol cans and plastic roller bottles I used had to go somewhere. But all the plastic-free deodorants seemed to be “natural” options – and while I’m all for putting fewer complicated-sounding chemicals in/on my body, it's risky to mess with your deodorant routine. Like, nobody wants to smell bad.
Still, if I was committed enough to be that woman with the net fruit and veg bags at the supermarket (totally worth it, by the way), I was committed enough for this.
Here's what I bought ...
- Earth Conscious citrus balm (£7)
- Ben & Anna nordic timber stick (About £10)
- Procoal activated charcoal balm (£7.99)
... and on a gloomy Monday morning in April, I put the Earth Conscious balm through its paces.
TL;DR
I smelled horrific for a few days and couldn’t raise my arms in public, but emerged with beautifully inoffensive pits and a new trust in online reviews.
The long story? Here we go:
Monday went smoothly. Suspiciously smoothly. After a frazzled rush to the train station after a night of boozing in Devon and a three-hour commute, I didn’t feel that gross. In fact, by the end of my shift at work I honestly wondered what the fuss was about. Sure, my senses were slightly dulled by a raging hangover and the gallon of garlic mayo I had for lunch … but it really didn’t seem so bad. If you have used antiperspirants for years, there's meant to be an adjustment period of a couple of weeks while your pores unblock (ew) – but maybe I'd just defied expectations and adapted instantly to natural deodorant like some lemon-scented goddess? [spoiler: I hadn’t]
As Tuesday dawned, I reapplied and went for a run. This was when things got dubious. An injury sent me limping home after half a mile with a crushed ego and … what was this? Had I grabbed an unwashed T-shirt by mistake? No one smells this much after five minutes of exercise. Dropping the shirt gingerly on the washing pile, dread raised its ugly (and weird-smelling) head. I smelled really bad.
Wednesday morning was no better. Sitting on the train, I could literally smell myself. It was a weird odour, though: less regular body odour, and more a general aura of funk. It smelled a bit like I’d been cooking with onions. Maybe that’s what everyone around me would think. Yeah, maybe. One very self-conscious gym session later, I sheepishly reapplied and spent the day taking frequent toilet breaks to sniff myself. Things didn’t escalate too much – but the smell was definitely there.
By Thursday, I was panicking. I was meeting friends at the pub after work, and just really didn’t want to smell like stale onions. With this in mind, I daubed myself up before I left the house, then again after the gym, then again at lunch (side note: the stuff gets way easier to apply when it’s used more often) – and by the end of the day, all seemed good. Was that a sparking topnote of citrus I could smell under my arms?!
As Friday morning kicked off with a surprise hangover and a healthy dose of regret, I went for another run – and this time, things were different. I’d go as far as saying I smelled normal afterwards (as in: bad, but not onions-bad). This trend continued over the weekend and into the following week – and it’s been pretty similar since.
Yep: in the biggest anticlimax since the end of Skins season 4 (we know you’re Cook, but did you kill that guy or not, ffs?!), my natural deodorant journey has been pretty tame since that horrifying first week. After a fortnight I switched to Ben & Anna’s, which comes in a cardboard push-up tube, and enjoyed smelling faintly of Nordic timber instead of lemons for a while. I then gave Procoal a go, and recently finished the jar after a good couple of months (and that's with very generous helpings each day).
The verdict
I went into this feeling fairly sceptical. As an active person who also finds herself (literally) running late for things on a daily basis, I've struggled to find deodorant that holds up under the pressure, and was just not convinced that natural deodorant could come anywhere close to the superstrength formulas I'd been using.
But I was pleasantly surprised: since that nightmare-ish first week, I've not felt self-conscious about the way I smell at all. These aren't antiperspirants, so you'll find you still sweat when you wear them, but the ingredients help neutralise any nasty odours – and I've enjoyed not having that pungent deodorant-y smell that tends to happen when you're on the edge of needing to reapply. In fact, you don't smell of much at all!
One slight complaint would be that the brands I've used tend to leave white marks on clothes if you get dressed straight after putting it on. The only ways around this I've found are to either leave it a bit between applying and dressing, or being r e a l l y careful when you put your top on.
Oh, and my Earth Conscious balm totally melted when I left it in my bag in the sun one day. No spillages, but I had a bit of a shock when I opened the lid (and I imagine the Ben & Anna's cardboard tube would struggle in a similar situation...).
A few tips for anyone wanting to give natural deodorant a go
- With the tins, the most efficient way of applying is to run the back of your nail along the surface until a pea-sized amount gathers.
- Think about the fabrics you wear: cotton is more breathable than polyester – and in that first week you’ll need all the help you can get to stay fresh.
- Don’t be scared to apply a few times a day at first – the deodorant is actually killing odour rather than just masking it, so I really noticed a reduction in smell when I reapplied, rather than just feeling like the different smells were building up.
- Don't leave your natural deodorants in the sun! They're delicate souls...
- I hear the adjustment period is longer for many people, so if you’re still smelling funky after a week or so, stick with it! (And I’m sorry for filling you with false hope).
