One of our New Year’s Resolutions was to implement more green practices into our beauty regiments. We’ve always been a bit biased because we felt a lot of eco-friendly grooming essentials weren’t as good as the toxin-laden alternatives. This was especially true of makeup and conditioners (we just couldn’t find one that made our hair feel as soft and silky after use!). However, green beauty products are making serious progress and we’re happy to say we’re making the switch for good. Below are our recommendations for eco-friendly beauty products that you need to add to your arsenal. The bolded ones we own ourselves, and you can find out notes in parenthesis where applicable.
Oh, and check out the beauty product cheat sheet at the end, which outlines ingredients to avoid.
1. Green Face Moisturizer: Yes to Carrots Daily Facial Moisturizer w/ SPF 15, $14.99
2. Green Makeup Primer: Vapour Stratus Instant Skin Perfector, $44
3. Green Face Wash: Sumbody Coal Train Charcoal Cleanser, $26 (Charcoal pulls toxins out of pores)
4. Men’s Green Shaving Cream: BIOselect Mild Shaving Foam, $20.25
5. Green Hand Sanitizer: Tammy Fender The Purist Antibacterial Dry Hand Wash, $14
6. Men’s Facial Cleansing Set: Meet the Bulldog Set, $25 (Includes moisturizer, shave gel, facial cleanser, face scrub, and shave balm)
7. Green Makeup Remover: Boots Botanics Soothing Eye Makeup Remover, $5
8. Green Under Eye Serum: Boscia Enlivening Amino-AG Eye Treatment, $38
9. Green Lip Scrub: Lush Mint Julep Lip Scrub, $8.95 (OBSESSED! Gently add a bit on nose if dry during cold season)
10. Green Nail Polish Remover: G2 Nail Polish Remover, $16
11. Green Eye Shadow Palette: Tarte Eye Couture Day-to-Night Eye Palette, $44 (goes on smooth, one of our biggest complaints with some eco-friendly eyeshadows)
12. Green Hair Conditioner: Loma Intensity Deep Conditioner, $28 (only available at salons)
Green Beauty Product Cheat Sheet: Ingredients to Avoid When Going Green (As featured in Lucky mag, Nov. 2010 issue)
– Diazolidiyl Urea and Imidazolidinyl Urea: May release formaldehyde.
– Diethanolamine (DEA), Monoethanolamine (MEA), and Triethanolamine (TEA): Already restricted in Europe due to liver and kidney cancer.
– Silicone dimethicone and cyclomethicone: Never biodegrades and can disrupt healthy skin function.
– Parabens: They’re being studied for possible hormone-disrupting properties.
– Toluene: Often used in nail polish. May negatively affect central nervous system.
– Petroleum By-Products (Paraffin, Mineral Oil, Petrolatum): They low down skin function and pollute the environment.
– Phthalates: They’ve been linked to impaired fertility and Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome but are not always listed on fragrance labels. Seek out products that say they’re phthalate-free.
This is a great post–I just started using face moisturizers about three or four months ago–and I never thought about using a more green one. I’m definitely going to have to look into these products you’ve posted! Great job in promoting a healthier world!
Thank you also for the kind comment–I truly appreciate the support! I’ve actually been dying to find a saggy beanie that didn’t look like a giant potato sack on my head. This was by far the cheapest one I cam across of during my search. I found it at Spencer’s–yup, that crazy store with the poster girls, disco balls, naughty stuff, etc. They also have the cutest animal hats, but it’s pretty pricey. I bought my beanie for $12, which is usually a humungous splurge for me. Truly. 😀 I’ve been wearing it literally every day with every outfit. I just haven’t had the time to take pictures! And yes, you should definitely rock your long skirt–I was so sad when I though mine was too long for me, especially because I’m so short. But thankfully it’s perfect. If you ever think your skirt might be too long–wear it as a dress! I’ll be posting that very same skirt as a dress soon!
Thanks for this inspiration to check the ingredients in my cosmetics! I’ve been sickened by what I’ve found by looking up the ingredients on cosmeticsdatabase.com (a great resource that gives ingredients a 0-9 rating based on toxicity). Even those that claim to be specially formulated for sensitive skin have an alarming amount of proven irritants!
I was really surprised to see that Yes to Carrots, one of the most publicized safe-cosmetics companies, uses #1 on your “ingredients to avoid” list, Imidazolidinyl Urea, in their body lotion! What a wake up call that we can’t just blindly trust the label — we have to do our own research.
Hi Hayley, I’m glad you found this post helpful. And it just goes to show you always have to read the ingredient list on labels because one product might have different ingredients than another, even in the same brand family! Thanks for pointing out that helpful website! We’ll definitely be checking that out.