7 Non-Toxic Makeup and Skincare Tips for 2021

7 Best Tips to Switch to a Non-Toxic “Clean” Makeup and Skincare Routine

One day I was mesmerized by an infomercial for 100% Pure, a high-performing natural makeup and skincare line. To my disbelief, they started talking about harmful ingredients used in popular products. Ingredients that are human carcinogens, hormone disrupters, skin irritants, cause reproductive and developmental disorders.  

Well that made me go, huh?!? I’ve been buying products that aren’t good for me?

I assumed businesses wouldn’t sell products that can be harmful to your health. It was so eye opening to realize this was false. You need to look out for yourself when purchasing products. This sent me down a rabbit hole and I started researching everything I bought, put on my skin, and ate. 

I spent ten plus years and hundreds of dollars trying to find high quality, environmentally friendly, non-toxic beauty products that avoid concerning ingredients like phthalates, BHA, coal tar, formaldehyde, parabens, synthetic fragrance, talc, nano particles and the list goes on. It was an overwhelming and expensive process.

Switching to Non-Toxic Makeup and Skincare Products Can Be Overwhelming

When I researched the harmful ingredients in my makeup and skincare I wanted to change out everything I was using immediately. So much time was dedicated to researching and purchasing products that did not work for me or they weren’t high-performing. I was overwhelmed by the amount of available products, reading ingredient labels and trying to make sense of things, not knowing trusted resources to help guide my purchase decisions, and not knowing if the product was high-performing.

Through this process I learned so many tips and tricks so I wanted to share with you to help you easily make the switch to a non-toxic makeup and skincare routine without being overwhelmed.

7 Best Tips to Switch to a Non-Toxic “Clean” Makeup and Skincare Routine

Tip #1 – Replace one item at a time

Use up the products you have and once you run out replace with a healthier version with non-toxic ingredients.

Tip #2 – Know what ingredients to avoid when purchasing products

The best resource I found to breakdown the ingredients was EWG’s Skin Deep top tips for safer products, which lists ingredients to avoid and why.

Tip #3 – Find out what products rank as a low hazard to your health

Skin Deep has a huge database of products where they rate the products based on ingredient safety data – low, medium, and high ratings. Search the database to see how your current products rate. Once I was ready to purchase a new product I used the database as a guide to find products with a low rating. 

Tip #4 – Download the Healthy Living App

You can also download the EWG’s Healthy Living app and scan the product barcode when you are at the store and it will show you the hazard rating – very cool!

Tip #5 – Search for Product Reviews Before Buying

My favorite place to search for reviews is Makeup Alley and Amazon. There are usually many reviews to go through so you can get a good sense if the product is high performing. I’ve had a lot of success with making my purchases based on reviews. Many of the popular “clean” beauty brands are only available online so most of the time I’ve had to go off of what other people say to help decide what product to purchase and what color to go with.

• If you have a hard time finding your foundation shade, W3LL People has an awesome service where you can send in a pic of yourself and they suggest what colors to choose. They were spot on for me, I love their BB foundation??? and use it on a weekly basis.
• If you can test out a product in stores that’s even better. I’ve had some luck being able to test out Mineral Fusions at Whole Foods, my local co-op and Tarte products at Ultra and Sephora.

Tip #6 – Check the refund policy before buying in-store or online

I’ve had some reactions where my skin became itchy after using, most stores allowed me to return items but there were some that did not allow this.

Tip #7 – Save money when switching to nontoxic makeup and skincare products

You can find some low ranking, high-performing items at Walgreens, Target, Walmart, CVS. These stores tend to have lower price points on their makeup and skincare. To find some options before you go to the store, go to the EWG app and find the product type you are looking for and sort by lowest ranking and you will see some brand names that are available in Walgreens, Target, etc. I’ve been searching for a new eyeliner, and the best one to buy was Almay and it was one of the cheapest options out there, $6 bucks! I was actually suprised Almay had a EWG Verified product, makes me happy that well known and available brands are making products with safer ingredients 🙂

Wash your face and remove makeup with coconut oil. I know every skin type acts differently but this has been a game changer for me. I have sensitive, dry skin and could never find a clean face wash that worked for me, and I spent SO much money trying out different options. I buy the huge buckets at Costco and use for cooking, facewash, and making candles. Cheap and multi-functional! 

WHY I LOVE USING COCONUT OIL TO WASH MY FACE:

• Removes make-up including mascara
• Moisturizes skin without feeling greasy. Other products tend to dry my skin and this makes it fee perfectly balanced.
• Only need a small amount, easy to pack when traveling.
• Multi-functional, so many uses for coconut oil! So get some good bang for your buck.

HOW TO WASH YOUR FACE WITH COCONUT OIL:

• Just take a dab of oil
• rub it on the face
• run a washcloth through warm water
• apply washcloth to face
• rub off the coconut oil

The Last Thing You Need to Know about Switching to Non-toxic Makeup and Skincare Products

My goal is for everyone to take a look at the ingredients in their products, see where they can make adjustments, and start using healthier options.

Environment Working Group states that the average woman uses 12 personal care products containing 168 different ingredients daily. Depending on the product, that’s potentially a lot of junk being put on our skin! Start making the switch by using some of the easy steps listed above.

What tips and tricks do you have for switching to nontoxic makeup and skincare products? Leave a comment below!

Cheers to a natural makeup and skincare routine, and most importantly – your health! 

Brekke