Cosmetics and beauty supplies can include some of the worst (and most hard to pronounce) chemicals of any product in your bathroom, including known carcinogens and mutagens. The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics aims to remove these harmful chemicals from commonly used cosmetics and beauty products by convincing popular cosmetic manufacturers such as L’Oreal and Avon to sign the contract.
But perhaps the easiest and safest way to avoid all the hubbub of harmful beauty products is to go green by looking for all-natural and organic producers of cosmetics and beauty products.
Skin Botanica offers a range of beauty lines that cater to the organic girl. Featured brands include John Masters Organics sin and hair styling products, which exclude the use of petro-chemicals, sulfates, genetically modified organisms or animal testing. In addition, all products are vegan with the exclusion of those which use beeswax or honey.
Other popular brands include 100% Pure. Just as their name states, 100% Pure excludes the use of any chemically engineered chemical, artificial colors, detergents or thickeners. Just like John Masters, 100% Pure does not include the use of any animal byproduct (with the exception of honey) in any of their facial treatments, body butters, creams, scrubs, or shower products.
Further purveyors of organic beauty products include the ever-popular Sephora, which now has a natural and organic section including their own natural products as well as those featured in-store. Other online sites include Saffron Rouge, which features everything from facial care cosmetics to aromatherapy.
One company I attest to myself for quality is LUSH Cosmetics. LUSH caters to the soap and scent loving crowd while listing all of the ingredients in each one of their products both on the label and online. A number of their soaps and creams are also vegan, with the added bonus of sell excellent-quality hair henna, for hair dying without harmful chemicals.
Natural beauty products make great gifts for the holidays, or a great treat for yourself, and are easy to enjoy since you know they’re not contributing to harmful chemical on your skin, or down the drain.
I am an junior English major/ Philosophy minor at Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland. Currently I am spending the spring of 2009 studying at the University College Cork in Cork, Ireland.
