What To Look For When Shopping For Natural Makeup Products

We’ve talked to SO many women who are on the journey to living their best life - finding foods that work for them, adding movement to their daily routines, switching to natural product alternatives - and we’ve noticed a trend. We’re making mindful decisions on everything from deodorant to laundry detergent - but our makeup bags? Stuck in the past.

Maybe it’s because we’ve been using the same Bobbi Brown concealer since we were 15. Or because we’re convinced that the natural stuff doesn’t work as well. But making the switch to natural cosmetics can have amazing benefits for your skin. And, as your body's largest organ, it is important we don’t forget about something a lot of us use on our faces EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. U.S. researchers report that one in eight of the 82,000 ingredients used in personal care products are industrial chemicals, including carcinogens, pesticides, reproductive toxins, and hormone disruptors. These can cause harsh reactions to your skin leaving it dry and red, and chemicals in many makeup products can cause damage to your endocrine system, which can lead to hormone imbalances.

Cosmetic companies know that we are starting to tune into the nasty, toxic ingredients in our products. Marketing is a powerful force, and brands have gotten smarter.  Scan the shelves and you’ll find broad terms such as “all natural” on packaging to distract customers from the true ingredient list. We’ve found the makeup world tough to navigate as well, so we came up with a few pointers. Here’s what to look or when shopping for natural makeup products:

Keep it NON-GMO: GMOs can be commonly found in products that contain oil (tip: look for products that say “dewey” on the package). These products may look “natural” because they are plant-based but it is very common for plants within makeup products to be genetically modified with harsh chemicals.

Read the Label: Companies are allowed to state that the product is “organic” if 95% of the ingredients are organic. Pay extra attention to the last few ingredients within a product and make sure it states that they are organic as well. Here are some additional words to look for:

  • Parabens

  • BHA/BHT

  • Dibutyl phthalate

  • Sodium laureth sulfate

  • Triclosan

Fragrance: Companies can use this tricky word as a loophole to avoid listing scary ingredients. Fragrance recipes are considered trade secrets, so companies are not obligated to tell you what exactly is in them, and can use “fragrance” as a blanket term. Skip the hassle and avoid fragrance filled makeup products unless it is from a brand you know and trust.

Colors: Some quick facts: If it reads “F” on the label it represents food and “D&C” represents drugs and cosmetics. If it reads a color of the label before one of these codes, it means that the ingredient had been dyed with color, which means chemicals (ew!). Look for words like p-phenylenediamine and colours listed as “CI” followed by a five digit number.

Even knowing what to look for can be super confusing - so honestly, we tend to stick to companies that we know and trust.

We’re proud to welcome newcomer to the cosmetic world, Muskaan Makeup, to the GOOD Fest this August. Muskaan prides themselves on their certifying their makeup to be halal and gluten-free with zero contaminations of any harsh materials. They’re also cruelty-free!

Muskaans’ founder Sabeen Zia worked her entire life in the beauty industry, starting back in high school where she worked at Bath and Body Works and Sephora. She later worked at L’Oreal as a chemist and later moved into mineral makeup as a quality control supervisor. She learned to love natural makeup and her entrepreneurial spirit grew which sparked the development for launching her Muskaan makeup brand. Sabeen created Muskaan with the intention that we should not have to disect our makeup labels - all of her products are free from anything she, as a scientist, wouldn’t put on her own skin - and, her products WORK.

Muskaan’s brand celebrates women with lipstick shades that flatter every skin tone, and a portion of proceeds from EVERY sale goes back to the charity of your choice.

Muskaan will be making your smiles look extra beautiful at the GOOD Fest - stop by their lip bar for a mid day or pre cocktail hour pick me up!

 

The GOOD Fest LLC