Sophie loves beauty products, preferably in luxury jars and tubes. But now that she has started living more environmentally conscious, she looks at everything with a new look:'Are my favorite creams actually responsible?'
As a real beauty fanatic I love beautiful beauty products. Beautiful bottles of perfume, lipsticks in golden cases and shiny tubes of facial care flaunt in my bathroom. I've always had a love for luxury cosmetics, but I noticed that I became more and more critical over the years. I now try to live as consciously as possible by, for example, eating vegetarian food, buying sustainable clothing and meditating daily. Does my make-up collection still fit? Are my favorite creams produced in an environmentally friendly way? What ingredients do they contain and how animal-friendly are they?
I still remember the day when I switched to natural and animal-friendly cosmetics. I read in a magazine that an average beauty product is full of chemicals. Plastic, chemical dyes and even lead are said to be very common in cosmetics. My first reaction:'That is probably not that bad, especially with the strict legislation in the EU?' I checked some labels of my beauty products for 'weird' ingredients. That turned out to be quite a job, because about ninety percent of the ingredients sounded unknown. I looked up all the ingredients I didn't know and I was shocked by what I found:the majority of my products were one big chemical cocktail. Time to make more conscious choices.
Greenwashing
Since this research I suddenly see all beautiful cosmetic products in a different light. Where I used to be happy with luxury products that promise mountains of gold, I am now a little disappointed. That face cream with a large 'with argan oil' on it turns out to contain only a very small amount of argan oil. When I study the ingredients list, I see that the argan oil is at the very bottom of the list. There are about fifteen other ingredients for this, which are therefore in larger quantities in the jar. I see this phenomenon in many products, from shampoo to mascara. The base is often chemical, while the ingredients that are flaunted on the packaging are only present in the products in very small quantities.
In the green beauty world this is known as 'greenwashing'. With this, manufacturers create the idea that a product is natural, while it is not. During my journey towards a greener and animal-friendly cosmetics collection, I come across even more vague claims. Such as the slogan 'against animal testing' on products from brands that test on animals for the Chinese market (in China, animal testing on cosmetic products is in many cases mandatory). Unless a product is certified animal testing free, unfortunately you cannot assume that it is really animal testing free. Also 'natural' or 'eco' are terms that you often come across on packaging. Again, unless the product is certified, it usually means little. As long as there is one natural ingredient in a product, the word 'natural' may already be used, as this is not a protected term. Just like 'fair trade', 'animal friendly' and 'organic'... Since I know this, I always study the entire ingredient list.
Free of animals, the choice is increasing
Finding fine green and animal-friendly cosmetics is not easy. Fortunately, the choice is now a lot wider than a few years ago. Then I couldn't find anything that met my requirements in the luxury perfumery that I was so fond of before. The products were mostly tested on animals or largely contain chemical ingredients. Reluctantly, I entered the organic supermarket to buy a body lotion. The packaging of the final product did not appeal to me at all and there was no nice smell to the body lotion, but at least it was cruelty-free and natural. Because I wanted to keep it nice for myself and because I just love beautiful and nice-smelling products, I did not immediately switch to natural cosmetics for the full one hundred percent. Fortunately, I soon found out that there are many cruelty-free brands on the market that are also natural(er). That seemed like a good compromise for the first year:I would in any case try to buy only cruelty-free products. This worked, because after a year my entire collection of make-up and care products was replaced with animal-free products. This feels good! The next step is to choose animal-free and natural products more often.
My skin and hair have improved a lot
At the moment a large part of my collection has already become a lot more natural. Like my skin care, for which I am slowly creating a completely different routine. I used to like to apply as many lotions and serums as possible to my skin and use different cleansers. Nothing seemed to really help my sensitive skin. Now I find out that a good natural skin oil can function as a day cream and serum in one. And that all those scrubs, peels and tonics are not necessary at all. A simple natural cleanser, a tonic tailored to your skin type and a skin oil work together just as well as a whole load of chemical products. My skin is slowly becoming more even and less irritated. My skin is now supple, smooth and radiant – and without all kinds of chemical innovations! My hair has also improved a lot now that I use a natural shampoo and conditioner. I have always had long hair, only it used to be quite thin and I suffered from split ends. My hair is now long and full and I don't suffer from dead ends. Using a natural shampoo gently cleanses my hair and scalp without drying it out. Natural conditioners are often full of natural oils and butters, which make your hair look and feel better.
The fact that I switched to natural doesn't quite apply to my make-up and perfume collection. Good natural, cruelty-free and preferably vegan make-up is quite rare. You will not find it at the perfumery or drugstore. Most brands with natural make-up are currently only available at webshops that specialize in sustainable beauty products. Natural perfume is also difficult to find. So what do you do as a conscious beauty fanatic? I occasionally make an exception for mascara, eyeliner, long-lasting lipstick and perfume. I consciously choose an animal test-free and vegan copy, so that no animals have suffered for it. This way I can also go to the regular drugstore or perfumery. And I admit:the eye also wants something and the products in the perfumery often look just a bit more luxurious.
Only benefits
Since I use animal-free and natural beauty products as much as possible, I only experience benefits. I now have fewer products and save money. My skincare routine just got simpler, but no less effective. My skin is glowing and my hair is longer and fuller. I still occasionally make exceptions for my make-up and perfume, but I see more and more beautiful natural brands coming onto the market. I believe that everyone can benefit from using more animal-friendly and natural products. Not only your body benefits, but also the environment and the animals. In any case, there is no turning back for me.
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Text:Sophie Carleen – Naoki | Image:Shutterstock
