For many of us, makeup is not only a practical part of our day, but it’s a fun and creative part of life. But like the food we buy and the clothes we wear, we can (and should) make responsible choices when it comes to eco-friendly makeup.
There are brands which hold the environment as first priority when it comes to creating their products and packaging. They avoid nasty ingredients such as parabens and fragrance, and favor ingredients which nourish the skin as much as they beautify. They turn their backs on plastic and opt for sustainable, biodegradable packaging materials. Sounds good, right? Keep reading…
Here are our favorite eco-friendly makeup brands as well as our top picks from their collections to get you started on your browsing (and maybe buying) session!
Without further ado…
Antonym Cosmetics
Why we love them:
We really love Antonym cosmetics because they fuse organic, clean ingredients with amazing performance and quality. They’ve got a makeup artist’s standards with an eco-warrior’s dedication to the environment and safety. We also love that they are an entirely cruelty free brand, (which all brands should be!). Their gorgeous bamboo packaging (for most of their products) not only looks fantastic on your vanity but it won’t clog the earth (ahem, like plastic will).
Top pick:
Our top pick from Antonym (it was a tough choice) is this eyeshadow quad. We love it because the four shades are perfectly graded in depth and tone, enough to create a comprehensive look for almost all skin tones. Use the pale shade for the inner corner and brow bone, the deeper shades for the crease and lash line, and the shimmery bronze for the lid.
It’s small enough to travel with but complex enough that you’re not limited. It also comes with a tiny brush, not an annoying sponge applicator!
Kjaer Weis
Why we love them:
Kjaer Weis is a luxury brand, started by Danish makeup artist Kirsten Kjaer Weis. Yes, the price tag does match the luxury look…but keep reading because we think it’s completely worth it.
We adore them because of their steadfast dedication to eco-friendly, sustainable and nourishing cosmetics. All of their products come in refillable packaging, no plastic in sight. The packaging is crafted from metal and feels more like a precious trinket or charm than simply a cosmetic product.
We love that this brand has a philosophy of spending a little more money on high-quality, special items which will last forever, rather than throwing money away on cheap products you’ll eventually toss away where they’ll end up in a landfill. This philosophy is slowly seeping into fashion and beauty, and we are totally here for it!
But eco-friendliness aside, their colors, textures and finishes are to die for. If you love dewy, fresh, healthy skin you will love Kjaer Weis.
Top pick:
Again, it was so hard to choose one product, but we landed on the cream blush. Cream blush should be in everyone’s core makeup collection. It’s easy to use, melts into the skin (with fingers), and makes your skin look luminous from within.
This blush is perfect for “no makeup” days as well as full nighttime glam. It’s expensive, but the ingredients are nourishing and you can refill it forever.
RMS
Why we love them:
RMS has become a bit of a cult favorite in the natural beauty realm, thanks to their Living Luminizer. We love them for their utter passion for creating beauty products which actually nourish and treat the skin. They do this by researching and choosing “raw, food-grade and organic ingredients in their natural state” (straight from their website!).
The result is a product which you can feel great about using on your skin. All of their packaging is recyclable, reusable and sustainable.
Top pick:
It probably won’t come as a surprise that we’ve chosen the RMS Living Luminizer as our top product pick, but we just couldn’t resist. This highlighter is made for anyone who loves a glow as opposed to a shimmer or a sparkle. It’s glossy, sheeny, and gives the skin the most beautiful, healthy dimension.
TanOrganic
Why we love them:
TanOrganic is an eco-certified tanning brand which is focused around all things tanning, bronzing and Summertime glowing. They use organic ingredients from ethically-run sources when they can.
We love that they use ingredients such as aloe vera which nourishes the skin and helps to keep you looking youthful and feeling soft. They use glass, wood and other biodegradable materials for their packaging, and of course, they are entirely cruelty free.
Top pick:
While TanOrganic has some absolutely incredible self-tanning products, we’ve gone down the cosmetic route. We’ve chosen the TanOrganic Duo Bronzer as our top pick. There are two shades in the palette, a deeper bronze shade and a golden-toned shade with subtle shimmer for a sun kissed highlight.
The tone is warm without veering toward orange, and it would be lovely on most skin tones from light to deep tan (pale or dark guys and gals my find it too deep or too light).
We love that this bronzer is 99.93% organic, with ingredients which hug your skin, such as jojoba oil and coconut oil. This is the kind of bronzer you can use in a rush, warming the face and contouring the eyes. And of course, we adore the wood packaging!
Conclusion
There we have it! Four incredible eco-friendly makeup brands and star products which offer incredible quality and performance without compromising on ethics and sustainability.
It’s all about nourishing ingredients from sustainable sources, omitting harmful ingredients, choosing biodegradable and sustainable packaging, and encouraging high-quality products you’ll keep and use until finished, as opposed to tossing in the trash next season.
Hopefully you’ve found some new favorites!
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