A hot topic in the health and beauty world recently has been clean beauty. Specifically, people are discovering that the majority of beauty products on the market today are toxic to humans. There are many ingredients in beauty products that can make them highly toxic; including fragrance, phthalates, sodium lauryl sulfate, and parabens. It can be difficult to figure out which products are harmful because oftentimes companies will make it difficult to find proper ingredient labels or sourcing information. It can also be frustrating when trying to decide what products to switch to when there are hundreds of options out there. Luckily, Katie from Brewing Up Style is going to share four clean beauty tips to help you clean up your skincare routine!

What is "Clean Beauty?"

Hello everyone! I'm Katie, owner and creator of the lifestyle blog, Brewing Up Style! I also work for Polished Prints as a digital creator. I love being a creative person and getting to see ideas come to life in this online space. Connecting with people is one of my biggest passions! For the past couple of years, another one of my passions has been sharing about my skincare journey. I've had chronic cystic acne since my early teen years. I saw a number of doctors and dermatologists about the issue and never found a solution that worked for me. So, I turned to holistic healing as way to balance my skin and get it healthy again! 

The biggest game changer in this journey was discovering that not all product ingredients are created equal. Believe it or not, the last time the FDA created a new regulation around cosmetics was 1938! We know so much more about chemical structure now, yet somehow the laws have not caught up to keep us safe. Many of the ingredients found in cosmetics are hormone disruptors that can cause acne to become worse. So, I began doing my own research to find products that were clean and free of any questionable ingredients as a way to heal my acne. 

 

Four Clean Beauty Tips

Since it can be overwhelming to think about completely switching your beloved products to nontoxic ones, I'm going to give you my top tips for getting started with clean beauty! If you love these tips and want more, you can purchase my Beauty Detox Ebook, which has my entire skincare philosophy plus some DIY beauty recipes! Be sure that you check with your doctor or dermatologist before starting a new skincare regimen. 

1. Understand the Ingredients Label

Just like with processed food, in general the fewer ingredients a skincare or beauty product has, the better. It's best to completely avoid products that have certain ingredients like fragrance, phthalates, sodium lauryl sulfate, and parabens. Fragrance is the most concerning ingredient on the market and you'll find it in almost everything- even "natural" beauty products. Fragrance is a term protected by the FDA as a trade secret. This means that companies do NOT have to disclose any ingredients that make up their fragrance so that it can't be copied by someone else. The downside of this is that over 1,000 chemicals are labeled as fragrance, and we will never know what particular chemicals make up the fragrance listed in our products. This is bad news for people with any kind of skin condition, because it might be impossible to know what is causing a reaction if your product contains the ingredient fragrance. 

2. Find Brands You Can Trust

It can be confusing to try and locate trusted skincare and makeup brands once you realize that the majority of products on the market are unsafe. Luckily, there are a few companies who take clean beauty seriously. One of my favorites is Primally Pure. They make really high quality skincare and I never have to worry about what ingredients they are using because they disclose each one. You can use my code "BREW" at checkout for 10% off your first order with them! Another online store that I love shopping is Credo Beauty. Credo is like the Sephora of clean beauty and makeup. They have very high standards and only sell brands that meet their criteria. My favorite brands on Credo are Ilia Beauty, Lily Lolo, and RMS Beauty!

3. Take it Slow

Now, a lot of clean beauty websites instill a certain sense of urgency about switching everything over to clean beauty right away. However, for most people it would be financially impossible to start completely from scratch with every single skincare and makeup item they own. My approach to clean beauty was to take it slow. I started with switching one or two of my products out as I ran out of the ones I had already purchased. I believe that the first to switch should be the ones that are directly on skin all day- that would be moisturizer, foundation, and concealer. After that, I would change out skincare items like face wash, body wash, shampoo, and conditioner. Don't throw away what you already own, but make more conscious decisions the next time you run out of what you have!

4. Beauty From the Inside Out

Whenever I write about clean beauty, I always make a point to mention that naturally clear skin will happen so much quicker if you also take care of what is on the inside. See a doctor regularly, get enough sleep, exercise, eat well, and care for your mental health. Wellness is a balance, and often our skin tells us things about what's going on inside. Think about your skin as kind of an alert system to let us know when something is off balance. Through my journey with cystic acne, I discovered that my hormones were way our of wack. I had to completely balance my life in order to truly get my skin glowing. Clean beauty was a huge part, but I wouldn't feel as good if I didn't also take care of myself fully. 

 

If you want to learn more about clean beauty, you can purchase my Beauty Detox Ebook today!

You can follow along with my journey in real time on Instagram @brewingupstyle, or on my blog Brewing Up Style!