What does “Clean Beauty” mean?

When I started my graduation in Pharmacy, Pharmaceutics and Cosmetic were my favorite Subjects. I have decided to combine my interest of manufacturing with a love of cosmetic and skin care products. I knew that I wanted the products that I used and sold to be free of harmful ingredients. While I wasn't your typical "hippy", I had an appreciation for the more natural side of beauty and an affinity for products that harnessed the power of nature to improve the appearance and condition of the skin.

When I graduated from beauty school and was feeling a bit deflated. The school I had attended made it clear that you had to make a choice: high performance products (full of toxic crap, but results oriented) OR natural products (full of yummy stuff, but no results to be seen).

This logic didn't make sense to me. Why did one have to use crappy ingredients to get results? Why couldn't natural products be effective? Nature is capable of so many things, so why couldn't it improve the health and beauty of our skin as well?

While there were fewer options out there at the time, knew that there HAD to be natural products that offered amazing benefits.

I am more keen towards the conscious products- creating products with your health as a priority— using safe, natural ingredients. But also with the health of the planet and other people in mind, using sustainable and impact-sourced ingredients.

Thus began my journey into the world of “clean beauty".

While you might be more accustomed to hearing terms such as “clean beauty”, “natural”, “organic” and “non-toxic” in reference to skincare, there was a time not so long ago when the idea of natural beauty was more of a novelty, especially in the mainstream beauty circuit. But the demand for all-natural products that also get results is growing, so the clean beauty trend was born.

Clean Beauty (used fairly synonymously with Non-Toxic Beauty) is a movement dedicated to using products and ingredients that will not cause you or your skin harm. It doesn’t mean that they have to be 100% naturally derived, 100% organic, or 100% green (i.e. vegan, eco-friendly, sustainably sourced, etc). Some clean products will still contain preservatives (shelf life would be non-existent without them), but where we used to rely on shady preservatives such as parabens, we now have many options for harm-free preservatives to help extend the shelf life of your products.

But overall, clean beauty companies strive to find the balance between health and results. And options are much easier to find (and more effective) than they used to be!

Here at Clean Beauty Cult, we strive to keep our recipes simple, our ingredients natural, and to use as many organic ingredients as possible while still trying to keep our line economical.

All our products are completely free of the following harmful ingredients (and we recommend that you try to avoid when doing your skincare shopping):

• Parabens - Scientific studies suggest that parabens can disrupt hormones in the body and harm fertility and reproductive organs, affect birth outcomes, and increase the risk of cancer.
• Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) - This strips the skin of its natural oils which causes dry skin, irritation, and allergic reactions. It can also be very irritating to the eyes. Inflammatory skin reactions include itchy skin and scalp, eczema, and dermatitis.
• Perfume/Fragrance (other than essential oils) - These are linked to hormone disruption, especially testosterone disruption.
• Nanoparticles - Often seen in sunscreens, these are newer to the market and the jury is still out on their safety. Skeptics believe that the small size of these particles increases the likelihood of them passing through cell membranes in organisms and may interact with biological systems. Opt for a non-nano natural SPF instead, just to be safe.

At Clean Beauty Cult, we believe that skincare products can be truly all-natural and free of harmful ingredients as well as effective. You shouldn’t have to choose!

When you purchase one of our products, you can be confident that you’re getting a product that’s great for your skin and the planet. No greenwashing here.

Take our online quiz to figure out your what clean beauty products will work for your specific skin conditions.