Happy Friday, friends! The weekend is almost here! Even though I had a 4 day work week, this week still felt like an extra long one. I’m already ready for a big glass of wine, tacos (mmm…) and kicking off the weekend right with friends. Hopefully you have something similar planned around 5PM today too!
While I’ve been inundating you all with fashion posts the past few weeks, I wanted to share a little bit about my makeup routine, and what I’ve been changing up over the past few weeks. I’ve always loved makeup (even in 4th grade when I thought glitter makeup a la the Spice Girls was a very stylish fashion statement), and have used everything from drugstore dupes, higher end makeup, and eco-friendly brands. These days, I’m trying to embrace a more minimalist lifestyle and am attempting to be more thoughtful in the makeup and skincare products I buy – so purchasing brands and products that are more natural, non-toxic and cruelty free has become really important to me.
If you’re not convinced about switching to all natural beauty products (or haven’t taken the plunge quite yet!), let me break down why you might want to consider it. There are so many reasons to ditch icky ingredients, but below are some reasons why you may want to be cautious of your drugstore lipstick or high-end concealer.
- Although the European Union bans 1,300 known harmful chemicals in cosmetics, the US only bans 11, which is not good news for your favorite drugstore makeup products.
- Out of the 10,000 chemicals found in cosmetics, only 10% have been tested for safety and human health.
- Not since 1938 has a law been passed to regulate cosmetics in the US and companies are not required to disclose their ingredients to the public.
- Over 95% of popular lipsticks contain lead, cadmium, chromium, aluminum and other dangerous heavy metals. On average women consume 7 POUNDS of this toxic lipstick in their lifetime – eek!
- On average, women use an average of 12 products a day, each with dozens of toxic, harmful ingredients that can act as endocrine disrupters and cause extensive health issues from acne to reproductive problems.
So yeah….not great friends. But don’t fear! There are a ton of amazing beauty brands that are ingredient conscious, full of non-toxic ingredients and also don’t test on animals (because bunnies are the cutest, and shouldn’t be tested on…) 
While years ago it was harder to find natural and cruelty free beauty products, there are so many amazing conscious brands out there that work wonders and are affordable too! One of my favorite brands is W3LL PEOPLE, a brand based out of Austin that makes beauty conscious makeup that are easy to swap out for some of your dirty makeup favorites. All of their products are made with premium natural ingredients (like aloe, green tea, chamomile, etc.) and without harsh artificial chemicals, preservatives or petroleums, or anything that yucks up traditional makeup.
Best of all, they make their own dupes of brands like NARS, Bobbi Brown, Estee Lauder so you don’t have to switch up your makeup routine – just the harmful ingredients swapped for something your skin will love. I love to follow W3LL PEOPLE on Instagram and see what their weekly beauty swaps are using their magical makeup products!
While it seems a little daunting to make the switch to more natural beauty products, you can definitely start slow and work them into your makeup routine. It took me a few months to swap out some of my beauty staples with non-toxic makeup dupes, but I honestly haven’t seen a big difference in how my makeup looks, lasts, etc. I swear by W3LL PEOPLE, but I know a lot of friends who love brands like Pacifica, Beauty Counter, Pixi and Burt’s Bees too. You can buy many of the brands at your local Target and Whole Foods, which makes it even easier to make the switch! 
I have a TON of W3LL PEOPLE products that I love, but below are the ones I currently use (or are on my Target shopping list!). The concealer works wonders (basically the same effect as the NARS concealer I’ve been using for years), their powder if the perfect dupe for Bare Minerals, and their tinted moisturizer has the perfect amount of coverage while staying light and airy. Oh, and their lipstick is amazing, and their mascara too! Clearly, I’m a big fan 🙂
My Favorite W3LL PEOPLE Products (all available at Target too!)
Alright, that’s enough non-toxic makeup evangelizing for one day! I do hope you consider switching at least a few of your makeup products to some non-toxic versions and see the difference it makes – I’ve even seen my skin clear up too!
Have any non-toxic beauty products or brands you swear by? I’d love to know and give them a try too! xx