My friends keep asking me about clean beauty products, so I’ve decided to occasionally feature products that I’ve tried and liked. My approach to clean beauty is quite simple. I don’t swap everything in my beauty bag. That being said, I have most of my personal-care and beauty products natural, especially the daily essentials because the frequency of use and the amount are key. If you use it every day or multiple times a day, then it should be clean in my opinion. Our skin is the largest organ after all, so for me it makes sense to opt for natural when possible.
You can find good products in health food stores and other places, depending on where you live. When I want to try something that isn’t easily available in my area, I look online. I like shopping at Love Lula* because they have a great selection of products, free worldwide shipping, and occasionally I try something special from ASDM Beverly Hills* like their Tepezcohuite moisturizer or serum.
Let’s have a look at some products for basic personal care.
DEODORANT
When picking a deodorant, look for something without aluminium salts like aluminium chlorohydrate or aluminium zirconium (usually present in antiperspirants). The problem is that armpits are areas where we detoxify naturally. The skin is quite vulnerable there and when you shave regularly, it opens the way for various chemicals that I wrote about in my previous blog post. I’ve tested many natural deodorants over the years and not all of them work well for me (especially roll-ons), but I’ve found some reliable options. Of course everybody’s deodorant needs are different, so it might take some testing before you find your favourite.
HONESTLY pHresh SUGAR MINT
Completely natural deo stick, with shea butter, coconut oil, cocoa butter and arrowroot, this deodorant stick kept me feeling fresh even during hot summer days. The smell reminds of my favourite childhood chewing gum. The application is not so smooth because it needs a little body heat to melt, but otherwise it’s great and doesn’t irritate the skin at all. This brand offers a variety of scents for women and men.
SPEICK natural DEO STICK
This deodorant has been a trusted staple in our home. The scent is kind of herbal, almost masculine, but when you apply it and it opens up, it’s pretty unisex. The texture is as close to a conventional deo stick as possible, without the chemical cocktail. It has a soothing extract of high alpine Speick plant (Valeriana celtica).
More clean deodorant options that I’d love to try are here.
TOOTHPASTE
Conventional toothpastes are full of detergents and other chemicals that can be pretty irritating. I love testing natural toothpastes because they have many different flavours and I’m just tired of the omnipresent mint.
Some of my favourite brands:
Jason
Weleda
Natura Siberica
SOAP
I love soap bars because they don’t leave a film on your skin and they come with minimum packaging. Also, I think they have more personality than liquid soaps or shower gels. If you’ve been avoiding them because you think they would dry your skin, you should give these a chance.
Made for babies, great for adults too. It’s a good-sized bar which lasts quite a long time. It’s very mild and leaves your skin wonderfully fresh.
Note: It contains Sodium Palmate, which means palm oil was used during the process of saponification. However, Weleda uses organic, traceable palm oil that doesn’t come from sources destroying rainforest. Read more about Weleda’s approach and standards here: https://www.weleda.co.uk/our-story/our-standards/palm-oil
Other favourite brands for soap bars are Madara*, Trevarno*, PureChimp*.
FACE CLEANSING
Konjac sponge* is a versatile tool for daily cleansing and mild exfoliation that is 100% natural and biodegradable. Just keep it hanging freely after use so it can dry. It has a little string just for that. It lasts around three months and you can use it with or without another product.
Another great cleanser is by Dr.Hauschka. It contains almond meal to gently exfoliate and leaves your skin refreshed and not dry.
MOISTURISER
There are way too many options here, so I’ll list just a few to keep it simple for now and mention new discoveries in future blog posts.
Weleda Baby Calendula Face Cream*
I have a small tube of this cream in my handbag because it’s light, smells great and does the job well. It’s from the baby line, so you can use it on your kids as well.
Bioaroma 24h Anti-aging Face Cream with beeswax, neroli, labdanum and myrrh (water free) – it’s quite a rich cream, so you only need a little bit and you can be sure your skin stays hydrated. You can also use it as lip balm, it just works. Bioaroma is a brand of natural cosmetics from Crete and I usually order it in the Czech Republic, but other shops online offer it like www.mycretangoods.com, www.organicbrands.gr, www.lootuskauppa.fi.
ASDM Beverly Hills – Tepezcohuite moisturizer*
I found this when I was reading about Salma Hayek’s skincare line Nuance
She talks passionately about Tepezcohuite and the long tradition it has in Mexico. Her products are not easily available in Europe, so I tried to find other products with Tepezcohuite and ASDM Beverly Hills* offers the cleanest one.
SERUM
I don’t use serums daily, but I certainly like to try new ones from time to time. Here are some that I really liked.
JOIK Silky and luxurious facial serum*
This JOIK serum is oil-based but the absorption is great and the skin feels velvety and the pores are diminished.
JOIK Rejuvenating beauty elixir*
This beauty elixir is not oil-based, it’s very light and has a light shimmer to it. I’ve been testing it now and really enjoy it.
HAND CREAM
When it comes to hand creams, I like them quite rich and my favourites have been:
Egyptian Magic Cream
Biaroma hand cream
Dr. Hauschka Hydrating Hand Cream*
This hand cream feels much lighter than the others but it does a very good job at keeping your hands nicely hydrated.
EXTRA PROTECTION FOR COLD WEATHER
For those winter days when you feel like your face might fall off.
Weleda Baby Calendula Weather Protection*
Weleda Skin Food*
Egyptian Magic Cream It’s a great multitasker – you can use it on your whole body. Great for the whole family actually. It’s made of olive oil, beeswax, honey, bee pollen, royal jelly and propolis extract.
LIP BALM
You will eat most of your lip balm, so it’s pretty crucial to have a clean version. Conventional lip balms contain a lot of petrochemicals like vaseline, silicones, parabens etc. Some even smell like car grease. Quite often you find a chemical mix with a drop of something natural. There are some great all-natural lip balms available and they can also be handy substitutes for eye creams or used on other body parts that tend to get dry.
I like EOS lip balms because they smell and taste great. My favourites are Honeysuckle Honeydew, Blueberry Acai, Pomegranate Raspberry. Only a few of the EOS balms have some ingredients that I’d skip, like the Lemon which has a chemical SPF.
Lots of other natural and clean options at Love Lula*.
HAIR
There are many brands out there that have great natural shampoos, conditioners and styling products. Just to name a few of my favourite brands:
Let me know if you’re missing some types of clean daily products and I will try add them to this post or some future one.
*affiliate links, more info here.
Michaela Kei 