Tag: clean beauty

Why I Love Oil Cleansing

IMG_6440I have fallen in love with oil cleansing. 

What is oil cleansing, you ask? Well, let me tell you!

When you oil cleanse, you use a natural oil on your dry, dirty face to remove dirt and makeup. I know that sounds crazy. But here’s a fact: like dissolves like. Oil dissolves oil. 

When you use the right oils, you can cleanse your skin of the bad dirt and bacteria while replacing it with the good oils that your skin NEEDS to be healthy. Oil cleansing has been shown to be effective not only for dry skin, but also for people with oily skin and acne and sensitive skin.

Many times we try to strip our skin of oil thinking it will solve our breakouts, but that is actually making it worse. Our skin needs oil. When we strip it, we then signal our skin to make MORE oil. So oil cleansing is an effective way to balance out our skin’s needs. Oil cleansing works with your skin, instead of against it, to protect, heal and moisturize.

The way my face feels after oil cleansing is like nothing I’ve felt before. Clean, smooth, soft….ahhhhh! Also, I think it’s way easier than typical face wash. I am so much more consistent with washing my face at night since starting with an oil cleanser. It really feels like..self-care. It’s such a luxurious feeling.

So how exactly do you oil cleanse?

First, pick a good oil! I’m a huge fan of the Countertime Lipid Defense Cleansing Oil! It’s a luxurious, lightweight cleansing oil that gently yet effectively removes makeup and other impurities without stripping essential lipids from the skin. Rich in vitamin E, fatty acids, and our plant-derived Retinatural Complex, the formula reinforces the skin’s fragile moisture barrier for a soothed, nourished complexion

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Step 1:  Use two pumps of oil and massage into your dry, dirty face. 

Take your time here. Give yourself a little facial massage. You deserve it!

Step 2: After a minute or so you will be able to feel that the dirt has dissolved from your face. Then take a warm, wet washcloth and hold it to your face for a second. Let the steam open those pores. Wipe it all off.

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And that’s that. Easy peasy.

I follow with the Countertime Mineral Boost Hydrating Essence, Tripeptide Radiance Serum and Tetrapeptide Supreme Cream…it’s so dreamy… I can’t wait to wash my face again tomorrow!

 

Have you tried oil cleansing? Tell me about it in the comments 🙂

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XO, Nicole

 

Pucker Up, Buttercup

non toxic lipstick

Y’all it’s National Lipstick Day! So you know I couldn’t miss the chance to tell you about:

1) My favorite lipsticks and why I am a lipstick convert and

2) Why safer lipstick MATTERS.

Prior to Beautycounter I NEVER wore lipstick. I was a lip gloss girl all the way. Lipstick always dried my lips, I hated the way it felt and I’m not sure I had the confidence to pull off bold colors. When I joined Beautycounter I had no intention of changing that. The lip glosses are amazing (truly) so I wasn’t going to bother with a lipstick. Except I got one for free when I signed up…clearly I had to try it. Holy butter on my lips! That Twig Lip Sheer blew me away. It was smooth, hydrating and had the most delicious vanilla scent (all natural of course). The color was subtle and I was hooked. My next order included several more colors. Petal is still my all-time fav for when I want a natural look. 

Just last year Beautycounter introduced our Color Intense Lipstick, which is long lasting and more intense color pigment. Again, I shook my head and said “that’s nice” assuming this new product was meant for other women, not me. 

Wrong again.

At a training event Beautycounter gave every consultant a Color Intense Lipstick to take home. I got Sunset (a holiday special edition) and at the urging of my friends Brooke and Megan I tried it on. Instant love. My lips still felt hydrated, the peppermint scent was so fresh and the color was perfection. I think I wore sunset everyday this past fall/winter. Since then I’ve played with more of the colors and it’s so much fun. For the most part, they are bolder colors so the mood has to feel right for me. But I mix them into my makeup routine more than I ever thought I would. I love that they last all day and still feel good on my lips. 

You can check out all our lipstick options here.

But this is the important part – lip products are one of the first things you should be switching to clean. Why? Well, because you eat it! There’s some crazy stat floating around about how many pounds of lipstick women eat in a lifetime. I’m not sure the accuracy of that one, but regardless, if you put it on your lips it is making its way into your mouth and into your bloodstream.

Traditional lipstick is made will all sorts of fun ingredients like:

  • Lead and other heavy metals
  • Fragrance
  • Parabens
  • Coal Tar (yes, you read that right)

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Lead is a neurotoxin, which has no defined “safe level”. The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics published a study in 2010 revealing they found lead in over 400 lipsticks. In addition to neurotoxicity, lead is also linked to fertility issues and hormone disruption.

Even more concerning, UC Berkeley published a study in 2013  that detected not only lead, but cadmium, chromium, aluminum and manganese in 32 lip products. These heavy metals are toxic.

Fragrance is a trade secret which means over 3000 chemicals could be hiding under that name, many of them harmful to your health.

Parabens are hormone disruptors linked to cancer, infertility and obesity.

Coal tar is a carcinogen, but is often used in dark lipsticks (and mascara).

I’m only scratching the surface, but hopefully you are getting the picture. Lipstick can be a landmine of harmful ingredients and if you’re using it regularly, it is certainly cause for concern.

Beautycounter not only forbids the use of the above ingredients and over 1500 more on our Never List, we also 3rd party test all our cosmetics for heavy metals and other Never List ingredients. 

Heavy metals are natural. No one is intentionally adding them to their formulas. They exist in the ground where companies source their colorants, so it is impossible to be at “zero” when making cosmetics. That’s why we test for them in every batch of our makeup and ensure that if there are detectable levels that they are at or below the strictest international allowable levels. This blog explains it better than I do.

Today I’m celebrating with one of my go-to bright pink Color Intense lipsticks, First Date. What’s your favorite color? Go ahead, have some fun …without the concern 🙂

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