As time marches on, I am becoming even more conscious of what I am putting inside my body and, naturally, what I am applying to the outside. I want to know what goes into that cream I am using or the shampoo I am washing my hair with; I want to know how that sunscreen is made and how effective it will be; most of all, I want to know whether the benefits outweigh the cost (and I don’t just mean financial)…the more I want to know, the more aware I become of chemicals and nasties, unethical practices, polluting products, non-recyclable packaging, unfair trade, etc, etc, etc. At the same time I am asking for more from each of the products that I use, expecting there to be constant innovation and progress – like most, I want to slow down the ageing process.
Green beauty products have come a long way from when I was a child. They are gaining recognition and a following, whilst realising that they need to be competitive, affordable and, most of all, effective. More and more are coming on to the market using natural, organic and ethical ingredients. Common nasties like parabens are out, and pure natural ingredients are in (fashion?). They are harnessing the power of nature to bring us closer to it (or so I like to think).
And whilst I haven’t converted to the green side 100%, I am adding more and more of these products to my collection. I am more selective about what shampoo I use, whether my conditioner contains silicone, whether my anti-perspirant contains parabens and aluminium, for example. I look for the truth behind a claim of ‘natural’ in a product. One day I would like a bathroom full of natural and organic products that work as effectively, if not more, than what I have in there at the moment.
So, when I find a product that ticks some or all of my green beauty credentials (natural, organic, ethical, paraben free, chemical free, fair trade, ethical practices) I will include them in the green beauty category on this blog. Please note, this is my definition of green beauty – you may have your own with more or fewer expectations, so please feel free to send me suggestions of what more to look out for. My knowledge in this area is still growing.
A final word, I am against animal testing and there is no compromise in this area.
magnolia – my favourite