Land in Hand

Hey you! Well look at you showing up to a post on how to wear LESS makeup. He he.

Somewhere between 8 months and a year ago I started a journey-ish of trying to remove harmful chemicals from our cleaning products. I read some discouraging stuff about what’s in our common grocery store cleaning products and thought, “ICK!” My son was just starting to walk around this time and was into eh-ver-ee-thing.

He legitimately had his mouth around my toilet bowl cleaner container one afternoon. SOS.

So this put me in an awkward spot. Spend a lot of money on cleaner…cleaning products? Make my own cleaning products like a proper pilgrim? (In summary: all you ever need is apple cider vinegar, baking soda and Castile soap. You’re welcome.) This obsession/fascination traveled from cleaning products into toiletries. And from toiletries to makeup. I’ll spare you the details. Just download the “Think Dirty” app and type in your products. Look for words like “carcinogenic” and then promptly throw out said product. Or at least that’s what I did.

SO here I am trying to find makeup that is “clean-er-ish.” But this stuff is pricey. So I paired down what I typically would use if I was getting all “dolled up” which happens once every 345 days.

SO here it is! Products from brands that have more of a conscious than most. And my paired down “I need to look decent and leave the house in ten minutes or less” essentials.

It all starts with a clean face lovies. And turns out all that foamy soapy business is unnecessary. You’re drying out your skin’s natural oils, making your skin drier, and thus you need even more products to give your skin back the nutrients it needs. I’ve been using this glorious business. Removes makeup. Leaves my face feeling soft. Voix La!

I also made a coconut oil scrub with equal parts coconut oil, sugar and a couple drops of peppermint essential oil. It’s like rubbing exfoliating minty gum all over my face. Oil pulls out dirt from your pores, sugar exfoliates, and peppermint rejuvenates and refreshens me!

In the morning, I simply rub a warm washcloth over my face.  Then I proceed with moisturizer if I need it.

Okay on to the fun stuff!

Here are things I have removed from my routine because I cannot afford $1,200 worth of “clean” makeup products. I said bye to: eyeliner, eyeshadow palettes, eyeshadow brushes, bronzer, lip sticks/tints that make my lips peel or are cheap, waterproof mascara, and primers. If you have good stuff, you don’t need to prime every stinking thing. Also…I’m a mom. Not a supermodel. (Also, if I DO need those things…I just get the cheap stuff since it’s not part of my everyday routine.)

Left pic is all that I used to own. Right pic is what I use now and are my paired-down, everyday essentials.

Here are my go-to’s for makeup.

Beauty Counter Tint Skin Hydrating Foundation. – This stuff is by far the most moisturizing, creamy, smooth foundation I’ve ever tried. It covers blemishes well but isn’t too cake-y.  This is literally what it sounds like, a tinted moisturizer.

Glossier stretch-concealer

Glossier boy-brow Ya’ll I was so incredibly ignorant when it came to brows. I didn’t want Kardashian brows but I have some scars I wanted to fill in a bit. This was magic.

Beauty Counter- blush. They just changed the formula so I can’t link the one I have. But I linked the new formula. Haven’t tried that.  // I also used Pixi’s 2 in 1 multi-balm. Isn’t as “clean” as beauty counter but is a great go-to for quick, nicely pigmented results.

Beauty Volumizing Counter Mascara // Covergirl Colossal volume Let’s be honest… mascara isn’t really on your skin. So I love my good ol’ cheap Covergirl mascara. I’m using Beauty Counter now and it does a decent job.

Glossier Generation G lip tint // EOS lip balm (use sugar scrub before) so lips don’t peel.

SO using those products alone, here’s a little before and after. Goal: remove redness, fill in brows, brighten dark circles, put some natural color back into cheeks, make lips not look dry and cracked. Goal accomplished.

I dare you to go to the Glossier website and not hangout for like a half hour. They have videos for a lot of their products so you can see it on different skin tones. The website is clean and simple with a limited list of products.

My Beauty Counter distributor is Taylor Van Gorp and she’s so kind, a wife, a mom, a smart simple gal that I really admire. She doesn’t annoy me or pressure me to buy stuff.  And I’m a big fan of hers. Her Instagram handle is @taylorforbeautycounter if you’re interested in any of their products.

Other brands trying to make cleaner products:

Primally Pure

RMS Beauty

Arbonne

Stowaway Cosmetics

Bare Minerals

Melaleuca

Ya’ll have a good week and let me know if you try any of the above products and liked them! Or let me know if you get sucked in to the Glossier website and hang out there for a couple hours. There is a way out. Message me and I’ll counsel you.