Best Drugstore Eco-Beauty: Makeup
A smokey eye in progress from one of an awesome series of sustainable makeup how-to videos, featuring celebrity makeup artist Meredith Baraf, on the EcoTools website.
Been wanting to give eco-friendly beauty a go, but worried you’ll end up stuck with a pricey product you don’t totally love? That’s the beauty of drugstores. With their incredibly accommodating return policies, major chains like CVS and Rite-Aid make trying out eco-friendly makeup a risk-free breeze. (Of course, check your store policy before buying anything if there’s a chance you might want to return it.) But can you really find everything you need for head-to-toe eco beauty—free of Big List baddies—among those jam-packed aisles? You can, we have, and now we’re sharing our favorite drugstore eco-beauty finds with you.
When it comes to makeup, start with the essentials: Skin-perfecting makeup and multi-use brushes. Physician’s Formula is on the shelves of most drugstores—including CVS and Target—but look for their green-labeled, EcoCert credentialed Organic Wear line, which leaves out parabens, synthetic preservatives, GMOs, synthetic colors and synthetic fragrance. Our daily go-to is the Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin Tinted Moisturizer, which contains skin-loving organic jojoba and organic shea butter, and provides SPF 15 sun protection, courtesy of titanium dioxide.
One bit of advice: The product goes on very light, so try a shade or two darker than usual to avoid the dreaded paste-face (this is where that generous return policy also comes in handy). Luckily, it also goes on sheer, so you can layer until you get the coverage you want. A dusting of Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin Pressed Powder—which also runs light, p.s.—is the perfect accompaniment for a smooth, matte finish and even complexion. With products averaging around $10, you can afford to eco-beautify your entire look: Top off with Organic Wear 100% Natural Bronzer and a dusting of 100% Natural Origin Blush on the apples of your cheeks for a naturally lovely glow.
Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin Tinted Moisturizer ($9.95)
WEEK OF 4.11.11 TEN ECOSTILETTO SUBSCRIBERS WILL EACH WIN A $10.95 PHYSICIAN’S FORMULA ORGANIC WEAR 100% NATURAL ORIGIN TINTED MOISTURIZER!
The best way to reduce your carbon footprint is to use—and reuse—your stuff for as long as you can. And that includes cosmetics brushes. But when your kabuki gets all ooki from dead skin, oil and makeup buildup, it’s time for fresh bristles. Which, to us, means investing in some incredibly affordable, yet totally sustainable, EcoTools by Paris Presents brushes. This truly cruelty-free, vegan line of makeup brushes and accessories (even green goddess Alicia Silverstone endorses it) is available at Rite-Aid, Walgreens and Drug Emporium, among other big chains.
A card-carrying member of EarthShare—a non-profit organization whose members pledge to donate 1% of annual revenues to environmental organizations—the line includes a ridiculously extensive range of brushes with bamboo handles, silky soft taklon bristles and recycled aluminum ferrules (the casing that holds the bristles to the handle). We especially love the Bamboo Six-Piece Eye Brush Set, which has all the tools you need to go smoky or sweet, all snugly nestled in the cutest little hemp bag you ever laid those perfectly highlighted eyes on.
EcoTools Bamboo Six-Piece Eye Brush Set ($7.99)
WEEK OF 4.17.11 TWELVE ECOSTILETTO SUBSCRIBERS WILL EACH WIN A $7.99 ECOTOOLS SIX-PIECE EYE BRUSH SET!
Want more? We found the best drugstore eco-beauty for makeup, hair, skin and spa—plus more than $800 in giveaways. Check back here next week!
Natasha Garber is a contributor to numerous lifestyle publications, where she covers green events and event planning, sustainable catering and cuisine, and fashion and design trends. A passionate proponent of eco-conscious living, Natasha lives, writes, plays and parents in Los Angeles.
