Is a Beauty Product Detox Really Necessary?

 So, as you may already know, I’m on a journey to attain and advocate a healthier lifestyle for myself and others. During this journey, I’ve realized there’s a lot of learning to do and work to be done to build awareness and make sound choices regarding which products to use in our everyday lives. If you have read any of my other blogs, you are familiar with the fact that there hasn't been a major federal law passed regulating personal care products (makeup, skincare, body products, deodorant, baby shampoo, toothpaste, etc.) since 1938. The U.S. currently has only banned 30 hazardous product ingredients compared to the E.U.’s ban of  1,400. Considering there are 80,000+ chemicals in products on the market today, we have some pretty significant work to do to ensure we are not ingesting these products and passing the harmful effects to our future or present children.

Now, let’s address those products on your shelf, shall we? For starters, Beautycounter has committed to a health and safety standard that goes well beyond what’s legally required in the United States. Their never list that restricts over 1,800 ingredients from their cosmetic product ingredient list is a great tool for eliminating products that contain the ingredients found within. 

There are also a few handy tools available when it comes to scanning your favorite products for potential toxic chemicals or hazardous ingredients. (insert your favorite apps, websites, or tools and what you love about them here). The free Think Dirty - Shop Clean mobile app lets you scan a product’s barcode and, if it is found in their database, it is instantly categorized as “clean” or “dirty”. If the product is unsafe, the app will suggest safer products to purchase. How easy is that?

Committing to seeking a deeper awareness of what we’re putting into our bodies is necessary  to avoid exacerbating existing or potential health issues. In order to do so, we must stop solely relying on the government’s existing regulations to protect our health, safety, and well-being. It’s time to wake up and do better.

To learn more about the benefits of a clean beauty lifestyle, please visit my Goodness Greenish YouTube channel.

Rock Your Zoom Meeting at a Moment’s Notice

In recent times, we’ve all experienced most of our social interactions via web conferencing. If you’re anything like me, you may be feeling a bit of tech fatigue. But that doesn’t mean you have to let it show, lovely. Let's chat about some quick and easy aesthetic tips for looking your best in front of the camera.

Tip 1: Be strategic with your background. Always opt for a clean, simple background for video chats to prevent distractions. You can also use a background that represents your business if the meeting is business-related.

Tip 2: Ensure you have proper lighting in place. Lighting is key to great exposure and luminosity. If you only have time to do one thing before your meeting begins, by all means, light up that gorgeous face of yours! You can utilize natural light by facing a window, using a basic desk light, or a lighting ring on a tripod.

Tip 3: Use the proper device positioning technique. Elevate your laptop with a small box or a stack of books and angle your camera downward to prevent putting those nostrils on display. If using a phone, set it up a bit higher than your eye line and angel it downward.

Tip 4: Put your best face forward. The last thing you want is to look flat while on video, especially when you've just crawled out of bed and Zoomed to your meeting sans your morning coffee! Whose business is it anyway that you’re all business on top and rocking pajamas on the bottom? No one’s!




You can quickly produce a soft beat consisting of a few of the following:

• A little concealer under your eyes to help you look alert

• Soft contouring with a little bronzer beneath your cheekbones, around your forehead and temples, and under your jawline for a great slimming effect

• A smidge of eyeliner and some mascara to give your eyes definition

• A pop of blush on the apples of your cheeks to give an appearance of blood is a flowing...haha!

•  A bomb lip color. Yes, a bold lip never fails, girl! In fact, the bolder, the better. If you’re more conservative, at least consider a color two shades darker or brighter than your natural lip. It will look amazing!

If you want a little extra pop, don't forget to opt for the skin-softening setting on Zoom. It smooths any harsh contrast or shadows on your skin.




What are your favorite Zoom tips? Share below if you’d like to see a tutorial on this! You know your clean beauty bestie’s got you! 





Five Years Ago...

No truer words have been strung together, such as these ❤️ Almost five years ago, I joined @beautycounter for the mission, the mission to get safer products into the hands of everyone 🙌 At the time, I had been in the beauty industry for twenty years. I had no clue, none, about the lack of regulation within my industry.

>>The fact that there hasn't been a major federal law passed regulating personal care products (makeup, skincare, body products, deodorant, baby shampoo, toothpaste, etc.) since 1938 was shocking.

>>The fact that the U.S. only bans 30 ingredients compared to the E.U. with 1,400. I mean...30? And it was only 11 five years ago, so there has been "some" progress. I mean...🤦🏻‍♀️

>>The fact that there are 80,000+ chemicals on the market today, and many don't have safety data for human health.

Just a few reasons. I couldn't unlearn what I had learned, especially the correlation with my hypothyroidism. I knew I had to be part of the change, educating others, advocating for safer beauty laws. What took me by complete surprise was the community of women 💪🙌❤️ that I'm surrounded by (in-person & virtually), learn from, be inspired and motivated by...just so much more than I expected!

Then you throw in the accidental business that I'm so incredibly proud of, especially during these unprecedented times. It's been life-changing, and I'm full of gratitude. I love sharing this opportunity because I know what this business has done for my family and me.

If you've been thinking of ways to bring in additional income during these uncertain times, I would love to talk to you about Beautycounter. It’s the best decision career-wise I’ve ever made 🙌 We've waived enrollment fees through tonight, and we had the biggest launch in the history of our company this week. It's a great time to start your Beautycounter Business! #beautycounterworks #ilovewhatido #leadersinclean

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The New "Toxic Beauty" Documentary Asks: Are Skincare Products the New Cigarettes?

The Toxic Beauty Documentary https://www.toxicbeautydoc.com shares all the reasons why I do the work I do. As a woman, a woman of color, and a mom with a history of endocrine issues (not genetic) and a having worked in the "beauty" industry for over 20 years, the issue of toxic ingredients that are legally allowed in beauty products and... with no warning labels is a HUGE problem for me. And it should be for you too. After learning about the lack of regulation and harmful ingredients that are in beauty/personal care products 5 years ago, it's been my mission to share what I've learned and to educate as many people that are willing to listen to me or read what I post.

I encourage you to watch this important documentary even if you are not a woman. If you have women in your life, daughters, please watch with them and/or share this post. (Link to Vogue article in bio)
See my stories for my go-to resources when researching for safer personal care products. “Chemicals are not like people. They’re not innocent until they’re proven guilty.”
👇
Available NOW to stream or rent on Amazon and iTunes.

 #cleanbeauty#toxicbeauty #cleanbeautyadvocate

NOW AVAILABLE ON DIGITAL: https://geni.us/ToxicBeauty Each morning we spritz and slather ourselves in over 100 different chemicals - yet the cosmetics and pe...

The Truth about Mica

As if I needed another reason to stand proud alongside @beautycounter and support all of their advocacy efforts. Please watch Beautycounter’s short eye-opening trailer from their upcoming documentary on mica in my stories.

“Someone's daughter, four years old, right now is sitting pulling mica out of a mine in the pitch black, dark, scared to death."
-Gregg Renfrew


What is mica? 
Mica is an ingredient that's widely used in cosmetics to create the shimmery glow we all know and love. But the mica industry can come with some serious transparency issues. So Beautycounter decided to do something about it.

So, why mica?
First of all, what is it? Mica is a mineral name given to a group of silicate minerals—there are over 37 types of mica.

Where is it used? 
Mica is used across many different industries, such as automotive, electronics, and plastics. In the beauty industry, mica is used as a base for powder formulations and to help achieve that shimmery look.

What are the challenges?
If you want high-performing color cosmetics, you need mica. But the mica industry can come with some alarming and unethical practices. For decades there has been public outcry around corruption in mica mining, including child labor, forced labor, and wage theft. We've witnessed continued reporting on these serious human rights abuses—and sadly, there hasn't been substantial progress on the ground. So, we took a deep dive into our supply chain to confirm that, together with our suppliers, we are upholding the "responsible" part of our sourcing.

We all have the power to help shift the mica industry towards responsible sourcing. You can help right now by texting MICA to 52886 to ask your elected officials to stop the importation of products produced using child labor.
#nobullshit#transparency #beautycomesclean

Clean Full Coverage Foundation that Works!

Finally, a clean full coverage foundation that doesn't cake up and looks luminous all day long 🙌✨ You know I'm all about toxin-free beauty products, but I'm also about efficacy and performance 👆 As a makeup artist, the products I use must have the wearability to last all day! Since my favorite clean beauty brand, Beautycounter, doesn't have a full coverage foundation at this point, I must find other like-minded brands that do. @lawless Clean AF Woke Up This Way will be my new go-to full coverage foundation suggestion for my clients that ask!

See my before & after pics below 👇

Featured products:
@lawless Woke Up Like This Flawless Finish Makeup - Golden
@lawless Seal the Deal Loose Setting Powder- Brightening Translucent
@Iliabeauty True Skin Serum Concealer - Yucca & Kava
@elfcosmetics Airbrush Blender brush
@ctilburymakeup Hollywood Complexion dual-ended brush