How to Switch to Organic Cosmetics – Tips and Info

This blogpost is also available in German – Deutsche Version mit deutschen Onlineshops und Tipps findet ihr hier

In my personal life, on YouTube, but also every so often on the blog many people tell me that they would like to switch to natural cosmetics, but do not know how. Their old tried and true products work and there are also tops and flops among the natural products and I understand that people don’t want to have to test everything until they find the right one. I totally understand that! But it doesn’t have to be a radical step from one day to the next, but can, like I did it, be done gradually – in Baby Steps!

Here is my story:

My first natural cosmetics – Products from Lavera and Weleda and occasionally from Alverde have been my beauty companions for ages. But it was only about 4 or 5 years ago that I consciously bought cosmetics from the natural cosmetics sector for the first time. Nisi of Teetharejade highly recommended the Living Luminizer from RMS and I was not disappointed. I was immediately a big fan of all RMS products, and after that I was able to explore the natural-cosmetic matter a bit deeper thanks to Amazingy and some blogger samples.

Saying no to silicone & Co. – I also banished everything that contains silicone and / or paraffin. Silicone stays on the skin like a film, so that in the short term it creates a shiny effect, and a pleasantly soft skin feeling. However, on the long term, silicones clog pores and sweat glands, causing the skin to become brittle and prevent the natural regeneration of the skin, the skin can not work and breath as it naturally should (source).

But there’s more – Silicones and paraffins were only the beginning. Thanks to the Codecheck app that can scan and check ingredients (by the way no advertisement, I’m a big fan of the app and I think it’s important to share them with you! Other great ones are Think Dirty or ToxFox), I’ve said goodbye to more and more ingredients, such as parabens or softeners, but also microplastics and when possible palm oil, at least if it is not certified. Of course, you shouldn’t blindly believe the app and it’s not always 100% correct, but it provides a great reference and a lot of knowledge!

A little chemistry never hurts?

If you think that a bit of chemistry doesn’t hurt, here are a few things the think about: The skin is our largest organ and many substances in conventional cosmetics make our skin even more permeable to harmful substances. And since there are so many options to avoid toxins and pollutants, as well as parabens (which are suspected to affect our hormone balance), for me the choice to rely as much as possible on natural cosmetics is a simple one. In addition, I avoid products with environmentally harmful microplastics, products that are tested on animals, contain non-certified ingredients and more!

Over the last few years, I have almost completely made the switch to natural cosmetics. For almost all conventional products, I have found perfect, natural alternatives that not only are good for me, but are often beneficial to the environment through organic certification and less packaging! You will learn how you can make the switch as well here:

COMMON MYTHS ABOUT NATURAL COSMETICS & MY TIPS

If you also want to switch to natural cosmetics, but have difficulties with the change, whether it’s due to uncertainties or prejudices, then hopefully the following information and my personal tips can help ease some of your worries:

1. Start slowly – where to start?
   • Many think that a change must be radical.
   • I used up old products one by one and only bought something new after the old ones were finished. But if you want to sort out directly, no problem. But I think that this is the more complicated approach that can lead to frustration faster and also creates a lot of unnecessary waste.
   • In addition, I first changed the products that I use daily, such as highlighter and concealer, and then later on found natural alternatives for products that I use less often.
   • Blogs and YouTube videos helped me research, e.g. a good natural cosmetics blog is Organic Bunny.
     I will write my own post about how to put together a natural cosmetics starter kit, but until then my tip: you only need a few essential products at first, start to look around for alternatives, buy testers (see below) and then decide  for your perfect natural cosmetics alternative.
   • I emphasize such a gentle transition, because I do not want the change to lead to frustration. Natural cosmetics should be fun 🙂
2. Check the ingredients
   • For many, understanding the ingredients label may be way too complicated. Hardly anyone understands exactly what the information on the packaging means.
   • Here is where the codecheck app can really help. As I said, the app is not infallable and just because something is marked orange in Codecheck, it does not necessarily mean it is toxic or something.
   • However, the app helps to learn more about the ingredients, so you become more aware of what you are actually putting on your skin or in your hair.
   • Of course you do not always have to check all ingredients, eventually it will become automatic. But it is also enough to first simply rely on the proven natural cosmetics certifications such as NATRUE, ECOCERT, BDIH or demeter. Not every company with great ingredients can afford these expensive seals, but for the beginning they are a good reference!
3. Do not be immediately put off by the price
   • some products are certainly more expensive, especially if you previously always bought only the cheapest
   • but honestly, in the past I bought more and there was so much stuff laying around in the bathroom that I never really used up
   • As soon as I minimized my consumption in general, the slightly higher price did not matter, because through my conscious consumption (only buying what I really need or doing DIY projects) I ended up saving money
   • In addition, I previously bought luxury makeup such as Chanel or MAC. MAC lipsticks, which so many beauty enthusiasts buy, cost 21 euros! I prefer to buy a vegan organic lipstick for a similar price, but know that I’m definitely not putting any harmful substances on or into my body – literally – I’ve probably eaten at least half a lipstick over the course of my life, haha
   • In most cases, the price is justified by the high quality organic ingredients that really help and are grown sustainably and fair trade. Quality and ethics also play an important role in natural cosmetics.
4. Adjust your expectations
   • Natural cosmetics are largely chemical-free, but that means, conversely, that one can not always expect the same performance from 100% natural mascara as that from a 48-hour long-stay super-waterproof mascara. The perfect natural mascara will certainly come around soon, but until then, I just look for the one with the best performance. And on occasions when water may be involved (I’ll just mention the keyword wedding), I would resort to a conventional water-resistant mascara (but then only cruelty-free, vegan and no animal testing). Exceptions are ok, but now they are very, very rarely necessary!
   • The same goes for sunscreen. Here I have already written extensively about it
   • But otherwise there is a suitable natural alternative for almost all conventional products. More on this soon in future posts.
5. Potential allergies?
   • Many of my friends gave up on natural cosmetics immediately or do not even trust them because they allegedly immediately have allergic reactions to the products
   • Of course, any substance, as in conventional cosmetics, can cause allergies in individuals, this is not a particular problem of natural cosmetics, but exists in both areas
   • In addition, there are also natural cosmetics products made especially for people with sensitive skin and products specifically made without perfume and essential oils. So pay attention to these keywords in the product description!
6. Alcohol
   • Another point of criticism: Natural cosmetics supposedly always contain far too much alcohol 
   • Even natural cosmetics need to be preserved somehow (otherwise I recommend, for example, pure oils that do not need preservatives), but not all alcohol is the same:
   • On the one hand, alcohol evaporates quite quickly when applying to the skin. Chemical preservatives however often penetrate into the skin, or remain on the skin throughout the day
   • On the other hand, high quality alcohol is usually used in natural cosmetics – there are huge differences in quality here
   • Of course if you have very sensitive skin you need to pay attention and try to find products with lower alcohol content, but I will share a detailed post with an expert soon. I am only sharing my research and this is just a brief introduction – would you like to read an expert interview?
7. DIY Beauty
   • Beauty DIYs offer a great alternative for sensitive skin, a small budget, but also for zero or less-waste enthusiasts. Body lotion, hair oils, shampoos and conditioners are especially easy to make yourself and with incredibly great and nourishing ingredients!
   • Here are my beauty DIYs,you can find my hair care routine with a few DIYs here. Let me know if you want more DIY recipes here on the blog.
8. Find products
   • I usually link to all my favorite beauty products here on the blog and on YouTube. That doesn’t mean hoewever that you can only find them online. Especially in big cities, you can find the products in a big mall or in special natural cosmetics stores to try them out on the spot. Or you can go to the website of the individual products and click, for example, on the category “retailers” or similar. There you can find out in which shops the products are sold. Or the shop has a local showroom. Then you can test the products in peace and, in the best case, also receive advice.
   • Here are a few examples where I find my favorite brands offline:
     • Whole Foods
     • Organic Supermarkets
     • In the pharmacy
     • In the health food store
     • In big malls and their green beauty section
     • Belladonna natural cosmetics Berlin
     • Showroom Amazingy Berlin
     • Showroom Savue Beauty Berlin
     • Spatacular Beauty Bar Dusseldorf
   • And shopping online:
     • The Detox Market (USA, Affiliate Link)
     • Amazingy (international) – Tester you can order here
     • Niche Beauty Green (Affiliate Link)
     • Love Lula (UK but ships internationally – order samples here)
     • The Truth Beauty (USA & Canada)
     • Net A Porter (International, Affiliate Link) – Clean Beauty Products
     • Clean at Sephora (International, Affiliate Link)
     • Ecco Verde
   • As just mentioned you can also order testers in some online shops. This may sound like a waste, as a lot of packaging is used for little product, but this packaging (small jars) can usually be reused. In addition, I prefer to buy a tester, rather than trying to get through countless large packs that I do not like.

This was just a small introduction and more natural cosmetics 101 articles will follow. I have long resisted writing so intensely about this subject because I am not a beauty guru. But I would like to inspire more people to use natural cosmetics, so I finally decided to just go for it. Also, many of you had lots of questions about it on Instagram so I had to start trying to answer some of them somewhere. Therefore first this general blog post. These next upcoming posts will also be online very soon:

• Foundation, Concealer & Co.
• Natural cosmetics Mascara, liquid eyeliner & Co.
• Sunscreen 
• Natural fragrances, deodorants & Co. – here is my video
• Natural hair care – here my first blogpost about it!
• Low-packaging natural cosmetics & more DIYs
• Low-irritation natural cosmetics
• Vegan Beauty Vs. Non-vegan cosmetics
• Oils for face and body
• Natural cosmetics vs. certified natural cosmetics

Let me know which natural cosmetics topic you would like to read more about!