ELLE’s Green Stars, Safe or Not?

The most recent issue of ELLE magazine made my stack of read-ables because it touted a listing of “30 All-Natural Hair & Makeup Must-Haves”. I always pick up mags with similar lines because I want to see what they are feeding the public. And I am usually disappointed by the not-so-natural products they recommend.

Not so much with the latest ELLE. While they definitely included some that contain ingredients from our Ingredients to Avoid list, several were actually nontoxic. Even a few of my faves.

Sooooo, if you happened to pick up a copy of this here little mag, let me tell you which of the “The 2013 Green Stars” products they have listed are safe and worth your money (including links to brand websites and our Amazon page). And which ones not to bother with.

For Face

The experts enlisted by ELLE chose 4 beautifiers for face. Dr. Hauschka Translucent Make-up, ILIA Complete Mascara, and Nvey Eco Mattifying Compact Powder are all Worth It!

As for Josie Maran Magic Marker Lip and Cheek Stain, made with PEGs and artificial colorants, the few organic ingredients do little to make it healthy. This one is a Don’t Bother!

Anti-Agers

On to the anti-aging category. Tata Harper Resurfacing Mask is a green gal fave for good reason. It is totally safe and healthy and amazing…Worth It! The other three products in this category fall short.

Josie Maran Argan Day + Night Eye Cream is not the worst product I’ve seen, still, you could definitely find an eye cream with fewer ingredients. There is no available full ingredient listing for Aveda Green Science Lifting Serum, and we know this is a red flag. Because most Aveda products contain some synthetic ingredients, I’m guessing this does too, otherwise they would proudly declare all of the ingredients. Bars are pretty easy to make without toxic ingredients. Neutrogena Naturals Face & Body Bar is a fail on that. Don’t Bother!

For Summer

Three of the summertime skin enhancers hit the mark for safety. TRUE Natural Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 30 mineral sunscreen in Caribbean Coconut is a favorite of mine, and this brand makes nothing but safe products. Lavera Self-Tanning Lotion is absolutely the best and also completely toxin free. W3LL People Luminous Mineral Bronzer is free from junk ingredients as well. All three are Worth It!

Then we have L’Occitane Verbena Body Salt Scrub. No complete ingredient listing and, to my knowledge, L’Occitane does not make nontoxic products. So Don’t Bother! with this one and choose a salt scrub that truly is natural.

Green Fixes

It was a half and half split amongst these natural beauty remedies. Dr. Hauschka Pure Care Cover Stick is a good choice for covering blemishes and discoloration, and totally Worth It! John Masters Organics Shine On Leave-In Treatment does contain a heapin’ helping of glycerin, but because all natural hair care products that work well are hard to come by, I’m giving this a Worth It!

Burt’s Bees Blemish Stick is all natural, but the main ingredient is alcohol which is super irritating. Don’t Bother! and try B-leaf Botanics Banish Blemish Treatment instead. As much as we’d like cult beauty brand Kiehl’s to be good for us, it just isn’t. Kiehl’s Skin Rescuer Stress-Minimizing Daily Hydrator is no exception. No complete ingredient listing + past reputation = Don’t Bother!

Night Time Beauty

This night time beauty kit is good to go. That’s right, all 5 products in this category make the grade. Vapour Organic Beauty Aura Multi-Use Blush, Ilia Lipstick, Intelligent Nutrients Volumizing Spray, W3LL People Eye Crayon, and Alima Luminous Shimmer Eyeliner are all Worth It!

[Because we've used some affiliate links to our Amazon page in this post we stand to make a wee bit o' bucks.  Just know we only recommend products we truly believe in.  Bucks or no.]

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