The Clean Skincare Terms and What They Really Mean
Hands up who finds the clean beauty movement a little confusing? Well, here’s the good news: it doesn’t have to be
Once upon a time, the words ‘clean’ and ‘beauty ' rarely appeared in the same sentence, and now? They’re practically joined at the hip. The term ‘clean beauty’ (sometimes used interchangeably with organic, non-toxic, green or natural) has no set definition, yet it seems to refer to so many different things all at once: sustainable, cruelty-free, recycled, naturally sourced…we could go on. At Love Beauty and Planet, we like to sum up clean beauty a little more simply: a routine that allows you to care for your beauty as safely as possible, without also impacting the beauty of the planet. Not confusing at all, right? Life’s too short to feel guilty every time you take a shower, and it’s actually the small everyday acts of love that will go a long way towards keeping our planet beautiful. Still keen to go clean in the skincare department? We’ve taken a look at some of the common buzzwords and broken them down into simple, easy-to-digest explanations…
Clean skincare term: ‘Free From'
While all cosmetic ingredients on the market are considered safe, we choose to avoid a few we’re not 100% in love with, stripping back our formulas with you and the planet in mind. The majority of our products come with a cruelty-free, dye-free, silicone-free and paraben-free guarantee, such as our 97% naturally derived Lavender & Hyssop Body Mist, which freshens you up without the extra water consumption.
Clean skincare term: ‘Naturally Sourced’
Sure, synthetic ingredients have their place in the beauty world, meaning there’s no reason to boycott them completely, but here at Love Beauty and Planet, we’re a little bit in love with the natural ingredients our planet provides. Our formulas are made up of at least 91-98% naturally derived ingredients, and because we like to be crystal-clear, here’s exactly what we mean by ‘naturally derived’: unchanged from its natural state, like water, or from a natural source that has undergone some processing but retains greater than 50% of its original natural structure (it’s a lot to process, so we’ll give you a minute…).
We enrich our products with the likes of argan oil, shea butter and coconut oil (if you’re considering switching to natural deodorant, you need to try our Coconut Oil & Ylang Ylang Deodorant Stick to stay fresh without aluminum, parabens or alcohol). All are sustainably sourced from around the world, which brings us nicely onto…
Clean skincare term: ‘Sustainable’
Another word that covers so many eco elements. It’s all very well plucking the planet’s finest fruits for our formulas, but if we didn’t consider the long-term effects that might have on the place we sourced them from, or the locals who lived there, then that’s not good enough for us. For example, the shea butter in our Shea Butter & Sandalwood Body Lotion (and the rest of the range, in fact) is sourced from Ghana and Burkina Faso, two countries where harvesting is a key job for women in the region.
Clean skincare term: ‘Vegan certified’
What does it actually mean when a product is cruelty-free and vegan? Well, like all good movies, it means that no animals were harmed in the making of it. The planet provides so many amazing natural alternatives that you’ll probably prefer your cruelty-free switches. We don’t include animal-derived ingredients in our products (including those made by them, such as honey or beeswax), and we never test on animals, and nor do any of our suppliers.
We’re all about transparency, so although we still have a way to go on our journey to sustainability, we’re quite proud of what we’ve achieved so far: post-consumer recycled bottles (PCR), ethically sourced ingredients, and cruelty-free and vegan certified products, to name a few.
Use multi-tasking products
Love Beauty and Planet’s shampoo bars are fantastic multi-taskers that can clean your body and your hair. Try Love Beauty and Planet’s 2 in 1 Coconut Water & Mimosa Flower Shampoo & Conditioner Bar to cleanse, moisturize and volumize hair and step out of the shower energized, thanks to a fragrance that blends lasting green floral notes with distinct undertones of powdery honey… all finished off with a fruity raspberry cassis. On top of all that, it comes wrapped up in a 100% recyclable carton.
Use every drop
For liquid products, add some water to the bottle to loosen up what’s stuck at the bottom, give it a shake and squeeze out one extra application. Similarly, while we all occasionally try products only to find they aren’t quite right for our unique hair or skin, rather than tossing them out or letting them gather dust, give that cream, conditioner or body butter to someone else. Re-gifting that helps the planet.
Be water conscious
Opt for showers over baths; a ten-minute shower uses 25 gallons of water, whereas a full bath can use double that. Showers can be just as indulgent, too, if you use pampering products like Love Beauty and Planet’s Rose Water and Niacinamide Body Wash, which hydrates skin, leaving it nourished, visibly illuminated and smelling like a dream. Shorten your shower time where you can; if everyone in the US cut their shower by three minutes we could save 2,737 gallons of water per person per year!
