Everyone's interested in sustainability these days. Millennials, Gen Y, Gen Z (Baby Boomers are more interested in property investment, but they'll try to remember green bags when they can).
Beauty brands have cottoned-on. The ones below have all made the wise investment to align themselves with eco-friendly ingredients, practices and manufacturing. We've given them the green thumbs up.
Here are the best eco-friendly beauty brands to get your hands on.
Edible Beauty
Crafted by naturopath and nutritionist Anna Mitsos, Edible Beauty is pretty much wrapped in sustainability. Literally. Designed from Miron Glass, the packaging not only avoids the use of plastic but also enhances the longevity of your product by blocking UV rays. Translation: less wastage. Here's the cool bit: the special glass also allows the entry of violet light, which optimises the botanical ingredients inside. Again, that boosts the quality so you use less product. Win/win.
ecostore
Hailing from New Zealand, ecostore are packing their personal care range with powerful naturally-derived ingredients. For them, what they leave out of their products is just as important as what they put into them. Expect to find plant and mineral-based ingredients like fragrance derived from essential oils, antioxidant-rich and healing Manuka honey, and soothing, hydrating Kiwi Harakeke Flax that supports cell turnover for healthy, moisturised skin. The best part? Their bottles are made from sustainable sugar plastic, created with renewable sugarcane, which is 100% recyclable. It’s a resounding yes from us.
esmi Skin Minerals
Cruelty-free, vegan and paraben-free skincare, wrapped up in recycled packaging and made in Australia. It doesn’t get much better than esmi. Their “Skin Treats” are raved about in the beauty world, especially the 24K Gold Nourishing Oil. Touted to reduce inflammation, improve blood circulation and reduce collagen depletion, the secret ingredient in this lovely face oil is 24-carat gold leaf. esmi’s range also includes serums, masks, a cleanser, mineral foundations and BB cream.
Mukti Organics
Hailing from the Sunny Coast, Mukti Organics is a force when it comes to eco-friendly ingredients. They favour native Australian extracts like Aloe Vera Leaf Juice and indigenous plants over imported ones. That reduces transport mileage and the overall refinement process. The brand also invests extensively in advanced extraction methods to minimise disruption to the biosphere. They take sustainable product sourcing very seriously.
Kester Black
Eco-friendly nail polish is a thing and Australian brand Kester Black is at the top of its game. They’re Australia’s most ethical beauty brand and their polishes are cruelty and palm oil free, vegan and come in packaging that makes use of recyclable materials. They only manufacture in small batches to minimise waste and their nail polish remover bottles are 100% recyclable, right down to the label which is made with HDPE plastic (aka a super recyclable material).
INIKA Organic
INIKA Organic are great. We're talking 100% certified organic and vegan make-up, without compromising on quality. This brand also makes a big effort to maximise renewable resources and minimise consumption of water, energy and soil. They've also got fully recyclable product packaging, plus the containers themselves. Definitely a good one if you're looking to keep your beauty footprint down.
Fluff Casual Cosmetics
From Erika Geraerts, co-founder of Frank Body, Fluff is a beauty brand unlike most others. Their ethos is based around loving the skin you’re in and not trying to look like anyone else. Based in Fitzroy, Melbourne, their offering is simple; a bronzing powder without palm oil, talc and mica with buildable colour and coverage, and a kabuki brush with zero synthetic fibres to put it on with.
Karen Murrell
Let your lips do the talking on this one: Karen Murrell not only prints their packaging with vegetable-based ink, but they also source the paper from an FSC-certified printing company—that means one which practices responsible forest management. Inside the lippy’s themselves, each shade is free from nasties like coal tar, carmine, triclosan and mineral oils. Good for the environment, good for you. And yes, we know Karen's actually a Kiwi, but we're claiming her as one of our own just like we did with pavlova.
We Are Feel Gooc Inc.
Say hello to your new sunscreen. Protecting your skin from the harsh rays of the sun is one of the most sustainable things you can do for yourself and Feel Good Inc.’s range of sunscreens are incredible. Free from nasties like preservatives and parabens, their creams protect against UVA and UVB rays, and they don’t test on animals. To top it off their bottles are unfussy and made of recyclable plastic from top to bottom.
Clemence Organics
Clemence Organics started in the Blue Mountains. It's an eco-conscious brand that maximises recycled packaging such as aluminium and glass. They also exclude harmful ingredients like microbeads and opt instead for certified organic botanicals. This optimises the antioxidants and reduces the amount you need to use without compromising on result. Nice.
Oway Australia
The hair industry isn’t a super sustainable one, which is why we love Oway. This Aussie hair and skin care brand can also be found in eco-friendly salons around Australia thanks to its biodynamic ingredients, green chemistry foundations and fair trade practices. Their consumer and salon products are packaged in amber glass bottles and jars and aluminium tubes which are both 100% recyclable (as well as protecting the integrity of the formulas within).
Get ready to up your personal care game thanks to ecostore's range of plant and mineral-based personal care products. Get your hands on it here.
Image credit: Kester Black