16 Non-Toxic Personal Products
My 2020 resolution was “Less toxins, more living. Less talking, more doing.”
This blog is about my “less toxins” goal. Our skin is our largest organ. Why wouldn’t we want to feed it with the best products out there? In time, I hope to replace all of our beauty, skin, hair, and household products with toxin-free alternatives.
“Less toxins” has proven to be more of lifestyle change than just a New Year’s resolution. We are in the beginning of 2021 now, and I’ve successfully switched 90% of our everyday products to toxin-free alternatives. But it hasn’t been easy.
Gathering products for this blog post made me realize that the phrase “product whore” exists for a reason. Beyond this list, there are probably about 20 other hair and skin products that I use on a rotating basis. These 16 items were the first ones that came to mind.
These are all products I love. I thought I’d share them with you in case you are on the same road as me. Less toxins, more living!
1. Tula The Cult Classic Purifying Face Cleanser - I use this amazing face wash every day, morning and night. I have combination skin and had a hard time finding an am/pm face wash, but fell in love with this one. This cleanser leaves my face feeling clean without over-drying. It’s made from probiotics and superfoods, so it makes your skin super soft.
2. Tula Get Toned Pro-Glycolic 10% Resurfacing Toner - I love this toner and use it twice a day. It has beetroot that gently exfoliates, leaving the skin smooth and hydrated with a more even tone. I really think my skin has become more radiant since I started using this toner.
3. Monat Be Balanced Lightweight Moisturizer - This lightweight moisturizer absorbs so well. It makes your skin feel soothed, soft, and smooth. It also helps minimize wrinkles and fine lines, and improves skin elasticity. Your skin will look and feel more radiant when using this product. I don’t make this up, I just use it. An honest moment, I am a Monat representative . BUT there is no pressure to buy from me ever. You probably didn’t even know I sell it, or what it is.
That being said, most of my hair products are Monat. I don’t sell it to produce income. I am a Monat representative for the discount, because I love it so much! I have a couple friends who buy it from me because they are addicted as well. I was hesitant with their skincare line and now I can’t live without it.
4. Tula Dual-Phase Skin Reviving Treatment Pads - Okay, I don’t use these every day. But this is one of my FAVORITE weekly products. I use them every Sunday night. Makes me feel like I’m starting the week off fresh, getting all that dead skin off!
5. Acure Calming Itch & Irritation Lotion (with lavender & colloidal oatmeal) – My skin is sensitive AF. And as you can probably tell, lavender is one of my favorite scents! I do rotate between their body lotions, but they are all toxin-free and I have not been disappointed yet!
6. Monat Revive Shampoo and Volume Revitalize Conditioner - This line is specifically for fine hair. And wow, it really moisturizes without weighing my hair down. I sometimes think my hair is too voluminous after using these products, WHICH NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE. I’ve never had a hair product that made my hair so happy. I have that fine baby hair type. So lucky right.
7. Just Ingredients Coconut Vanilla Magnesium Deodorant – I’ve tried a couple different toxin-free deodorants. Haven’t we all? This one actually works. It’s kinda crazy to say that. But I do have to say, I’ll choose the other scent next time. This scent reminds me of oatmeal for some reason. :)
8. Monat Revive Shampoo and Volume Revitalize Conditioner - This line is specifically for fine hair. And wow, it really moisturizes without weighing my hair down. I sometimes think my hair is too voluminous after using these products, WHICH NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE. I’ve never had a hair product that made my hair so happy. I have that fine baby hair type. So lucky right.
9. Organically Wonderful Dry Shampoo (unscented or coconut vanilla) - Okay, this is one of my non-Monat hair products that I freaking love and cannot live without! This powder dry shampoo is for my heavy grease days. It goes directly on the scalp. It’s very important to me that this is free of parabens (estrogen mimickers) phthalates (endocrine disruptors) because it’s absorbing straight into my scalp. It’s a white powder, so if you have dark hair, this might not be for you.
10. Monat Reshape Root Lifter - I have fine, wimpy hair. I love the word wimpy. If I do not spray this on my roots before I style, I will have very limp, stuck to my head, flat hair. This helps so much and gives me great volume. I am not sure what kind of magic this is, but it’s a must if you need volume.
11. Monat The Champ Conditioning Dry Shampoo - I mentioned my favorite powder dry shampoo above. This is my favorite aerosol dry shampoo! If you use dry shampoo regularly you probably have a favorite of both kinds as well. One is for the less greasy and one is for the dipped in extra grease days.
12. ILIA Beauty - Changing my makeup was the last thing I was worried about because I was so skeptical about changing to natural brands. I have been using ILIA Beauty’s Limitless Lash Mascara, Liquid Powder Chromatic Eye Tint, and the Clean Line Gel Liner. I love all three products so much. I’m a very picky mascara girl, and can’t believe this passed all the tests. I was so pleasantly surprised by how much I love these products and how well they work.
13. Boka Ela Mint Toothpaste - Ela Mint trades fluoride for nano-hydroxyapatite (n-Ha). N-Ha makes up the primary foundation of teeth and bones. It’s naturally restorative and helpful in reducing tooth sensitivity. It’s also 100% biocompatible and non-toxic. It tastes great and keeps my breath fresh, unlike a few other natural toothpastes I have tried
14.Touchstone Essentials Soothe Topical CBD Balm - This balm is the BOMB. I have chronic scoliosis and had back fusion surgery at age 11. I live with pain most days, and some days are worse than others. This balm soothes my muscles and joints, and it works fast. It helps to reduce temporary inflammation and discomfort. This balm has ZERO THC in it.
15. Norwex Ultra Power Plus Laundry Detergent – This laundry detergent is magic. I use it to clean a lot more than just laundry. My favorite non-laundry use for this product is spot cleaning rugs. It's highly concentrated, so it takes barely any product to get the job done. It whitens whites, brighten brights, and dissolves grease. I have removed marinara sauce off a white rug using this detergent mixed with warm water. I swear by this stuff.
16. Norwex Microfiber - Some people freak out when they find out I’m a Norwex lover. Since discovering Norwex, we have minimized SO many toxins in our home, from household products to our body soap! We just use water and Norwex cloths to clean almost every surface in this house. Sounds pretty gross, BUT the towels remove 99% of surface bacteria with proper use and care. They have BacLock (Norwex’s exclusive micro silver antibacterial agent), which offers continuous protection against microbes and odors within the cloth. BacLock is mildew resistant (can I get a hell yeah). I used their body cloths and face cloths without soap for 3 years before I got bored and wanted to try new soap and face wash, just for fun but always end up back to my cloths with no soap. Let’s just say that after using Norwex products for 3 years, I can smell 409 cleaner and other laundry detergents from a mile away.
One big reason I started swapping my products for toxin-free alternatives is that I slather this stuff all over me! My body is absorbing every bit of it. Why didn’t this click for me sooner?
Parabens, phthalates and sulfates are directly connected to hormone disruptors and hormone mimickers. Parabens mimic estrogen. When your body has a sense of high estrogen, you might encounter worse cramping, bad PMS, depression, anxiety, infertility, migraines, weight gain, hair loss, fatigue and more. Both parabens and phthalates have been linked to breast cancer (@just.ingredients).
Think about how many times our body is absorbing these chemicals over the course of just one shower, from shampooing to shaving cream. There are so many benefits to these small changes in our routine. Just think about covering your whole body in a chemical after you get out of the shower! You would never do that. So be conscious what you put on your biggest organ, your epidermis. Anyone else remember that stupid elementary school joke, “your epidermis is showing.” Ha!
If you have any non-toxic products you have found that work, LET ME KNOW. I’m always down for swapping out and trying new stuff, especially when it’s a better option!
Thanks for stopping by, ya hippies. Jk jk! You’re probably calling me a hippie now after reading this! But I’m cool with it.
Have the best day ever!
Always and Whatever
XO
@just.ingredients “Beauty Items- Dry Shampoo” Instagram, photographed by Karalynne Call, 27 January 2020. https://www.instagram.com/p/B719JlDBhTJ/?igshid=1khjvrrh2l9zg