It’s tough to navigate the tricky world of beauty products—not only do you have to worry about what actually does what it promises and what fails to deliver, but now you’ve been hearing about chemicals, toxins, preservatives, synthetics, and more in those same products. What’s a savvy woman to do?
Here is Endless Beauty’s list of the best places we’ve found to shop online for cosmetics. The sites cater to different things—chemical-free or eco-friendly, all-natural to eliminating toxins. Read on to find your perfect online beauty boutique.
The Organic: Saffron Rouge
Shop: SaffronRouge.com
Opened its e-doors: 2002
Kristin Binder studied Phytotherapy in England but didn’t launch her Green-Listed beauty product boutique until after the birth of her second child, Saffron. Her Indian heritage and schooling in the Himalayas widely influences her aesthetic and notion of the organic lifestyle—she says “If it’s not organic, it’s not here.”
Binder created a Black List of no-no products, and it’s one of the best what-it-is-what-it-does lists of chemicals we’ve seen. She also created a Green List of chemicals that are A-OK in products, and we might love that one even more. Products contain no toxic ingredients, synthetic colors, fragrances and preservatives, and are NEVER tested on animals. Products also usually have an international organic certification, but can still wind up on the site if all a product’s ingredients are on the Green List.
The Natural: RAW Natural Beauty
Shop: RAWNaturalBeauty.com
Opened its e-doors: 2008
RAW Natural Beauty specializes in natural products that work. They avoid ingredients known to be harmful (like parabens and petroleum-derived ingredients) but do mix natural ingredients and nature-identical synthetic ingredients. They argue that many synthetics are produced through ecologically sound practices and are safe.
RAW Natural Beauty also strives to only choose products that support organic farming practices, intelligent waste disposal, clean manufacturing processes and biodegradeable ingredients. It seems easy to trust a company whose guiding principle is “do no harm,” to skin, the earth, or animals.
The Middle Ground: FutureNatural
Shop: FutureNatural.com
Opened its e-doors: 2008
They say: “We're not anti-science, we're not blindly for nature, and we don't profess to be perfect.” Sounds like most of the Endless Beauty staff—and the real women we hang out with. What we love is that FutureNatural’s emphasis on natural and/or organic ingredients, fair trade sources, and environmentally responsible packaging. But not exclusively.
FutureNatural takes the stance that the consumer needs to decide, and provides ingredient lists, an onsite glossary, and stories behind the brands so you can make up your own mind. That said, they do nix brands without a commitment to no petroleum derivatives, no parabens, no synthetic colors or fragrances, dibutyl pthalate, sodium lauryl sulphate, formaldehyde, or any other known harmful ingredients, and absolutely none of the products are tested on animals. FutureNatural also uses recyclable and sustainable material for all packing and shipping, as well as buys green credits to offset their carbon footprint by 100%.
The Luxury: NuboNau
Shop: NuboNau.com
Opened its e-doors: In the U.S. in 2008
Pronounced [new-bo-now] and translated into Esperanto (the language made up of all the world’s languages), NuboNau means “Cloud Nine.” Indeed, the heavenly online store delivers brands that work hard to create natural alternatives to synthetic ingredients, without compromising on performance.
The luxurious shop is about as close as you’ll get to a boutique experience online, with a clean, minimalist design, detailed product descriptions, and stellar customer service. Products are delivered quickly and in neat, magnetic boxes with the proverbial bows and whistles—actual bows, and free samples.
The Girl Next Door (Who Knows More Than You): Caren Online
Shop: CarenOnline.com
Opened its e-doors: 2008
Friends Carol and Ellen started the Caren beauty boutique after realizing that drugs were coming in patch form—meaning your skin really does absorb more than we might have thought before. Free of toxins and made with ingredient lists that you can read and easily understand from brands that know and respect nature, the Caren Online product offering is top-notch but friendly and accessible.
We love their honesty: they say in their FAQ that the search for companies that delivered what they promised was difficult and confusing at first, but once they found products they trusted, they wanted to spread the word. They did indeed find a great selection of natural, healthy products. Our favorite thing? They say: “Beauty starts from the inside out. Feeding your skin, both internally and externally, is important. Our environment bombards us with unavoidable toxins that must be flushed out through filtered water, healthy eating, AND regular exercise.”
From Bricks to Bytes: Clary Organics
Shop: ClarySageOrganics.com
Opened its e-doors: 2008
From the hippie heaven of the Bay Area comes Clary Sage Organics (named after a Mediterranean herb), a shop of not just beauty products, but eco-friendly cotton and knit clothing. Beauty lines include London-based Ren, cult fave Juice Beauty, and more. One founder is even a natural health doc, so the goods have got to be good.
Amazingly enough, every product featured online or in the store is 100% organic or ecologically sustainable. If you’re looking to help the environment, California-local farmers, and your health and beauty at the same time, Clary Sage Organics is your one-stop-shop. The bricks-and-mortar store is open in the Bay Area if you want to drop by.
The Superstar: Spirit Beauty Lounge
Shop: SpiritBeautyLounge
Opened its e-doors: 2007
Much has been written, including by us about Spirit Demerson’s go-to site for chemical-free, fair trade, eco-friendly cosmetics. Demerson personally interviews every company whose products she features on the site, and she personally curates the whole thing. If the product doesn’t work for her (or her friends at least), she won’t feature it.
Spirit Beauty Lounge’s products all meet their own 6P standards: Performance, Purity, Potency, Provenance, Principles, and Packaging. As one of the older and more established sites, Spirit Beauty Lounge has clearly figured out what works!
Lyssa Myska Allen is editorial director at EndlessBeauty.com and doing the My Chemical Breakup Challenge for the month of October.
Comments
My husband has a site that sells business two-way radios and he gave me the idea of opening a beauty products shopping site. Today, most people do their shopping online and it would be a great opportunity for a business. I have found an exporter from Greece that produces all natural beauty products and that is how I plan to get started.
The first thing you need to check when buying from a seller is the Seller’s Feedback. Check how many left a positive and negative feedback. I remember posting about that on كيف اكون جميلة. You will also see some comments from buyers who have made some transactions with this particular seller.
We mate their honestness: they say in their FAQ that the examine for companies that delivered what they promised was tall and confusing at position, but formerly they open products they trustworthy, they craved to page the word ladies shoes.
Nice list of sites but in my opinion natural beauty is on the same level with the artificial one. I have a friend that went to a plastic surgeon Houston to modify a small problem that she had with her nose. She was beautiful before now she is just splendid and I don't think any natural cream could've cured her malformation.
It is better to use natural skin care products. These are not very harsh on the skin. You could either by organic products or go for home made beauty products. You would find natural beauty care products, and other cosmetics in your local stores too. If you check the classifieds. I check Austin classifieds to learn about good deals.
Makeup is an art that can be achieved with practice. You don’t need to sit in front of your mirror for hours to look beautiful. You can get ready in just minutes with right makeup technique and of course practice.
CoolLifeShop.com is my one of the Fav. online shopping site.
A friend of mine recently rented one of those event spaces nyc so he could open a shop. It looks really great on the inside and he has a lot of cool stuff for sell. Next week he will bring some cosmetics because the customers demanded it. I have to admit that he was inspired by some of your shops from here.