Not all mineral makeup are equal!!

If you are like me, I love playing with makeup and play with samples whenever I have the chance. I was once in the cosmetics industry for several years and learned a few things about skincare and makeup.

A few years ago, my skin started doing some crazy stuff, like easily irritated by conventional beauty products. I heard that is common being that we women have ever-changing, uncontrollable hormones that control our bodies... especially before and after pregnancies, menstrual cycles, menopause, ...,etc.

Anyway, I was forced to look into natural products, like chemical-free, fragrance-free, preservative-free type of products. I started shopping for skincare and makeup at Sprout(my favorite place)and Whole Foods. I discovered some wonderful brands of products like Aubrey Organic, Kiss the Face, and now my favorite Mychelle (pronounced as "my-shell").

I was using some very popular brand of mineral powder makeup for over a year, then, one day someone educated me about mineral makeup that shone new light on it.

There are 3 things that we need to stay away from in mineral makeup: bismouth oxychloride, talc, and paraben. I have learned to not just take someone's word for it but to do my own research when I am told something.

Bismouth Oxychloride is a mineral and one of the most common ingredients found in mineral makeup. It's used as a filler but advertised as something that gives you that glow, which it does. However, it could irritate senstive skin and cause irritation when you sweat.

Talc is found in asbesto, which could cause lung cancer when inhaled. Morever, it can also clog pores and thus cause acne. I once called a cosmetic company and asked why they'd put talc in their mineral makeup to be their #1 ingredient. Their defense was that it was a cosmetic-grade talc and it doesn't really penetrate into skin, only lays on the top layer of skin. That's not true! Our skin absorbs about 60% of everything we put on, that means even toxins.

Paraben is a preservative with estrogenic properties, there are a variety of parabens like methyl-paraben and propyl-paraben. It is an inexpensive way to increase shelf life. Parabens can cause cancer due to their estrogenic activities. It is very commonly used in skincare, body care, cosmetics, and so on.

That's why reading labels are so important as sassy consumers. Just because you are in a "health-food store", don't assume that everything in there is good for you. Just because a brand calls itself "natural" and "healthful" doesn't mean that you can take their words for it.

Mychelle has an incredible stick foundation which I love. It's a big pricey but since a little goes a long way, it seems to last quite a while. Aubrey has a pressed silk powder make up, similar to the mineral, but it's pressed silk (doesn't it sound so delicate and fancy already), and it is fairly priced. I love their makeup and the blush as well.

Since we put lipstick on our lips, it goes directly into our digestive system. I feel that we especially have to be careful about that. Some lipstick carries lead, which is toxic for our bodies. Whole Foods has a makeup brand called Mineral Fusion. They have some good lipstick and lip gloss selection that would be safe to swallow.

Hope this has been helpful for you. I will give you more tips as I get new information. :)