Molly Prior

Living a healthier lifestyle is important. This not only includes excercise and what we eat, but what we put on our face and skin on a daily basis. Lately, organic makeup and skincare is all the rage in the beauty industry. What happens to our skin is important, and often crucial to how we feel about ourselves. There have been scientific studies showing the benefits for using organic skin care products. Not only do they help save the environment, but they are also far better for your skin, using higher quality ingredients. Although the true definition of organic beauty is debatable, the general consensus is that organic products are generally free from parabens and toxic chemicals, as well as cruelty free. With so much information and so many products out there though, people often wonder, what is the best option for organic skincare?

The secret to organic skin care isn’t the actual product or brand; it’s the ingredients and the natural substances that are present in them. By using ingredients directly from nature, one can determine what works best for their skin and create their own routine. Everyone has different skin and different preferences, so what works for one person may be different for someone else.

Brittany McGlone is the owner of Sage and Grace, an organic salon here in Worcester. She was inspired to open the salon in 2013 after finding out how toxic chemicals can affect one’s body.

“I’ve always tried to live an organic lifestyle,” McGlone says. “I feel good that not only myself, but my employees and clients are not exposed to toxic chemicals. In addition to promising to be as clean and green as possible, we are also a 100% vegan and cruelty free salon.”

McGlone continued to talk about how there has been a very positive reaction, as well as enormous support from the community since the salon opened, saying: “We have clients who have found us due to health issues, bad reactions to traditional products, or just by being aware that there is in fact an alternative that works just as well, if not better.”

However, you don’t necessarily have to go to a salon all the time in order to go organic. There are many options of both high end and drugstore products that can make even a small change in your beauty routine.

“For skin, 100% Pure is a fruit pigmented, organic makeup and skincare line,” McGlone says. “You can actually understand what the ingredients are. They use ingredients like cherry and peach for color in place of artificial colors. For hair, I have several lines here that I trust are clean and work wonders for hair. My current favorite line is called Onesta. I couldn’t live without their Refresh dry shampoo or Smooth & Shine blow dry creme. All of their products are aloe based instead of water based, so their shampoos and conditioners keep your hair hydrated and healthy.”

Worried about the possible high costs of these big name brands? Never fear, there’s an app for that!

“The most simple and effective thing you can do is read ingredients,” McGlone explains. “There is an app I use called Think Dirty. You can enter in most products or their ingredients to find how how safe they are for you. If you can’t afford the salon quality products, Pinterest has a million do-it-yourself recipes.”

It’s simple changes that can lead to a better and healthier lifestyle. By simply reading labels, and integrating better products into our daily lives, we are doing so much better for our bodies, local small businesses, and the environment. We can start right now to make a better change, not only for the beauty industry, but for ourselves as well.