5 Things No One Tells You About the Clean Beauty Movement

The benefits of clean beauty go much deeper than you think! Here’s how to do it the right way.

If you’re thinking of joining the clean beauty movement, but you’re too scared to jump in, never fear! I’ve made a list of things I wish someone had told me when I first started my clean beauty transition.

There were certainly times when I wondered why I was still pursuing clean beauty in the first place. People even tried to convince me to return to my tried-and-true yet toxic products.

But the ingredient lists of those products always had me running in the opposite direction. So, if you ever find yourself in a rut, or if you don’t know what to expect, keep these things in mind when the going gets tough.

This post contains affiliate links. You can learn more here.

Pin this image for later!

What Makes Clean Beauty a “Movement?”

The clean beauty movement is the work being done by millions of people like myself that want to spread the word about the dangers of our beauty and personal care products. It can range from education to creating clean products that we love and trust.

Unfortunately, there’s no formal definition of “clean” beauty products, or any kind of regulations. It’s a very subjective term that can take on different meanings to different people.

Here’s the best definition I can come up with: Clean beauty is defined as beauty and personal care products that are free of any toxic or questionable substances, and consist primarily of ingredients from nature.

Clean beauty is more of a spectrum than a hard and fast rule. What’s clean to me might not be clean to you. And that’s okay!

There’s also more than one word for “clean beauty” that people use interchangeably. That’s also why you’ll see several different names that seem to describe the same thing.

Clean beauty vs. natural beauty, as well as other names, like green or organic, all strive to give us better options than the conventional products we’ve been using for years.

Clean beauty can come across as a trend, but it’s been growing steadily over the last decade! It’s now considered an industry that consists of thousands of people advocating for their health.

From an outsider’s perspective, the clean beauty movement can seem a little crazy. I mean, why should we worry about what’s in our everyday personal care products? Shouldn’t everything be safe to use? The answer is unfortunately no.

Big Companies Can Do What?!

Switching to clean beauty and personal care products is one of the best decisions you can make for yourself. You would think that big companies that make your products would care about your health, but they don’t.

What they really care about is the money you give them. Since there are no regulations prohibiting companies from using most ingredients, they are allowed to do whatever they want without being outright dishonest.

This involves using questionable ingredients in products that make manufacturing cheap and easy. Nothing else matters.

So why switch to clean beauty? Because it’s a way to reduce your chemical exposure and lower threats of serious illness later in life. It’s a way to take back your health!

Clean beauty isn’t a trend.

It’s a higher standard that we should have given companies years ago. The latest clean beauty research suggests that our traditional products can cause birth defects, mental illness, and even cancer. (source)

With all that in mind, here are some of the things that I had to learn the hard way when I began my clean beauty journey. I certainly wish that I had known these things when I first started!

Clean Beauty Products Work Differently than Conventional Products

Many people think that clean beauty products are unnecessary, or don’t get the job done right. And to some degree, that’s true.

Clean beauty products are often lacking in those heavy-duty preservatives and other harsh substances that make them last longer or enhance its desired effect.

One example of this is looking for aloe vera gel at the store after a nasty sunburn. You can find a tube of aloe vera that you can keep in your medicine cabinet.

But if you look at the ingredient list, you’ll notice there’s hardly any actual aloe in there at all! Instead, you see a list of unknown ingredients you can’t pronounce with aloe at the very bottom.

A bottle of straight aloe (with a safe preservative) is fine to keep at room temperature until you open it. After that, it must be kept in the fridge. Here’s a good example!

Do you really want to compromise your health just to make something like your sunburn ointment last a little longer? Do some experimenting and find a product that meets you in the middle.

I have found plenty of natural products that do just as good, if not better, than my previous chemical-laden products.

A perfect example of this is my list of chemical-free makeup products that I use for dance performances and everyday looks. You don’t have to feel like a deprived outsider!

There have been major advancements in the clean beauty industry where you can find safer products that work just as great as before. You can check them on The Detox Market, one of my favorite places to find clean beauty products that actually work.

Things WILL Go Wrong

Repeat this in your head until it’s there to stay. Then accept it and know that everything will be okay if things do go wrong.

Joining the clean beauty movement can feel like a risk, and when we aren’t sure of the outcome, things might not turn out like we hoped. This is true especially if you plan on making the majority of your products from scratch.

Everyone is different, with different needs for their skin care, hair, night routine, you name it. Therefore, not every DIY recipe you find online will work for you. It’s all about exploring and discovering what works best.

My Biggest Mistake

One of the hardest adjustments in the initial stages of my journey was my hair. The first article I read about clean beauty had to do with ditching big-brand shampoo and conditioner products.

I quickly learned that you could make your own shampoo out of baking soda and water, and diluted apple cider vinegar could act as a “conditioner.” However, I learned that you shouldn’t wash your hair with baking soda.

The baking soda dried out my hair and just barely cleaned it for a day, and the apple cider vinegar did little to nothing. But I thought that my hair just needed to adjust, and I was stubborn.

It took me about a month to realize that my hair needed all-natural shampoo with a foaming agent, like this one. Luckily, I caught it right before the baking soda damage started to cause irreversible damage. Now my hair is softer and healthier than ever!

You Don’t Have to be a Complete Hippy to Be Chemical-Free

Sometimes, clean beauty makes one think of a young woman in a maxi skirt with long wavy hair skipping through a field of flowers, coming to offer you all kinds of insights on essential oils and raising your vibration.

I have zero hate for any of those things, but you get the picture.

You certainly don’t have to be a hippy to enjoy all that a chemical-free life has to offer! It can be as simple as changing out some products that you use every day with safer products that EWG recommends.

What I love about clean beauty is that you can personalize it. Go as crazy as you like!

Some people like to make absolutely everything, and there’s nothing wrong with that. You can choose to buy everything too. It’s all about looking at your personal lifestyle and deciding what’s best for you and your home.

I personally prefer a mixture of the two, simply because it’s easier to make a few products than to buy them, and vice versa. And if you ever start to question yourself, just go back to your “why.”

Why did you want to do this in the first place? I always asked myself this question when I had a particularly rough patch in my transition.

The Transition Will Take How Much Time?

You know how I’ve mentioned that you will need to experiment? Learning what you like through trial and error takes time!

Of course, you have guides like me to make the process easier. But you’re human, and humans aren’t perfect.

Even if you decide to buy most of your natural products, there’s no guarantee that they will work for you. That process alone should take a huge chunk of time!

I always tell people that the least-overwhelming way to switch to clean beauty is to change out a product when you run out of your old one. Don’t throw away and replace everything at once!!

This could lead to overwhelm and burnout. Not to mention it’s very wasteful and expensive.

And with the sudden decrease of chemicals in your system, your body’s needs will change over time. For me, my hair and skin have become just a little bit drier over the years.

I used to be able to get away with washing my face only with water, and a little argan oil kept it from drying out. Now, I have my own DIY non-greasy lotion for the cold winter months, and I’ve started to apply some moisturizing hair oil for some extra health and hydration.

So if things aren’t changing like you want them to, keep experimenting. I promise there’s a light at the end of the tunnel!

You Don’t Have to Sacrifice That Red Lipstick!

If you think that switching to clean beauty involves going without makeup or anything else that makes you happy, you’re dead wrong. There are so many companies out there that sell products with your new lifestyle in mind!

The Detox Market, The Choosy Chick, and Credo Beauty are some of my favorite clean beauty marketplaces. They’re also great resources on what to buy next!

There are companies devoted to hair, beauty, cleaning, you name it. My two personal favorite companies are The Detox Market and Just Nutritive.

If you’re a makeup junkie, trust me when I say that there is a whole other side of the beauty community just waiting to be discovered!

The only other thing you would need to sacrifice is a little time to get used to your new beauty and home products. But believe me when I say that it is so worth it in the long run!

If you think that clean beauty means giving up all the things you know and love, you don’t have to! You certainly can if you’re looking to challenge yourself, but I want you to love clean beauty, not hate it. That’s why I’m here too. I want to help you along the way, so you can always send me an email if you have a question, or just need to vent.

Before You Go!

Want to expedite your clean beauty journey and only get the most pertinent information? You need to check out my clean beauty ebook!

Essential Moves to Clean Beauty has everything you need to know in bite-sized chunks of info. Sure, you could dig through my site for a few hours, but you can cut down on the overwhelm all for the price of getting lunch.

Click the button below to learn more!

I Need This!!

5 Things No One Tells You About The Clean Beauty Movement (What to Expect)