PUT YOUR BEST FACE FORWARD
Take your commitment to the planet a few steps farther and do the earth a favor: Spend some of your hard-earned beauty bucks on products from sustainably minded cosmetics companies. Here are six companies that make products to help you put your best face forward while helping Mother Nature look her best, too. — ALEIGH ACERNI
PANGEA ORGANICS This small, independent manufacturer of organic body care products is based in Boulder, Colo., and makes everything in small batches from renewable, fairly traded ingredients. Plus, a portion of the company’s profits is donated to the creation of the new Pangea Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to researching and teaching about sustainable living and business practices. Stock up on Pangea’s bar soap, which comes packaged in seeded, biodegradable cardboard. Plant it in your window box and wait for blooms. Canadian Pine with White Sage Bar Soap, $8, pangeaorganics.com INTELLIGENT NUTRIENTS This company’s commitment to sustainability is literally off the grid. Their products are made with food-grade ingredients that are grown on company founder
Horst Rechelbacher’s off-the-grid farm in Wisconsin using wind and solar power. (You might recognize Rechelbacher’s name; he also founded green-minded Aveda, which he eventually sold to Estée Lauder.) Plus, the company donates all after-tax profits to environmental and social causes. Harmonic Shampoo, $22, and Harmonic Conditioner, $24, intelligentnutrients.com VAPOUR ORGANIC BEAUTY A favorite with makeup artists, this cosmetics company uses wind and passive solar power for 90 percent of the lighting at their New Mexico manufacturing facility and offices. From waterless formulas that don’t put added stress on local acquifers to in-store retail displays made from recycled aluminum, Vapour works to contribute to a sustainable loop of clean manufacturing. Siren Lipstick, $22, vapourbeauty.com
BURT’S BEES In 2011, none of this Durham, N.C.-based company’s U.S. facilities sent a single scrap of waste to the landfill, and they purchased renewable energy credits from North Carolina Green Power to offset carbon emissions — two big strides toward their goals of being completely carbonneutral and operating on 100 percent renewable energy by 2020. But that’s not all: The company also uses environmentally friendly Terraskin packaging (a tree-free, biodegradable paper product) and established Live the Greater Good, a comprehensive workday program to encourage employees to incorporate sustainable practices into their home and work lives. Tinted Lip Balm, $7, burtsbees.com SKINNYSKINNY There’s a lot of Big Apple pride in this small, New York City-based bath and body goods company. In addition to major bragging rights for being 100 percent carbon neutral, 98 percent of their products are manufactured by hand in their workshop in Brooklyn. They use recycled, reclaimed and sustainable materials in their packaging and are registered members of the Organic Trade Association. Organic Black Pepper and Rose Dry Shampoo, $32, skinnyskinny.com LIVING EARTH BEAUTY In addition to manufacturing organic, raw and vegan products in small batches with ingredients that can be replenished in two or three growing seasons, Living Earth Beauty helps offset carbon emissions by planting a tree for every order. The 100 percent paperless company also uses eco-friendly packaging and participates in 1% for the Planet, a global movement of companies that donate 1 percent of their sales to a network of more than 2,000 environmental organizations worldwide. Bee Beauty Age Defying Facial Oil, $85, livingearthbeauty.com
PLANETSHOES.COM
BEAUTY
presents
A WEEK IN HER
SHOES Each week one of Breathe’s bloggers tests out a pair of shoes and reviews them on Breathe’s website -- and you can enter to WIN them! At the end of the eightweek giveaway series, the grand prize winner receives a $500 gift certificate to spend at PlanetShoes.com. Read our shoe reviews and enter the giveaway now on ReadBreathe.com for your chance to win a cute pair of kicks!
March - April 2012
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