#AskYU: What Natural Beauty Products Do YU Use?

Since the Make Your Own Eyeshadow and Eye Liner post, I have received a ton of questions about what I use on a daily basis for deodorant, mascara, shampoo, hair products, blush, body lotion, face moisturizer for a.m. and p.m., shaving cream, hand cream, lipstick, makeup remover, you name it. I typed a lot of those answers up for our contributor Rea Frey in an email a few weeks ago—she just read No More Dirty Looks and purged all beauty products right after and was wondering “what next?” The list I compiled for her was extensive and I thought immediately after I hit “send” that I should share with YU, too.

It’s important to note that I am not on the payroll for any of these products. These are just all the beauty products that I have found to be the cleanest that work for me (I tell you why after the jump). Not everything is perfect, but I do my best. There are a ton of clean, lovely products out there that I still would like to try, so I’m just gonna share with you what you’d find in my purse and bathroom if you were to take a look right now. Today. Ok, here goes… Read more…

Make Your Own Natural Eyeshadow or Liner Out of Charcoal

I recently read No More Dirty Looks after putting it off for years—knowing full well that once I read that book, I would toss all my “natural” products because they wouldn’t be “clean” enough. I have been making my own body oils, lotions, lip glosses and blush for a while now, but I did have some suspect hair products that I loved, lip glosses and shadows that were in a variety of stunning, unnatural colors that I wouldn’t, couldn’t, believe were loaded with carcinogens and my deodorant, well, it claimed to be natural. But I knew that it was time for me to be more informed, so I picked up No More Dirty Looks, read it cover to cover in one day with my jaw on the floor, and as anticipated, tossed a good bit of my toiletries and makeup pronto. Read more…

La Bella Figura Co-Founder Victoria Fantauzzi Brings YU Plant-Based Eco-Luxury Skincare

If you put in on your skin it’s absorbed into your skin and bloodstream—think about nicotine patches or patch-birth control. Why would lotions, lipsticks or shampoos be any different? Once you learn about the carcinogenic dangers involved with most cosmetics, body care and toiletries, you are often left wondering “what can I use?”

Well, for radiant skin, lips and hair, La Bella Figura has your plant-based and fair-trade secret weapons and they are working not just to produce beautiful quality skincare made from nature, but to educate folks on why plant-based beauty is better. Read more…

Easy DIY Beet Blush and Lip Gloss: 3 Ways

The color of fresh, organic beets is unmatched. After making Raw Veggie Bacon, I would often look at my stained hands and wonder if beets could be made into chemical-free cosmetics. Then this summer, I read a super article in ReadyMade magazine about the book No More Dirty Looks, and it shared a simple recipe using beets for lips and cheeks as well as a tip for easy lip stain—slice a beet, kiss and go!

So, I conducted some research that turned up many blush and lip gloss possibilities using a variety of oils and combinations, even including strawberries. In the end, I whipped up my own simple mixtures with 3 simple ingredients that I already had in the house. Read more…