Green Product Recommendation: Organic wear Makeup

Last week Ariana posted some tips for reusing, reducing, and recycling that are easy to implement in our everyday lives. Following up on that, I'd like to recommend a product that can help with the reducing aspect of the three Rs of living green.

As people interested in making our lives a little more eco-friendly, I'm sure you've all read or heard that a simple change you can make is to look out for the products that use minimal packaging. But why not take it a step further, and be on the lookout for products that are packaged in recycled -- and recyclable -- materials?

Packaging is one thing I know I really take for granted. It's so much more than just the cardboard or shrink-wrap or any of those tamper-proof seals. Packaging is often the product itself. How many of you have ever thought twice about your makeup compacts? I never considered all the plastic that goes into my pressed powder cases, my palettes of blush and eyeshadow.

The other day I was shopping for makeup, and I noticed a line of organic makeup. It's called Organic wear, by Physicians Formula. Now, I'll admit, what attracted me to this product initially was the organic aspect, knowing that natural ingredients are probably a lot better for my skin than manmade chemicals. But then I noticed that the packaging is made from recycled materials, and in the case of the Organic wear pressed powder (and the blushes and eyeshadows, I believe), the compact is made primarily of paper, using 93% less plastic than traditional compacts. The makeup brushes in this line, too, are made of natural goat hair fibers, instead of synthetic materials.

The most recommending feature, of course, is that not only are these products packaged better for the environment, but that they're great for my skin. I'm not noticing a difference between the look of my old makeup versus the new; the tinted moisturizer covers surprisingly well, equal, I'd say, to my former foundation of choice; and a dusting of the pressed powder over that finishes the look. But I am noticing that at night, when I take off my makeup, my complexion looks healthier, so I'm wondering if the chemicals in the old makeup weren't contributing to skin problems! Good for you, good for the earth, and, as I've forgotten to mention, good for your wallet (the cost is equivalent to regular makeup at the drugstore or supermarket) -- what's not to like about Organic wear?