The beauty industry is full of buzzwords that are hard to define or verify. On social media, the words natural skin care and naturally-derived beauty are so overused they have almost become their own cliche. So, what exactly does that mean?
There reality is this is no official definition. These buzzwords can range from vague - wildcrafted, clean, anti-aging - to trend-driven, like “glass hair” or “cloudless skin,” to broad categories of ingredients, like CBD.
Is Vegan the same as Green?
While a lot of these terms are confusing and not clearly defined, one that is very easy to describe is vegan. It simply means “not containing or utilising animal products.” So that should be the end of that, right? Well, sort of. This definition hasn’t stopped people from using the vegan label in potentially misleading ways all over the beauty world. Lately I’ve noticed a trend on Instagram: people are equating the word “vegan” with “nontoxic” or “green” when it comes to beauty products and cosmetics. This is, of course, not the case. Stating that a skincare product is vegan is great information, but it does not inherently mean that that product is safer, cleaner, or greener than any other out there. After all, petroleum and cigarettes are vegan, and neither of those is something we want on or in our bodies.
Vegan alone doesn’t always equal safe and non-toxic.
Yet the beauty industry has done little to make it clear to the consumer what it is to be responsible, nor have they made it black and white what is toxic, natural, organic, or green - therefore the consumer still has to do a little more homework to know what exactly they are buying and putting on their skin.
What is the preferred term for safe, healthy, conscious beauty brands? How do we describe this beauty movement?
Green beauty is seen as positive, but there are not that many brands that are truly green. Clean beauty is often misused. And non-toxic isn’t quite accurate because many essential oils are toxic if formulated with the wrong dermal limits. The widely-accepted thinking in the industry is that “green” beauty identifies a brand’s consciousness in decision-making, around every aspect of the product, from packaging to sourcing to producing to marketing. Since there is no set governing body that labels products as being green or not green, and, of course, there are also shades of green, it’s ultimately up to the consumer to get educated and decide what is important to her/him when purchasing a product. In fact, finding brands you trust, like iLM Skincare, may be the most important step in your green, vegan beauty journey.
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