If you are looking to incorporate some “Green” and “Clean” products into your beauty routine or looking for the perfect gift for a fellow beauty lover, then you’re in the right spot! 

Written by Dyane MacKinnon for The Complexion Apothecary, this blog includes everything you’ll need to start a routine or add to someone else's. 

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In this Modern Day Wife Beauty Gift Guide I have included all of my favorite skin, makeup, and nail products that fall under both conventional and “green” or “clean” self-care products that I believe anyone can start a routine with! 

As a beauty professional for over twenty years, licensed aesthetician and makeup artist in two countries, brow and lash technician, and certified eyelash extension lift and tint national trainer and education consultant, I’m often asked how I incorporate “green” and “clean” beauty into my personal and professional kits. 

My answer is simple...

Every “Green” or “Clean” product I find that works to the level I need it to on set, is one less conventional product being washed into the water system and one more recycled/recyclable container out of the landfill.

Being environmentally conscious is not an all-or-nothing effort. Instead, it’s a level of consciousness that you carry with you as you look at where your food, clothing, and self-care products come from, along with the ingredients listed. 

If you aimed for 30% of your self-care and home care products to be BCorp, EWG recognized, or from a small, local business that is committed to being environmentally conscious, you would be doing a huge part to help the planet and the future generations.

So, let’s take the shame and guesswork out of having a “Green” and “Clean” skincare and makeup kit.

First things first, skincare.

My number one advice for everyone is to start a double cleansing routine at night. Double cleansing at night will change your life by changing your skin.

First, use an oil cleanser to remove your makeup and/or pollutants from the day from your skin before allowing the cleanser to really clean the skin’s surface.

I love the B3 Balm Beauty Brush Rose Quartz Cleanser with a blend of oils including rose oil, prickly pear oil, and MCT Oil that leave your skin makeup and pollution free. Now you are ready for a good cleanse. 

Next, nothing feels better than truly cleaning your skin morning and night, and every skin type can use the Dr. Nigma Cleanser No. 1 with zeolites form volcanic ash to help with surface debris removal, glycolic and white willow bark for gentle exfoliation. 

After Cleanser, you should always balance your Ph with a toner. ALWAYS. The B3 Brush Beauty Balm Pomona Facial Toner with rose hydrosol for moisture, witch hazel as a gentle astringent and peppermint to balance the natural oil production, helps reduce breakouts and the dreaded maskne! 

Serum is the least utilized skin care product because people don’t know what it’s for. The importance of serum, day and night, is to provide an easily absorbable concentrate of nutrients to your skin that targets your main concerns. 

My go-to serum is the Comfort Zone Youth Serum from their Sacred Nature line. The blend of florals and herbs from their “Scientific Garden” in Parma, Italy makes this fast-absorbing serum with vegetal alternative to hyaluronic acid and Kangaroo Paw flower extract that has incredible firming action, a serum that actually works. 

Finally, I put on a thin and even layer of moisturizer. 

For the Day, I use Comfort Zone’s ​​Polypeptide Rich Cream from their Skin Regimen line. I love how this has a great brightening effect and doesn’t feel heavy or cause breakouts under a mask. The Biomimetic Peptides also help firm the skin and shield the skin from pollutants. 

I also use 50 SPF EVERYDAY--You need to try a chemical SPF and Mineral SPF and see what works best for your skin type and amount of sun exposure based on your job and where you live. All skin tones need sunscreen every day.

For Night, I prefer Comfort Zone’s Night Detox from their Skin Regimen line. As an overnight, anti-aging face mask created to boost the skin’s ability to eliminate toxins from the day. 

Once a week you should treat yourself and your skin to a luxurious treatment at home…one that actually works! 

This doctor created mask won the 2021 Skin Product of the Year at the Beauty Innovation Awards because of its prebiotic-infusion that helps to maintain the natural skin barrier while visibly reducing fine lines, evening skin tone, and brightening the skins appearance. This mask is also free of fragrance and alcohols! The extra serum in the pouch will last you the rest of the week until you’re ready for another 20 to 30 minute at home treatment. 

 After your daytime skincare routine, you move into the form of self-expression that we call makeup application! Here are a few brands that I use both in my personal and professional kit that I believe work for all skin types and tones. 

I truly believe that everyone should start their makeup routines with primers. Heir Atelier Face, Lip & Eye Primers  are the best way to keep your makeup in its place all day without changing your makeup texture, and keeping your skin healthy and moisturized. 

A foundation used by some of the greatest makeup artists of all time is Ultra Foundation by FACE Atelier. It’s buildable and has a beautiful real skin texture, and their “optical blurring properties” help minimize the look of pores, fine lines and imperfections. You can also easily mix colors to create your perfect shade. Check out their Adjusters, to help you create the darkest or lightest skin tone to fit you perfectly, because no skin tone is too dark or too light for a custom blend foundation.*You can powder this or leave it for a dewy finish.  

I love MisMack because the products are consciously created, pro-quality, and very much multi-functional. The ArtShadows  are silky smooth blush, contour, and eyeshadow colors that are highly pigmented, come in individual pans so you can make your own palette, and can be used wet or dry. MisMack also created a Gaia Gloss that replaces more products in your kit than you knew you had and needed, and is my go-to for mixing with pigments. 

Smudge-proof liner that stays all day and can turn any daytime look into immediate glam is the FACEAtelier Cake Eyeliner – it’s activated with water and dries to a water and transfer resistant flawless finish. 

I love water-resistant vs waterproof mascara as it’s easy to remove, causing less damage to your lashes, and MisMack has an unbelievable mascara called Amp’d Up that is perfect for everyday wear.

The perfect lipstick is the key to tying every look together, and Strength by Adveket Cosmetics not only works on everyone, but with each purchase you help support creating opportunities for the lipstick wearing community, through their non-profit I Wore Lipstick organization. Each lipstick color by this gender-fluid line is given an uplifting name to help give its wearer the confidence to be their authentic self. 

Finish your look with a matching or contrasting nail polish with award winning colors from Janet & Jo … I can’t even pick a favorite color because I change my nail color often enough to go through them all regularly, and without feeling guilty because these are some of the best toxin-free polishes ever!

Last but not least, here are some absolute essentials to put in your bag before leaving the house...

The Skin Regimen Lip Balm from Comfort Zone because it actually nourishes and moisturizes for even the driest lips and it absorbs into the lips without a film – makes it perfect for under lip color or for people who don’t like the glossy finish of other lip products.

Specialist Hand Cream by Comfort Zone gives immediate relief of dry skin and absorbs quickly, so you can get back to what you’re doing without having greasy hands. 

Hands Down Hand Refresher Pocket Sanitizer & Refresher fits even in the smallest clutch, and doesn’t dry you out. It’s made with moisturizing vitamins A, C & E, aloe, and high-quality essential oils that smell amazing and never synthetic.

MYO Cosmetic Cases fit my entire touch up kit inside the most innovative beauty kit essential since the compact was invented! I can’t go anywhere without my MYO Cosmetic Cases. I have numerous cases that I use both on set for touch ups, as it can be completely sanitized with 70% alcohol and takes up a fraction of the space & weight carrying full size products. The MYO Cosmetic Case is magnetic and holds individual pans of makeup, and their pods are ideal for skincare and liquid makeup… I have been known to do long-weekend trips with one dedicated to hair products when I want to breeze through security with only a carry-on. 

Looking up brands that take the time to truly be “green” and/or “clean” can lead you to a lot of what we call “green-washing”, and it can be very confusing.

Thankfully, there are third-party organizations like the GWP and BCorp that hold companies to a high standard and will help you find everything from service providers to home and self-care items that are truly environmentally conscious. Check out their websites or social media pages.