Luscious lips and a healthy planet
Lipstick has been around in one form or another for about 5000 years. Back then some of it was toxic. In that regard, not much has changed. However, one thing has changed. Five thousand years ago, the packaging wasn’t promoted as eco-friendly, delivery wasn’t touted as green, and the makers didn’t donate money to their favourite charity. These promotional campaigns are new. Although I appreciate the efforts of companies to work on all of the issues including packaging, shipping and community involvement, I believe that we should start with the product itself.
In that spirit, I have reviewed 8 lipsticks based on ingredients, location, and retail price. I will also try to mention if they are involved in regulatory campaigns such as the Compact for Safe Cosmetics, but may not get it all since there are so many options in this area.
To be consistent, I have used the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep database to evaluate ingredients. I have looked up each ingredient individually to find it’s rating. I will indicate the number of ingredients in each lipstick brand that have been rated 3 or more which is considered moderate or high hazards in the database.
As for location, some of these companies are international in scope and some are Canadian-born. All of them have offices somewhere in Canada, and it is their Canadian office location that I have listed. Not all of them make their products in Canada.
The retail price, in the end, is often the deciding factor and the prices listed here are exclusive of taxes and shipping, where applicable. We all understand the need to spend carefully. However, I hope the prices listed here allow us all to rethink the myth that has evolved that “Green is too expensive” and “It’s not easy being green.” These slogans are really just promotional campaigns and don’t reflect reality.
And we start on the east coast of our beautiful country…
Cosmic Tree in Dartmouth, N.S. makes a lipstick that did not have any ingredients of concern. Instead they make all natural, artisan crafted, vegan lipsticks. They have four shades all of which you can find on their website along with the ingredients. They cost $12.50 for 4 grams. If you believe that you should be buying local and you live in the Maritimes, then this is your lipstick. They are signers of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics.
Pure + Simple is currently reformulating their lipsticks to make them smoother and creamier. Until that is done, this Toronto, Ontario company still offers their four lip glosses at their four locations at a cost of $19.95 for 4ml. Although I couldn’t find the ingredients listed on their website, a quick call and an email later, I can tell you that the ingredients in these lip glosses check out. Pure + Simple are signers of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics.
Plant Love lipstick by Cargo had a total of 8 ingredients that had ratings of 3 or more in the Skin Deep database. Another disappointment with this product was the one month it took them to respond to my request for an ingredients list. When the response came, it simple directed me to the website, where I had already looked. I did eventually find the ingredients without the help of their customer service centre. You can find their head office in Toronto, Ontario and you can pick up their lipstick for $20.00 for 0.14 oz.
Arbonne is an international company so the product is definitely not made in Canada, but they do have offices in Mississauga, Ontario. They are signers of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics, which means that they follow the European Union’s ingredient restrictions, a good thing. Nevertheless, their About Face Sheer Shine had 4 ingredients that had ratings of 3 or more in the Skin Deep database. I did not find their ingredients listed on their Canadian website. However, when I emailed for an ingredients list, I was impressed not only with their rapid response but also the excellent set up they used for the list. They listed out the ingredients, what it was derived from such as plant, mineral or science and they listed the purpose of adding this ingredient into the product such as conditioner, colour and so on.
Suncoat Organic Lip Shimmer had one ingredient that earned a rating of 3 or more in the Skin Deep database. Besides that they have an excellent website that makes it easy to find the information you want. They have six colours to choose from with each costing $8.99 for 4.5 ml. Located in Guelph, Ontario, they are also signers of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics.
Pure Anada lipsticks are free of suspect ingredients. This company makes its home in Morden, Manitoba, and has a large array of colours to choose from, more so than any others I looked at for this review. For $12.00 you get a 3 gram lipstick. The website is chock full of excellent information for consumers who want to know more about what they are buying. They are signers of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics.
Organic Beauty Plus is located in Lethbridge, Alberta but the products are originally from Australia, where each product has been certified independently for its organic content which is either 70% plus or 95% plus, depending on the content of ingredients that can’t be certified such as minerals, since they are not organic matter to begin with. The website has lots of consumer information and when I contacted them with a question, they were more than happy to oblige. One thing I really liked was being able to click on each ingredient to get more information. Organic Beauty Plus lip crème comes in six colours at a price of $28.95 for 5 grams
Dragonfly Dreaming doesn’t really have a lipstick per se, but if you want to keep your lips in tip top shape while adding a hint of colour, this may be the answer. Located in Cobble Hill, BC all of the ingredients of Hint o’ Tint check out in the Skin Deep database. When I called to ask about the ingredients, I was impressed with the product knowledge of the owner, who could very easily answer questions and took the time to explain things. They have also signed the Compact for Safe Cosmetics. You can purchase 10 ml of their Hint o’ Tint for $4.50.
I am sure that I have missed some fabulous Canadian companies, but then that is what the comments section is about. No matter what you put to your lips, enjoy it.
Tags: Canadian products, cosmetics, ethical products, greenwashing, ingredients, lipstick
