I’ve been searching for a good mascara that wouldn’t coat my lashes with a film of petroleum. Recently, a salesclerk at Vitamin Cottage pointed me to No Miss Natural Mascara.
I have to say that I’ve been very pleased not only with how it goes on, but also with how it stays on and how easily it comes off with soap and water.
Other natural mascaras I’ve tried have left me with heavy black smudges below my eyes as the makeup sank off of my lashes. Some have gone on so gloppy that I’ve had to use several cotton swabs to mop up the mess when my upper lashes flicked wetly against my eyelid.
While I confess that I am not a mascara expert — my lashes used to be so long and thick that they would brush the lenses of my sunglasses so I never wore mascara until recently! Alas, they thinned after childbearing. Sigh. — I have tried the top pick by many beauty magazines (Maybelline) and many other brands both conventional and natural (including Prescriptives, Aveda, CoverGirl, EyesLipsFace, Clinique, Loreal, etc.).
The thing is, I have been concerned about conventional mascaras for a while. Why? Let’s take Almay’s Amazing Lush Lash mascara, as an example. Almay claims to be “hypoallergenic,” which I have often interpreted as “cleaner.” My mistake.
This Almay mascara garners a 7 (10 being the most dangerous) in the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics Skin Deep database of cosmetics and includes this warning:
| Ingredients in this product are linked to: | |
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Cancer |
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Developmental/reproductive toxicity |
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Violations, restrictions & warnings |
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Allergies/immunotoxicity |
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Other concerns for ingredients used in this product: Neurotoxicity, Endocrine disruption, Persistence and bioaccumulation, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Multiple, additive exposure sources, Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), Enhanced skin absorption, Contamination concerns, Occupational hazards, Biochemical or cellular level changes |
Yep: I find those pretty frightening words for something I intend to paint onto my eyelashes and let soak in all day. Hence my search for a better mascara.
No Miss All Natural Mascara is as good a product or better then the conventional kind, and ever so much better for my body and the environment. Let me know if you’ve found some other great natural mascaras!
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I currently use Josie Maran mascara — it’s organic, paraben-free, not tested on animals, the whole bit. And it comes in brown which is a great natural look for us lighter-haired folk.
I have found it smudgy, though. I asked a like-minded pal and she recommended Zuzu mascara, and there is a company called “100% Pure” as well that has mascara coloured with fruit pigments, which looks interesting and has good reviews (there are a lot of nasty colourants out there!).
Hope this is helpful!
Thank for sharing the great mascara recs, ladies!
The mascara I have been using for a few years is from a brand called Real Purity. The ingredients are purified water, beeswax, glycerin, candelila wax, cellulose, pure plant extracts, and iron oxide. It has worked well for me.