Similar Posts


Before commenting, please read our Comment Policy.


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

43 Comments

  1. I have been using Well People products… do you know anything about them? It’s very hard to dig deep, seems answers are very vague when inquiring to companies. Thank you!

    1. Hi, Ashton! I took a quick look at WP Bio Correct Concealer and noticed that the ingredient list does not list water, and water is what makes products need preservatives. The product does use Ethylhexylglycerin that is an okay preservative.

  2. So this article and comments began in 2015, it is now May 2020. What have you learned since then? What makeup brand do you use ir recommend?

  3. Hi Irina, any update on Beautycounter’s response? I have recently been told I have extremely high level of metal in my body. I am shortly due to have all my mercury fillings replaced and am currently detoxing. I am using a metal free sunscreen, and not looking for metal free and vegan cosmetics. Thank you for your blog I found it very interesting. Xx

  4. Hi Irina –

    Have you reached out to Beautycounter recently? Or did they ever follow up to your initial questions concerning heavy metals?

    Thanks!

    1. Hi, Windy: Yes, it has been a LONG process. Even my husband is helping out. He is a lawyer. Anyway, I think we are close to signing an NDA so they can show me heavy metal test reports. ~Irina

    1. Here is something fascinating. In this article, they said, “For the most dangerous metals (lead, arsenic, mercury, and cadmium), these levels are usually undetectable, but we ensure that they are always under 2 ppm. This is unprecedented in the cosmetics industry.” When I emailed them, they said, “Each heavy metal has a different limit, so we cannot say that the metals are below 2ppm.” Am I missing something?

    2. Oh wow, thanks for doing that homework for us! And yes, I agree with you … those are not the answers I’m looking for. I just found your site today & will be going through it. I’m especially interesting in which make up you find most promising … especially mascara. Most days I wear no make up and use the oil cleansing method from skin care … love the organic oil options out there. (gotta read those labels too) When I am going out of the house … I feel best when wearing makeup, so you can probable see why the research is important to me. I have spent the last 2 years detoxing from heavy metals, so the last thing I want to do is smear more on my body on a daily basis. Thanks for you thoughts on this!

      1. Wow, detoxing from heavy metals… I am so curious as to how one does that? Can someone please shed some light on this subject or Irina, could you maybe do a blog post on it for us? Pretty please…. 🙂 Also, might be a silly question, but if I want the doctors to test me for heavy metals, which types of tests should I ask for and for what metals should they test?

    1. I thought so, too. Unfortunately, when I asked them about specific amounts of heavy metals they find in the pigments they source, they said that this information is proprietary. I do not find this type of answer comforting. Do you? Thank you for your comment, Jennifer!

      1. I’d love to answer this as a partner with them for a couple of years now. I have worked hard for several years to research safer non-toxic products, and have scoured right and left for companies who are transparent and honest about what they use, as well as strict in their screening process. Beautycounter discloses everything- I mean EVERYTHING. You can find every single ingredient as well as why they use it and where it’s sourced from right in their site- transparency is their thing. (They’re very open about answering all questions openly- I’ll happily give you the email or number to call!) They not only batch test products three times for heavy metals alone, but they also third party test to be thorough as sometimes things can sneak in the sourcing process. (All of their products are made in the US except for their color cosmetics, which are made in Italy strictly because the soil there is cleaner/lacks the heavy metals that ours has.) The problem is that the FDA doesn’t regulate what goes into skin care and beauty products- while the EU has now banned about 1400 ingredients, the US just bans 30- up from the measly 11 it did previously. I love Beautycounter because they truly are an education first company. They’re even working in DC advocating for new laws so that all products can one day be made safer… and slowly, we’re making headway! In the meantime, I truly trust their ethics, screening process, and ingredient selection process. Of course using zero products is grand, as are homemade goodies, but for those who want products like the ones you’d get at a high-end department store- but without all the junk and made much safer- I think it’s one of the best options out there. Of course it all comes down to personal preference, and there are some other great mindful companies out there… but I’m currently pregnant and am wearing it head to toe, and I am very choosy about what I expose my lil one to. 😉 Also always happy to answer any questions anyone has! 🙂

        1. Thanks so much for this comment, Natalie! I am glad that you are satisfied with Beautycounter’s level of transparency. I am not as comfortable with it though for the following reasons.

          As you might know, I do not accept anyone’s marketing claims, no matter how impressive they are. Instead, I look at the ingredients and ask hard questions. I only recommend a product or line if I am satisfied with the answers I receive.

          I first contacted Beautycounter in 2015. I asked some questions in an e-mail. On December 4, 2015, I received an answer from their customer service that did not, in my opinion, answer my questions satisfactorily.

          In July 2016, I was contacted by one of my blog readers who, like you apparently, had become a Beautycounter salesperson (you reference a “partnership” with them). Because she was determined to get me answers to my questions, I let her forward my questions to the Beautycounter team. They responded to my blog reader, who forwarded the answers to me. They answered my questions, but I had more questions. My reader was able to put me in touch directly with the Beautycounter team.

          As a result of her efforts, I had a conference call with the Beautycounter team on November 11, 2016. Among other things, I asked them for the heavy metal test results they said they had performed on samples. They said they would get back to me on that.

          On December 6, 2016 they sent me a Non-Disclosure Agreement (“NDA”) to sign. Companies often use non-disclosure agreements in order to protect their trade secrets, and I was fully prepared to sign a non-disclosure agreement that would work for both of us. However, the NDA they provided me was so rigid that it would not have permitted me to say anything about the test results, even that I could not recommend the products.

          Accordingly, it would have been foolish of me to have signed it as it was written. So, on December 8, 2016, I wrote back to them and suggested the following addition to the NDA:

          12. Safe Harbor Language
          Notwithstanding the foregoing, if asked her opinion as to any Counterbrands product, Recipient [i.e. Irina Webb] may state as follows:
          1. “I have looked into their product ingredients and decided not to recommend their products.”
          2. “I have looked into their product ingredients and have decided to recommend only _________ [or: the following products: __________].”
          3. If asked to elaborate, Recipient may state, “I am prevented by the terms of a non-disclosure agreement I signed with Beautycounter from saying anything further.”
          I did not hear back from them.

          On December 19, 2016 I talked to them about the NDA and they said they would look into revising it but that they are busy.

          I recently followed up and received this, “Working on it, thanks for the nudge! As I mentioned via phone, we’re grossly short staffed right now, but I’m in the middle of hiring! 🙂 Thanks for your patience.”

          I have also recently been advised that they have hired a lawyer, and that the lawyer will be in touch with me. I have since heard nothing.

          Maybe they will agree to my reasonable request. If so, I may have the ability soon to say whether or not I approve of their products, but I may not be able to elaborate.

          In short, I do not have enough information to say if they are safe.

          Just so you know, it would be very easy and potentially lucrative for me just to jump on the bandwagon and say how much I love their products. However, I can’t do that in good conscience, because too many people trust my opinions and I never want to do anything to lead anyone astray simply for financial gain. Our health and beauty are my priorities.

          One last thing about Beautycounter gives me pause. In my opinion, plants are best for our skin, not petroleum, but Beautycounter admits that they may be using petroleum-based ingredients. This is a quote from their email to me: “About 25% of our ingredients are synthetic and possibly petroleum-derived. We always prefer to use natural wherever possible and we are very careful to use safe ingredients, whether synthetic or natural. It’s important to note, that this percentage is not reflective of the percentage of synthetic ingredients that make up our formulas as we typically use them at low concentrations.”

          I wish I had more to offer you. Perhaps you and others can work with Beautycounter and encourage them to get back to me. Better yet, encourage them to make their test results public, and to amend their practices so that they can definitively say that they use no petroleum-based products. That statement, if true, would put me in a better position to recommend their products.

          Again, thanks for your comment!

          ~Irina

  5. I agree Irina, the safest makeup is no makeup. I know a few months ago I would have not said this but thanks to your review on Spa Secrets 4 u, I have been using several of Poppy’s all natural products including the Youth Serum, you recommended with amazing results. Thank you for all the work and research you do!

  6. Loose powder is worse?? This surprises me! Would foundation powder that is not a bright pigment be as bad?
    Thanks 🙂

    1. I am not making accusations against any specific company. The point is that due to the nature of makeup pigments, they all may contain trace amounts of heavy minerals. Random tests by independent labs have proven that. Since there is no requirement to list heavy metals on the label, we have to take precautionary steps with every makeup brand. When a makeup company steps forwards and backs up their claim of testing for heavy metals, I will share this information with you immediately. In the meantime, I do use some makeup but I use it the way I described in the article. Thank you for the question, Jessica!

    1. curious what 100% Pure will say … if they reply at all. I’ve been using their mascara for over a year now.
      Their website is not so great on listing all ingredients.

    1. I just discovered a make up brand called “100% Pure”, and they use fruit pigments instead of minerals. I am giving it a try and got some samples from a local store in my area, and they sell online too.

    2. Luscious cosmetics says this “Although not required by law, we voluntarily partner with globally recognized third-party testing lab SGS to run Heavy Metals Safety tests on each production batch of our cosmetics. This includes testing for a list of other toxic substances commonly present in cosmetics such as arsenic, cadmium and lead.”, So I would definitely consider them to be a safe brand, although not mainstream… They are indie, but to me that’s even better!