mascara

Natural Makeup & Less Toxic Alternatives: Recap

CaitlinLeave a comment

This is the recap post for a 6-post series about replacing my drugstore makeup brands with less toxic products, as rated by the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Database, which is an awesome free resource for researching your own beauty products and common ingredients.

Read the first post in this natural makeup series »

The Recap

In the previous six blog posts, I’ve outlined the makeup I use for my day-to-day look and identified less toxic replacements for all of my beauty store brands. Here’s a quick look at the new products I’m using and what I think of them.

Mineral Fusion Volume Mascara:
Just OK. Definitely less toxic, but I’m not crazy about the applicator.
BUY ON AMAZON | READ THE POST

Zuzu Luxe White Liner Pencil:
Great! I like this liner even more than my previous one.
BUY ONLINE | READ THE POST

Mineral Fusion Concealer Duo:
Great! This product works well for me.
BUY ON AMAZON | READ THE POST

Zuzu Luxe Eye Shadow:
These work well for me. Easy to apply, and lots of colors available.
BUY ON AMAZON | READ THE POST

Zuzu Luxe Liquid Eye Liner:
Just OK. I’m going to keep looking for a liner with a better felt tip applicator.
BUY ON AMAZON | READ THE POST

Mineral Fusion Eye Primer:
Great! The hold is good, and it’s less expensive than my previous NARS primer.
BUY ON AMAZON | READ THE POST

What do you think?

Have you tried any of these natural, less-toxic makeup brands? What are your favorites, and which brands do you recommend?

Affiliate Disclosure: This website uses affiliate links. If you buy a product on Amazon using my links, I’ll earn a commission on your purchase. It doesn’t add anything to the product prices. Unless otherwise noted in a specific post, I am not paid or endorsed by the manufacturers of the products I use.

Replacing Covergirl Lash Blast mascara with a natural alternative

Caitlin1 Comment

This is one post in a 6-post series about replacing my drugstore makeup brands with less toxic products, as rated by the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Database, which is an awesome free resource for researching your own beauty products and common ingredients.

Read the first post in this natural makeup series »

The High-Level Comparison

CoverGirl Lash Blast Volume Mascara

  • Awesome applicator
  • Cheaper
  • Good hold but easy to remove

Mineral Fusion Volumizing Mascara

  • Average applicator
  • More expensive
  • Difficult to remove

The Details

I’ve been a loyal user of the CoverGirl Lash Blast Volume Mascara since it first hit the market. My favorite thing about it is the spiky applicator brush. In my experience, it’s super effective at getting lots of mascara applied to the lashes with zero clumping. CoverGirl definitely has the advantage over Mineral Fusion on this aspect.

I saved the CoverGirl applicator from my last tube of mascara, washed it off, and tried fitting it into the Mineral Fusion bottle…no luck. The wand is too wide.

But, as you can see on the graphic at the beginning of this post, the CoverGirl mascara has a hazard score of 4 (like many of my favorite products that I’m working on replacing). While a 4 is not super high on the hazard scale, exposure to many toxins in a variety of products for many hours every day has a cumulative, negative effect on overall health.

So, in my continuing efforts to reduce my toxic beauty products, I’ve been trying the Mineral Fusion Volumizing Mascara. It’s EWG verified to avoid ingredients of concern and offer full transparency about what the product contains.

The Mineral Fusion Volumizing Mascara tends to go on a bit clumpier and is messier to remove, but the hold throughout the day seems similar (no flaking or smudging for me). Plus, the overall volume of the Mineral Fusion mascara is similar to the CoverGirl mascara: both deliver fuller eyelashes.

The Conclusion

The Mineral Fusion Volumizing Mascara is a great replacement for the CoverGirl Lash Blast Volume Mascara if you’re looking for a mascara with fewer toxic or potentially harmful ingredients. However, the applicator is not ideal. I’m going to keep searching for a less toxic mascara with a 5-star applicator, and I’ll update this post when I find one!

Other Posts in this Series

Affiliate Disclosure: This website uses affiliate links. If you buy a product on Amazon using my links, I’ll earn a commission on your purchase. It doesn’t add anything to the product prices. Unless otherwise noted in a specific post, I am not paid or endorsed by the manufacturers of the products I use.