Consumers are always waiting to jump on the bandwagon of social awareness regarding potentially dangerous ingredients. At this point in time “Parabens”, “GMO” and “Sulfates” are commonly known words that inflict instant fear. What is is all about? All these things are believed to harm reproductive health and lead to cancer .
One thing I’ve been reading about lately is “Phenoxyethanol”. I had to share what I’ve learned because it’s literally in just about every single cosmetic and skincare product I own.
I’ve read many lists online of “Ingredients to avoid” but this is rarely listed.
What is “Phenoxyethanol”?
In the cosmetics industry, Phenoxyethanol is used as a stabiliser in perfumes and as a preservative. (paiskincare.com)
There are many mixed reviews online, but coincidentally many of the positive reviews are coming from companies that use the product themselves and would lose profit if people boycotted the ingredient (such as Paula’s Choice and The Honest Company).
While it’s true that full testing results have been inconclusive, here are some facts (taken from sourced articles via Wiki):
In 2005–06, methyldibromoglutaronitrile/ phenoxyethanol was the ninth-most-prevalent allergen in patch tests(5.8%).[8]
The Food and Drug Administration has warned that the chemical is toxic to infants via ingestion, and “can depress the central nervous system and may cause vomiting and diarrhea.” Combined with Chlorphenesin, these two chemicals can cause respiratory depression in infants.[9] Since these chemicals are often present in cosmetics and lotions applied to the hands and are easily ingested, caution should be exercised.
German research in 1999, concluded that it had neurotoxin potential, but in a concentration-dependent manner.[10]
The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) data sheets show chromosomal changes and genetic mutation effects in testing as well as testicular atrophy and interference with reproductivity in mice for other Glycol Ethers, although Phenoxyethanol is not mentioned in the abstract. [11]
What you should be aware of:
1. It has dangerous neurotoxin properties only in high concentrations. If your product contains Phenoxyethanol but it is one of the very last ingredients listed you’re probably fine, it’s in a very low concentration.
2. Something can be labeled hypoallergenic and all natural but still contain Phenoxyethanol.
3. It’s equally as dangerous as parabens (which are not all that dangerous to be quite honest). Seeing a product boast about being “paraben-free” while containing Phenoxyethanol is a total oxymoron.
4. Many companies are looking to find an alternative ingredient that can also kill bacteria and mold.
5. It’s bad enough to be banned from European ECOCERT companies.
6. You’re not going to die if you use it, but try to avoid it if you can and especially if it’s high on the ingredient list.
Phenoxyethanol as last ingredient in Creme De La Mer
Whole Foods 365 uses a larger amount of Phenoxyethanol
Why so much?
Read your product labels like you do for food. Also, don’t be a jerk and warn about dangers of ingredients while eating Kraft food and drinking Diet Coke.
Cancer is so prevalent now because of our lifestyles and what we are ingesting. It’s nearly impossible to be completely green but try to stay informed and make the best decisions you can.
The last few months have been a whirlwind. I’ve needed to step back and absorb everything and reflect on how incredible life can be when you find yourself in the right place. I moved here 13 months ago and have had two career changes already. Each a stepping stone to whatever my destiny has in store. My Beauty Stylist history and knowledge led me to work for one of the best makeup companies in the world, but once I was there I found it really hard to be true to myself and my clients/fans. I believe that being open minded and filling yourself with as much knowledge as possible in whatever business you do is the key to success and not being able to use a different brand or different colors for clients (when necessary) aside from what my line offered became too much of a personal internal problem for me.
I not only love to style my clients in the perfect makeup for them, but also in the perfect skincare regimen. Finding the perfect red lipstick for a night out gives so much confidence, but that feeling only lasts so long (trust me, I’m addicted to that feeling). What keeps me confident the most is getting compliments on my skin. As an artist, I always ask people what kind of makeup they are looking for and sadly about 75% of the time I hear “FULL COVERAGE!”. Why are we so obsessed about covering up our insecurities? I became obsessed with fixing the problem first, then using makeup to enhance, NOT just cover it up!
If I can prescribe someone the right skincare to feel confident and beautiful in their own skin, makeup becomes FUN not a hassle. It’s been a dream of mine to be able to teach other people that work in retail (Nordstrom, Sephora, etc) how to share this view of mine and be successful in sales not because of the paycheck, but because they are finding a client exactly what they are looking for and building a personal relationship that promotes retention. I have some of the best clients in the world. They support me and many have become like family. Being honest, knowledgeable and genuine is the only secret to how I got where I am.
The last couple months have completely transformed me. I accepted an education and management position with one of the best skincare lines in the entire world, Caudalie. I’m now training the Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Hawaii markets. I still have my favorite products from other brands, but this company has changed so many outlooks on skincare that I have held in the past. I have learned more about skin in 2 months than I have in 2 years. I can’t wait to share my reviews and tutorials on Caudalie products as well as other favorites. I have been so busy adjusting to my role that I haven’t had any time to blog or make new videos. As soon as this holiday season is over I have a lot planned for my personal projects such as Beauty Styled. Until then, here are some tips and product recommendations that I can share to get you through this Winter Season.
1) Stop Over Peeling!!!
I know, I know. I’m the chick that posted a video and link to 40% Glycolic acid and how to literally burn the living flesh off of your face. If you insist on peeling I still recommend that product, but in a lower % and only once every few months. I’ve learned that your skin only needs a little under 3% to peel the dead skin off with Glycolic acid. Anything over 3% is taking off living skin. 40% is absolutely insane. You can do a quick peel but let’s basically compare it with getting lipo to lose weight instead of changing lifestyle and working out. You can get that instant result sometimes, but it’s better to do a much smaller % weekly and make it part of your lifestyle. Since using Caudalie I haven’t needed to do a chemical peel whatsoever. If you want that quick fix here are some great options:
When you are young, your skin is like a brand new mattress. Firm, fresh springs holding it up. Pillow top.
As you sleep on your mattress for years, the bed starts sinking in a little, the top gets grungy and you need to flip it, etc. Now let’s compare that to what happens in your skin. The springs are like your collagen and elastin, they get worn out and start loosing their strength. The surface of your skin is being attacked all the time by free-radicals, they are like little bedbugs that make your mattress gross. Free-radicals cause 4 out of 5 wrinkles and 80% of the visible signs of aging. So while our mattress is thinning out and collapsing, we are also doing necessary peels sometimes, as well as retinol that is shaving off layers of our skin. Over peeling causes our mattress to be super thin. Thin skin = sagging skin. We want to get rid of the “bedbugs (free-radical damage)” while boosting/restoring our springs. That’s why using products that boost your own natural collagen are so important. Using products with collagen in them is completely pointless. You want to grow your own!
Dr. David Sinclair from Harvard has named Resveratrol the most corrective-aging ingredient ever discovered to date.
Guess who owns the patent on Resveratrol… Caudalie! YAY! Okay so here are my recommendations for boosting your own collagen:
Free-Radicals are unstable molecules that steal electrons out of our skin cells causing them to die off faster. I’m sure you know of them in their English non-scientific form: The Sun, Smoking, Drinking, Stress, Pollution. I feel like people in LA look really old at young ages because of this. We hate free-radicals because they cause 80% of the visible signs of aging, not to mention cancer. What combats free-radicals? Antioxidants!!!
I’ve changed my skincare outlook once I realized antioxidants are literally the most anti-aging thing in the world. If you block free-radicals, you aren’t aging (or at least showing it)! I compare antioxidants to the potion in Death Becomes Her (my favorite movie of all time by the way).
SCREW THE NATURAL LAW!
If you stop signs of aging, you don’t age. Lot’s of products have high anti-oxidant content. There’s one antioxidant that protects against 100% of free-radicals. It’s called Grapeseed Polyphenols. It’s the first patent that Caudalie made. Are you realizing why I’m so obsessed with this line yet? Good. Here’s my recommendations for antioxidants you can incorporate into your routine:
I call this the Brita filter for your face. It filters out the free radicals overnight, not to mention smells amazing, and makes skin glow in the morning.
Perfect for first signs of aging since it has 15% Vitamin C Ester, or for anyone wanting to protect skin from the pollution. This is bubblewrap for your face. Nothing is going to attack that beautiful skin!
HUM Turn Back Time Supplements!!! OBSESSED! These Organic Supplements are incredible and full of anti-oxidants that work from the inside-out!
As always, stay hydrated by drinking tons of water. I’m going to buy a gallon jug and try to drink a gallon of water a day. I’ll blog about that later.
I feel a bit nervous to write this blog but I felt it needed to be put out there in hopes that some questions I have get answered.
First of all, I like La Mer. I use the Gel & Soft Creme myself and their concealer is wonderful. I have seen The Concentrate heal clients’ eczema and rosacea, therefore I believe in the product itself. Anything that costs $165/oz (The Soft Creme), $285/2oz (Gel de La Mer) and $425/1.7oz (The Concentrate) should probably create miracles, and it does according to all of the reviews. All 43 reviews from each store.
Here’s the reason for my blog post. If you’re familiar with La Mer you’ve heard the story of it’s origins. If not, here’s how it goes..
There was a NASA Astrophysicist named Dr. Max Huber. He and his team suffered severe burns during a lab explosion. He dedicated the rest of his career to finding a cure for scars. He loved the ocean and noticed men working with sea kelp had normal sun damaged skin but their arms were pristine from handling the sea kelp. “It took 12 years and 6,000 experiments” of studying sea kelp (he played music, sounds of the ocean and pulsed light through it) but he finally made a potion that worked and called it “The Miracle Broth”. He added a special kind of Mineral Oil (La Mer says the difference between their mineral oil and the kind you can get for a few dollars is “the difference between a fine aged wine and grape juice”- personal La Mer training experience) and other ingredients and made it into a cream and sold it in front of stores. “He would even eat it with a spoon to show people how natural it was”. The tale goes on to say that when he died, 90% of his scars were cured. To this day every jar of Creme de La Mer has some of the original batch of miracle broth in it. Hence the price.
Yeah Yeah Yeah… What an incredibly interesting story. They should make a movie! Except I had a recent revelation that makes me question the entire thing. Keep in mind, I’m not saying the creme isn’t wonderful. It is. I’m playing devil’s advocate for the validity of it’s origins. I tried doing research on this Max Huber guy. There is no information about him, any accomplishments at NASA or records of his existence beyond Estee Lauder websites (If you didn’t know, La Mer is an Estee Lauder brand), and various blogs that tell the same story I just did. It is said that his daughter sold the recipe to Estee Lauder who uses the exact recipe from Dr. Huber and it’s even created in Max Huber Research Laboratories. What you can’t find is his daughters name anywhere, or his obituary. When doing research I found their business listing on bizapedia.com. The company contact is Maureen Case, CEO of Estee Lauder. I like the advertisement on the side, it’s a nice touch.
Their office looks amazing!
Edit: The 7 Corporate Center Dr. Is also the building to the right (Estée Lauder headquarters)
I’ve been searching for weeks for more information about the Huber family, the labs or even a single photo of Max Huber (maybe a before and after?!) but there is absolutely nothing except for 1 black and white photo of a man (with no scars). There is no family photos. No photos of him posing with a jar (surely there would be photos of that after working 12 years and 6,000 experiments.) There is no obituary. There are other Max Huber’s that were scientists from Switzerland and Germany but they have nothing to do with Creme de La Mer. It could literally be anyone. After all of these revelations and exhaustive research it is my personal opinion that the story is completely made up. It’s a nice skincare line that does give wonderful results and coming from a marketing background I can understand why Estee Lauder would create this lovely imagery to justify an insane price but I’m not buying it anymore and I don’t want anyone else to either until they can back up their claims. La Mer seems to be the biggest scam in the Beauty Industry.
Please do your own research and share this blog to raise awareness because it’s my hope that some information about this family, maybe another physicists name from this “lab explosion” at NASA would emerge.. I just think it is potentially the biggest lie in the cosmetics industry and had to share my thoughts. If he’s a physicist where was he educated? Does he have any remaining family? It’s my hope that this article will have people better experienced in research ask these questions and hopefully find some answers.
I will always ask questions on behalf of my clients and I realize this article will piss some people off. It’s truly not my intention. La Mer is a nice product that gives good results that I have personally experienced for myself and my clients. I just need some answers before I shell out my hard earned dollars to support a fairy tale.
I also want it to be known that I have worked alongside La Mer employees and they are trained on this background and have never questioned it. I don’t believe they are intentionally lying to anyone. I have been invited to La Mer trainings as well and I was drinking the punch until recently. When this product was launched in the 1990’s the internet wasn’t really a thing yet so I don’t think Lauder ever expected to be questioned. I think it’s a good time to bring up these questions now and demand proof. Please share this blog via social media. I’m not an expert at research but I hope this intrigues someone who is who can get some hard answers.
EDIT 8/24: Things I’m still searching for:
– newspaper article about lab explosion
– any photo of a jar of La Mer before Estee Lauder “purchased it”
– any photo of Max Huber with this cream
– any remaining family members
– NASA employee records
– Obituary
– College Degree
– Articles written about La Mer prior to Lauder acquisition
I wanted to take a moment to share that I’m going to be changing up this blog for the better. Working full time and running a business full time on the side is so much work that it’s hard to find extra time to write for you guys. I have met and continue to meet so many people that inspire me and challenge me in new ways that I want to share them with you! I have a close group of people that are similar to me in the sense that they are professionals and experts in their craft whether it’s skincare, makeup or hair. I have invited them to share their knowledge on beautystyled.com and they couldn’t be more excited!
Lauren Clark is a Celebrity Hair Stylist from Beverly Hills (and my personal hair stylist). She was one of the first connections I made here in LA and is the only person I trust to touch my hair from now on. We have worked on many projects already and she has so much knowledge about hair and health that she is excited to share.
Dena Thurston is one of my best friends and a Regional makeup artist for Trish McEvoy. She has brought so much joy to my life not only as a friend but a partner in business as well. She is from Minnesota but is currently living in St. Louis. She is a stellar makeup artist and her organic recipes and lifestyle tips are just as fab as her skills behind a makeup brush.
Kelly Kossakoski is one of my oldest friends in the biz. She has worked for many different brands and is currently one of the top people at TARTE Cosmetics. We met when I worked for MAC over 6 years ago. She sees life in a way that I am envious of. She finds beauty in everything and is one of the most inspirational and motivating people I know.
These people are my dearest friends and colleagues and while I am very private with my personal life and friendships, I feel it’s best to share these people and their knowledge with you. We all have one goal in mind and that’s to make the world a more healthy and beautiful place, one post at a time 🙂
Every once in a while I come up with an idea that makes me wish I had my own product line. Then after googling realize I’m not the amazing genius I hoped to be as it’s been done a trillion times already. Oh well. At least my recipe for the best body scrub (seriously) ever will save you some serious $$.
For you coffee drinkers, start saving your grounds. I keep a ziploc next to my coffee machine and every morning add my used grounds to it. (By the way, those of you with keurigs- I just bought this genius little refillable k-cup and started buying my own coffee and I’m saving so much money!)
Yet another reason to love Organic Coconut Oil… scoop about 2-3 tablespoons and add to 10 TBSP of coffee grounds. Those measurements are totally guesses. Add only enough coconut oil to hold the coffee grounds together and form a thick paste. Think cookie dough, not cake batter. Add to a sealable container and voila you have the best body scrub you’ve ever used. I can’t say it’s the BEST face scrub because I’m partial to Exfolikate, Philosophy Microdelivery Peel and Arcona Cranberry Gommage, but it’s right up there with them.
This is awesome because the grounds (you want to be using very fine grounds, especially on the face) gently slough away dead skin cells, the caffeine helps rid cellulite and wakes your skin up and the coconut oil leaves a shield of hydration.
When using this the water will be very brown so be sure to use a regular body wash afterwards.
I also like to use on the face as a mask for 5 minutes.
Happy Scrubbing! 🙂
For a cute idea, paint some mason jars and keep your scrub in that. Cuter than a bag of what appears to be black tar laying in your shower (awkward to explain to guests, trust me).
I feel like there’s a revolution going on in beauty right now. Everyone wants to cream contour themselves (STOP.) and everyone wants something “that’s not cakey”. What the hell? What does that even mean?
Cake makeup was coined from the MAX FACTOR Pan-Cake makeup originally introduced in the 1950’s. Cake makeup is still sold for theatre today. It was called cake because it came in a round disc and resembled.. a cake! Cake makeup is a powder that can be applied wet for more coverage and has a truly disgusting finish in person. It looked good on the kind of film used back then.
Ad for Max Factor Pan-Cake makeup starring Judy Garland
Cakey does not mean what you think it means, I assure you. I have done a perfectly blended beautiful finish with TINTED MOISTURIZER on someone not used to makeup and was told “well it’s kind of cakey”. Powder was not even applied to the face. I can assure you, just because you can see you are wearing makeup does not mean that you have a cakey face.
I just spent the last 5 20 minutes on Google images and found one picture… ONE… that represents cakey makeup, and it’s a very drastic example. Behold…
Scary. That, my friends is cakey.
This also came up when I googled “cakey makeup”…
That is not cake, that’s getting your makeup done at a certain makeup counter when you can afford a professional artist that knows how to do makeup on women of color, and throwing a sh*t load of loose powder on without buffing it in. So unless you think cakey makeup is supposed to mean throwing flour on your face, you’re using the term wrong.
“Cakey Makeup” also drew these results:
All of those are beautiful makeup jobs that are not cakey. So this makes me curious… what does cakey even mean when you’re describing it? Is is the fact you can see that you were once not wearing makeup and now you are? Is it a full coverage, and if so what do you not like about it other than “it’s cakey” (wtf?? lol)?
As a professional makeup artist, I’ll let you know what “cakey” means to me. Cakey is something that happens after a liquid or cream product such as foundation or concealer is applied or touched up over the top of already set makeup. It kind of cracks the surface. Learning makeup technique over the years it has happened to all of us. I remember a time years ago when a client wanted extreme coverage under her eyes, and even though a minimal amount of corrector and concealer covered the darkness, she wanted more. I had already set the eyes and made the mistake of adding more concealer. It cracked the entire thing and became very tacky and thick and looked like total crap. I learned my lesson that day and starting all over was the only thing I could do. It was a humbling but necessary experience every makeup artist has learned.
The only other time I use the word cakey is when the makeup looks very dry and emphasizes pores, dry skin and wrinkles.
There is a new trend emerging because of a youtube blogger (Gossmakeupartist- whom I adore). He is out there telling everyone to put powder on their face and then foundation. O M G. I CANT. The video has 429,000 views at the time of this post. That means potentially 429,000 people are walking around like a hot mess if this isn’t done Exactly the way he is saying to do it (which is very likely). As someone who loves his videos and has learned lots of savvy tips from him, I’m disappointed as he should know better now that he has that much influence over viewers. That said.. I tried Goss’ tip and my makeup stayed well .. but was a bit cakey 😉
Let’s use the word “heavy” from now on when you think it’s too much coverage. Let’s use the word “dry” when you think it’s too dry looking. Let’s retire “cakey” and expand our beauty vocabularies together shall we?
I’m not shy to say I love luxury makeup and skincare. I know there’s a lot of blogs and commenters out there to shoot down products because of crazy price points. This post isn’t to defend certain products, as certain products are right for people, and wrong for others. This post is, however, an important lesson to always remember when shopping for products.
The beauty industry is a multi-billion dollar industry. There’s a million products out there, so how do you choose what to invest in? I have a 3-step system I always like to explain to my clients.
1. Find what ingredients work for you
Is it dark spots you want to get rid of? Wrinkles? Firming? Pores? Do some research on what ingredients REALLY work for you. Many times you can find specific ingredients to look for. Say you find that you need Mandelic Acid for dark spots.. Google “Best Serums with Mandelic Acid”. I’m sure you’re going to find a huge list. That’s just one example.
2. Do the Research (via Nordstrom Beauty Stylists & online reviews)
Once you find that ingredient you want to try, you need to find out which products people are loving and leaving. Nordstrom Beauty Stylists are wonderful because we literally try everything and get feedback very quickly from clients we’ve sampled and know what is a waste of time or not and aren’t afraid to tell you because we don’t work for any brand, yet are trained in all of them. Online reviews don’t hurt either, although it’s easy to spot when a competitor or all around hater is trying to sabotage the product (there are literally blogs dedicated to “debunking” Creme de la Mer.. when it’s an incredible product). Ingredients aren’t always just ingredients though. Let’s use La Mer for example. One thing I’ve read a lot online is that “it’s just seaweed and mineral oil!”. Not at all true. When doing research you can learn that a NASA Astro-Physisict named Max Huber (and his entire team) got burned very badly with rocket fuel in a lab experiment and he spent the rest of his life finding a cure for scars for us. He did over 6,000 experiments with different fermentation processes and different delivery carriers and after 12 years found a certain fermentation was delivered deepest with a specific mineral oil. That doesn’t mean you can go buy seaweed from the store and blend it with mineral oil and make your own La Mer. That would be the same thing as expecting blended grapes and water to turn into an amazing Pinot Noir. Long story short, do your research.
3. Do the MATH
Seriously- this. I worked with someone the other day who refused to buy a product for $60 and went for the $42 product even though she didn’t like it as much. I explained to her that the $60 was actually twice the size. She didn’t understand, so let me break it down for you with certain products I believe to be comparable. Treat the beauty counter like Costco! I find this to be so common sense but I find myself explaining this on a daily basis.
Find your common denominator, the ML or OZ.
Let’s start with an easy example I’m sure you’ve done before.
I totally love Jo Malone perfume. All the magical scents come in a 1oz and 3.4oz (sometimes even larger). So you’ve decided that new Peony and Blush Suede is the perfect scent for you this Spring. For $65 you can have 1oz of it. For $115 you can have 3.4oz. The larger one is $34 an oz. For $50 more, you can have 3 and a half times the amount, or 1.4 oz free.
Now for a better example…
For the last 2 years my favorite daily peels have been the Dr. Gross Alpha Beta Pads. I have not one bad thing to say about them, they are amazing, they work. They come in various sizes, which using example 1, you can determine which is the best value for you.
Alas, if you go back to Step 2, you would know to look at the label to see what makes those pads work so well. Find out what the competitors are. Trish McEvoy (a personal Saint to me) has just released her Correct & Brighten Weekly Peel Pads. Same acids as the Dr. Gross, as well as many other peel pads. So which one should you go with (assuming you have tried both and both do not irritate your skin)?
Since Trish’s are much stronger, you need to use them just once a week. One box comes with 12. Dr. Gross’ comes with 30. The price for Trish is $125 ($10.42 per pad), the price for Dr. Gross is $86 ($2.87 per pad).
Just looking at price per pad, it would seem Dr. Gross is a much better deal, here’s the thing. You need to use those pads every day for them to be effective as they are intended. Are you really going to do that? If so, great. Trish’s you use once a week.
Still following me?
Dr. Gross’ pads are $86 for 30 days, making them $86 a month. Trish’s are $125 for 12 pads, making them last 3 months, taking it to $41.67 a month, and easier to use.
It’s a much smarter buy to go with Trish for this instance!
More breakdowns: Not saying these products are dupes for each other just using examples I’ve thought of recently.
Trish BB Cream ($85/1.7oz) vs YSL Touché Eclat Foundation ($60/1oz) = Trish’s is actually less expensive, and it’s packed with anti aging peptides
NARS Radiant Creamy Compact Foundation ($38/0.42oz) vs. Armani Luminous Silk Foundation ($60/1oz) = With the NARS compact being over $90 an ounce, It’s a much smarter idea to go with Armani.
There’s a lot of food for thought in this post, but hopefully it will help you out next time you feel overwhelmed!
BEAUTY STYLED 