By Joshua Pierce, Head of Education at Credo
If you’re reading this blog there’s a chance you’re new here. Hi! Welcome to Credo.
Today we’re talking about our “top 10 products to swap.” Whether you’re new to Credo or a long time customer, it’s helpful to have a little product guidance from time to time. Our new clients often ask us where they should start when it comes to swapping out their conventional products for safer, cleaner options. At the same time, our friends who have been with us a while may be stuck with products they’re no longer feeling the vibes with.
The 10 product genres we talk about in this piece are a great jumping off point if you’re new and and looking for clean beauty swaps. Each category has a specific reason why we chose it… we’ll even throw in some product recommendations to get you going.
For our loyal clientele who may be in a product rut, follow along with us! You may find a product or two you have yet to discover…consider it a clean beauty blind date. Fair warning, you just might fall in love.
As a reminder, all of the clean beauty swaps and products mentioned below pass the vetting process of The Credo Clean Standard™ and The Dirty List®. That means, these artisan products are all vetted to meet the highest standard and definition of clean beauty in the industry! You’re in safe hands.
1. Cleanser
Scrub-a-dub-dub. Let’s talk about the place all skincare regimens start: Clean cleansers!
The reason to consider swapping your cleanser out is pretty straightforward. Your skin is more permeable when it is wet. Meaning, it is more likely to absorb ingredients deeper into the skin. Cleansers are often meant to address specific skin concerns; however, we think Osea’s Ocean Cleanser is incredible for all skin types and concerns! Through the power of seaweed, this formula is calming, brightening and clarifying. Plus, it smells fresh and energizing! A great way to start or end the day.
2. Serum
Serums are formulated to be the powerhouse of your routine. With a symphony of active ingredients, they’re designed to penetrate deeper layers of the epidermis. Knowing that this MVP formula is meant to do the bulk of the work on your skin, it’s a great product to swap.
True Botanicals Renew Chebula Active Serum works hard to continually release antioxidant protection all day long! Chebula is a unique ingredient native to south and southeast Asia. Its unique structure leaves your skin hydrated, glowing and soft to the touch. Truly a “catch all” serum, this product addresses signs of aging for all skin types.
3. Moisturizer
Moisturizers sit on the skin all day long. We believe this is a great product to swap as it tends to sit with you longer than any other product in your regimen. Especially if you love the rich, long lasting moisturizers that reinforce the skin’s moisture barrier.
Let’s talk about night time moisturizer though. Night time is when you really want to go for it with rich active ingredients and deep nourishing moisture because you’re less exposed to all the free radicals of the day. Klur Sculpture + A Overnight Enrichment Cream uses 1% retinol, peptides and 19 different anti-inflammatories to help transform your skin overnight! Quite literally it gives new meaning to “beauty sleep”.
4. SPF
Sun rays are the number one free radical that accelerates signs of aging on our skin. “To first understand why sunscreen is important in skin care, you must know the proven benefits of sunscreens. Not only do sunscreens protect skin from UVA and UVB rays (which can lead to skin cancer, aging, texture changes, and more), many of Credo’s sunscreens also provide great skincare benefits. Products at Credo contain antioxidants (like vitamin C and E), hydrating ingredients (like grapeseed or sunflower seed oils), and/or color tints so even makeup lovers can go without wearing too much else during those hot and humid days.” -Christina Ross, Credo Senior Scientist.
Kinfield Daily Dew SPF 35 is the exact kind of SPF Christina is talking about. They use sea kelp to fight inflammation from the sun rays, as well as hydrating ingredients like sunflower seed extract and coconut oil. Some say it even smells like a Mediterranean vacation. Sign us up!
5. Deodorant
This product brings so many new clients to Credo because of the press it’s received around health concerns. Conventional deodorants often use aluminum to block your sweat glands. Your sweat glands (specifically the armpit glands) are there to release bacteria and toxins from the body. Blocking those glands is icky. That’s right, I said ICKY. Imagine the potential harm to your body when you try to prevent its natural detoxification.
Clean deodorants use ingredients like baking soda and arrowroot to absorb the funky smells once they’ve been expelled through the sweat. We MUCH prefer this option. Kaia Naturals is the authority on sweat, the pits and all the fabulous funky details about your body’s ability to detox itself through these glands. They have a huge range of scents and formulas for everyone to find something they will love.
6. Mascara
Your eyeballs are sensitive organs covered in fluid. And if you’re a frequent crier, like me, there’s an influx of moisture waiting to happen at any moment. I also rub my eyes a lot… literally grinding whatever makeup I have on into my eyes. Since eye fluids/tears can potentially pull mascara ingredients directly into the body through the eyes, we recommend this as one of our top clean beauty swaps.
Exa Ten18 Lash Amplifying Mascara is made with Acacia Tree Gum that creates a stable, long wear. It’s also the first of its kind, clean mascara to use Orange Peel Fibers to add definition and length. It volumizes, lengthens, defines and lifts the lashes to glorious new heights. GLORIOUS!
7. Lipstick and/or Lip Balm
There’s not much to say here other than you eat the product that’s on your lips, all day long. It’s a pretty simple reason to swap your lip products for a cleaner, safer option right away. Kosas Lip Fuel boosts hydration in the lips with hyaluronic acid. Not only that, they have stunning shades that boost your lips natural shade so it looks like you have a naturally perfect pout.
8. Foundation
This one is a no-brainer as well. Foundation, tinted moisturizers and anything of that nature sit on your skin all the livelong day. Let’s get you one that is full of cleaner, safer ingredients that protect your skin against signs of aging. Doesn’t that sound like a great idea? Makeup that sits with you all day and is filled with skincare ingredients! WE love that idea.
Exa High Fidelity Semi Satin Foundation is buildable from sheer to full coverage. It’s formulated with ingredients like macqui berry extract that keep your skin looking luminous, healthy and absolutely gorgeous.
9. Fragrance
Conventional fragrance is super shady. Basically, there is no law that requires a brand to fully disclose all of the ingredients they use in a fragrance. That means there could be dozens to thousands of hidden ingredients in the ingredient listed as “fragrance (parfum)” on the ingredient label.
Credo only stocks brands that adhere to our Radical Fragrance Transparency policy. Credo has challenged our brand partners to fully disclose all fragrance ingredients. And we are happy to report that 68% of them rose to the occasion (so far). This is unprecedented— not just in conventional beauty, but in clean beauty as well! Credo now clearly indicates the brands that are fully disclosing ingredients on the product pages, and you can find our fully disclosed collection here.
Additionally, all 130+ brand partners are required to categorize the source of their fragrances for every product. The categories are: Fragrance Free, Essential Oils, Certified Organic, Natural, Naturally-Derived and Synthetic.
Knowing this, check out these incredibly alluring fragrances: XTRA MILK from Dedcool and SUPER AMBER from Ellis Brooklyn.
10. Body Lotion
Your skin is the largest organ of your body. All over the skin of the body are thousands and thousands of pores and hair follicles. We recommend switching your body lotion for an option that only brings healthier ingredients to these areas of potential absorption.
Alo Super Fruit Body Lotion is a decadent concoction of amla and aloe which boosts hydration and luminosity! It’s rich but smooth texture keeps you feeling soft and supple without any stickiness. It’s a wonderful product we know you’ll swoon for.
I end every blog encouraging you to reach out to one of our Clean Beauty Experts, either in store or via our live chat at the bottom right hand of your screen. They truly are the experts at helping new and existing Credo clients find the perfect products to use every day. We love our Credo community and look forward to helping you make the switch to clean beauty!
Cheers,
Joshua
