If you’ve been lurking around this site for a while–first, thank you! (and HELLO!)–you know that I generally trend toward “safer” beauty products when it comes to what I use and recommend.

This doesn’t mean that I’ve eliminated every brand and product from my life that can be construed as potentially dangerous (for lack of a better term), but it does mean that this is a lifestyle for me.I like to say I live by the 80/20 rule–80% of the time I stay “safer,” and the other 20% I live dangerously. (That using a product with parabens falls under the “dangerous” category to me should tell you something about my lack of penchant for risk taking. What can I say? #livinontheedge)

When it comes to my overall lifestyle as well as my personal care products, I live by the 80/20 rule–805 of the time I stay “safer,” and the other 20% I live dangerously.

All that being said, I haven’t come right out and talked about the fact that a while back, I decided to take a leap and become a consultant for Beautycounter, the Safer Beauty company.I call this a leap for lots of reasons. First, I never in about a bajillion years thought I wanted to have a job that could ever be classified as sales. I don’t sell things, really. Unless you consider attempting to offer my soul up every night for a decent 9 hours of sleep… then I’m all, “Highest bidder, please!!!”

So, why Do I Love Beautycounter?

Mainly because it works. And secondly, because their products are safer to use than many traditional beauty products, which can contain potentially harmful ingredients.Let’s do a List! I love Lists!

• Their products rock. I especially adore their Countermatch skin care line; the Ultimate Nudes palette for eye shadow (soooo buttery and blendable); and all of the assorted body butters, lotions and oils. I hope to share some tutorial videos on all of these guys at some point in the future!
• They are about more than helping to proliferate safer personal care products. Leaders and consultants from the company put their money where their mouth is–lobbying Congress yearly for more transparent ingredient labels, and urging them to ban known-harmful ingredients.
• Their mission is ever-evolving. They small-batch test color cosmetics for safety, for example, and continue their research on personal care product safety. Here is a partial list of ingredients they’ve banned from their products so far:

But why? Whhhhy, Sonni, do we have to worry about “cleaning up” One. More. Thing. in our lives?!?!

I knoooow. It’s a little annoying, right? But the statistics don’t lie.

Consider this:

• 1 in 2 men, and 1 in 3 women will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives.
• The rates for breast cancer in women are currently 1 in 7; 20 years ago it was 1 in 20.
• Since WWII, more than 80,000 chemicals have been introduced into products for sale in America, and almost 90% of those ingredients have not been tested for safety.

And while I’m a big believer that we can’t control everything that will impact our health, we can make small adjustments to cut down on the exposure we have to potentially dangerous chemicals.

What does “safer” mean, anyway?

Well, in this case, it doesn’t mean organic. Beautycounter isn’t all organic, although it does include tons of organic or naturally-sourced ingredients; nor does it shun chemicals completely in its formulations.Here’s the thing: There are some completely organic skin care lines that can irritate your skin. And similarly, there are plenty of safe chemicals that can enhance the performance of a product, that you can use without worry that it could potentially negatively impact your health.So that’s why Beautycounter uses the term “safer.” Safer than what the majority of products out there are, without sacrificing quality or performance. (Because mama doesn’t want a lipstick that doesn’t PERFORM.)

There are some completely organic skin care lines that can irritate your skin. And similarly, there are plenty of safe chemicals that can enhance the performance of a product.

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So, are you going to post ONLY about Beautycounter from now on?

No! Not by a long shot. I’m straight up with you guys about things I love, whether I’m selling them with Beautycounter or not. And I promise, this page will NOT turn into a “sell zone.”This is for several reasons.

• I still use–and love–products from other brands.
• I don’t ever, ever, want to come across as “sales-y.” Your trust is my top priority. Putting constant links up to only one line not only would come across as annoying, it would also be completely and utterly untrue, because I do, in fact, still enjoy tons of other beauty products.
• If I love something from Beautycounter and it fits into the post, you bet I will tell you all about it, but if there is another product or line that performs better, you better believe I will be posting about it right here, too.

All that being said, this shift to safer products is a huge part of my life.

And because this blog is an honest and authentic extension of all the things I’m doing and loving in my life, it feels right to share it with you.And I am here for you to talk as much–or as little–as you want about Beautycounter or any other safer beauty favorites. Want to know more about a certain product? Email me! Want to tell me about a great safe beauty find that you love? I’m all ears!Seriously… This is all about talking with you guys, so let’s chat more! I’m here anytime you have thoughts or questions on any of this!So excited to share this all with you! See you soon, and stay (safely) beautiful!

Want to learn more about the company or browse the products? Click here, and email me at Sonni@SonniAbatta.com with any questions!