Here it is—Part Two of my Beautycounter review! And this post contains information on getting FREE beauty products, so keep on reading!

After two weeks of using a variety of Beautycounter products, I’m so happy to bring you my thoughts on this Beauty Tuesday. Enjoy!

Nourishing Cream Cleanser

I have been trending toward gentler cleansers lately, but gentle alone won’t cut the mustard. They also have to remove my makeup–eye makeup included–without me having to scrub too hard. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much from this cleanser (as we know, I am married to my Tatcha Camellia Oil Cleanser), but lo and behold, I was pleasantly surprised.

Quick Notes:

• Non foaming
• Gentle on skin
• Shocked but so happy to say that this cleanser removed all my makeup—eye makeup and mascara included. And it was gentle enough that my face didn’t feel stripped when I was done. Win!

Nourishing Night Cream

I used this at night, followed by the Balancing Face Oil. I liked that it didn’t irritate my lately-sensitive skin, and felt that it moisturized well. If you’re in a northern climate for the winter and like a richer cream, this might not be enough for you, but for the humid Florida weather, it’s a great, if basic, gentle nourishing cream.

Quick notes:

• Glides on, soaks in quickly
• Dries to a matte finish
• Very gentle—no stinging upon application

Balancing Face Oil

Oils help to really lock in moisture, and I find they’re especially great to use at night so you don’t have to worry about your makeup sliding off, and you can really let the ingredients get to work. While the typical application technique is to pat the oil on top of your moisturizer, I prefer to apply before my nighttime moisturizer, which really traps it in. I liked this oil but didn’t find it all that different, results-wise, from other favorite oils I’ve used, like macula or jojoba oil.

Quick notes:

• Light scent
• Lightly moisturizing when applied over the Nourishing Night Cream at night
• Locked in moisture on my skin

Charcoal Face Mask

Okay, maybe I had a little too much fun using this product (as evidenced by my previous post), but in addition to it providing endless entertaining selfie options, it also draws crap out of your skin like gooooood.

Quick notes:

• Immediate cooling effect when put on skin
• Dries quickly, leaving skin tight
• Rinses off easily
• Left my skin a little red (on my cheeks, mainly), but feeling deeply cleansed

Body Butter in Citrus Mimosa

If there’s a product I will go back to again and again after reviewing this line, it will probably be this. Lightly scented but deeply moisturizing, this made my skin feel like, well, butter. It takes a few minutes to soak in, like most body butters, but is intensely hydrating. I also like that Beautycounter sources their fragrances naturally, and given the debate over the safety of artificial fragrances, I felt better using this than other scented lotions.

Quick notes:

• Thick and luxurious
• Light and fresh scent
• Moisturizes well and soaks in after a few minutes

Nice Do Kids Shampoo

Being the admitted product junkie I am, imagine for a moment the torment I have put my children through in trying different kids’ shampoos for their little do’s. Okay, I actually don’t perpetrate my obsession on them that much, but I have cycled through my fair share of kids’ shampoos over the years in an attempt to find a shampoo that’s as natural as possible, that still leaves their hair soft with no conditioner. This hit the mark perfectly. I didn’t even need to condition my daughter’s (long!) hair after using this.

Quick notes:

• Lathers well
• Lightly scented
• Leaves hair soft and smooth
• Good size, should last for a while

Lip Sheer (in Terra)

When you think natural lipsticks, you probably think: chalky, hard to blend and poorly pigmented. With this option? None of the above are true. It is creamy, leaves true color on your lips (not just a wash of color), and is moisturizing. Oh, and if you’re looking for a go-to nude color, this is your jam.

Quick notes:

• Good color pigment
• Left my lips soft
• Lasted about an hour on my lips, undisturbed

All in all, I was very pleasantly surprised at the results from the Beautycounter line. If you’re looking for products that are safety-tested by a group that places a premium on clean ingredients, you should take a closer look.

I asked my consultant, Jessica Chait, some more about what makes Beautycounter different, and good. Check out my questions and her responses below, and reach out with any questions you may have!

Q&A with Jessica Chait, Beautycounter

What makes Beautycounter different from other skin and body care lines? How is the safety standard different than other brands?

The very first thing I would say that sets us apart as a brand and company is our advocacy work in DC. We are not only creating safer products and being a part of the solution, but we are also fighting for change in Washington.

In order to ensure that every Beautycounter product meets our high performance standard without compromising health, we have established a health-protective Ingredient Selection Process. These are the five principles we uphold with the selection of every single ingredient:

1. Ban Intentionally (We ban close to 1,500 ingredients.)
2. Screen Rigorously
3. Learn Constantly
4. Source Responsibly
5. Share Transparently

There are major data gaps on most cosmetic ingredients. This is because it is perfectly legal for chemical companies to bring a chemical to market with no information on how it might impact health or the environment.

We do not assume that the absence of data means a chemical is safe. It simply means we don’t know about the potential health impacts. So, we review emerging data regularly and will even commission our own studies when we are not able to turn up enough information.

Beautycounter supports research initiatives to learn more about ingredient safety, and we work with green chemists to find new, safer ingredients and solutions. We consult with scientists and industry leaders working to reduce exposure to toxic chemicals and to develop safer, green chemicals from the start.

What products do you suggest for those women who want to deal with more aggressive signs of aging? Conversely, what are the best for those women who want a gentler, more basic option? Are all of their products safe for pregnant moms and nursing moms?

[For more aggressive signs of aging], I would recommend our Rejuvenating Line (which is our anti-aging line) plus our face oils. In 2 days we are launching Beautycounter +, which are new products to complement our already existing skin care lines and really take them to the next level. Masks and mists that will help hydrate, plump and brighten the skin and fight signs of aging and help improve the elasticity of the skin. I cannot wait. I have been using the new products now for a few weeks and they are amazing.

For women wanting a gentle, more basic option, they would go with our Nourishing line. Great for all ages and skin types.

All of the products are safe for pregnant and nursing moms and our children that are growing and really need to avoid all of the toxic chemicals that are in so many of our products.

What can customers expect to see from Beautycounter in the future–including not only new products, but also initiatives aimed at changing the beauty product ingredient standard?

As far as the future, I mentioned some of the new products coming, but we are working on deodorant, a men’s line, a teen line, more hair care products, and many more. We also acquired NUDE skincare (Bono’s wife’s skin care line) and we are still working on what we will do with that line. You can read about that here.

Our long term goal is to be able provide all of your personal care product needs in a one stop shop.

As far as our advocacy work, we will continue to push forward and challenge the existing laws governing our very unregulated personal care industry. In fact, we will have several meetings nationwide over the next few weeks with Congressmen to discuss the importance of stricter health protective laws. We will be sending Consultants and leaders to DC again next year and will continue to do so in the coming years. The ultimate goal of Beautycounter is to change legislation and to get safer products into the hands of everyone.

We just celebrated our 4th anniversary on March 4th. On this day, we always urge everyone we know to contact their local Congressman to ask for better beauty laws. Everyone can take a few minutes and do one of the following:

1) Send an email to your representatives using this link.

2) Text “MarchForth” to 52886 to urge congress to pass better beauty laws.

***

So, wondering how to get that FREE product? Here is the info! Buy any products THROUGH THIS LINK and get a Be Your Beautiful Beautycounter pouch ($25 retail value) or a charcoal bar ($24 retail value)–your choice–free! Pass it on!

And to reach Jessica at any time, with any questions about the products (she knows everything!), check out her page right here.

***

Hope you enjoyed the review! Have YOU started to “green” your beauty routine? If so, what changes have you made? Let me know in Comments below!

*Products were provided in exchange for my honest review and opinions.