Natural Beauty Archives

Easy steps to make your beauty routine more sustainable

Choosing to thrift, upcycle, swap, or shop sustainable brands is an easy way to gradually align our wardrobes with our sustainability ideals. But what about our beauty cupboards? As fast disposable fashion has surged, the world of makeup, skincare and...

October 17, 2024

Toxic chemicals in cosmetics remain in our bodies and environments

Beauty

Toxic chemicals in cosmetics remain in our bodies and environments

Cosmetics and personal care products enhance the way we look and feel. During the pandemic, I started a self-care facial routine. It helped me cope with lockdown orders, while simultaneously adjusting to my new identity as a mom. I applied...

May 15, 2023

What is a paraben and why are so many products advertised as ‘paraben-free’?

Beauty Guides

What is a paraben and why are so many products advertised as ‘paraben-free’?

You might have noticed many skin and haircare products are advertised as “paraben-free”, or come across online influencers warning parabens are terrible for your health. But what is a paraben? And could a minor ingredient in products that many of...

April 17, 2023

Q&A: Afari creates clean skincare with an indigenous ‘hero’ ingredient

Beauty

Q&A: Afari creates clean skincare with an indigenous ‘hero’ ingredient

In South Africa, we live in landscapes rich with indigenous plants that have wide-ranging benefits from medicinal to skincare. Afari is a clean skincare brand embracing just this. Margaux Knuppe founded Afari after exiting her previous company, rubybox, in late...

July 29, 2022

Top 5 sustainable perfumeries in South Africa

Beauty Guides

Top 5 sustainable perfumeries in South Africa

From rituals and ceremonies across cultures, to self-expression, perfume has been a powerful sensory companion for thousands of years. In the 19th century, synthetically-derived scents began to take over from naturally-derived scents. The switch to commercial, mass-produced synthetic fragrances –...

July 20, 2022

Ash & Mill creates skincare inspired by ancient practices and local botanicals

Beauty

Ash & Mill creates skincare inspired by ancient practices and local botanicals

Combining his knowledge of chemistry with his passion for sustainability, Dr. Brian Watson created Ash & Mill to honour South Africa’s rich biodiversity. The name ‘Ash & Mill’ is inspired by the history and chemistry behind soap making. During the...

January 24, 2022

Beauty

9 Zero-waste beauty products to change up your routine

Product packaging is the number one contributor of plastic waste. The cosmetic industry is guilty of exacerbating this problem with its excessive packaging. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation advises that we eliminate the plastics we don’t need so luckily, there are...

March 3, 2021

Skin Minimalism: Using only 3 products will reduce waste and help save the planet

Beauty

Skin Minimalism: Using only 3 products will reduce waste and help save the planet

Simplifying your skincare is not just better for your skin, but better for the planet too. We should all be familiar with the three R’s of waste hierarchy – reduce, reuse, recycle. While there is a focus on reusing and...

February 24, 2021

Beauty

Beauty Spot: How O’live grew from passion project to livelihood

Husband and wife team, Sipho and Zikhona Tefu started their organic, handmade and natural skincare brand O’live in their kitchen in 2011. Zikhona produced a batch of 10 soaps as a personal experiment to move towards a more natural lifestyle...

September 9, 2020

Beauty

Beauty Spot: Twyg’s Top 3 Beauty Picks This Month

This month Bekah Vogel has tried and tested three beauty products which contain mostly natural ingredients and are plastic free. By featuring these products, we hope to promote better beauty care, both for you and for the planet. We don’t...

July 29, 2019

20 ways to cut plastic and other waste from your bathroom

Features

20 ways to cut plastic and other waste from your bathroom

Have you had a good look at your bathroom recently? Plastic everywhere, isn’t there? Now that it’s Plastic Free July, try Helen Moffett’s tried-and-tested plastic-free grooming habits. The published poet, author and editor has always been waste-free and waterwise. “My...

July 12, 2019

Beauty

Beauty Spot: 3 new natural and clean options for you

Concern about the mainstream, commercial beauty industry is growing. Toxins, packaging, animal testing and waste are just a few of the issues people are worrying about. At the same time, the number of locally-produced, natural, organic and cruelty-free beauty products...

January 27, 2019

Beauty

Beauty Spot: Our monthly beauty review

Beauty Spot is our monthly column about natural, clean beauty in which we only feature products that we have tried and tested ourselves. We want to support natural, clean beauty products that are on the market as we believe they...

November 26, 2018

Beauty

Nicole Sherwin, first lady of Eco Diva, on self love and natural beauty

It would come as no surprise to anyone who knows her that Nicole Sherwin is the founder of a natural, clean beauty brand. The child of a homeopath, Nicole’s lifelong passion has been health and wellness. During her five-year stay...

November 2, 2018

Beauty

Beauty Spot: Why and how we should come clean

Is your beauty shelf heaving with products, some unopened, others opened, not empty but unused? Are you a victim of the promise of eternal youth and flawless skin that comes in expensively packaged pots and jars? Yip, well most of...

October 17, 2018

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Tag: Natural Beauty

Easy steps to make your beauty routine more sustainable

Toxic chemicals in cosmetics remain in our bodies and environments

What is a paraben and why are so many products advertised as ‘paraben-free’?

Q&A: Afari creates clean skincare with an indigenous ‘hero’ ingredient

Top 5 sustainable perfumeries in South Africa

Ash & Mill creates skincare inspired by ancient practices and local botanicals

9 Zero-waste beauty products to change up your routine

Skin Minimalism: Using only 3 products will reduce waste and help save the planet

Beauty Spot: How O’live grew from passion project to livelihood

Beauty Spot: Twyg’s Top 3 Beauty Picks This Month

20 ways to cut plastic and other waste from your bathroom

Beauty Spot: 3 new natural and clean options for you

Beauty Spot: Our monthly beauty review

Nicole Sherwin, first lady of Eco Diva, on self love and natural beauty

Beauty Spot: Why and how we should come clean

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