Beauty and the “Big Green Purse”

Tuesday April 22nd has been designated as “Earth Day“ for 2008. Thousands of individuals and organizations will be taking action to a make positive, healing impact on our world.

This past January, I was able to meet a fascinating and extremely smart woman named Diane MacEachern. Diane MacEachern is the author of, “Big Green Purse: Use Your Spending Power to Create a Cleaner, Greener World.” Her book discusses the fact that women make the majority of all purchases, and by their purchasing choices, can make a significant difference in what is being manufactured and protecting our environment.

The Big Green Purse Shopping Principles:

1) Buy less.
2) Read the label.
3) Support sustainable standards.
4) Look for third-party verification.
5) Choose fewer ingredients.
6) Pick less packaging.
7) Buy local.

Diane asks women to take a $1,000 green spending challenge; shifting the money we already spend and purchasing eco-friendly goods and services. She also challenges us to cut down our use of daily household products by three. I am a poor example of cutting my own personal care items because of my beauty blogging obsession. However, I would like to point out that I have made some changes and switched over to some environmentally safe beauty and household products this year.

You might be saying, “Buying organic might be great, but it comes a hefty price, and my family cannot afford it.” Making eco-friendly consumer choices can cost more, but not necessarily. On her webiste, Diane lists her “Top 10 ways to be eco friendly on a budget.” She claims by making these changes we could save $20 – $50 dollars on our monthly budget.

There are several beauty companies that are making changes and becoming more eco-friendly by choosing not to use chemicals, preservatives, colors, and fragrances that can be harmful to our environment as well as our health. Many beauty companies are going green by using only recyclable and biodegradable packaging. Here are some of my favorite eco-friendly beauty companies:

Tarte -

To celebrate Earth Day, Tarte Cosmetics is offering 20% off of all purchases at their website.

Some of my personal favorite Tarte products are: Smooth Operator spf 20 foundation, Clean Slate Primer, Cheek Stains, and their double dose berry lip glosses. All of Tarte’s products are packed with healthy, natural ingredients and free of mineral oil, sulfates, phthalates and synthetic fragrances. To receive the 20% off discount, enter the Code: EARTH08 at checkout. This offer is good until May 2, 2008.

Jessicurl -

Jess McGuinty created the Jessicurl hair care line after years of using products that didn’t work for her curly hair. The Jessicurl line uses only ingredients that offer a specific benefit to curly hair, and adds no fillers. Jessicurl makes sure that none of their products contain any animal ingredients, and they do not test on animals.

Sukipure and Sukicolor -

Suki conforms to many of Diane MacEachern’s shopping principles, including being involved in many third-party verification groups, such as The Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics, The Organic Consumer’s Association, and The Green Products Alliance.
Suki’s formulas are 100% natural, and are ideal for those with sensitive skin. Suki only uses non-synthetic ingredients in her beauty and body care products.

What will you be doing to celebrate Earth Day 2008?