MakeupNumber One Favorite Way to Save Money: Become an Eco-Feminist

That’s right: a more progressive take on feminism includes doing right by your planet, your body and your pocketbook! And today’s Eco-feminist lesson is Make-up. Yes, that pigmented stuff you put on your face.

Now I know some women will tell me that wearing make-up at all is a distinctly anti-feminist act. I don’t have time to fight with that. Yawn. Bore. Get current already. As a queer femme woman, I am obviously not doing it because the Patriarchy and Men want me to. My red lips kiss girls. I wear make-up because I like the way it looks and it is creative- like painting. It is certainly a feminist act to choose make-up products which don’t harm the environment, your skin or the people who produce it and which don’t drain your bank account. To name one aspect of this self-protection feminism, we call up a preservative called Parabens, a synthetic estrogen in few compounded forms in your cosmetics) has been linked repeatedly to breast, ovarian and certival cancers. Chemicals like these and others penetrate do your blood through your skin and accumulate in your body. It is a feminist action to protect yourself and warn others that they are paying way too much to be poisoned.

These days, the prices on drug-store brand cosmetics are steadily climbing. Most health food store natural and healthy cosmetics are actually now on par price-wise with the higher-end drug store brands like Max Factor and L’Oreal, a few dollars less than cheaper department store cosmetics like Clinique and half the price of our beloved MAC. Some people who would otherwise want to buy natural products have found in the past that they could not find adequate natural replacements for thier favorite cosmetics. But go out to your local larger health food store/co-op and have a fresh new look. And if you are looking for even more selection and more fun, radical colors, check out the brands here. I was not paid to endorse these companies, and I have tested them.

Gabriel and Zuzu Cosmetics (Excellent liquid eyeliner, lipstick, pencils) $8-$15

The Alchemist’s Apprentice (Mineral Powders. Many Colors. NO chemicals. Try the sample sizes, they last and are very portable) $3.50

No Miss (Nail Polish. Excellent. Affordable. Natural) $6.50

Be a Femme-inist. Save Money. Save the Earth. Save Yourself.