Let's Make Some Skin Resolutions! 

It's resolution time, baby! As we head into another year of ... who knows what, making resolutions can feel extraneous. Here's an achievable skin goal that will make you feel good about what you are putting on your body, who you are supporting, and the impact this change will have on our environment. Make the switch to clean beauty. 

Why Switch To Clean Beauty?

In a perfect world, you wouldn't have to question what's on the label of your skincare. You'd trust that it was safe for you and the environment. The truth is, the beauty industry is largely self-regulated. Toxic ingredients are often tucked into words like 'fragrance,' and just about anything can be labelled as 'clean.' 

"... Researchers report that one in eight of the 82,000 ingredients used in personal care products are industrial chemicals, including carcinogens, pesticides, reproductive toxins, and hormone disruptors."

Enter: The Green Kiss! 

Our skin is our largest organ. While absorption varies by ingredient, we know that a certain percentage of what goes ON our body goes IN our body. To us, clean skincare is effective, results-driven, and has taken human and environmental health into consideration. We have responded to a very real consumer demand for safer skincare. Think of us as your third-party source who checks the 'clean' in clean products to help you reduce your chemical body burden. Nothing inside our doors contains ingredients that have been shown or are suspected to be dangerous to your health (based on current research at this time!).  We believe in ingredient transparency - no mystery ingredients. Only high-performance safe products for your face, body, hair and home.  

When In Doubt, We Stock Without 

One of our driving goals at The Green Kiss is to educate and empower our customers to become conscious shoppers and question what they're putting on their bodies. Within our community, the effects of toxins in beauty products, like parabens, phthalates, and heavy metals, are evident to us. Although research is ongoing on these ingredients' impact to our health, we know that cumulative chemical exposure reaches a tipping point. We often welcome new GK shoppers experiencing rashes, allergies, adult acne, or overall skin irritation caused by their chemically laden skincare products. These clients bring in their bottles of expensive creams and serums, many considered to be "clinical skincare," that have left their skin aggravated. Sometimes this is due to high concentrations of actives on sensitive skin (even natural actives can be too much for some!), but sometimes it seems due to one's body reacting to an overexposure of chemicals over the years. Boy, are we glad you found us! We pride ourselves on being Canada's source for high-performance, rigorously vetted, 100% natural skincare and cosmetics. Our strict buying guidelines allow for only the most natural, ethical, and synthetic chemical-free products available. We have done the heavy lifting, so you don't have to. And we are beyond proud of our many success stories; there have been some truly inspiring transformations. (I feel a 'Before & After' segment in the works...)

Here's Why We Work

Our Products Are:

• Non-Toxic
  The ingredients formulated into our products, including sub-components that go unlisted, are not potentially harmful to humans or the environment. The ingredients aren't known to irritate or cause allergic reactions or have cancer-causing or hormone-disrupting chemicals. 

• Phthalate-Free 
  Phthalates act as a way to make plastic more flexible. They are typically used to help synthetic fragrance cling to your skin longer. There are too many harmful side effects to list, but generally, they mess with your endocrine system - the hormones that help control mood, growth and development. When phthalates are used in a formula, they are never listed. This is because beauty companies do not have to legally disclose the list of ingredients contained in a synthetic fragrance, so to be safe - we've just removed them entirely. The Green Kiss is proudly artificial fragrance-free, and therefore, free of phthalates. 
  

         "... study led by researchers at UC Berkeley ... demonstrates how even a short break from certain kinds of makeup, shampoos and lotions can lead to a significant drop in levels of hormone-disrupting chemicals in the body."

• 95% Vegan 
  This means that 95% of our stock has no animal products or byproducts in its formulation. However, we DO allow beeswax and honey in a few of our products and some marine collagen and carmine. So, if you are one of our many happy vegan clients, please ask us which items are best for you.

• Biodegradable
  Biodegradability is important to us when we're buying sustainable products. We are concerned about the environmental impact of the products you are using and can't in good faith have you leave the shop with something that will harm the environment once rinsed down your drain. Not all of our packaging is biodegradable, specifically bottles that can only break down in industrial composting facilitates. But many of our products are sold in glass, aluminum, or paper packaging, and 100% of the ingredients contained in the products we carry in our shop are biodegradable. 

• Free of Sodium Lauryl Sulfate
  Here's another fun one to pronounce. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate makes shampoo, body gel, and face cleanser bubble and foam. It is incredibly drying, irritating, and one of the leading causes of dandruff and inflamed scalp. We don't mess around with SLS. 

• Free of Synthetic Chemical UVA/UVB Blockers
  Sunscreen is non-negotiable (seriously!), but the one you use is up for debate. We believe in a high-performance, broad-spectrum SPF without the benzophenone, PABA, avobenzone, homosalate and ethoxycinnmate (or 'nasties,' for short). These guys are known endocrine disruptors and love to exacerbate irritation and redness. The good news is they aren't needed to protect you against harmful UV rays. The Green Kiss carries tropical skincare at its finest. Aloha!

Our Clean Beauty Forecast  

Behind the scenes, our desks are overflowing with samples from clean beauty lines that we're busy vetting for you. We take our time to make sure these products do what they say they will and we've noticed some trends. Looking ahead, we expect to see more waterless skincare - for a more concentrated formula. We hope to see more brands leaning towards inclusivity - skincare for all genders and ethnicities. We are interested to see what's in store for CBD skincare. And we look forward to seeing even more creative sustainable packaging. 

Change Is Good!

Breaking habits can be hard. We're here to help! Let's reduce (or remove!) the chemical body burden from your skincare practice and set some achievable, healthy Skin Resolutions. Send us a photo of the ingredients label on your current bottle (we promise not to judge!), and a discription of your skin type and/or skin concerns, and we'll provide you with your best personalized skincare routine yet! Here's to a green, clean future. 

All copy found on The Green Kiss website is written for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice.