Though online shopping isn’t always the most environmentally friendly option when it comes to purchasing, sometimes the products that our skin needs aren’t always available within walking distance or on our way somewhere. Luckily, by purchasing from Canadian-based retailers, we’re able to eliminate the extra efforts it takes to bring products cross-country or even across the ocean. If you’re on the hunt for a specific product you love, or maybe looking to switch your skincare to somewhere it can be bought in Canada, take a look at this list!

Here are some awesome online Canadian retailers that sell clean beauty products:

The Detox Market

For those living in the Toronto area, this is a staple, with three in-person locations. If you’re not close by, they have the option of an eco-friendly checkout through their partnership with EcoCart. This team-up lets you offset the cost of emissions that are being caused through your purchase at a low cost of about 1-2% of your total purchase. The Detox Market is also commented on reducing packaging waste while using recyclable and reusable materials to send your package to you.

The Green Jungle Beauty Shop

Their Quebec-based warehouse is not only a home for tons of clean-beauty products but also a lot of Canadian-made lines. The Green Jungle Beauty Shop is committed to reducing its carbon footprint and waste by partnering with Onetreeplanted.org. For each order, they will donate $1 USD to plant a tree with the option to purchase more trees that are planted across the world. Their goal is to support global reforestation through one clean beauty purchase at a time.

Well.ca

With its home base in Guelf, Ontario, this Canadian classic is a home for all things green and sustainable. On Well.ca you can find everything from green beauty to home goods to baby products, all with eco-consciousness in mind. They have a huge variety of brands and even an option to shop from just Canadian retailers. They also have tons of product categories to suit your environmentally-friendly life, whether it is reduced packaging waste or brands that make a difference with each purchase.

Count On Us

Whether you’re searching for botanical beauty or an enriching vitamin c serum, Count On Us has got you covered. The Canadian care team has a focus on all things beauty and wellness related, the best combo. With an amazing amount of selections, from a lot of different brands, this is an awesome option to check out if you’re searching for a place to purchase clean beauty in Canada.

Feature Image by Ezekixl Akinnewu

During Black History Month and beyond it’s crucial we take a look at individuals, businesses and more who have paved the way for equality. Keep reading to see a curated list of young Black females who are rising up in the Canadian business industry with products that empower you.

Brown Sugar Skincare

Inspired by her brother with eczema, Jasmine wanted to find a natural alternative with ingredients you can understand, which is when BRWNSGR was born. She’s taking on the natural skincare world by storm and you’ll definitely watch Brown Sugar Skincare become a household name. From facial cleansers to body butter, they have a variety of products made for the face and body, filled with rich ingredients.

Image from Brown Sugar Skincare Instagram 

Révolutionnaire

Run by sister Nia and Justice Faith, this empowerment duo is speaking up with their education platform and teamed up with Roots to create a collection made to encourage individuality. What started off as a tight company by Nia, who was a dancer that couldn’t find any to match her skin tone, has now flourished into a worldwide movement.

Image from Révolutionnaire Instagram 

SAJIN

Sajin sells premium green tea grown in Japan and is based out of Winnipeg. The antioxidant-powered tea has incredible benefits and different flavours to help you re-focus and re-charge while taking a few minutes to yourself. Not to mention their entire Instagram is a vibe, so if you’re looking for a peaceful and motivational account to add to your timeline, give them a follow @sajingreentea.

Image from SAJIN Instagram 

Cover Image by @monstera_production

Whatever you’re headed back to this back-to-school season, it’s always nice to add a little refresher to your beauty regimen. This Virgo season is all about getting work done efficiently and often so it’s the perfect time to treat yourself for all of the hard work. We’ve created a list of some go-to beauty tools that can be used to give yourself a scheduled self-care evening, made by some amazing Canadian brands. 

Reusable Silicone Eye Mask | Consonant Skincare

Image from Consonant Skincare’s Instagram

We all love a good eye mask but sadly they often come at the expense of the environment, but Consonant Skincare has changed that game right up. This May they launched these reusable ones which after use are cleaned and put back into their bag. It’s made out of medical-grade silicone and can be paired with your favourite eye creams or one of theirs and more of their reusable tools including a chest and neck mask can be found here.

Dual-Action Jade Roller | Province Apothecary 

Image from Province Apothecary’s Instagram

A two-sided roller to match your mood and skin goal of course, made with high-quality Xiuyan Jade. The texture studied end gently promotes a boost by diving into a deeper layer of your skin and gently exfoliates to allow your products to soak in further. For the smooth end, if you put it in your freezer before use brings an awesome cooling effect plus promotes lymphatic function and eases muscles and calms irritated skin. The other beauty tools featured here are their Daily Glow Facial Dry Brush and Sculpting + Toning Facial Cupping Set.

Natural Stone “Gua Sha” | Pithy Apothecary 

Image from Pithy Apothecary’s Instagram

The Gua Sha is a super helpful tool to depuff, increase circulation and help with lymphatic drainage in your face, neck and chest. This Vancouver-based brand sources materials from the owner, Vivian’s hometown in China and is committed to providing the finest ingredients with a lot of education in the creation of each product. From tools to cleansers Pithy Apothecary has everything you’re looking for with made with intention.

Thic Essential Set | Thic 

Image from Thic’s Instagram

Welcome to the trio you’ve been looking for! The Thic Comb is hypoallergenic, and made from eco-friendly plat-based Cellulose, not to mention are super chic with a stunning marble pattern. The super elegant Thic Scrunchies come in a variety of colours and are super gentle so you don’t have to worry about any tugging. Thic’s Restorative Hair oil is made with real ingredients like hemp and grapeseed oil while serving as a heat protectant and moisturizer for all types.

 Body Crescent | Detox Mode

Image from Detox Mode’s Instagram

The crescent shape, allows body oils and creams to seamlessly glide across your skin and gives you a chance to watch and embrace every part of your body. The handle gives you the perfect grip to trace yourself and is lightweight so you can fully relax. It’s made with FDC-certified beech wood that gives a beautiful brown colour and encourages lymphatic drainage in your whole body (move up towards your heart), removes toxins and more. Pair it with your favourite body oil or their Altogether™ Oil.

Lately, there seems to be a lot of buzz around hyaluronic acid, and for good reason! We agree, the word acid can sound a bit scary at first but it’s actually super gentile, so what can HA really do for us? There’s tons of benefits that come from using it, with the main focus of having your skin feel and look beyond hydrated. It’s an amazing natural way to keep your skin healthy and once you try it, you may get hooked. 

What Is Hyaluronic Acid?

HA is a naturally produced sugar our bodies make to help keep our skin moisturized and glowing. It’s used to increase the amount of hydration in our skin while providing a protective layer against dryness and environmental impacts. In our bodies it’s found in our joints and kin but can be supplemented with things like serums, creams, sprays and capsules, depending on what you like and your lifestyle, there’s alternatives for everyone. It’s an amazing way to help your skin feel it’s best, naturally, without being invasive.

Benefits Of Hydraulic Acid:

• Holds Water: it works with your skin to retain water to seal in moisture, leaving you feeling plump all day long. Keeping your skin hydrated is so important because when it is, it takes away that tight feeling from dryness that can lead to things like redness, blemishes and lines. 
• Suitable For All Skin Types: because it’s already so familiar to our bodies, it’s suitable for all skin types to use and soak in the benefits. Though it may not seem like it, all skin types need to moisturize whether you have oily, combination or dry skin to make sure that your body isn’t searching for the hydration it’s missing.
• Light Feel: this has a really smooth feeling that gets your skin the moisture it needs without leaving it greasy. Your skin becomes soft to the touch after use, so you can be confident that your products are working with and not against you, leaving you with skin that looks and feels super soft.
• Multi-Area Use: HA is great not only for your face but under your eyes, neck and the rest of your skin as well, that we sometimes forget about when doing our routines. It becomes a super easy for the busy bees to tackle all of the areas of the skin at once to achieve the most moisture possible.
• Healing Properties: it helps to heal and repair skin that has been irritations from things like inflammation and sun exposure by helping regenerate the tissues that were lost in that area. Plus, it can also help support your joints to help relive pain, letting you move easier.

Here’s A Few Great Canadian Products With Hyaluronic Acid Inside:

Store Link

Store Link

Store Link

Store Link

We love a good lip gloss as much as the next person, but unfortunately a lot of brands have harmful ingredients in them that are damaging to our skin externally and us internally. Plus, sadly still test on animals. Whether it’s fragrance, metals or chemicals, they can impact our health in the short or longterm. We should be especially careful of what we put around our mouths because we have the potential of swallowing it. This is why we’ve put together a list of some beautifully shining lip glosses that are completely clean, so you can feel good that your external glow isn’t interrupting your internal one.

5 Completely Clean Lip Glosses:

Brand: boosh 

Featured Shade: Ruby

Get everything you’re looking for in a gloss: no stickiness, smooth shiny glide and the ideal amount of colour, without any chemicals. Boosh’s gloss uses natural ingredients to make you feel as good as you look like coconut oil for moisture and peppermint oil for a cooling sensation.  

Image from boosh Instagram & Website

Brand: Elate Cosmetics 

Featured Shade: Radiate

Leave your lips feeling fresh and cool with this peppermint essential oil infused lip gloss that also highly moisturizes. It mixes the perfect natural combo of coconut oil for shine and castor oil for colour, making it great for any occasion. 

Image from Elate Cosmetics Instagram & Website

Brand: Harlow Skin Co.

Featured Shade: Natural 

This multi-purpose Skin Gloss can be used on your lips, cheeks and eyes for a beautiful dewy look that protects while bringing benefits. It’s been created to enhance natural skin pigments and has ingredients like cocoa seed butter to nourish and beeswax for anti-inflammatory purposes. 

Image from Harlow Skin Co. Instagram & Website 

Brand: Zorah biocosmetiques

Featured Shade: Mya 

Treat your lips to an argan oil base that helps protect and repair your lips while they shine with a beautiful mineral pigment. With rich ingredients like shea and cocoa butter, it leaves your lips looking plump with a comfortable, non-sticky feel. 

Image from Zorah biocosmetiques Instagram & Website

Brand: Pure Anada

Featured Shade: Morganite

Nourish your lips with mineral metallics for a high shine and plant butters. It has zero silicone and artificial colours/ flavours so you can feel confident so what’s going on your lips is not only going to give you an amazing glow but is also beneficial.

Image from Pure Anada Instagram & Website

While we usually associate winter with dry skin, chapped lips and hair that turns dry, would you believe us if we told you those days are over? Keeping up with your skincare regimen in the wintertime is crucial, but its important to remember to use brands and products that offer the nourishing benefits of soothing ingredients, as opposed to those that can potentially tear even more moisture from your skin. In addition to proper skin care, doing things like taking quicker and less hot showers plus drinking water can help keep your skin looking and feeling hydrated, as well. 

We’ve come up with a list of some must-haves to add into your beauty shelf this winter to make sure your skin is radiant even on the chilliest days. Here are some of our favourites:

HydrExtreme from Consonant Skincare 

This non-greasy powerhouse serum boosts your skin’s natural glow beyond belief and is made with two simple ingredients: Cassia Angustifolia Seed Polysaccharide and Organic Vegetable Glycerin. It’s suitable for all skin types, which includes oily and eczema, and is key to making sure your skin is properly hydrated AM and PM. 

Image from Consonant Skincare Instagram 

Coconut Lip Balm from Crate 61 Organics Inc.

Bring back the delicious smell of warm weather while protecting your lips from the cold, with this in this nourishing and moisturizing naturally coconut scented lip balm. Made with sweet almond, coconut, jojoba oils and more that leave your lips feeling continuously smooth. Keep one in your pocket to always be prepared! 

Image from Crate 61 Organics Inc. Instagram

SRSLY Buffed Dry Brush & Velvet Blonde Emollient Body Oil from 1’Lux Beauty

This is a power couple won’t ever make you feel left out. Enhance lotion absorption, remove dead skin and increase circulation with your new B(u)FF. Rub the Agave sisalana fibers on your dry body for maximum exfoliation while you watch your skin go from dull to delightful in a few simple strokes. Follow with their luxurious body oil to wrap your skin up in never-ending smoothness and a luxurious smell. 

Image from 1’Lux Beauty Instagram 

The Soft Serve Cream Rinse Conditioner from Cake Beauty

Let your hair shimmer like the snow all winter with this creamy conditioner that contains dirt-repelling ingredients to make sure your hair stays moisturized between washed. This means having to wash your hair less which let’s it stay more hydrated. It’s topped off with a scrumptious lemon cookie smell. Pair it with their The Posh Wash for maximum benefits.

Image from Cake Beauty Instagram

Herbal Hand Balm from BKIND Skincare

This protects your delicate skin with tissue healing ingredients and lifts your senses with the warm natural scent of pine, fire, cedar wood and more. It’s an extremely hydrating hand cream that’s ideal for protecting your hands from the constant exposure they get to the cold air and is perfect for brining with you.

Image from BKIND Instagram 

Whether it’s apart of your everyday wardrobe or something you like to dazzle on for special occasions, jewelry can bring a beautiful little touch to any outfit. We all know that the type of jewelry we purchase can be a form of expression but it’s also a great opportunity to support amazing Canadian designers and brands.

With the holidays coming, jewelry can also make great gifts for anyone on your list (including yourself!). There’s no denying that giving the gift of a little box is a great way to show that you put a lot of thought into a gift, especially when the jewelry itself is thoughtfully purchased.

Also, side note – you can also always buy yourself something nice because 1. why not? and 2. you don’t need to wait on someone to buy you something to make you feel special! Sometimes buying yourself a little something is a great way to demonstrate a little self-love 🙂

Here’s some places we love to shop for a little glam right here in Canada:

Katherine Karambelas

Made with love in Montreal, Katherine Karambelas works alongside her three passionate daughters to empower women and encourage their strength, intelligence and beauty. Their pieces are loved by It Girls (#kkitgirl), including Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, Christine Cho and they even a collection with Jordyn Woods. With items made to order, recycled jewelry components and sample pieces plus support for the global environmental organization 1% For The Planet, Katherine Karambelas is committed to sustainable practices.

Image from Katherine Karambelas Instagram

Cadette Jewelry

Created for the mindful and modern woman, Cadette Jewelry makes timeless pieces used as an extension of the wearers self-expression. Creator, Allison Asis, proudly hand makes each item which can’t be replicated by mass-production, which also eliminates heavy water use, pollution and a large carbon footprint. The pieces draws inspirations from modern art and design, nature and the journey of womanhood.

Image from Cadette Jewelry Instagram

Foxy Originals 

Ger and Suzie Chemel, journey began back in their Western dorm room when their shared love of jewelry sparked the start for Foxy Originals. The two designers keep things trendy, lead-free and budget-friendly, in their Toronto production studio, with new collections launching seasonally while always travelling in search of new colours, patterns and inspirations.They also offer a recycling program, where customers send in their well-loved Foxy pieces for them to get melted down and turned into new reusable items, and in return get a 20% off coupon code.

Image from Foxy Originals Instagram 

HART + STONE

Made with minimalistic designs and geometric cuts, owner and artist, Emily Hartwell McPhee, draws her inspiration from the nature that surrounds her in her home of Salt Spring Island, BC. For the lover of simple things, adventure and the earth, HART + STONE focuses on quality over quantity and is crafted using precise attention to detail. Whenever possible they also use recycled gold and silver and try to source their materials from places with ethical mining and working conditions.

Image from HART + STONE Instagram 

Wolf Circus

Handcrafted and thoughtfully designed by an all-woman crew from start to finish made in Vancouver. Wolf Circus thinks of the environment by using materials from either recycled sterling silver or recycled bronze that’s coated in a high grade 14k gold plating. They inspires others to embrace their confidence in their daily life with well-priced and high quality pieces to create attainable luxury.

Image from Wolf Circus Instagram 

It’s that time of year when we start to crave cozy sweaters and nurturing hot meals as well as move towards richer scents, darker hues and moisturizing products. We’ve curated a fall green beauty list to get your body, face, nails and home ready for indulgent fall night self-care rituals.

indulgent crème brûlée coffee scrub from basd

We can sometimes fall out of the habit of exfoliating (see what we did there!) when bundling up starts, but it’s just as important to remember to give your skin a good buff even when we bring out multi layers. The indulgent crème brûlée coffee scrub reminds you warm of fresh baked sweets while ingredients like organic coffee and rich almond oil leave you feeling radiant.

Image from basd Instagram

Honey Apple Cider Marketplace Jar from Natura Soy

Give into your warm beverage cravings with this Honey Apple Cider Marketplace candle, made with no bee byproducts, 100% natural oils and soy wax. It’s the perfect way to add a scent of fall bliss while taking in a good book or warm bath.

Image from Natura Soy Instagram

Velvet Mitts Hands & Nail Crème from 1’Lux Beauty

Our hands tend to be the first to feel the brunt of the weather change. Make moisturizing a luxury with this seriously delectable Velvet Mitts Hand and Nail Crème. Your hands will feel and smell like magic with the rich ingredients of avocado, shea butter and coconut oil.

Image from 1’Lux Beauty Instagram

Nail Polish Paint It Brown from BKIND

Match the leaves and your lattes with this Paint It Brown nail polish. Made without harsh chemicals, BKIND is vegan and comes in recyclable packaging and will keep your finger tips happy as you wield your fall magic.

Image from BKIND Instagram

Universal Crème – Keen from Elate Cosmetics

Treat (without the trick) your eyes, cheeks and lips to notes of soft plum with brown undertones using Universal Crème in Keen. This shade is ideal for fall and gives your skin hydration for the cooler days ahead with ingredients like organic jojoba oil, castor oil and evening primrose oil.

Image from Elate Cosmetics Instagram

Image by Phi Phi

This post is our way of manifesting a few more weeks of hot summer heat and beach/pool side days of this summer. So we thought we’d chat about sugaring, an incredible and even edible alternative to waxing and shaving. Made with three simple ingredients: sugar, lemon juice and water, it’s an amazing, natural option for silky smooth, hairless skin.

How It Works:

First, the three ingredients are heated into a sticky gel-like paste. The aesthetician then smoothes the paste on skin the opposite way the hair grows. After cooling for a few seconds, the paste is pulled off the same direction the hair is growing to reduce breakage. You may need to go through another round of this depending on how much hair is left over.

Why It’s A Good Option:

1. All-Natural Ingredients: these help soften your skin and reduce irritation that can come from chemicals in wax, shaving gel and hair removal creams
2. Less Painful: the sugar doesn’t stick to live skin cells like hard waxing and you don’t have to worry about nicks from shaving or burns from creams
3. Less Environmental Impact: there’s no paper strips, plastic razors or plastic containers involved with sugaring, just wooden sticks and plastic gloves for sanitation

How Long Should My Hair Be?

Like regular waxing, your hair should be longer than a grain of rice so that all of the hair can come out completely, giving you the best results.

Post-Sugaring:

Avoid sweating, sex and taking baths or long hot showers for a few days after so you don’t get a build up of sweat that can cause ingrown hairs. Exfoliating a few times a week also helps to remove dead skin cells that can clog your pores.

Here are a few amazing spots to get your sugaring done across the country:

Toronto – Sugar Toronto 

Montreal – V & O Salon

Ottawa – Peppermint Organic Spa

BC – Sugar’d 

Feature Image by Timothy Meinberg

When it comes to improving our self-care routines, we often focus on upgrading our body care and facial products. It’s no secret that improving the quality of your beauty products and making the switch to green and clean solutions is beneficial for a range of reasons, such as eliminating unnecessary toxins from your blood stream, leveraging the benefits of naturally sourced ingredients and being kinder to our animal friends and planet.

But while focusing on the body and face is great, our vaginas also benefit from some levelled up self care solutions. The vagina care industry is on the up and up and why shouldn’t it be? As the source of our power and femininity, it’s time to treat our vaginas with the love they deserve.

Here are a few of our favourite vagina self-care products from Canadian companies:

Botanical Labia Oil by LADYFLOW:

Massage this hydrating oil directly onto the inner and outer labia to remove the itch, dryness and thinness that can come from hormonal changes. Made with sweet almond oil, vitamin E oil, rose hip seed oil and more, this bottle contains everything you need for complete skin hydration.

Image from LADYFLOW Website

Oatmeal + Almond Milk Soap by Buck Naked Soap Company:
Soothing and natural, this soap keeps your vagina feeling and smelling fresh. This soap leaves you without the irritation of unbalanced bacteria and pH levels that can come from perfumed fragrance.

Image from Buck Naked Soap Company Instagram

Tampons & Pads by easy:
Your periods just got a lot more exciting with these organic cotton tampons and pads that get delivered right to your door with a single delivery or by subscription. What’s even better is that 5 per cent of the proceeds go to ZanaAfrica Foundation, who deliver pads and health education to Kenyan girls.

Image from easy Instagram

Sex Oil by Province Apothecary:
This gentile lubricant is essential for intimacy with its all-natural ingredients, no preservative, zero alcohol and no interruptions because it only needs to be applied once. Its ingredients like fractionated coconut oil and evening primrose oil, this lube softens your skin while you get it on.

Image from Province Apothecary Instagram

Mae – Vaginal Moisturizer by Damiva
100 per cent natural and free of chemical preservatives, this down there moisturizer absorbs into your skin to defeat dryness. This vaginal pick me up eliminates roadblocks during special moments and can be used long-term.

Image from Damiva Instagram