It’s hard not to love Tom Ford, La Prairie or even drugstore brands like Vichy and Yes To — and they have a place in all of our beauty routines. But in this age of mega-conglomerates, it’s our duty to support small brands whenever we can. A running trend among the most promising up-and-coming beauty lines is that they are exceedingly…
The Indie Beauty Brands You Need To Know About
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PLANTED IN BEAUTY
PLANTED IN BEAUTY is a new indie plant-based skin care brand (EWG, Ecocert, Leaping Bunny and Vegan Action certified) co-founded by seasoned beauty execs/La Prairie alumni. The line consists of seven products with ingredient lists that read like a CSA haul.
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Ethique
A leading filler ingredient in most beauty products is water. Not so with Ethique, known for its range of solid beauty products. The brand uses 100 percent sustainable ingredients that are ethically sourced and naturally derived and everything is made with compostable packaging and without chemical coatings. One shampoo bar is the solid equivalent of three bottles of shampoo!
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CLOVE + HALLOW
CLOVE + HALLOW, which considers itself the "MAC Cosmetics of Clean Beauty," launched last spring and has already won several beauty awards. Formulated with a "Clean15" approach — meaning no product contains more than 15 recognizable, pronounceable ingredients — the certified cruelty-free and vegan range of lipsticks and glosses, as well as powder foundation, concealer and a limited-edition collection of soy-based candles, combines botanicals and nourishing oils for a broad range of skin tones.
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ILIA
A filler-free brand, all of ILIA's products are made with up to 85 percent certified organic bio-active botanicals and housed in packaging made with recycled materials. You may not know ILIA yet but given that it went from 6 to 40 pieces in less than 2 years, that's very likely to quickly change.
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Meant
Meant takes multitasking to the next level. All of the brand's products are double duty. For example, The Do-All Wash is a shampoo that's gentle enough to work as a cleanser for your face and body and The Do-All Conditioner is a hair mask as well as a shaving cream (you can even shave your face with it!). The packaging contains up to 80 percent post-consumer recycled material.
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PHLUR
All of PHLUR’s candles are made from hand-poured wax with fragrances conceived by some of the biggest names in the fragrance industry. All of the scents are crisp and clean — so you’ll never get sick of them — and they're housed in a reusable vessel. Though the candles are the standout, the brand also sells fragrances.
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Harper + Ari
Harper + Ari launched a few months ago with sugar scrub cubes perfectly sized (and beautifully packaged) for individual use — no more hand scooping out of a goopy tub. Each cube exfoliates the entire body.
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Sahajan
Sephora's coveted Accelerate program was the first in the beauty world to see the potential in Ayurvedic beauty brand Sahajan, so it's fitting that, since launching in 2016, it has quickly become a favorite. The founder's background in the pharmaceutical industry informs all the products, which are clinically backed. Among the most popular products are the body oil, eye cream and hair oil.
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Isola
Isola is all about treating your skin while treating your senses. The brand was conceived in Jamaica (though it's made in the United States) and it's reflected in the naturally derived, 100 percent vegan offerings that all have a fresh, clean scent.
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Feel Beauty
Feel Beauty is a Vancouver-based natural beauty brand that launched last fall. It has a range of body, face as well as hair products and kits. Check out some of the ingredients and why each is used here.
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BioClarity
BioClarity is a natural, extra gentle skin care system designed for acne-prone skin (yet suitable for all skin types) combining 2 percent salicylic acid and natural ingredients (cucumber, oat kernel, licorice root, green tea). What makes the range unique is its clinically-proven ingredient called Floralux, which combines chlorophyll and copper to reduce the symptoms of acne (the brand was created by a biotech entrepreneur).
