CLEAN DECODED

WHAT IS CLEAN BEAUTY?

Clean beauty, to us, refers to any formulation that is free from a list of potentially harmful and irritating ingredients, and instead uses a combination of plants, vitamins, minerals, and botanical extracts to help restore skin to its optimum health and vitality. Clean also refers to products and brands that showcase a concerted effort to manufacture more consciously, whether it be recycled packaging or sustainable ingredients.

This July, Space NK speaks to industry experts and brand founders to HELP decode clean beauty as well as bringing you a shoppable edit that includes natural, sustainable, free-from, vegan, organic, and conscious beauty brands. Discover more...

  • Natural Ingredients
  • Sustainability
  • Organic
  • Free-From
  • Vegan
  • Conscious Living

 

Natural Ingredients

Sustainability

Organic

Free-From

Vegan

Conscious Living

 

Why Space NK Loves

The beauty of high quality natural ingredients is that when used in their purest form, they are highly concentrated and therefore effective at treating certain skincare concerns.

DECODED

Natural ingredients are those extracted directly from the plant source in their raw state; they are not synthetically made in a lab. As the word ‘natural’ is unregulated in the beauty industry, the guidelines around what it actually means are a little hazy, so it’s best to do your research based on what ingredients will work for your needs. It’s also important to note that just because an ingredient is natural it doesn’t mean it’s effective; arsenic and posion ivy are both natural but not suitable for use on your skin. Once you find the right natural ingredient for your skin however, they can have an incredible effect thanks to their potent, antioxidant-rich properties.

“When we founded our brand 14 years ago we wanted to make things simple and uncomplicated. We developed products that eliminated anything that could cause irritation; so sunscreens, perfumes, colourants, unnecessary waxes and focused on creating a brand that is as pure and simple as possible. We thought, what if we could pare things down but still be efficacious?”

Matthew Malin and Andrew Goetz, Founders of Malin+Goetz

 

Why Space NK Loves

Brands that source ingredients and packaging sustainably are celebrated for their commitment to trying to have a more positive impact on the environment that lives and breathes around us, not only now, but into the future.

Decoded

Sustainability refers to the way that ingredients are responsibly and ethically sourced to ensure that good social, economic and environmental practises are met. Thanks to an increasingly more savvy and demanding consumer, today’s beauty brands are more conscious than ever when it comes to producing products that use less harmful energy, materials and resources. If you’re interested in more sustainable beauty, look for glass over plastic and any brands that use recycled and recyclable packaging, as well as those that use less water in their formulas to reduce wastage.

“Sustainable beauty is all about products that have minimal impact on the environment. Not only the world, but each person’s internal environment as well. In the same way that chemicals and pollution disrupt the earth’s environment, synthetic ingredients also have a negative effect on our bodies.”

Tata Harper, Founder of Tata Harper

 

Why Space NK Loves

Organic beauty is a better choice for the environment due to its lack of disruptive procedures and chemicals. Thanks to an enhanced nutrient quality and an absence of potential harmful ingredients, it’s also thought to be more skin friendly.

DECODED

The term organic refers to the way in products are sourced, farmed and manufactured. To be certified ‘organic’ in the UK, 95% of a product’s ingredients must be grown without the use of GM, pesticides, herbicides or synthetic fertilisers, and must not contain synthetic dyes, colours or parabens amongst many other conditions. To ensure your products are truly organic look for the Soil Association logo on the packaging which attests that it has been independently certified.

“Our farm is Certified Organic, which means plants are grown without the use of pesticides or other chemicals. We also use Regenerative Agriculture as a framework to ensure our land management practices are holistic and sustainable. This framework helps reduce climate change by rebuilding organic matter and biodiversity of the soil, which results in CO2 drawdown and water cycle improvement.”

Tata Harper, Founder of Tata Harper

 

Why Space NK Loves

As a rule, most free-from skincare doesn’t contain any known irritant ingredients which can cause discomfort or aggravate skin.

DECODED

The key to remember when thinking about any product that labels itself as free-from is that it’s aiming to give the consumer more choice; free-from products are those that aim to provide some clarity to those consumers looking to avoid particular ingredients, usually parabens, artificial ingredients, petrochemicals and preservatives.

“Free-from to us, means free from all skin unfriendly ingredients - as a natural brand, we don’t use any synthetic ingredients as rule.”

Georgie Cleeve, Founder of Oskia

 

Why Space NK Loves

Here at Space NK, we are proud to offer a curated edit of luxury beauty and in particular, we’re proud to offer our customers a choice when it comes to what they put on their skin.

DECODED

Despite what you might assume, natural skincare can also contain animal-derived ingredients such as lanolin, beeswax, honey and emu oil. As a distinction, vegan skincare is made without the involvement of any animal-derived ingredients and has to be certified by several governing bodies such as PETA and Leaping Bunny to ensure it meets the necessary requirements. You can check this by looking for the relevant symbols on the packaging.

“Consumers are more interested than ever in what they put in and on their bodies.  So we are seeing consumers, even those who do not identify as vegan, demanding more from their beauty products.”

Cover FX

 

Why Space NK Loves

Recognising that with choice comes responsibility, we applaud the brands that make direct strides in giving consumers the opportunity to have a meaningful impact on the planet when they buy their beauty.

DECODED

An active movement in the beauty industry which refers to a sociological shift in which consumers are becoming increasingly more aware of their environmental surroundings and the impact their lifestyle choices have on the world. From shopping brands that actively try to lower their carbon footprint, to recycling their beauty packaging and opting for sustainably sourced products, conscious consumption is on the rise.

“We were the first brand to go minimal with our packaging, we have always used FSC cartons and soy ink and have always been cruelty free.  We also purchase ingredients from sustainable sources and if possible, from areas where funds are driven directly back into local communities. This has always been the REN Clean Skincare way and we always wanted others to follow suit.  We are only getting cleaner each year and will continue to innovate and lead in this area.”

David Delport, Head of Education at REN

 

Natural Ingredients

Why Space NK Loves

The beauty of high quality natural ingredients is that when used in their purest form, they are highly concentrated and therefore effective at treating certain skincare concerns.

Natural ingredients are those extracted directly from the plant source in their raw state; they are not synthetically made in a lab. As the word ‘natural’ is unregulated in the beauty industry, the guidelines around what it actually means are a little hazy, so it’s best to do your research based on what ingredients will work for your needs. It’s also important to note that just because an ingredient is natural it doesn’t mean it’s effective; arsenic and posion ivy are both natural but not suitable for use on your skin. Once you find the right natural ingredient for your skin however, they can have an incredible effect thanks to their potent, antioxidant-rich properties.

“When we founded our brand 14 years ago we wanted to make things simple and uncomplicated. We developed products that eliminated anything that could cause irritation; so sunscreens, perfumes, colourants, unnecessary waxes and focused on creating a brand that is as pure and simple as possible. We thought, what if we could pare things down but still be efficacious?”

Matthew Malin and Andrew Goetz, Founders of Malin+Goetz

Sustainability

Why Space NK Loves

Brands that source ingredients and packaging sustainably are to celebrated for their commitment to trying to have a more positive impact on the environment that lives and breathes around us, not only now, but into the future.

Decoded

Sustainability refers to the way that ingredients are responsibly and ethically sourced to ensure that good social, economic and environmental practises are met. Thanks to an increasingly more savvy and demanding consumer, today’s beauty brands are more conscious than ever when it comes to producing products that use less harmful energy, materials and resources. If you’re interested in more sustainable beauty, look for glass over plastic and any brands that use recycled and recyclable packaging, as well as those that use less water in their formulas to reduce wastage.

“Sustainable beauty is all about products that have minimal impact on the environment. Not only the world, but each person’s internal environment as well. In the same way that chemicals and pollution disrupt the earth’s environment, synthetic ingredients also have a negative effect on our bodies.”

Tata Harper, Founder of Tata Harper

Organic

Why Space NK Loves

Organic beauty is a better choice for the environment due to its lack of disruptive procedures and chemicals. Thanks to an enhanced nutrient quality and an absence of potential harmful ingredients, it’s also thought to be more skin friendly.

DECODED

The term organic refers to the way in products are sourced, farmed and manufactured. To be certified ‘organic’ in the UK, 95% of a product’s ingredients must be grown without the use of GM, pesticides, herbicides or synthetic fertilisers, and must not contain synthetic dyes, colours or parabens amongst many other conditions. To ensure your products are truly organic look for the Soil Association logo on the packaging which attests that it has been independently certified.

“Our farm is Certified Organic, which means plants are grown without the use of pesticides or other chemicals. We also use Regenerative Agriculture as a framework to ensure our land management practices are holistic and sustainable. This framework helps reduce climate change by rebuilding organic matter and biodiversity of the soil, which results in CO2 drawdown and water cycle improvement.”

Tata Harper, Founder of Tata Harper

Free-From

Why Space NK Loves

As a rule, most free-from skincare doesn’t contain any known irritant ingredients which can cause discomfort or aggravate skin.

DECODED

The key to remember when thinking about any product that labels itself as free-from is that it’s aiming to give the consumer more choice; free-from products are those that aim to provide some clarity to those consumers looking to avoid particular ingredients, usually parabens, artificial ingredients, petrochemicals and preservatives.

“Free-from to us, means free from all skin unfriendly ingredients - as a natural brand, we don’t use any synthetic ingredients as rule.”

Georgie Cleeve, Founder of Oskia

Vegan

Why Space NK Loves

Here at Space NK, we are proud to offer a curated edit of luxury beauty and in particular, we’re proud to offer our customers a choice when it comes to what they put on their skin.

DECODED

Despite what you might assume, natural skincare can also contain animal-derived ingredients such as lanolin, beeswax, honey and emu oil. As a distinction, vegan skincare is made without the involvement of any animal-derived ingredients and has to be certified by several governing bodies such as PETA and Leaping Bunny to ensure it meets the necessary requirements. You can check this by looking for the relevant symbols on the packaging.

“Consumers are more interested than ever in what they put in and on their bodies.  So we are seeing consumers, even those who do not identify as vegan, demanding more from their beauty products.”

Cover FX

Conscious Living

Why Space NK Loves

Recognising that with choice comes responsibility, we applaud the brands that make direct strides in giving consumers the opportunity to have a meaningful impact on the planet when they buy their beauty.

DECODED

An active movement in the beauty industry which refers to a sociological shift in which consumers are becoming increasingly more aware of their environmental surroundings and the impact their lifestyle choices have on the world. From shopping brands that actively try to lower their carbon footprint, to recycling their beauty packaging and opting for sustainably sourced products, conscious consumption is on the rise.

“We were the first brand to go minimal with our packaging, we have always used FSC cartons and soy ink and have always been cruelty free.  We also purchase ingredients from sustainable sources and if possible, from areas where funds are driven directly back into local communities. This has always been the REN Clean Skincare way and we always wanted others to follow suit.  We are only getting cleaner each year and will continue to innovate and lead in this area.”

David Delport, Head of Education at REN

DAILY ROUTINES

Now you know your vegan from your organic, it’s time to clean up your beauty routine and start incorporating some of our campaign essentials into your everyday regime. From the best cleanser for oily skin to a dreamy daily moisturiser for more mature skin, let Caroline guide you through our expert assortment.

What Does Clean Beauty
Mean To You?

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