Earth Month was first established in 1970 following a massive oil spill in California but it didn’t achieve global reach until the 1990s. Now, over 140 countries participate in the annual demonstrate for support of environmental protection.

The best way to spend April would be reflecting on our consumption habits. We should all be aspiring to reduce our product consumption but should the need arise to invest in beauty or skincare, keep this list on hand.

These products are clean, sustainable, and in some cases waterless and refillable.

Dear Lucy

Price: $140

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Dear Lucy is a Vancouver Island based small skincare brand with only one product. But that’s kind of the point. The refillable marine antioxidant serum is meant to minimize your skincare routine and the need to accumulate products by using vitamin C (10% THD), alpha-arbutin, niacinamide, and sustainably harvested Canadian seaweed extract to moisturize and reduce dark spots and wrinkles over time. So there’s no need to double up on toners, correctors, and wrinkle creams.

Ilia

Price: $65

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The Ilia super serum skin tint is a fan favourite product and while it’s not refillable, Ilia is considered a sustainable beauty brand thanks to its fantastic transparency. The FAQ section of the brand’s website will answer every question you may have about its ingredients and practices in detail.

Kjaer Weis

Price: $44

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Kjaer Weis launched in 2010 as a sustainable luxury beauty  brand pioneering refillable packaging. The cream and powder face products have luxe metal cases with recyclable paper palette refills.

RMS Beauty

Price: $61

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RMS is an organic beauty brand with refillable powder blushes, primer, and foundation that contain skincare ingredients to nourish, hydrate and illuminate. The refill packaging is also recyclable curbside.

Tata Harper

Price: $86

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Tata Harper is a high performance 100% natural beauty brand beloved by celebrities which also mean it comes with the luxury price tag. While not refillable (that’s the waterlock moitsturizer), the masks in particular are totally worth the investment. The resurfacing mask contains BHA for brightening and restoring radiance to dull rough skin and is one of our personal favourites.

Sappho New Paradigm

Price: $38

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Sappho New Paradigm is a Canadian clean beauty brand that is constantly reevaluating their practices and adapting to keep up with technology and rigorous ingredient and sustainability standards. The vegan mascara, which is Sappho’s stand out product, was recently tested for PFAS before being repackaged to make it refillable.

Axiology

Price: $34

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The Detox Market is a highly selective curated website of clean beauty and skincare brands which is how we found out about Axiology: the first plastic-free, vegan multi-use makeup crayons. They are exactly what they sound like, adult crayons packed full of pigment that you can use on the cheeks, lips, and eyes.

Caudalie

Price: $110

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For anyone on the beauty side of TikTok in recent years, Caudalie needs no introduction. The French beauty brand’s deep cleansing Instant Detox Mask went viral back in 2021 and the Vinoperfect radiance serum has received its fair share of love too. The products use extracts sustainably harvested from vineyard grapes and vines and now come in recyclable and/or refillable packaging.

Lush

Price: $8 (starting at)

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Lush was practicing sustainability long before other brands. Its packaging is minimal and recyclable, the majority of the products are vegan and waterless and the company actively participates in environmental efforts.

An/Hydra

Price: $66

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Waterless beauty is great for the environment and kind of feels like a throwback to childhood making potions. Mixing together the An/Hydra waterless clay-to-foam cleanser makes us feel like a mad scientist or an old-timey alchemist and gives our skincare routines a sense of occasion. The cleanser softens and brightens the complexion with impressive results because removing water content from a product reduces the dilution of the active ingredients. Plus, the product has a smaller carbon footprint.

Sangre de Fruta

Price: $114

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Sangre de Fruta is a luxury clean beauty brand made on Bowen Island, BC. The visual for the brand are stunning and ooze luxury but that’s beside the point. The products are also made in small batches locally and with 100% naturally derived ingredients, some of which are foraged. One of the brand’s hero ingredient is immortelle which is grown and harvested on the island and can be found in the neroli and myrrh botanical face wash.

Read more:
8 Sustainable Fashion Brands to Shop During Earth Month (And Beyond)
20 Eco-Friendly Fashion Items to Celebrate Earth Day
These Brands Want to Take Back Your Used Clothing