6 Natural (& Effective) Alternatives To Your Favorite Beauty Treatments

With sustainability at the front of more and more beauty shoppers' minds and an industry-wide effort to create natural formulas that are both affordable and effective, our makeup bags have never been greener. But what about when it comes to our favorite beauty treatments — from skin-firming facials to bronzing spray tans? Luckily, there are tons of natural alternatives to your most beloved beauty treatments, offering clean, healthy ingredients for your skin, hair, and body that won’t leave you wondering about mysterious ingredients. Plus, most of them will even save you some $$$.

From a manuka-honey-infused SheaMoisture cleansing routine that’ll intensely hydrate strands to a sugar scrub that you can concoct right in your own kitchen, here are six easy, natural alternatives to get you started.

Chances are you've already heard the purported health benefits of adding apple cider vinegar to your diet. But have you considered adding it to your beauty routine? ACV has an exfoliating effect and is great for unclogging pores, similar to your store-bought toner. While you’ll definitely want to water down ACV to use as toner if you have sensitive skin (and only use it once or twice a week), it’s a great, all-natural alternative to that expensive toner sitting on your bathroom sink.

If you’ve been getting weekly or monthly professional facials in an effort to lessen the signs of aging and promote circulation, there may be an easier way to achieve the same effect at home — and it doesn’t involve any chemical peels with potentially harmful toxins or skin-zapping lasers. By using a natural crystal or jade Gua Shua massage tool and learning the ancient massage technique, you can lift, smooth, and firm your skin in the comfort of your own home.

While responsible for that oh-so-satisfying, hair-commercial-like lather, sulfates found in many shampoos are chemical cleansing agents that can actually be pretty harsh on your hair. Opt instead for an in-shower lineup made with natural ingredients that'll provide gentler, more nourishing benefits. 

SheaMoisture Manuka Honey & Yogurt products, for example, feature natural ingredients that are known for their health- and wellness-promoting benefits. Manuka honey is known for its nourishing, shine-boosting, and antioxidant-spiked super powers, and it's perfect for keeping your hair and your scalp healthy, clean, and moisturized all at the same time. Combine that with the inherent anti-fungal properties in yogurt, and you have a recipe for healthy hair the natural way.

Body scrubs are everywhere lately, and it’s easy to buy into the idea that you have to find the fanciest, most expensive scrub out there to ensure it works. But even prestige options can contain harsh abrasives or potentially harmful chemicals. Sugar scrubs, on the other hand, work just as well as any other scrub, and they’re 100% natural. (Not to mention, you can whip one up right in your kitchen.) Simply combine sugar with some coconut or olive oil and essential oils as a natural fragrance, and you’re a few minutes away from buttery, smooth skin.

We all know by now just how bad tanning beds are for our skin and health. But have you ever thought about the chemicals that spray tans and self-tanning creams have in them? If you want to make sure you’re tanning your body in as natural a way as possible (without the dangerous sun damage), check out an organic and all-natural self-tanner like the one from KORA Organics.

Microblading and brow tinting are well-known ways to streamline (or even eliminate) your everyday brow routine. But the color additives in these pigments, unfortunately, are not FDA-regulated. Henna, on the other hand, is an all-natural dye sourced from the plant Lawsonia inermis and is used to tint the brows in the same way. Henna is completely natural — and the process doesn't even require a developer to help bring out the color, which is even the case with common vegetable dyes. The results last for about a month, and the process is completely painless.