Every season there are new trends in every industry that are catalyzed by social and global events. Last year we saw the BLM movement cause a major shift in how makeup brands diversified their range. And we saw the pandemic influence a plethora of trends, from DIY nails, to Skinimalist rituals.
This coming season is no different, as we look at the top trends in beauty and the catalysts behind each one.
Biggest Beauty Trends in 2022
There are several trends predicted to be huge in the New Year, but here are just a few that we think will be key players in your daily lives.
Bar Cleansers
Remember when bar cleansers were something that only your grandmother used? There was always this stigma attached to bar cleansers, and as a young skincare snob, I wasn't interested in even trying bar soap as a face cleanser. Bar cleansers seemed less superior to their liquid counterparts, mostly because they were often formulated with soap, which is not an ingredient we should be putting on our face, as it can strip all of the moisture from our skin.
Today bar cleansers are back with a vengeance. And I don't hate it. Either I'm turning into an old lady, or the formulations that make up these solid bar cleansers have evolved into something I would gladly put onto my face. In this case, it's the latter.
Modern-day bar cleansers are not only effective at cleansing the skin, but they generally rely on fewer ingredients in their formulations. They are safer and "cleaner" and usually come in a cardboard box, or without packaging, instead of plastic.
So which bar cleansers are the best? Well, if you've been reading our blog articles, you'll know that we promote effective and sustainable products. So here are my top three picks for bar cleansers:
One of the leaders in circular beauty is UpCircle Beauty. They salvage byproducts from the food and beverage industry to create formulas for their skincare. They have three different bar cleansers, but the Cinnamon and Ginger Chai Soap Bar is my favorite.
This all-natural soap bar doesn't contain soap; it's formulated with sodium cocoate, a natural surfactant derived from coconut. This cleanser can be used on the face and the entire body, and it smells like chai latte—delicious!
Meow Meow Tweet
Before the green beauty movement was cool, this quirky beauty brand was founded in 2009. The founders decided to formulate clean beauty products that work better than conventional beauty products.
Again, their Tea Tree Charcoal Facial Soap Bar (1) doesn't contain soap. The activated charcoal and coconut oil deeply cleanse. It also contains cocoa butter for nourishing and olive fruit oil for mild exfoliation.
Earth Harbor
My favorite brand right now is Earth Harbor. They're committed to supporting ocean conservation, donating to three separate ocean foundations. They're working on a goal to have all of their plastic toppers (the only plastic in their packaging) made from salvaged ocean plastic, while the rest is made from glass. Their formulations are high quality, sustainably sourced, and most of them natural.
Their Rose Bay Balancing Facial Soap Bar (2) contains a variety of oils; coconut, sunflower, olive fruit, sustainable palm, rose geranium and rose flower, palmarosa oils, and Australian pink sea clay to draw out impurities from the skin.
Like a few of our other brand partners and us, Earth Harbor are a member of PACT (3), a recycling company that accepts difficult-to-recycle beauty packaging.
Lip Therapy
A body part we often overlook in our skincare rituals is our lips. Yet the skin on our lips is much thinner than the rest of our faces. In fact, it's about three times thinner than our face, devoid of melanocytes (found in the epidermis, or top layer), which gives the rest of our face the color of our skin—melanin. This is why our lips are darker, as the blood vessels underneath the skin are closer to the surface and are not masked by melanin.
So what are some ways you can treat your lips? When performing a facial on your face, you can use face scrubs on your lips, as long as they don't contain active ingredients, such as glycolic acid. Then follow with a gentle, hydrating face mask. Or you can opt for specific lip treatments. Here are my three top picks:
Three Ships are an ethical and sustainable beauty brand. The brand's foundation is built on effective green beauty that is also affordable. Their Lip Treatment Kit contains two products. A lip exfoliator made with ingredients such as sugar, coconut, avocado, and jojoba oils.; and a buttercream lip mask, made with ingredients like sunflower seed and coconut oils; shea butter; and candelilla wax.
Three Ships are also proud members of Pact (3).
River Organics is an innovative beauty brand that uses 100% natural ingredients, all sustainably sourced and conflict-free. These balms come housed in a cardboard push-up tube for a hygienic, finger-free application. Their lip balm in Rouge is my absolute favorite. These lip balms come in six colors are formulated with coconut oil, cacao and mango seed butter, candelilla wax, vitamin E, conflict-free mica, and iron oxide.
You can create a DIY lip scrub with the River Organics Bare Lip Balm (which is colorless) and a generous pinch of caster or fine sugar. Apply the balm generously; feel free to add a little coconut oil or olive oil to help with lubrication, and use the sugar to exfoliate lips gently. Wipe off with a towel, and reapply a generous layer of Bare Lip Balm, et voila!
NCLA Beauty
NCLA Beauty is a natural beauty brand specializing in body, lips, hand, and nail products. Founded by two sisters, they wanted to create sensory experiences with their products using only natural and clean ingredients.
My favorite product is their Pumpkin Pie Lip Care Set (5). The Sugar Sugar Pumpkin Pie lip scrub's key ingredients are sugar, shea butter, and agave nectar. The Balm Babe Pumpkin Pie lip balm is formulated with shea butter, cocoa butter, avocado butter, and coconut oil to nourish and hydrate lips properly.
Zero Plastic
It's a no-brainer that this would be on the list. We're all becoming more conscious—and concerned—about the plastic epidemic. I've mentioned it a million times in previous articles; microplastics are everywhere. These microparticles continue to plague our planet, and we'll never be rid of microplastics. But we can minimize them and eliminate new plastics from entering our ecosystems through responsible consumerism.
The best way to avoid plastic is to stop buying plastic. Some of our favorite beauty brands that are committed to plastic-free are:
Axiology Balmies are made with natural ingredients that come in paper. Apply them to lips, cheeks, and eyelids for a pop of hydrating color.
Plastic-free makeup innovators Āthr Beauty designed the industry's first zero-waste makeup palette. It uses FSC certified paper and aluminum trays for easy curbside recycling.
A fairly new kid on the block, Zerra & Co designed one of the first zero-waste mascaras. The tube is made from glass and aluminum, and the spoolie is bamboo.
We know it isn't always possible to go plastic-free for some of the products out there when there aren't always feasible solutions available. Take the plastic pump lids and sprayers many beauty brands use in their packaging. There is no substitute out there for brands to use at this point.
As I mentioned before, PACT is a recycling company that was launched recently. They are a recycling collective that focuses on taking on difficult-to-recycle packaging, like pumps, sprayers, droppers, and tricky plastics. The way they handle this plastic is they either:
- Mechanically recycle plastics into another product.
- Downcycle plastics into asphalt, for example.
- Chemically recycle plastics.
- Or use it as waste-to-energy.
All you need to do is purchase a return pouch from one of their member's websites for $5. That satchel is then used to mail back 5-10 plastics to PACT for responsible processing. While $5 isn't too much to ask, some of the participating brands offer a $5 discount on their products when you buy a pouch from them, so it may not cost you a thing.
Evidence-Based Products
The world went through a clean-beauty phase in the last couple of years. While consumers still want "clean" products, this won't be enough. Consumers will also be looking for products that have evidence-based results to prove that a product works. Here are some brands that put their money where their mouth is.
You only need to spend five minutes with founder Ava Zhan to learn that her products are built on science-based evidence. Earthwise Beauty is veterans in sustainable beauty, with a cult following, so you know they're good. Ava's knowledge of ingredients is second to none, and her products are formulated with unique ingredients found worldwide. The products are artisanal and handcrafted, and not many brands can compare, in my opinion.
When it comes to sustainable luxury Fait avec Coeur is top of the list. Their silk products are the highest grade silk on the market; 30-momme. You won't find better than that. Their latest addition to their collection is their silver ion-infused silk pillowcase. It's the same high grade of 30-momme silk. But it also has silver ions infused into the fabric. Silver has been proven to reduce acne-causing bacteria on the skin (6). If you're looking for a bedtime luxury that can passively treat your acne, try the Silver Ion-Infused Silk Pillowcase.
Common Heir
These Vitamin C capsules from Common Heir (7) are formulated with a potent blend of naturally-derived ingredients to brighten skin and improve complexion. The capsules have been clinically-tested, and results show that after four weeks, 87% saw smoother, visibly brighter skin; 87% said skin felt more hydrated and healthier-looking, and 82% saw visible improvement in texture and more even skin tone. The best part about this product is that the capsules are biodegradable, and they come in a recyclable cardboard box, making them a plastic-free product.
Sustainable Beauty
It's no surprise that sustainable beauty is on the list. No longer can we keep consuming and using resources from our planet without giving back to her. Consumers are more conscious than ever before and continue to improve their spending habits based on this awareness. Some of the things consumers will look for in sustainable beauty products will be:
- Sustainable packaging: is it recyclable, low waste, zero-waste, and minimal?
- Sustainable ingredients: are they clean, effective, and traceable?
- Sustainable brands: do they care about the planet in their operations?
There are just five of the biggest beauty trends to look out for in 2022. There are many more, which I'll highlight at another time. For now, you can start to adopt some of these new trends, which are taking a more responsible approach to beauty.
Emma Jade has been a trained esthetician for over 15 years. She is a sustainable skincare writer, educating and building awareness around proper skin health that doesn't cost the Earth.
Some of the products promoted in our blog are from our online store. Many others are brands we have researched and found to be great examples of sustainable, ethical, and innovative brands in their field, and we don't profit from mentioning them in our blog. #CollaborationOverCompetition
