Mascara is my desert island cosmetic of choice.  It just makes you look prettier, more feminine.  Thus, it is a huge bummer that conventional mascaras are chock full of really frightening ingredients.  I’m not talking one or two bad ingredients, I’m talking formaldehyde releasers, mercury, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, coal tar, petroleum distillates, vinyl, parabens, phthalates, and triethanolamine – all of which are being absorbed by the mucus membranes in your eyes.  We only get one pair of eyes and we need to take good care of them.  Switching this cosmetic out for a Clean version should be a high priority for all women.

Searching for a Clean mascara that measures up to one’s dirty old stand-by is not for the faint-of-heart.  However, just as there are a million dirty options out there, there is a Clean mascara for everyone.  Here are four that I have found to pass the test.

AFTERGLOW ORGANIC INFUSED PURE SOUL MASCARA

This mascara has a super Clean ingredient list: fructose, wild-crafted candelilla wax, organic aloe, and other botanicals.  Instead of triclosan or triethanolamine or paraben, Afterglow uses rosemary extract, a potent antioxidant, as a preservative.  The small wand allows me to reach every last tiny lash and it deposits serious pigment, creating dramatic lashes.  Cost: about $24.  Purchase it here.

DR. HAUSCHKA VOLUME MASCARA

This mascara goes on smoothly and elegantly, much like many conventional mascaras.  However, it employs ingredients like silk powder, beeswax, and candelilia and rose waxes to seal and lengthen lashes and black tea and citronellol (a natural anti-fungal) as preservatives.  As my friend Katie says, this mascara is “legit”.  Cost: about $30.  Purchase it here.

LAVERA DOUBLE BLACK MASCARA

The double-brush wand on this mascara is great.  One side lengthens, the other side volumizes.  The formula is gentle and vegan and glides right on.  Argan and jojoba oils condition.  Cost: about $26.  Purchase it here.

JOSIE MARAN INSTANT NATURAL VOLUME ARGAN MASCARA