Photo: ImaxTree
When your highlight is looking good, you feel more like-worthy than an a-grade beauty influencer after 72 hours of editing one video. That’s because you and that beauty influencer both know that the right highlight perfectly contours the shape of your face and makes your skin appear more natural, glowing, and radiant.
And if your highlight crazy – then you’re probably applying that miracle makeup to more than just your cheekbones; brow bones, the bridge of your nose, and even the bow of the lip can benefit from a little highlight. Considering how much highlighter is sitting on your skin at any given time – and the fact that your skin absorbs everything you put on it – you might be interested to know what’s in it.
Like a pressed powder, highlighter is a significant culprit for harmful and/or toxic ingredients. Chemicals to preserve it, chemicals to give it the perfect texture, chemicals to color it… the list goes on. But you don’t have to submit your skin to these chemical concoctions that, as we always say, do more harm than good.
Clean, organic and natural highlighters are the only alternative to conventional products that are often formulated with nasty ingredients you wouldn’t otherwise put on your skin. These tend to fall in the clean category of makeup and skincare, not only leaving out the toxic stuff but adding in vitamins and nutrients that your skin loves to be drenched in along the way.
Not sure where to start? No worries! We’ve got you covered with our list of the best organic highlighter and natural highlighters.
WHAT’S TOXIC ABOUT CONVENTIONAL HIGHLIGHTERS?
Highlighter contains many of the routine offenders found in makeup: parabens, phthalates, PEGs, BHTs, etc. Chemical preservatives and fillers have all sorts of toxic effects on the human body, including allergies, disruption of the endocrine and reproductive systems, thyroid issues, and even cancer.
Petroleum, paraffin, and mineral oil are also commonly found in highlighters. Avoid these chemical ingredients if you want your skin to be able to breathe. They tend to block the pores and create a barrier over the skin’s surface, which, while it locks in moisture, doesn’t allow anything out, either. As if that’s not reason enough to avoid them, petrol-based ingredients are pretty bad for the environment, too.
You’ll also find quaternium-15 and other formaldehyde-releasing preservatives in pressed powders like your highlighter – and these items are linked to cancer. To avoid all of that, look for organic and natural highlighters that swap all the regular skin irritants like fragrance, parabens, alcohol, and sulfates for organic and natural ingredients.
BEST ORGANIC & NATURAL HIGHLIGHTERS
Any one of these will deliver the performance of your old highlighter with the added benefits that come with clean, natural and organic ingredients.
Mob Beauty Hyaluronic Highlight Balm $26
MOB Beauty’s Hyaluronic Highlight Balm, a vegan cream balm, that comes in 4 universally flattering shades, that delivers a radiant glow sans glitter. The skin-beneficial formula includes hydrating ceramides, hyaluronic acid and squalane leaving skin dewy but never sticky nor greasy. Other standout ingredients include chamomile that soothes while vitamins C & E protects. Plus, the sustainable packaging where the pan is made with 100% post-consumer recycled PET ensures environmental consciousness.
Jane Iredale Glow Time Highlighter $38
Creamy highlighters are usually more buildable and often provide more coverage than their powdered counterparts which tend to melt into skin better. It all about your preference of where you want to apply the highlighter in your makeup routine. And Jane Iredale’s natural creamy highlighter comes in a convenient and easy-to-apply stick that makes it even more desirable. Available in 3 shades, the vegan highlighter can be used on your face or even on your body for a natural tint of color with a radiant pearl finish. Also infused with jojoba seed oil, the cruelty-free highlighter delivers moisture and a dewy glow wherever you place it.
100% Pure Naural Gemmed Luminizer $40
100% Pure has caught on to the magic of adding gemstones to highlighters and bronzers as they truly add a light-reflecting and illuminating quality you can’t get with anything else. Their extremely popular (400+ 5 star reviews) Gemmed Luminizer is available in 3 shades, each laced with its own gemstone: opal, pyrite, or moonstone. And keeping in with 100% Pure’s ethos and name, the rest of the formula is just as natural and includes pigments derived from antioxidant-rich fruits and both avocado and cocoa butter.
Westman Atelier Lit Up Highlighter Stick $48
Westman Atelier’s luxurious and extremely popular (over 100+ 5 star ratings) highlighter balm, provides light-catching undertones in 3 three shades that will flatter skin all while the incredible list of skincare ingredients will feed it. These translucent but dewy highlighting sticks are universal to both skin type and tone, and they’re formulated with detoxifying Vitis Vita grape extract and an Ayurvedic oil blend that soothes and supports your skin’s health.
Have a preference for more a cream formula check out Westman’s Atelier’s 3 universal shades, the award-winning, light-catching Super Loaded Tinted Highlight ($75) for both cheeks and eyes provides a luminous and bold glow. But their coverage and color are only the second and third best things about them. The number one best thing about these cream highlighters? They contain hyaluronic acid filling spheres that act as a moisture magnet to firm and smooth uneven skin texture and caper extract that works to reduce redness and inflammation.
Ilia Liquid Light Serum Highlighter $34
Available in 3 shades, Ilia’s Liquid Light Serum Highlight is radiance in a bottle. Different from many highlighters in that it has a serum-like consistency that melts into your skin – it’s formulated with botanicals and marine actives that support and protect the skin while giving it a soft metallic glow.
If you prefer a powder formula Ilia also offer a talc free highlighting powder ($28)
RMS Beauty Living Luminizer $38
All RMS products achieve the status of high-performing makeup without any of the toxic ingredients, fillers, and preservatives commonly found in comparable products. Combining a full spectrum, bio-available nutrient complex with smoothing and soothing ingredients like coconut oil and rosemary leaf extract, The award winning Living Luminizer $38 is ultra-light and ultra-sheer highlighter is packed with illuminating natural and organic ingredients that are both safe and beneficial for your skin. You can expect a translucent, satin-pearl finish that adjusts to your skin tone and gives you a healthy glow without any mess or sticky glitter.
The Magic Luminizer ($38) provides subtle pink undertones and uses the same light-reflecting technology that gives you depth and drama while still looking completely natural. the dewy finish is expertly color matched to brighten skin. This Champagne Rose ($38) variant of the magic Luminizer has lavender undertones for individuals that are prone to redness. For all the same benefits but in a warm peach with hints of soft bronze try the Peach Luminizer ($38). Finally for those of us that demand options, the RMS Beauty Luminizer X Quad ($48) lets you choose from all RMS’s Luminizer options. Blend to your heart’s content or mix it with your other makeup products for an ethereal glow.
Alternatively RMS offers a multi-purpose cream highlighter, Master Radiance Base ($45) available in 2+ shades.
Era Perez Vanilla Highlighter $25
It’s not often you find real vanilla in your makeup or even your skincare, but this star ingredient has calming and soothing benefits that any skin type would love. For those of us who like a little more dram in our cheekbone, it’s an extremely dewy finish that illuminates upon contact with light (available in 2 shades). Plus, it’s packed with vitamin E – a healing and antioxidizing ingredient that’s great for both prevention and treatment of the visible signs of aging.
Rituel de Fille Rare Light Luminizer $29
Last but not least is Rituel de Fille Rare Light Luminizers, another highly rated luminizer that we’re extremely fond of. They understand you’re constantly moving around, in different environments and lighting. Rituel de Fille believes your highlighter should shift with you, always reflecting your best light. That’s why they created these color-shifting cream highlighters. Choose from six shades that help you achieve an ethereal glow, no matter where you are. They’re formulated without fillers and with minimal ingredients, each carefully selected for a clear purpose.
If you’re looking for a highlighter then check our Ritual de Fille’s Rare Light Highlight Intensifier ($32)
FINAL THOUGHTS
highlighter is an essential finish to any look. And on the days when you’re not feeling a full face, it can give you a natural, warm glow that makes you look refreshed without overburdening your pores. But as much as we can’t do without a highlighter, we can do without the toxic ingredients that they’re regularly formulated with. For that, we choose to make the switch to one of the best organic highlighters or natural highlighters.
