Naturally Affordable: The All Natural Face

The All Natural Face makes natural, vegan mineral cosmetics and body products that have become popular among many bloggers and makeup lovers alike. All TANF products are Leaping Bunny and PETA certified, as well as handmade in small batches locally in Massachusetts, and are actually very affordable.

I love beautifully designed makeup as much as the next girl, but not all high-quality organic, vegan, or natural  makeup has to totally break the bank. I think a lot of green beauty bloggers highlight great brands but unfortunately get caught up in the luxe and sexiness of high-priced products. I think there’s a time (and a price) for beauty products across the price spectrum and while I love treating myself to an $18 nail polish, it’s not always a possibility when I think about the spending reality. This is where The All Natural Face steps in.

I first heard about this company from a few green beauty bloggers who also love TANF and wrote about these affordable products (Caitie, Mary, and Ru). At such low price-points and with constant shop sales, I figured I had nothing to lose and picked up some TANF products to try. The shipping prices are super low too (I think I only paid about $3 for shipping/handling) and apparently, TANF also ships at a very low rate Internationally!

I usually do not like loose mineral cosmetics so I leaned more towards the cream-based and liquid products that TANF offers. I was most intrigued by TANF’s cream blushes, eyeshadow sticks, and liquid eyeliners. I purchased 3 cream blushes, 1 liquid eyeliner, 1 eyeshadow Diva Stix (comparable to the NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils), 1 liquid eyeshadow primer, and a sampler pack of the loose mineral concealers. The grand total including shipping and handling was only $9.63! Read on to hear about my experiences with these products:

~Cream Blushes~
It was hard not to buy every color of blush available as each mirrored compact is only $5.75 each and can be used for lips and on cheeks. There are 2 kinds of cream blush finishes available at The All Natural Face: matte and shimmer. I’m normally adverse to shimmery makeup finishes and the TANF shimmer blushes were actually not quite shimmery at all. I notice only a hint of glimmer when applied and it doesn’t bother me. Additionally, I found that most of the colors I wanted were under the shimmer blush category.

I purchased 1 matte blush: Everyday Is a Good Day (a terracotta, tangerine shade) and 2 shimmer blushes: Bourdeaux (a deep oxblood red), and Bubblegum (a bright fuchsia-pink).

As far as performance goes, TANF cream blushes are amazing. The formula is a harder cream texture, the slip is not as watery or creamy as other blushes I’ve used but it is soft and gentle in application. I find that this “harder” texture allows the blush to last much longer on my cheeks. I have to admit, at times I’ve noticed that my TANF blushes will outlast the day longer than something more expensive like my blushes from Kjaer Weis or RMS Beauty. I haven’t noticed any irritation or breakouts whatsoever from using TANF cream blushes either. I didn’t try using these cream blushes on my lips but I think you would get just as nice a result when used as a lip color.

And the pigmentation: oh, the pigmentation! Just so absurdly pigmented and buildable in color that I cannot believe they only cost $5.75! These shades definitely pack a punch in the color department. They definitely give this color-lover something to gasp over. I love all the shades I purchased but my most-used color is definitely Everyday Is a Good Day. It’s a very unique tangerine shade that becomes more of a terracotta-color when blended and looks great on my skintone alone, or under another blush as a sort of contour color. Obsessed! Cream Lip and Cheek Color, $5.75 each

Ingredients: Organic Jojoba Oil, Organic Argan Oil, Candelilia Wax, Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Boron Nitride, Oxides

~Diva Stix~
I purchased the Diva Stix for the Eyes in the shade, Creme Brulee which is a nice neutral, brown shade with a tiny hint of shimmer, though it looks more like a yellow or gold-toned shade on TANF’s website. TANF also has Diva Stix Lips (like a lip crayon). Before going green, I’d used the NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils often before and the Diva Stix are definitely comparable in shape, size, and finish. The formula is creamy and pigmented giving the eyes an instant pop of color with no real need to blend out or use a brush. I really like using Creme Brulee as a base eyeshadow shade or alone as eyeshadow for a neutral everyday color. When I wear it as a base shade, most other eyeshadows do adhere nicely and stay in place on top of Creme Brulee. I like how easy the Diva Stix is to apply and how convenient it is to travel with.

For the most part, Creme Brulee stays put on my eyelids for about 8 hours of wear. I do experience some fading and creasing after a few hours but only in the oiliest areas of my eyelids (in the middle and lower areas of the lid), which is generally how my lids behave regardless of what product I use. All other areas of my eyelids always seem to have the Diva Stix color intact so I think if you don’t normally find eyeshadows to fade or crease on you, this might last for a while.

I love using Creme Brulee on-the-go and used to wear it daily however, I’ve recently stopped grabbing for it. The Diva Stix’s very flimsy plastic cap has completely cracked (maybe from too much use?) and it’s hard to bring with me without the product getting everywhere in my bag. It’s a shame because I was using this pencil everyday, loved the formula and color, and liked having it on hand for easy, quick eyeshadow application. I would definitely love to try other colors and even the primer version but I’m a bit hesitant because I didn’t like how easily the cap broke. Diva Stix for the Eyes, $4.88

Ingredients: Organic Jojoba Oil, Candelilla Wax, Mica and Oxides

~Vegan Gel Eyeliner~
I purchased the Gel Eyeliner in Hot Fudge Brownie (yum, what a cute name!) and it is the most perfect dark brown eyeliner shade. I like that the color is in between a dark brown and black shade. I normally wear black eyeliner but do occasionally wear brown for a softer look. I’m so lazy and normally pressed for time when I do my makeup in the morning that I usually wear a pencil eyeliner and reserve liquid eyeliner for fancier occasions or when I know I don’t have to rush out the door (and can really concentrate on using a brush to line my eyes).

I was very surprised with the formula of this liquid eyeliner especially at only $5.75. This eyeliner lasts on my eyelids for about 6 hours before I see any noticeable fading or need a touch-up. Again, I have very oily lids so I think if you have normal, non-creasing eyelids you may even get more hours of wear out of this product than I do. I still think the formula is superb as it is very pigmented and long-lasting. I don’t experience any smudging or flaking with this eyeliner though if I don’t let the liner dry a few seconds after applying, I do notice a bit of transfer on my lids and under my eyes.

My only gripe about this Gel Eyeliner is the liner brush: it’s a thin, paintbrush-type applicator which gives you an amazingly precise line but the brush hairs quickly lose its original shape. I can still draw a straight line with the applicator but I can tell that the tiny hairs have frayed and are a bit bent out of shape after more use. Not sure if other people have had the same issue or if I got a wonky brush, but I guess it’s a small, picky minor detail for an otherwise all-around great product. I’m still not totally using liquid liner every day but would definitely purchase another one of these and would love try the other beautiful Gel Eyeliner colors from TANF (they have PURPLE!) Vegan Gel Eyeliner, $5.75

Ingredients: Purified Water, Vegetable Gylcerin, Oxides, Magnesium Myristate, Sclerotium Gum, Potassium Sorbate, Cosomcil Cq

~Magic Vegan Eyeshadow Primer~
I’ve been looking for a good, clean eyeshadow primer for awhile now and have found nothing. I’ve even asked some of my green makeup artist friends (Kristen and Rebecca) but to no avail. Even the pros didn’t really know of a good alternative for eyeshadow primers. Concealers from RMS Beauty or W3LL People might be the alternative, but for oilier lids like mine it’s still not the best. I’ve come to terms with the fact that maybe my eyeshadow will just be creasing and fading at the cost of not using toxic products and that’s okay. But I’m still on the hunt, especially for times when I just want my eyeshadow to stay in place, like when I have an event or party to go to or for ahem, my upcoming wedding…

The All Natural Face’s Magic Vegan Eyeshadow Primer seemed like it could be promising. The packaging is a conveniently-sized tube with a doe-foot, sponge-tip applicator and nude-colored appearance. The formula is creamy and lightweight but beware that it dries very quickly, you have to work fast with this product. I think because of the fast-drying and hardening nature of the formula, the primer itself does an good job of keeping eyeshadows in place and perhaps prolongs the wear-time by a few more hours than normal for me. I still experience creasing and smudging on my eyelids within about 4 hours of applying this primer.

I have a love-hate feeling for the texture of this primer: the liquid dries quickly but the drying effect is a bit too hard. After it dries, the primer sort of sticks to parts of my eyelid rather than directly to the eyeshadows and it is hard to remove. I have to apply carefully and not use too much product to ensure a better hold and an even layer of primer.

I actually think the applicator gives me more product than I need so I normally like to apply this primer with a small, flat concealer brush like the 934Y brush from Bdellium Tools (I have the Yellow Bamboo version from this brush set). Using a brush not only helps me apply the right amount but also helps to effectively spread the primer over my eyelid. I don’t know if I’d purchase this again as I didn’t see great results, but I will continue to use it up (you get a lot of product in this tube: .43oz). Maybe I’ll try the Diva Stix Primer pencil next. Magic Vegan Eyeshadow Primer, $7

Ingredients:  purified water, glycerin, mica, oxides, titanium dioxide, zinc oxide(sunscreens), organic jojoba oil, squalane oil,boron nitride(mineral),Ceteareth-6 Olivate (olive based emulsifier), xanthan gum(co-emulsifier), cosmocial cq (preservative) potassium sorbate (food grade preservative).

Overall, I was really impressed by the quality and effectiveness of everything I purchased from The All Natural Face. The simple formulations and natural, vegan ingredients make this purchase all the better and have me confident that there are high-quality, affordable, clean products do exist. While there is a bit of substitution in luxe design and packaging, you get products that are very, very affordable from TANF. The long wait in shipping is a bit of a bummer (and I’m in the U.S.), but just remember that all these products are handmade and that can take time! I definitely plan to order more products from TANF in the future and would recommend them to anyone looking for quality vegan beauty products at a very affordable price.

Have you tried anything from The All Natural Face? What are your thoughts? Which products are your favorite? Do you have a suggestion for a good, clean eyeshadow primer?