The 5 Ingredient Swaps That Will Take Your Beauty Routine To The Next Level

When you read about swaps and alternatives in this space, it's usually "swap out this toxic product for this natural alternative." While healthier alternatives are obviously SO important—and the basis of my business at Follain—let's be honest, you have probably already made the switch to clean skin care and are likely looking for new products to add into your routine.

First off, sourcing is everything for skin care ingredients (just like it is for food). Make sure your favorite brand has a good handle on the quality of ingredients in their products. Two products could have the exact same ingredients but at much different qualities, depending on their sources. Think of your olive oil: The unrefined extra-virgin stuff is darker, thicker, tastier, and healthier than the clear, tasteless, processed stuff. It has way less nutritional value too ... same thing goes for processed skin care ingredients!

We always recommend "fighting oil with oil" to help regulate your sebum production while clearing up and actually healing spots. If you have acne-prone or combination skin, you've probably tried every tea tree oil spot treatment under the sun. Tea tree oil is an obvious choice for fighting acne due to its antiseptic and antibacterial properties, but it's not fit for everyone's sensibilities or skin types. If that's you, try using tamanu oil as your spot treatment or main moisturizer ingredient.

If you don't love the smell of charcoal, or don't think it's working to detox and clear your skin any more, I'd recommend trying seaweed mud instead. Mud masks, cleansers, and baths have been so popular forever because they seriously work!

If your skin and hair lean a bit dry-er, and you love a good single-source powerhouse oil to use for allover moisture, chances are you've become a huge fan of argan oil. We love argan oil too, but in the spirit of trying new things, a great single-source oil moisturizer substitute is barbary fig (aka cactus seed) oil.

Sacha inchi oil from Peru is an anti-aging powerhouse, rich in antioxidants for skin repair and omegas for protection and healing sun damage. The harvested pods are sun-dried until they turn a dark brown and split open, revealing the sachi inchi seeds.

Typically, mango butter is cold-pressed from its seeds and is similar to shea butter in that it's moisturizing without being greasy, but it's a great alternative to those who struggle with the nutty scent of shea butter.

Mango butter is incredibly rich and good enough to eat — a lot of people use it as an alternative to coconut oil for baking. From a beauty-boosting perspective, it helps to heal skin, soften lines, and stimulate collagen production due to it being rich in oleic acid, a monounsaturated omega-9 acid; and stearic acid, a saturated fatty acid. These are ingredients that the skin readily recognizes, takes up, and uses to help add moisture to the skin, repair damage, and improve elasticity.

You'll notice its weight and its skin-healing properties immediately, both of which are necessary steps when you suffer with dry skin. I particularly love this ethically sourced 100% Pure Mango Butter.