beauty-vixen: gluten-free beauty

There are the kind of regimens you put yourself on to be healthy, or be skinny, or be cleansed; and then there are the kind of regimens you put yourself on because if you don't you will be very very sick. Like my good friend M, as a Celiac she cannot eat any wheat. Not a speck. And to top it off she cannot use any beauty products with a speck of wheat in them either. Apparently the wheat gets absorbed through the skin, and in the case of lipsticks we actually do end up eating it off our lips. So wheat-filled lipsticks are an especially big no-no!

And M is by no means alone - I know there are probably many Celiac beauty vixens out there who are searching for exactly the right gluten-free lipgloss/tinted moisturizer/shampoo. But just because you have a limited selection of products available to you, does in no way mean that you have to suffer for beauty. There is lots of cute stuff, hip stuff, even sophisticated stuff you can use. So here's a run-down of what I have learned is out there - maybe you already know about some of it, or maybe you'll have an ah-ha moment - either way, enjoy!

The first two things I need to say to you are "Tarte Cosmetics" and "Alterna Haircare" **. Both are top of the line brands that make everything 100% gluten-free. For most people it's just a side-note that they are gluten-free - most people are buying these products because they are fantastic in and of themselves. It doesn't matter about your hair type because Alterna makes something for most hair conditions. And it doesn't matter what kind of look you want to create because Tarte is a brand that has a wide selection of makeup to please even the most discerning customer. So stick with these winners and you won't have to worry about a thing. They are available at Sephora and Ulta.

While these brands are on the natural side, natural is not always better - many natural brands contain gluten - like Aveda, which some of their stuff contains gluten (exfoliating cleansers) and some doesn't (some of their lipstick). As a matter of fact if you go cheap and synthetic you are less likely to run across gluten - however then there is the issue of quality. It will take some trial and error to find cheapies that work for you (check out Costco brand shampoo). But if you don't mind paying a little more there is some gorgeously sexy stuff with moxie out there. Here are a few gems......

ALL Smashbox lip glosses: professional quality lip color in virtually any shade you desire