2023 Update: Clove + Hallow has closed and is now operating its sister brand only (Clover).

 

CLOVE + HALLOW is a vegan makeup and skincare line that prioritizes affordability, sustainability and safety in cosmetics. CLOVE + HALLOW was started in 2017 by a professional makeup artist who, through a combination of entrepreneurial spirit, makeup artistry experience, and a wakeup call from personal health issues, was able to create an award-winning makeup line that solved all her pain points. Majority of CLOVE + HALLOW makeup products are under $20 with mainly their skincare priced above $20. (It’s 2021 and CLOVE + HALLOW now offers worldwide shipping!) But, is CLOVE + HALLOW actually clean beauty? In this CLOVE + HALLOW review I’ll dive into why this brand isn’t exactly a clean beauty brand in the traditional sense and which CLOVE + HALLOW products are hits and misses.

The reason I call CLOVE + HALLOW a vegan brand is because not all products are all-natural or organic. For some of you, CLOVE + HALLOW may not even be a clean makeup brand if you avoid synthetics at all costs. This is because CLOVE + HALLOW does include synthetics and silicones in some of their products, but only when they deem necessary.

To better understand why CLOVE + HALLOW does this, one needs to understand their core purpose. CLOVE + HALLOW is a line that was formulated to meet the standards of a professional makeup artist while striving to keep the ingredients as safe as possible. A very difficult fine line to walk! But I think CLOVE + HALLOW does it well and are transparent in their marketing and on their website about the fact that they are not completely clean. Something that many brands fail to do and has its own term —  greenwashing.

Moving away from natural and organic has been a common trend in the 2020’s with large brands like ILIA, Vapour Beauty and W3ll People (acquired by ELF Cosmetics in 2020), who were formerly all-natural, now mixing synthetics with natural ingredients — something CLOVE + HALLOW has been doing with integrity since their inception. Smaller brands usually take great personal care in their ingredient sourcing and at every step of the product development process. Ultimately, whether you decide to trust a brand is a personal choice. I am simply here to present all the information I can (and throw in my own opinions) to help you make your own choice.

According to CLOVE + HALLOW founder Sarah Biggers,

CLOVE + HALLOW was never developed to be the cleanest, greenest or purest line on the market. There are so many incredible brands out there positioned that way and doing exceptionally well and I wholeheartedly support them, but that just isn’t us. In short, I launched CLOVE + HALLOW to create clean products that were up to my professional standards as a makeup artist without the crazy expensive price-point.

The synthetics that CLOVE + HALLOW does use serve the purpose of preservation, shade, or wear-time. Rest assured, the brand takes great care in choosing the safest possible synthetics when they do decide to use them in their formulas. Take for example, CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Velvet liquid lipsticks, which contain synthetic colors in order to achieve bold and bright shades. If you’re someone who avoids artificial colors in lip products at all costs, then naturally Lip Velvet wouldn’t be a suitable option for you. But if that’s you, don’t write off the entire brand just yet.

Here are the five areas that CLOVE + HALLOW focuses on as a makeup brand:

1. Modern aesthetic – Products that look both cool and pretty
2. Shade range – CLOVE + HALLOW strives for inclusivity and develops their shades with feedback from testers who encompass a wide range of skin tones. In short, they do make an effort to have a diverse shade range that will suit most skin tones.
3. Pigmentation – CLOVE + HALLOW products were created with boldness and pigmentation in mind.
4. Clean15 – CLOVE + HALLOW strives for simple formulas with 15 or fewer safe ingredients per base formula.
5. Affordable price point – CLOVE + HALLOW believes that high quality clean cosmetics should not be a luxury reserved for an elite few, but available to anyone who is looking to make healthier choices.

CLOVE + HALLOW is also a brand that gives back to social causes. Each purchase supports communities of color and mental health initiatives through their partnerships with the Loveland Foundation, the Georgia chapter of Mental Health America, and the Gateway Center, Atlanta’s primary homeless center.

In June 2021 CLOVE + HALLOW launched their sister brand CLOVER by CLOVE + HALLOW, a vegan makeup line that’s affordable, sustainable and ethical. CLOVER by CLOVE + HALLOW is exclusively sold on Amazon and is geared towards a younger generation. So without further ado, let’s get right into this CLOVE + HALLOW review!

CLOVE + HALLOW Liquid Skin Tint

CLOVE + HALLOW Liquid Skin Tint is a medium coverage foundation that has a demi-matte, almost fully matte finish for my dry/combo skin.

I’m so used to wearing all organic and natural foundations that CLOVE + HALLOW Liquid Skin Tint does feel a tad bit heavy for me because I can feel the Dimethicone.

But Liquid Skin Tint may be light and more suited to others. Impressively enough, Liquid Skin Tint does last all day, stays put and doesn’t crease or crack.

Even though the CLOVE + HALLOW foundation is 89% natural, taking a look at the ingredients, Dimethicone is pretty high up on the list. That’s probably why I don’t particularly LOVE the way this foundation feels on my skin.

That being said, CLOVE + HALLOW’s Liquid Skin Tint does seem loved by the majority, so this is just my own personal experience and may not be yours.

Ingredients: Water*, Coconut Alkanes*, Dimethicone, Polyglyceryl-4 Diisostearate/ Polyhydroxystearate/ Sebacate*, Silica*, Glycerin*, Dextrin Isostearate, Coco-Caprylate/-Caprate*, Quaternium-90 Sepiolite*, Sodium Chloride*, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax*, Quaternium-90 Montmorillonite*, Sodium Benzoate, Xanthan Gum*, Potassium Sorbate;

89% Natural. May Contain(+/-) Titanium Dioxide (Cl788921), Iron Oxides (Cl77492,Cl77499,Cl77491)

*Natural or naturally-derived ingredient

CLOVE + HALLOW Liquid Skin Tint Swatches

CLOVE + HALLOW’s foundation comes in about a dozen different shades, but I was only able to swatch Liquid Skin Tint shades 02, 03 and 04.

Best CLOVE + HALLOW Products

1. CLOVE + HALLOW Conceal + Correct

If I could recommend just one product from the CLOVE + HALLOW line it would be their concealer Conceal + Correct. Conceal + Correct is lightweight and buildable, feels weightless on the skin, stays put, does not crease and provides fantastic coverage.

This is one of my top concealers, except that I wouldn’t be able to recommend it to the purist community as it contains Dimethicone. CLOVE + HALLOW’s concealer comes in ten different shades.

Ingredients: Coconut Alkanes, Water, Silica, Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate, Jojoba Esters, Candelilla Wax, Fractionated Coconut Oil, Cetyl Alcohol, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Vitamin E, Argan Oil, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Dimethicone; May Contain Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxides

2. CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Velvet

As I mentioned earlier, CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Velvet liquid lipsticks contain synthetic colors. That being said, these are high-performing and affordable liquid lipsticks that come in some fabulous fun shades. One of CLOVE + HALLOW’s most popular products, Lip Velvet goes from liquid to matte in seconds, is so lightweight and doesn’t feel heavy at all on my lips. As someone who doesn’t like liquid lipsticks, CLOVE + HALLOW’s Lip Velvets are tolerable for me.

CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Velvet in ELLIJAY

I found that the dark Lip Velvet shades do bleed a little around the edges of the lips. You can see this happening in the picture of me wearing Lip Velvet in Fever, a cool toned deep brick red.

CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Velvet in FEVER

The reason I don’t like liquid lipsticks in general is because they make my lips feel and look dry and accentuate the lines on my lips. For this reason lip glosses will always trump liquid lipsticks for me, but if you’re looking for a liquid lipstick that stays put, CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Velvet is worth a try.

CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Velvet in UPTOWN

CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Velvets come in a variety of bold, unconventional shades hard to find in green beauty (due to CLOVE + HALLOW’s addition of artificial colors). They’re infused in base of lip-nourishing Coconut Oil, Shea Butter and Vitamin E and have a shelf life of 24 months with a recommendation to use within 12 months. I’m wearing CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Velvet in Ellijay (a nude peach), Fever (a terracotta red) and Uptown (deep mauve).

Ingredients: Coconut Alkanes, Isododecane, Hectorite Clay, Polypropylsisesquioxane (silicone to coat pigments), Trimethylsiloxysilicate (silicone to coat pigments), Fractionated Coconut Oil, Shea Butter, Sunflower Seed Wax, Argan Oil, Vitamin E, Iron Oxides and/or FD&C Pigments, Titanium Dioxide

CLOVE + HALLOW MISS

CLOVE + HALLOW FlexLash Mascara

I tried the CLOVE + HALLOW mascara when it launched and it just didn’t work for me. While this mascara is actually truly clean, the formula wasn’t thick enough to grab onto my lashes and add any volume. My thin, sparse lashes didn’t stand a chance. If you have normal lashes you might have better luck. The short wand allows you to apply more easily, but other than that I didn’t find anything else that I liked about it.

MORE CLOVE + HALLOW PRODUCTS

CLOVE + HALLOW has expanded beyond being just lip and makeup products and offers skincare like The Everything Oil face oil, H2Glow, and lip masks and scrubs — all at an affordable price. In the rest of this CLOVE + HALLOW review I’ll share my thoughts on their lipstick, lip gloss, lip care and makeup brushes.

CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Glaze (Stila Lip Glaze Dupe)

If you are a fan of the Stila lip glazes, then this is the perfect clean beauty dupe. While Lip Glaze is made with natural and organic ingredients (plus lake dyes) and feels nourishing when applied, I’m not a fan of the twist up packaging and cap, personally. Mainly because I’m terrible with caps and I lose them all the time, which leaves the brush part of my CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Glaze exposed to dirt and bacteria inside my makeup bag.

Lip Glaze has a thicker, creamier consistency that most other clean lip glosses. I’m wearing CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Glaze in Bubbly, which is a true pale pink nude and the lightest shade offered. The CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Glaze comes in six different shades.

Ingredients: Organic Castor Oil, Sunflower Polyglycerides, Organic Jojoba Oil, Carnauba Wax, Organic Shea Butter, Olive Oil, Silica, Candelilla Wax, Grapefruit Oil, Argan Oil, Vitamin E; May Contain Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxides, Lake Dyes

CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Creme Lipstick

CLOVE + HALLOW lipsticks come in 9 vibrant and flirty shades and are made in base of organic and natural oils. They’ve added a bit of synthetic color to reach these bold shades like Blooming that I’m wearing above, which is a super fun bright pink fuchsia. CLOVE + HALLOW’s lipsticks are super creamy and smooth, as their formulation is no different from other organic lipsticks other than the added artificial colors. If you eat or drink you WILL need to reapply.

Ingredients: Sunflower Oil, Organic Castor Oil, Mica, Organic Jojoba Oil, Organic Carnauba Wax, Candelilla Wax, Jojoba Esters, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Grapefruit oil, Orange Peel Wax, Argan Oil, Vitamin E; May Contain Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxides, Lake Dyes.

CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Mask (All Natural Vaseline Dupe)

Former Vaseline lovers are going to love this one. I found the CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Mask to be very nourishing and it feels EXACTLY like a jar of dense petroleum jelly. But all its ingredients are natural, so if you’re a former Vaseline lover, CLOVE + HALLOW Best Lip Mask is the perfect all-natural Vaseline alternative without any of the petroleum byproducts and possible contamination.

Ingredients: Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Lupinus Albus Seed Extract, Natural Flavor;

CLOVE + HALLOW Lip Polish

I mean what can I really say about a lip scrub. I feel it’s impossible to make a bad lip scrub unless your oil to sugar ratio is wayyy off. CLOVE + HALLOW’s Lip Polish is straightforward, works great, and comes in a generous-sized jar just like their Lip Mask.

Ingredients: Sucrose (Sugar), Organic Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Glycerin, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Natural Flavor

CLOVE + HALLOW Makeup Brushes

I have used  CLOVE + HALLOW’s makeup brushes practically everyday for the past couple of years and LOVE them. These have made it through many vigorous makeup brush cleanings and remained intact.

The quality and performance is there with these brushes and I highly recommend. No brush hair fallout whatsoever. As an eyeshadow girl, I love the CLOVE + HALLOW Dual Sided Eye Brush for eyeshadow and eyeliner application. It makes doing my eye makeup routine a breeze. The CLOVE + HALLOW Perfecting Buffer Brush is fantastic for blush, bronzer and foundation application. I highly recommend these Makeup brushes if you’re looking for one.

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