by AJANI with TERESA FADELLI

Teresa Fadelli is a clean beauty enthusiast and the founder of Gatherhouse, an online community created with the sole purpose of bringing people together inside warm and welcoming spaces. Gatherhouse takes you on Teresa’s self proclaimed “messy journey” of fixing up spaces, with the intention of bringing people together and making interior design feel attainable.

Simone: T, I’m so excited to talk to you and to hear about your beauty journey! Your makeup is always perfect, and I love your commitment to clean products, so I’m excited to hear about how you got into beauty.

Teresa: You already have the best recommendations out there thanks to AJANI, but I'll try to add in some of my tested and tried clean, green beauty go-to's.

What's the first beauty product you remember purchasing on your own?
Teresa: Lipgloss. Even now, I’ll never go a day without some color on my lips! It’s become a beauty trademark for me.

Who was your beauty icon growing up?
Teresa: My mom! She was SO great at styling hair (honestly, you should see her hair, it’s unreal) and she would style my unruly curly hair into soft, smooth locks from the youngest age! She always made me feel pretty. Mom always had the best arsenal of skincare products and makeup. I always remember how many lipsticks she had, which is all I really cared about growing up. Now you know where I get my lipstick obsession from.

Do you wear makeup regularly? If so, how old were you when you started doing so?
Teresa: Yes, I do! Honestly, I started at a young age. As a young girl, I always wanted to be a makeup artist. In fourth grade, I was heavily involved in the local theatre, and I remember always begging for the older girls to do my makeup for each show! I started practicing every day and once I reached Middle School, my mom let me wear light makeup to school. At that point, I had become proficient enough and would do all of my friends makeup before school dances. It was so fun! I still love doing my friend’s makeup.

When did you first see yourself as beautiful?
Teresa: Hmm… probably after I had my braces removed! I had major dental issues for many many years, so finally being free of metal mouth was a huge moment for me.

Has your idea of beauty changed as you've gotten older?
Teresa: Definitely. Growing up in the entertainment industry, I was very aware of what was considered beautiful in Hollywood’s eyes. Now, I think of beauty as something much more holistic. Beauty is no longer a synthetic mask achieved through consumerist behavior. It’s about who I am spiritually and if I am glorifying God in all I do. My faith is incredibly important to me, and I adore worshiping a God who is the Creator of all things pure, lovely and beautiful. It has shifted my perspective of what is truly important in this life.

What's the one product you can't live without?
Teresa: I can’t choose one! I will give you two!

Under-eye concealer! You don’t want to see these dark circles.
Indie Lee’s COQ-10 Toner: it is my favorite part of my morning routine and it is so refreshing!

Please walk me through the products I'm looking at and describe what they do and how you were introduced to them. Please describe your morning and evening routine.

Honestly, my entire beauty routine has been transformed by Ashleigh Frager, Founder of Back To Basics. I purchase almost all of my products from her site. As I started learning about the ingredients used in mainstream brands, I was SHOCKED. I could not believe it was legal to place these ingredients on our skin, knowing they were toxic, endocrine-disrupting, and even carcinogenic. It was then that I turned to Ashleigh Frager, and started learning about “green beauty” alternatives. I trusted Ashleigh because she has one of the largest “banned ingredients list” and tests her products more extensively than any company I have ever seen. I have found that these clean products work extremely well, even better than their mainstream alternatives! Check out my fav products below!

SKINCARE:

There are 4 brands I routinely use when shopping skincare: Herbivore Botanicals; Indie Lee; Josh Rosebrook; 100% Pure.

Morning Routine:

Face wash: Indie Lee Rose Hip Cleanser (I recently discovered this and love this for my dry skin!)
Toner: Indie Lee COQ-10 Toner (THIS IS MY FAVORITE PRODUCT OF ALL TIME! For anyone with dry skin, I highly recommend! I honestly can’t go a day without this, as you can tell from the empty bottle haha)
Face Mist: Josh Rosebrook Hydrating Accelerator (I would say this is all of my friend’s favorite product of all time. It is so incredibly beneficial for your skin and works as a transporter for Josh Rosebrook's other products.
Oil/Serum: Josh Rosebrook Herbal Infusion Serum
Moisturizer: Nutrient Day Cream SPF 30
Eye Cream: 100% Pure Coffee Bean Caffeine Eye Cream

Night Routine: The same but without the Nutrient day cream! At times, I put a mask on. Here are some of my favorites:

HAIR & BODY:

MAKEUP

To be honest, I am still switching over all of my makeup to green beauty brands. There are certain lipsticks I can’t part from! But here are my absolute favorite clean beauty lipsticks that I think work better than their mainstream counterparts.

Which product have you been using the longest? When did you start using it?
Teresa: Honestly, it’s the toner again! I love that stuff!

Behind The Routine with Teresa Fadelli

Recommended Reading From Teresa: