hi friends! one of my favorite things to do/read/listen to is interviews with other ladies who are killing it at their craft – whether that be motherhood, beauty, style, or biz. today, i’m bringing you an interview with a girl that does all of the above and more [i also need to add that i fully used to stalk jordann on facebook when i was in high school/college. one of my best galpals went to high school with her, and i totally facebook crept jordann before it was cool to admit that]. jordann’s gorgeous, outwardly sweet, and a wonderful mama to her growing fam! she’s also an expert on all things beautycounter. i think her knowledge, grace, and wisdom speaks for itself, so without prolonging this any further, here’s jordann:
tell me a little about yourself! what is important for readers to know about you?
Hey everyone! I am originally from a small town (Cokato), just like Kelsey, an hour west of the twin cities. My husband and I have two little boys, with one more boy on the way in January! I am officially the definition of a boy mama, now. We live in the Long Lake/Orono area where I stay at home with my littles. Before I had my boys, I was a middle school teacher. Some of my hobbies include all things books and reading, being outside, interior house projects, and spending time working my Beautycounter business (yes, I really love my job).
how did you get started with beautycounter?
I was someone who had no idea about safer products when I was pregnant for the first time. I loved high performing skincare and makeup, and you could find me often at Sephora. Once my little guy was born, I was hyper aware of what I was putting on his skin in terms of lotion, sunscreen, and even the diapers he was wearing. I finally started paying attention to my own skincare when I was pregnant with my second son. The more I looked into product labels, the more I got discouraged at all the greenwashing brands do. Just because it says ‘organic,’ ‘eco-friendly,’ ‘natural,’ or ‘vegan,’ does not always equal safer. Often I would buy a product, bring it home to look up the ingredients, and be so disappointed that it still had so many harmful ingredients in it. Then I started seeing Beautycounter pop up on my instagram feed, finally gave into looking up the brand, and I officially became so impressed with what this company was doing with their ingredient transparency. This company also claimed to have high performing skincare and makeup like I always had loved, so I decided to jump right in with them after only trying one product. Instead of asking myself ‘why?’ I said, ‘why not?’ The past two years have been amazing and I am so blessed by this company.
what is the BEST part about what you do with beautycounter?
The relationships I have built. My team of ladies and the customers that I have isn’t something I take for granted. I love reuniting with old acquaintances, meeting new people, and building new friendships with people across the United States. Along with that, I truly take pride in educating others about their products, and helping change people’s health for the better.
i’m obsessed with people’s morning routines – what is yours? {don’t leave anything out!!}
You will very rarely find me waking up in the early morning hours to work or have quiet time. Literally if I opened a book, I would be back asleep within minutes. It’s something I just do not enjoy doing. I’m definitely a night owl if I have a lot of work to do, or need some time to myself. That being said, I wake up when my boys do. Unless it’s a preschool morning, we are slow to rise and have breakfast. I have a large mug of hot coffee in my hand, as soon as possible. Once breakfast is done, I am a huge advocate of still getting ready for the day (even though I’m just at home) making beds, getting dressed, putting some makeup on, and doing my hair. I also try to make a to-do list the night before of errands I need to complete, and Beautycounter work that must get done.
what has been your biggest transformation with the beautycounter products, personally?
Personally, my mom had always advocated taking care of my skin early on with high quality products. Washing my face twice a day has been practiced since I was in middle school. Thankfully, I’ve had pretty great skin without too many issues and I know I owe my mom and genes a huge thank you for this. One thing I really do regret was all the tanning I did. I have many freckles already, and lifeguarding in high school at the local pool without wearing sunscreen was probably not my smartest choice. The biggest transformation I have seen in my skin has really been in my skin tone, fading sun spots, and drastically reducing the start of a few wrinkles I saw after the birth of my second son. I rarely wear foundation daily, and I feel so confident not covering up with numerous makeup products. I love that I can achieve glowing skin without risking my health.
You get to work with a lot of other women on the daily. What is the most rewarding part of leading this team for you?
Seeing other ladies on my team succeed. Nothing brings me greater joy than seeing their businesses thrive. As someone who really missed working a full time job, mostly because of the relationships and collaboration, I truly feel like I got all that back (and more) since joining Beautycounter.
beauty is one thing, but you’re taking safe products to a whole new level – a higher standard. what all have you switched out in your home, and any standout stars/product rcommendations?
I want to stress the importance of how much of a process this can be. Give yourself grace. I often tell people that it’s okay to switch to safer slowly. It can be a rabbit hole that feels stressful and never ending if you try switch everything at once. In our house, we have switched to safer in terms of cleaning/laundry products, personal care products, cosmetics, and we really balance where we get our food from in terms of fresh or processed, organic, etc. For produce buying, I love using the ‘Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen’ list as a reference for what is best to get organic. By no means are we perfect. My favorite brands I often recommend (besides Beautycounter) are Seventh Generation, Primally Pure, Innersense, Weleda, and California Baby.
HARDEST part about being a mom? [nothing is off limits!]
Knowing that my littles see me at my worst. Some days I am not patient enough and some days I am selfish. Like many mamas, I pray for grace! I think it’s easy to wonder if you’re doing a good enough job raising them the ‘right’ way.
how do you save time and streamline your day as the busy mom to multiple kiddos?
I love lists. I often only work my Beautycounter business at nap time or at night. Whatever is on the list, is all I focus on during this down time. I have really practiced not getting distracted by my phone or scrolling social media during my ‘work time.’ My lists are made nightly. Sometimes I accomplish it all, and sometimes my littles negotiate naps and I don’t get it all done. It’s probably one of the best things about running your own business…I can make up the time later and it isn’t something that usually has to be done right at that moment!
What is The Never List, and why should we care about it?
The Never List is a list of 1500 questionable or harmful ingredients that Beautycounter promises to not use in our products. This list includes the 1400 ingredients banned in Europe, plus additional chemicals screened by Beautycounter that are found to be of concern. Basically, if you use products that have ingredients from The Never List in them, try to swap to safer!
if there is one thing you would want us all to walk away knowing, in regards to safe beauty + products, what would that be?
It’s possible to have high performing skincare AND makeup that is SAFER. I often would grab a safer product back in the day at Whole Foods having high hopes for it, only to find the pigment was seriously lacking and it just didn’t perform. I also am not the type of girl that can just slather on coconut oil and have glowing skin that won’t break out. Research your brands, read your labels, and find products that truly keep your health in mind. Beautycounter isn’t the only one! I love using the EWG Skin Deep app to look up products and ingredients.
top 3 favorite beautycounter products?
- Overnight Resurfacing Peel: I literally wake up glowing as it really promotes skin cell turnover. This is an active anti-aging product that many love using for dark spots and light acne, as well [note from kelsey: i’ve been using this for a while now and will review it on the blog next week!].
- Balancing #3 Oil: This is my liquid gold product I always need on hand. My combination skin can sometimes break out or get oily. Applying this nightly helps that greatly! Don’t be afraid of putting oil on your skin. When it isn’t synthetic, your skin absorbs it! Hydration is one of the best things to promote anti-aging.
- Rejuvenating Eye Cream or the Countermatch Eye Rescue Cream: If you have yet to use eye creams yet…start now. You will love how quickly puffiness and dark circles go away when you use this regularly. I literally don’t go a night without it.
any beauty hacks for us?
- Wash your pillowcase OFTEN. I throw mine in with laundry once or twice a week. Your pillowcase can often be why you have random breakouts happening.
- Sleeping with your hair lightly clipped on top of your head or a single loose braid really helps keep your curls prolonged!
- Exfoliate more than you think. This goes for dry brushing your body, too! Getting rid of the dead skin cells is important for skin cell turnover and promoting healthy skin.
curious and want to learn more? you can contact jordann at jordann.longbella@gmail.com. follow her on insta for one heck of a beautiful feed + educational content.