A Cruelty Free Blogger? | Lifestyle

When it comes to skincare, make up and even hair care I can honestly say I am cruelty free and yet I still struggle to promote this publicly on my social media. I have thought about it a lot recently and I guess it's lead me to question why?

I think the problem is when you start labeling yourself you actually open yourself up to a lot of criticism which I just can't be bothered with! The issue is that things change all the time and whilst I may buy a product that I personally think is safe/cruelty free I could end up being wrong and that's when you start to question the label! Additionally I'm not vegan, I mean, I ain't even vegetarian so how can I claim to be cruelty free when I chose to eat meat or wear leather? It's such a minefield that I often feel really conflicted. We're at an age where we have so many sources of information and videos you become overwhelmed and feel the need to do better which I think is a brilliant thing but I still struggle to fly that "cruelty free" flag because I know that I'm not perfect. 

I think it's the granularity of it all, where do you draw the line? I would never touch any L'Oréal products and until last year The Body Shop was actually owned by L'Oréal however TBS still didn't test on animals, but morally I don't want to contribute any revenue, in any capacity to L'Oréal so didn't want to shop there. Even massive bloggers are still promoting brands that all sell in China where legally they have to test products on animals before they are sold in that country, so I stop wanting to read or watch their content because its something I just can't get excited about anymore. My most read blog post is a lipstick review on L'Oréal which I no longer want to promote but you can't get away from the fact it's my most liked post. There are just so many things to consider and I just want to say that on a level I am cruelty free but I know that I can't be perfect with all my choices.

I am a huge believer that small changes make the biggest difference and whilst I do eat meat and wear leather I do believe that by only buying brands that do not test on animals I am making a small difference. Who knows, maybe somewhere down the line, I will start to make a bigger more considered lifestyle change.

Autumn Nails | Beauty

If you have been reading my blog for recently you'll know that I love all things autumn, in fact I might do a little post on the exact things I like and I promise it won't include pumpkin spiced anything! But these Barry M Gelly Hi Shine polishes just scream all kinds of autumn!!

Since moving back from Italy I have been getting shellac on my nails just to cheer myself up really, I love getting beauty treatments done and because I was WFH every day I had a little flexibility to get them done whenever I wanted. However I recently got a job in London again which means that I have to get them done on Saturdays and right now I just can't be bothered to do that so I soaked my last set off and decided to start painting them again. Don't get me wrong this is far less convenient for me because my nails are very thin and weak and I cannot stand chipped nail polish so it means I have to paint them 2 or 3 times a week but it is cheaper and it means I get my weekends to do whatever I want.

This year I have change to cruelty free products only which means that walking into a standard high st store the selections are more limited but I frickin' love Barry M polishes so I don't mind at all!!! Personally, I think every girl should have a light grey nail polish in their collection, It's so simplistic but looks incredible on nails of all lengths. The first colour is called Almond which is odd because to me it looks nothing like an Almond colour. Then I bought this gorgeous orange toned nude that I just love right now because it's so different to what I have worn before and this one is called Peanut Butter... I mean, Barry M are really struggling with the names I think but as you can see it's a really lovely shade.

I opted for the Gelly Hi Shine ones because I heard a lot of good things about them in terms of longevity, however if you have very weak nails these won't last incredibly long, soz guys!

Whilst I have short nails, I actually have quite long nail beds so when I paint them it creates the illusion that my nails are longer than what they actually are. This is why I like to go for these kinds of shades purely because it draws attention to them in a more subtle way.

What nail shades are you loving this Autumn? 

Burt's Bees Orange Essence Cleanser | Beauty

As most of you will know I have recently moved to using Cruelty Free products for my skincare and make up, which means I have to try lots of wonderful new products that I haven't used before! I tried out the Melting Gel Cleanser which i actually really loved because the more you worked it into your skin the more it changed to an oil so felt so good on the skin. That said I was really keen to try out more Burt's Bees products because all I have ever tried is the lip balm which we all know is fantastic! 

I was in Boots recently and just thought I would browse the Burt's Bees skin care range as it was on offer with 1/3 off the whole range so I had a little look at decided to give the Orange Essence Cleanser a go because I do love fresh citrus scents and this cleanser smelled bloody divine! I have to say that I thought I was gonna be buying a cream cleanser, I have no idea why I thought it would be but I was quite surprised that it was a gel cleanser, I just wasn't expecting it to be! Anyway, once I got over that I slapped it all over my face and was kinda expecting it to melt into my skin like my other cleanser but this does not, it stays as that gel like texture. 

I think after my first use, I wasn't that impressed because the Orange Essence just wasn't what I was expecting but that said I still wanted to continue with it! The second time I used it, I definitely liked it more, the scent is incredible because it is very natural, it doesn't have that artificial scent like some others do, this is a lovely zesty scent but also a little earthy! It is a little tacky but once your wipe it off your skin does really look fresh and clean. I have to say that since I have been using this product I have developed a couple of spots, I don't know if this is directly linked to the cleanser, you have to consider diet and periods too but it is a little unusual. 

So my first impressions are positive on this Burt's Bees product but I just wish it melted into your skin more or was a cream cleanser! 

Which Burt's Bees products would you recommend? 

5 Tips for going Cruelty Free | Beauty

A slightly different post from me today but over the last few weeks I have decided that I wanted to change all beauty/skincare products to Cruelty Free. The reason why I chose to do this was purely because I saw a video inside the L'Oreal testing labs and it was of a monkey and it just broke my heart, since then I just decided that I need to make a change. 

This post is going to be for the people of there who may be considering going cruelty free but don't quite know how to or even where to start, this is just a really simplified way. 

Superdrug, Superdrug, Superdrug...
When I first started buying new products I read some random blogs that were super helpful but some pages had so much information that I was still a little lost. I then read A Cup of Tea Blog on a specific Superdrug skincare range and she mentioned that actually Superdrug own brand is all cruelty free so if you are a little stuck as to what to buy you can be assured that Superdrug own brand is a safe option. Honestly when you go into Superdrug next have a look at their range, for everything, they have so many different products! 

Leaping Bunny...
If you are in a bit of a rush and aren't too sure what to go for, simply look for the Leaping Bunny, this is a recognised organisation that only put that little bunny stamp on items that are cruelty free and onsite the have a whole product directory and you can have a little booklet sent out to you which I think is incredible.

Blogs...
I mentioned one earlier but, there are so many blogs out there and some offer great advice for make up as a lot of make up brands don't have the little bunny so it can be harder to visually spot which items are good but Cruelty Free Kitty has a great post on this and there are a lot of other blogs out there that share this type of information. There is a lot more research than I first thought but it's so important and there is even a 5 brands you should avoid list which makes it a little easier when you are in a shop.

Finish what you have... 
Let's face it, most of us actually can't afford to throw everything away and start again so the best piece of advice I could suggest is replace when you need to. The reality is you have already bought the product the money has already gone to those brands, let's not be wasteful by just throwing it away if it is brand new. I personally found myself throwing things away that were more than half way done because it didn't feel as wasteful. Also, as this is a new decision all of my old beauty blog posts are supporting these types of brands without me thinking so it's actually quite daunting knowing that I have to find things I love as much if not more. 

Little changes...
Here is the part where I know many will think I am being hypocritical because I do eat meat and it could be argued that the way animals are killed for our meat is cruel but I am the biggest believer that small changes make the biggest difference. I think the fact I am trying to move towards a more cruelty free life is better than doing nothing. I have reduced the amount of red meat I eat but I don't want to be a vegan or even a vegetarian right now, in a years time who knows, never say never. But surely the fact I am only buying cruelty free beauty/skincare products is far better than not? 


Have you ever thought about going Cruelty Free with your makeup and skincare?

Cruelty Free Skincare | Beauty

As you guys will now know if you I am going cruelty free with my skincare and beauty products which means, over the last few weeks I have been trying out a lot of new stuff. I wanted to share with you my thought on these lovely products and how I got on with them. 

I think I want to start with the Melting Gel Cleanser from the Superdrug range B. This was something very unexpected because it is literally a clear gel, that when you rub over your skins for a minute or two it turns to an oil, that washes off milky white  - like what? At first i struggled with this one but that was because I was using too much of the product, you actually only need a hazelnut sized blob of the stuff any more and it becomes a sticky mess. I would also say that you should massage the gel into your skin until it has completely changed into a oil texture. The first couple of weeks I noticed a couple of spots pop up on my chin but I can't say it was 100% down to this product but the rest of my skin looked really good, very fresh and bright. I have easily fallen in love with the Melting Gel Cleanser and use it about 3 times a week, it is really gentle and can be used to take off eye make up! 

Moving onto another B. product which is the B. Confident Day Cream  which is part of the Phase 1 range aimed at skin between the ages of 20-30. Finding a good cream was quite scary for me because I loved my Olay day cream so much but unfortunately this brand is not cruelty free so I have no other option but to find something else. The B.Confident Dy Cream is quite a thick formula which claims to hydrate the skin for up to 12hrs which is a bold statement but I have found that my face does feel better hydrated that it was before. Whilst it is a lot thicker than what I am used to, it actually absorbs quickly into my skin but again I use a very small amount. I have been using this for over a month and can definitely see the difference this product, coupled with the Melting Gel Cleanser, has made to my skin. 

Moving onto another Superdrug gem we have their own brand shower gel and I have it in the Cherry & Almond scent and oh my god! I love the Superdrug shower gels because they are actually quite similar to the Original Source shower gels with wonderful vibrant scents but at a FRACTION of the cost being 99p compared to OS £2.29. The shower gel is just a good and definitely cruelty free as are all of the Superdrug own brand products are. This smells insane, I just wanna eat it...but I can't! I used exfoliating gloves in the shower so i just whack a big squeeze of that in one hand and lather myself up, it's a really nice gel for the price. 

Of course, no skincare post would be complete without discussing lips and you just know I had to mention my beloved Burt's Bees Lip Balm and I really love the original version of this balm because it has peppermint in it and quite frankly I like the tingly feeling. This lip balm was something I didn't even realise was cruelty free until I pulled back the label and saw the little leaping bunny, so bloody happy with that one. 

This post is a first phase in transitioning to cruelty free, there are so many good brands out there and I've kinda gotta try a lot to find my perfect combination but so far I have been so impressed with just these products already, good prices and quality is great why wouldn't you want to go cruelty free? Another thing to note is that the B. range is not only cruelty free but also suitable for Vegans which is always good to know. If you wanted to know which brands to avoid you can find a little blacklist of the big highstreet brands who do still test on animals. 

Have you tried any of the B. products?