Tuesday 27 June 2017

Review: Alucia Organics Double Rosehip Facial Oil

Recently I have been trying a Double Rosehip Oil from UK brand Alucia Organics. They are Leaping Bunny certified and Soil Association certified.

NARS - No Longer Cruelty Free

You will have heard by now that NARS, the high-end beauty brand, have decided to lose their cruelty-free status and expand into China, where animal testing is mandatory. They are such a well-respected, quality brand in the cruelty-free community that it is another blow on top of Too Faced being acquired by Estee Lauder and Unilever set to acquire Hourglass later this year.
It comes as a relief to me that I was never a NARS customer and I am glad to see all the messages they have on their Facebook page telling the brand that it will be boycotted.

Another make-up brand that has chosen money over ethics and another step backwards into the dark ages.




Sunday 25 June 2017

Review: Dr. Organic Hair and Skin Care

It seems like Ebay isn't the cheap place it used to be. It's full of shops selling items inflated above the RRP and bargains are few and far between. However, now and then, I manage a coup on a green beauty item and I got myself this bundle of Dr. Organic goodies a while back.
Dr. Organic is a British brand sold at Holland and Barrett. They are cruelty-free and vegetarian. Some of their products contain honey.
In the bundle there were 75ml travel sizes of shampoo, conditioner, body wash and 2 x 30ml tubes of body lotion.


Wednesday 21 June 2017

Review: Balm Balm Baby Balm - Truly A Miracle Product

Around March time, both me and my three year old son, Z, were suffering from eczema. I had a patch of eczema on my right shin that was a year old. It had healed once (after a holiday) and come back just as bad two months later. Z's eczema was off and on, with flare-ups for no apparent reason.
At the time I was using conventional moisturisers on my leg and prescription creams on my son. I had always found body scrubs of benefit with my dry skin so I was using a scrub on my leg that said it was so mild, it could be used every day. This product contained SLS, which I'm sure contributed to a vicious cycle for me.

I had just started exploring natural products and the first one I chose for the two of us was Baby Balm by Balm Balm. This contains just five ingredients: shea butter, sunflower oil, beeswax, calendula and jojoba oils. Balm Balm are cruelty-free and Leaping Bunny approved, plus Soil Association certified.


Tuesday 20 June 2017

May Love Lula Beauty Box

This is the first Love Lula beauty box I've purchased as they were doing a few one-off specials of their past boxes so I grabbed the May one as I had noticed it previously and coveted the goods!
 The box includes the following:

Review: Alva Crystal Deo Intensive Spray

Recently I have been trying the Crystal Deo Intensive Spray from Alva. They are a German company established in 1998 and distributed in the UK from 2007. They have their own UK website and are also for sale at Only Naturals, a leading seller of natural and organic skincare brands, who provided me with this sample for review.
This deodorant is vegan and 100% natural with 26% of the ingredients coming from organic farming. Alva are certified by Ecocert and cruelty-free.

Thursday 15 June 2017

TK Maxx Cruelty Free Haul No.2

I'm back with another cruelty-free beauty haul from TK Maxx and their sister company, Homesense. Seriously, some of their prices (especially in the clearance section) are too good to resist and I love being able to get my hands on brands that I can't normally afford or brands hard or impossible to get hold of in the UK. It's also a great way to discover new products. When I walk through the doors and see all those lovely bottles, it's a bit like Aladdin's Cave (for the beauty hoarder) 😋

Monday 12 June 2017

May Empties: Pixi, Living Nature, E.L.F, Pacifica and more

It seems like I didn't do an April empties post. Clearly I'm not using enough products and need to remedy that. Anyway, I have a few empties to talk about here.

Friday 9 June 2017

S5 Skincare Review

Recently I tried some skincare from UK company S5, which is made by Good Ventures, the group who also make Evolve Beauty. They describe their line as cosmoceuticals. They don't test on animals or sell in China and are working towards organic certification.
"S5 is designed to solve skin problems naturally using the strength of ingredients found in the most extreme parts of the planet such as Antarctica, the Wadi Desert in Egypt and the high mountains of Tibet...the most powerful natural actives can be found in the earth’s most extreme ecosystems, where the plants themselves overcome extreme stress to fight for survival and constantly adapt to stay youthful and healthy. This is the power behind S5."

Blogger Stationery Haul

Stationery obsession has been a long time thing with me, since school when I used to pinch packs of paper and exercise books *cough*. I still love wandering around stationery shops (without stealing), even though I have enough notebooks and paper to last eons. It was only recently that I noticed other bloggers were talking about their love of stationery and I realised I was not alone in my weirdness! So I thought I would share my recent haul.

Friday 2 June 2017

TK Maxx Cruelty Free Mini Haul

In the past I've always used TK Maxx for clothes or shoes. I've never looked at the beauty products because I thought they were all obscure, weird expensive stuff that nobody bought. Then last year I noticed a free cruelty-free make-up brands there and picked up a Too Faced eye primer and a NYX lipstick. This time I went and had an in-depth look at the beauty and came back with a mini haul!