This New Years I made the decision that I wanted to be a more informed consumer. My goal included being more aware of the products I am buying, where they are coming from, what their ingredients contain, what is the process behind which they come to market, i.e. animal testing and why animal testing was still necessary.
So what does Cruelty Free mean? Cruelty free means that the manufacturing of products does in no way involve experimentation on animals. Simply, companies that are cruelty free do not test on animals.
When I first started researching this process I couldn’t believe everyday products I was using that resulted in animal testing, deodorant, toothpaste, lotions, fragrances, skincare and most influentially makeup. I wanted to understand why these companies were animal testing, were they using such harmful chemicals/ingredients that they had to make sure they wouldn’t harm consumers? Was it required by law? Was it the companies choice? All of these questions I hope to answer for you below and help you to understand my reasoning and also most importantly to educate you as my readers, education is power and the more we know, the more informed decisions we can make regarding the products we are spending our hard earned money on.
One of the most prominent answers I found when it came to animal testing was that Mainland China requires animal testing on all cosmetics and skincare products sold in the country. This means if you are a cosmetic or skincare company and you want to sell to the 1.3 billion people living in the country, you require legal documentation proving you have tested on animals to legitimize the safety of the products. This also means that it comes down to each individual company to decide whether or not they choose to test their products on animals.
This also led me to question the reasoning and justification behind this, how can companies like The Body Shop, Kat Von D Beauty, Tarte and Urban Decay produce extremely high quality makeup and skincare, in my opinion some of the best on the market and be cruelty free? Through resources like Cruelty Free Kitty I found that there are over 7,000 safe ingredients that do not require animal testing because they have already been proven safe to use, which means there are other options, options that are not compromising the quality or safety of the product and do in no way need to harm animals in the process.
Cruelty Free Kitty has been an amazing resource for me in starting this process, her information is logical, precise and well researched and I appreciate forums like this that exist for individuals like me who wish to start this process. The Cruelty Free Shoppers Guide that she provides is an amazing resources for beginners and something that has really come in handy for me! If you are looking at making this change I highly recommend taking a look at this guide to help you navigate products and also suggestions for products you may be struggling to find!
In closing I realize there is so much information out there and it can be very overwhelming to process. I am no where near an expert and I am not trying to preach or convince any of you to make this lifestyle change but it is something i think is really important even if you just become more aware of the products you are buying I feel like I have done my job! I also don’t want to imply that every single product I am buying is 100% cruelty free, I am still in the very beginning and learning stages but I am realllllllly making an effort to avoid products (especially makeup) and not purchase products that result in cruelty to animals. In embarking on this journey it also became very clear to me that we as consumers dictate the market and what is being sold, if we don’t start to educate ourselves and ask these questions we are going to damage our environment and its inhabitants. Even a very small impact, is still intact an impact!
Below I have included a small list of companies that are and are not Cruelty Free as well as Makeup tools that are Cruelty Free. I will also be talking about Cruelty Free Skincare, Haircare and Fashion in the coming weeks so stay tuned!
Thanks so much for reading!
Sarah xo
Cruelty Free Makeup
- Anastasia Beverly Hills
- BareMinerals
- Beauty Blender
- Becca
- BH Cosmetics
- Bite Beauty
- Buxom
- Coloured Raine
- ColourPop
- Cover FX
- Dermalogica
- Dose Of Colours
- E.L.F.
- First Aid Beauty
- Gerard Cosmetics
- HourGlass
- House Of Lashes
- It Cosmetics
- Jane Iredale
- John Russo Beauty
- Jordana
- Josie Maran
- Jouer
- Kat Von D
- Kylie Cosmetics
- LIT Cosmetics
- Makeup Geek
- Marc Jacobs Beauty
- Marcelle
- Melt
- Morphe Brushes
- NYX Cosmetics
- OFRA Cosmetics
- PUR Minerals
- Real Techniques
- RMS Beauty
- Smashbox
- Stila
- Tarte
- The Body Shop
- Too Faced
- Urban Decay
- Wet N Wild
Makeup Brands That DO Test On Animals
- Almay
- Artistry (Amway)
- Avon
- Benefit
- Bobbi Brown
- Borghese
- Burberry
- Calvin Klein
- Chanel
- Chapstick
- Cle de Peau
- Clinique
- CoverGirl
- Demeter
- Dior
- Dolce & Gabbana
- Estee Lauder
- Flirt
- Giorgio Armani
- Givenchy
- Guerlain
- Helena Rubinstein
- L’Oreal
- Lancôme
- MAC
- Make Up For Ever
- Mary Kay
- Max Factor
- Maybelline
- OPI
- Pat McGrath
- Prescriptives
- Rimmel London
- Revlon
- Shiseido
- Shu Uemura
- Sinful Colors
- Sephora (brand)
- Tom Ford
- Tony Moly
- Yves Saint Laurent
For a complete lists of companies that test on animals click here
Cruelty Free Makeup Brushes:
Real Techniques– Available at Walmart at very reasonable prices they also have the best beauty sponge in my opinion, the miracle complexion sponge, just as good as the beauty blender but 1/3 of the price!
Morphe Brushes – These are my most favourite brushes, I use them daily and was sooo happy to find out they are cruelty free!
Sigma – They have started to process of converting their brushes to cruelty free, the SigmaTech line and SigMax line are both vegan and cruelty free
Too Faced’s – made with their signature “teddy bear hair” bristles, they grab and blend color without any of the cruelty or hygiene problems associated with animal-hair brushes!
Tarte – Easily one of my favourite cruelty free brands, their brushes are formulated without paragons, mineral oil, phthalates, sodium laurel sulphates & gluten
The Body Shop – My favourite skincare brand and dedicated to using synthetic, cruelty-free bristles with sustainably sourced wooden handles.
Every makeup product I used on this look is cruelty free!
Primer: Tarte 2hr Primer
Foundation: NYXCosmetics Stay Matte
Concealer: NYX Cosmetics Concealer Wand
Eyeshadow: Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette
Brows: Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz
Eyeliner: Kat Von D Tattoo Liner
Mascara: Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes
Bronzer: Too Faced Matte Soleil Bronzer in Milk Chocolate
Blush: Too Faced Blushing Bronzer
Lips: Lipsense
Outfit Details (All YEG Businesses!!)
Earrings: Eliasz & Ella
Necklace: Bodhi Soul Bead Works
Sweatshirt: A Beautiful Inspiration
