Cruelty free beauty

[TheHotstepper]

Hi,

I've decided recently to switch all my beauty products and cosmetics to cruelty free. Does anybody know which major brands are ok? I know that a lot of companies don't test on animals here, but do in order to sell in certain countries. I've heard that Superdrug products are ok. A friend works as an Avon seller. I've not bought anything because I've head that they are one of the companies who test on animals in order to sell abroad. I've heard that MAC isn't ok. There's a lot of conflicting information though, and a lot of info I've seen is US specific.

I'm just not comfortable anymore with using something that I know involves cruelty somewhere along the line. I'd rather replace my stuff with more ethical brands.

It depends on how far you want to go... for example Urban Decay is cruelty free but it's owned by L'Oréal which aren't cruelty free... so your money is eventually going towards animal testing. Cruelty free kitty is a good website with a list of brands you can use. I will warn you though there are very few 'drug store' companies that are cruelty free so it can get pricey.

I love love love Kat Von D's stuff.

Really nice. Really good.

Beauty Without Cruelty products are available online now.

Yes its a minefield.
You'll see products that are "Finished product not tested" but every single ingredient might have been.
Ones which were listed as cruelty free but now sell to China who carry out compulsary testing .
Do they test on behalf of China or do they send the products for China to test?

My DD has just discovered KatVon D , she has (so far) a liquid lipstick and a primer and is 100% happy.

Lush is a good bet (though one of my guinea-pigs got henna on his face so he has tested it on himself . He came to no harm except being a bit indigo)

I used to use BWC as a teenager (back in the 1980s) it was very ££ even back then and only from Health Food Shops.
Then The Body Shop came along , when it was new and radical. And before it was bought out)

Echoing that it's a huge minefield, the China issue, parent companies with awful ethics, the original individual components that make up the formulations are either tested on animals by suppliers or have in the development stage, mixed views on Leaping Bunny and PETA certified, etc. etc.

Organic certified seems the 'safest' and most stringent but I'm sure even then you'd end up with questionable products sometimes. Don't even think to look into Botox, every single produced batch gets animal tested as it's classed as a medicine (the numbers are mind boggling).

It's really a case of how much you're willing to pay and how much research you're willing to put into it before even considering if you like the products available.

Ha, Botox not happening! I have a friend who I suspect has had it done. She looks.....odd. Maybe it works for some, but not for me.

It is a minefield. I think that's why I've found it difficult to look into properly. Animal testing was a big thing when I was a teenager, and then it seemed so simple - products were ethical or they weren't. But yes, parent companies, different regulations in different countries do make things difficult. I'd just like to know a bit more about what I'm putting on my fade and body.

I'll look into a few of the brands mentioned. I do hope the guinea pig has got over his henna experience!

For haircare, check out Faith in Nature. I found it on a recommendation from here and I love it. Lovely smelling shampoo and my hair is definitely in better condition as of late.

For skincare, Ive been using some of Boots own but want to check out M&S as well.

I don't know if you're looking for makeup or just skin and body stuff but on the organic front Weleda is decent and somewhat affordable (though did briefly sell in China only to pull out of the market due to criticism). Hauschka has always been a committed cruelty free organic brand, Pai is worth looking at (UK based) and Tata Harper at the higher end of the scale (but v. effective) but I like that they pretty much grow everything and develop it all on a farm in Vermont (or somewhere in that direction). Naturismo is also good as a website to buy from.

Beautypedia/Paula's Choice keeps track of whether companies sell in China or not, basically all brands that sell there are classed as not cruelty free by them.

Dd is big on 'cruelty free' brands. The cynical side of me thinks eventually they all point to da man - However brands she approves of and seem to be OK are Too Faced, Hourglass, Kat Von D, Tarte, ecotools brushes

(I should add these are all £££s so take up a lot of pocket money. When I was her age it was Maybelline frosted lip gloss and a squirt of Sun-in and I was good to go. Times change..)

Well done!

Tesco and co-op own brand cleaning stuff is all cruelty free as is there bathing products and deodorant.

Here are companies to avoid.

Safe companies.

The body shop have started a campaign against animal testing as well which they have on their website. They also help support the rainforest which is brilliant.

As are their* , bloody phone

Look on peta website if your unsure about a company as they have a lot of information on cruelty free products.

Elemis don't test on animals, or Liz Earle. The supermarkets often don't test either so Sains/morrisons own brand hair care and skincare are worth looking at, esp if you're on a tight budget! Morrisons hairspray in the purple can is brilliant.
Green People is very good, and Amie, the range for young skin.
It's a minefield like others have said. It depends how far you want to go with it e.g. Body Shop don't test but their parent company does. In my heart I know I should only by cruelty free but I have real issues with sensitivity so sometimes this becomes more important. My DD is getting into make up etc now and I feel like I should set a bit of an example as she's bound to come across this debate and as an animal lover (she wants to be a vet) I can see this being an issue at some point and so justifies me buying the elemis tsv this week

Ooo, what about Stargazer?

Pretty sure they're cruelty free.

Balance Me is another brand which doesn't test on animals and their products are lovely. Also the Dr Organic range in Holland and Barrett.

Echoing what others say about it being a bit of a minefield and needing to put in the time researching products before you buy.

I won't buy anything with a parent company that tests or sells in China. Some of my go to brands are Superdrug own for cheap stuff, Barry M, Ilamasqua for high end make up comparable to MAC, Waitrose and co-op own brand for cleaning stuff and ELF (I buy online) for reasonably good quality but quite cheap make up.

Holland and Barrett have quite a good range of bath type stuff, lip balms etc. Lush is nice (love their solid perfumes), for good quality hair care stuff Paul Mitchell is good and if you can find one of their salons it means you can still go to the hairdressers and know you are being cruelty free!

For cheap, at home hair dye Naturatint is good and actually covers my greys!

I think I have become lax in my choices and relied on the EU Law that cosmetics can't be animal tested. I'm going to tighten up but would it be unreasonable to use up the products I have and then replace as I go? Part of me thinks I should bin everything and start from scratch but the more pragmatic part is saying don't be so wasteful think of the cost.

Dazzling, absolutely use up your old products and replace with cruelty free as you go. It's been a process over a couple of years for me (I still have a tiny dribble of my jean Paul gautier perfume left that I use up on special occasions but won't replace when it's gone). I couldn't have afforded to replace everything in one go and felt it would have been terribly wasteful to do so anyway x

As an Avon rep myself, I have to add that any European Avon product will not have been tested on animals, Avon were the first company to ban testing on animals, however they have started to sell in china and I believe that china manufacture the products to sell there for Avon, but then the chinese government require testing of any new products to be tested on animals, Avon do try and have discussions about this, and I hear (possibly rumour) that Avon are planning on pulling out. Poland produce all European products for Avon.

Thanks Starla, I think this what I'll do. It's hard when you're used to a particular product to drop it and find something new.
Bubble, keep us updated. If Avon pulls out, I'll definitely try their products again. They used to do an amazing eyeliner.....

Bollox, just looked up jo malone. That's my perfume gone then

Good for you, TheHotstepper ! I made the decision to only use cruelty-free products about a year ago. I threw out thousands of pounds of Mac and Bobbi Brown make-up and skincare. I now use these brands:

• Nars (make-up)
• Eve Lom (skincare)
• Lush (bath & body lotions).

I absolutely love these brands and feel happy with the knowledge that no poor animal is suffering to give me these products.