Cruelty Free Beauty

The other day, I followed my fellow blogger Karin’s lead, and I took a test to see how many slaves I employed. Yep, slaves, as in people forced to make things so I can buy them on the cheap.

It was pretty eye-opening to connect the dots on just how many things around my home are tied to slave labor. It’s very sobering. Even debilitating. BUT – just like anything that seems insurmountable, baby steps. When we start with small sections of our lives, it eventually affects our mindset toward many other areas. For example, my first foray into ethical-anything was clothes. But since then, I’ve majorly put the microscope on buying decor and household items. Currently, I need two good throw pillows for my living room. But instead of buying on the cheap at Target, I’ve been waiting and saving to hopefully buy something from a small maker.

Another area I’ve been thinking about is beauty. I don’t buy a lot of makeup, but I’ve started to think more about what goes into the things I do buy – both ingredients and production. Thankfully, I have found an amazing resource for identifying cruelty-free beauty products – Plantae. It’s a super simple platform that makes finding and buying ethically-sourced beauty products incredibly easy! They have all their items split into five simple categories: makeup, skincare, haircare, bath + body, and there is even a men’s section! Plus, everything they carry is cruelty-free, vegan and non-toxic.

The team at Plantae sent me a few products to review and share with you guys, which have been super fun to test out – but even more so, I am excited for you to check out their easy-to-use site. They have done the hard work of curating a shop of well-sourced beauty, and bath and body items, that you get to click through and purchase on Amazon. Which often means no shipping and quick turnarounds.

Mermaid Dry Shampoo (pictured above) – Talc-free dry shampoo, with a sprinkle-on application.

Using this dry shampoo left me with super soft hair. It did not give me the stiffness and texture that spray dry shampoo typically does. I loved that my hair was soft, but one of the reasons I use dry shampoo is to add texture to my fine hair. I would recommend trying this if you have coarse or thick hair. I also loved the subtle fragrance.

Coco Rose Lip Tint (pictured at top) – A beautiful, nourishing tint.

This felt soft and moisturizing on my lips. It was more opaque than I expected and pulled a little orange on me, which can be typical of lip color (not sure why!). It is super easy to wear and gives my lips a nice presence without making them look ‘made up.’

Sage Mint Deodorant (pictured below) – Fresh-smelling, witch hazel-based natural deodorant.

I have been antiperspirant free for years and I am always happy to come across a deodorant that works well. The mint is stronger than the sage, which took me a bit to get used to at first (it reminded me of toothpaste), but it is quite subtle. I don’t even think my husband can smell it on me.

They also happen to carry one of my very favorite products, Dr. Bronner’s Lavender Hand Sanitizing Spray, something I keep in my car, and use all the time.

Do you use cruelty-free beauty products? I’d love to know what some of your favorites are!

This post is not sponsored, nor requested by Plantae, but they sent me these products to me as a gift. :)