Reviewer's Diary: cruelty free

Showing posts with label cruelty free. Show all posts

September 5, 2016

My Cruelty Free Journey ~ One Year Later ~ August/September 2016 || Reviewer's Diary

Welcome to my channel! Okay, so it has been one year since I made the commitment to no longer buy anything that was cruelty free. I stated at that time that I would, and I continue, to use up non-cruelty free items that are in my collection. One year later, most of the products and makeup I use is cruelty free.

Watch my YouTube video

I will no longer state whether something is cruelty free or not, however. What this journey has taught me is that the beauty industry is very fluid and something that is cruelty free today, may not be tomorrow, and the other way around.

Click here to see all my beauty product reviews

Click here to see all my book reviews

Visit the cruelty free or not page on my website

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Beauty boxes I subscribe to:

Boxycharm – cancelling after the September 2016 box ships

Ipsy – probably going to cancel when the September 2016 bag ships

Lip Monthly – only have a few months left on my year-long subscription, then will cancel

GoodBeing Box – I have this one through February, then will cancel

BeautyFix – this is the box that made the cut and will be the only beauty box left standing

Squix cleaning product box - you can get your favorites and/or cruelty free, natural, non-toxic cleaning products (my favorite); I like that you can put this subscription on hold until you need more cleaners

Freebie sites I belong to:

Unless otherwise stated in my video or description above, this product was purchased by me. I am not affiliated with manufacturers or any subscription service and am not compensated for the review. I promise you that you will always get my full and honest opinion.

Marketing: I’m PR friendly and would be delighted to try your products. Contact me if there is something you would like to send for me to try and review. Cruelty free products are preferred.

March 29, 2016

Unboxing ~ my first Vegan Cuts box ~ March 2016 | Reviewer's Diary #vegancutsbeautybox @vegancuts

Thank you for joining me for my first Vegan Cuts unboxing video. This is an amazing little box, but I’m not sure if I’ll keep getting it because I just cancelled a bunch of boxes to keep to my two annual subscriptions and one monthly box. April boxes from Vegan Cuts and Boxycharm will help me decide. Boxycharm, a great box, has been a bit too flakey for my liking the last two months. Regarding cruelty free – Vegan Cuts is 100% cruelty free and 99.9% of the time the stuff in Boxycharm has also been cruelty free.

Watch my YouTube video

Here’s what was in this box – the $ value is what is on the card from this month’s box:

Miss Shady Lady blending eye brush – an extra that was added for new subscribers (not even listed on the card)

October Fields tea-lite candle - $1 value

Dermorganic Color Care heat-activated thermal spray – 2 ounces - $10 value

Earthlab Cosmetics black mineral eye pencil - $20 value

Pacifica Perfume Roll-On in Tunisian Jasmine Lime (10 ml/0.33 oz) - $12 value

Shea Radiance black soap body wash (59 ml/about 2 oz) - $5 value

Everclen hypoallergenic eye cream (0.5 oz/full size) - $20 value

Total box value = $68

Visit the cruelty free or not page on my website

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Beauty boxes I subscribe to – purchased a full year membership to Goodbeing & Lip Monthly (had deeply discounted prices). I’ll still be getting the other three boxes every month in addition to yearly subscriptions:

Boxycharm - my favorite box

Lip Monthly - this is a new one for me - $12 for 4 full size lip and beauty products

GoodBeing Box – just joined, will have link soon

Boxes cancelled with March 2016 being last ... for now:

Kloverbox

Allure Beauty Box - a good starter box

Ipsy - generous sample size and sometimes full size items, great box

Freebie sites I belong to:

Influenster – when you first join you are more likely to get a box than later on; I almost never

BzzAgent – they politely ask you if you want to join a campaign, I get more from this site than Influentster

Marketing: I’m PR friendly and would be delighted to try your products. Contact me if there is something you would like to send for me to try and review. Please be aware, however, that if I don’t like your product, I will be honest with my viewers. Also, I cannot promise you that your item will appear on my videos, and I don’t follow a time table with reviews.

August 12, 2015

An Important Announcement

It’s not an easy endeavor to slowing go cruelty free, but that’s the plan. There is too much pain being inflicted out there for me to ever buy anything that is not cruelty free again. So my plan is to review things the same way I always have, but also say whether something is cruelty free or not. Eventually I will be completely cruelty free. Since I’m not made of money, I need to do this gradually. On my blog, I’ll establish a database that I will build over time. (DONE: click here)

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To read the PETA article about how NYX pledges to remain cruelty free in spite of being owned now by L'Oreal, click here

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Beauty boxes I subscribe to:

Boxycharm
Ipsy
Allure Beauty Box
Walmart Beauty Box
PopSugar Must Have

Here's one I, sadly, unsubscribed to recently - but it's a great affordable box for someone just starting out with subscription boxes ($10 a month):

Birchbox

Unless otherwise stated in my video or description above, this product was purchased by me. I am not affiliated with manufacturers or any subscription service and am not compensated for the review. I promise you that you will always get my full an honest opinion.

Marketing: I would be open to trying products from any company. Contact me if there is something you would like to send for me to try and review.

May 1, 2015

Full review Palmetto Derma product line

I have loved the Collagen Booster serum from Palmetto Derma ever since I received it in a Boxycharm box. Since then I have purchased more, and also purchased the Intensive Hydration on the advice of my daughter, who also got the collagen booster in her Boxycharm box. Palmetto Derma was kind enough to provide a free sample of their eye cream. This is all lovely stuff. I did give the Intense Hydration to my daughter because she loves it and I’m not sure that I do. The eye cream is very nice and I've been using it morning and night with nice results.

I posted a full video review review of these Palmetto Derma products on YouTube:

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November 8, 2014

Two products, one great result

I tried Juice Beauty CC cream and found the earthy scent was too strong and passed it on to my daughter. I was a bit concerned that this product would be the same way, but was pleased to find that the scent is almost non-existent, which is great. A Pros and Cons list:

Pro:
Eye cream has a very nice, smooth consistency
Glides on easily on the delicate eye area
Pump works easily with a measured amount that is consistent with every pump
Pump has a neat design that is easy to use

Con:
Too much (more than you need) eye cream with every pump
Applicator doesn't work as well as your own clean finger
Too tall container
Price - too pricy for just 0.5 oz

Now that the nitty gritty details are done, I did notice a tremendous difference in the fine lines around my eye area - they were definitely reduced. Still there, but smoother. Now I'm not sure if this is the product that did it. Around the same time that I received this product, I also got Palmetto Derma Serum

and started using it every day and night. I do try to test products separately, but wanted to see if they complimented each other - they most definitely did. One morning, after using the products for about a week, I noticed that my fine lines were smoother and much harder to see.

One additional note: the pump puts out more than enough for both eyes, so right after washing my face, I use my clean finger to scoop off one pump of the cream, pat half on one side and half on the other. The pump still puts out too much for both eyes, so I smooth any excess above my upper lip where wrinkles are also visible.

Bottom line: though pricey, I may buy it again. I would definitely recommend both product to my friends.

July 26, 2014

CeraVe Baby Wash and Shampoo - Great as an adult face wash

Yeah, that's right. I said adult face wash.

I don't have a baby at home, but I have very sensitive, dry skin. I also have been using other CeraVe products for a while now and love them, especially the CeraVe Moisturizing Lotion, which I have used on my face and body. So, it was a natural thing for me to pick this CeraVe baby wash to try on my face.

I've been using it every day (both morning and night) since I got it (about a week). My skin comes out soft and very balanced - neither feeling dry or oily, which makes this pretty darn perfect as a face wash. This has a different, very light scent from other baby products. There is no powdery baby scent to it. It has a very light, nondescript scent that smells clean, but doesn't linger. The texture of the baby wash is smooth and just one pump is enough for your entire face.

I may have just found the perfect face wash! One other pro on this product, and all CeraVe products, is that it is also cruelty free. Great stuff.

Disclaimer: I received this product for free from Amazon Vine to test and review. My reviews, however, are not influenced by whether an item is free or if I purchased it.

July 5, 2014

Two recent vlog uploads - small haul & my travel bag

Here I am in Florida trying to psych myself up for a 13-16 hour drive back home tomorrow. While here I managed to edit and upload two new videos (both recorded last week).

In this first video I discuss a small haul from Wet-n-Wild, a cruelty free brand that I've found to be just as good as the more expensive, non-cruelty free brands that I'm currently working on using up - mainly Elizabeth Arden and Clinique. I've already replaced the Elizabeth Arden foundation with one from Physicians Formula (a cruelty free brand).

Here is the Wet-n-Wild mini-haul video. I had several missteps with the camera shutting off on me, but it did finally get done.

Then, there is the video of choices for my travel bag (trip to Florida). I had similar issues with the camera. Will have to figure out why when I return to NJ.

See all my videos on YouTube

June 21, 2014

Testing & Review of Physicians Formula Youthful Wear Spotless Foundation & Brush - Cruelty Free

My Elizabeth Arden foundation finally ran out (I'll miss you), and since I've committed to replacing products that run out with only cruelty free products, I purchased this Physicians Formula foundation. I like that it is a thin product that you brush on. It made a silky smooth finish on my skin with no brush-marks. It also made my skin look smoother and didn't settle into the fine lines around my eyes. The brush is not as soft as I would like, but still works well with this makeup to make a flawless finish. This one is a keeper, especially when paired with my favorite Physicians Formula loose powder. This is makeup that I will likely wear for many years to come. This is fabulous stuff.