Confusion in the rabbit hole? Cosmetic companies using spin with cruelty-free status to consumers

Hey cruelty-free beauties!

Have you ever felt like companies are unclear about certain facts about the products or the company itself? I'm not talking about the "Better Than Sex" claim that Too-faced put on their best-selling mascara, but their status to whether they continue to stay cruelty-free or not.

Many companies recently this year and the last have decided to state selling in the Chinese market, which by law requires animal testing, and continue to promise they are still 100% cruelty-free. We've seen this recently with Urban Decay, NYX cosmetics, Kat Von D cosmetics, Yves Rocher, L'Occitane and many more in the last year or two. This can be very confusing because on their official websites, they state that they are cruelty-free but in common knowledge, to sell in China, animal testing is required.

During this transition, customers were feeling in the dark about the whole situation and the companies were not responding in a clear manner. It seemed like, for example, NYX last year was beating around the bus about their current status on animal testing. According to their website, NYX claims:

                  "…while we do not currently sell our products in China, they are currently available from third parties in limited distribution. As we continue to expand our business internationally, we are aware that some countries require that local labs perform tests on animals as a prerequisite to give permission for products to be sold within their countries and we actively support efforts underway to change these practices."
 These statements can be really confusing to consumers, because it is not clear whether they do or do not test on animals. NYX still claim to be cruelty-free and it is up to the consumer to decide whether they still want to purchase from them or not. Personally, I will no longer be purchasing.

According to the Canadian PR for the Real World, spin is more or less defined as strategic word placement to bring across a point or bit of information in the most strategic way possible for the company. Spin has had a bad connotation in the PR world and is more or less looked as something bad and a form of lying. In this specific case, it is clear that NYX used a form of spin to somewhat confuse their customers into thinking they are still cruelty-free, when they clearly aren't.

Image acquired from the amazing cruelty-free blog: " http://www.mybeautybunny.com/cruelty-free-brands/"

You might be asking yourself, how will I know if brands are still cruelty-free or are own by parent non-cruelty-free companies? For more information and to have the official list of of cruelty-free brands, check http://features.peta.org/cruelty-free-company-search/index.aspx, regularly.

Thank you for reading this far, leave a comment below on what you think about these companies using spin to fool their customers?

STAY HUMANE & UNTIL NEXT TIME!

Sara Pivato

For all the citation purposes, please check out the link below.

http://elephant-room.org/index.php?route=blog/article&article_id=29

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2181468/Big-beauty-brands-dropping-cruelty-free-animal-testing-policies-sell-products-China.html

http://www.online-pr.com/Holding/The_Dangers_of_Spin.pdf

http://features.peta.org/cruelty-free-company-search/index.aspx

Cruelty-free lifestyle too hard? Think again! THIS OR THAT [Eyeshadow palette edition]

Hey Cruelty-free Beauties!

[Disclaimer! I am not paid by any of the mentioned companies below. All opinions are my own and all products were purchased by my own money, thank you!]

I have another topic and brand review related post for you readers this week!

As I mentioned before and as we see everyday, brands are getting less and less cruelty-free. Even though some brands like Urban Decay, Tarte and MAC claim to be cruelty-free, they are all either owned by a parent company that tests on animals or now sells to the chinese market, that requires by law to have cosmetics tested on animals before humans. Cruelty-free consumers can start to feel discouraged and confused to which brands will start loyal to their commitments to do no harm to our cuddly and cute friends. I'm going to show you beauty-junkies some dupes for everyday best sellers from non-cruelty-free companies and replace them with even better quality and sometimes cheaper alternatives that do not harm little creatures in the process.

THIS OR THAT?

THIS?Loving the Urban Decay Naked Palette (1,2,3)? Well I used to as well before I went cruelty-free. They are highly pigmented and perfectly picked color schemed palettes that can be used every single day for a natural to dramatic smokey eye. The versatility is amazing and the cost is around 60$ at Sephora. Sounds good right? NOT. Urban Decay is not cruelty-free so even though you have a beautiful eye look, the number of animals harmed have the "dead-eyed" look.

Urban Decay Naked 1,2,3 [60$]

THAT! Instead, try the Chocolate Bar palette by Too-faced! Both the regular edition and the Semi-Sweet edition contain the most beautiful highly pigmented and blendable shadows that smell so heavenly! The eye shadows have the delicious smell of chocolate as they are made from cocoa powder! Not only do both editions contain 16 matte and shimmer eyeshadows that can give you the versatility of any type of look! They are long-lasting and contain anti-oxidants so not only does it look beautiful, it's good for your skin. I personally have both palettes and I also have the UD Naked 2 and I cannot deny the difference in quality for the Too-faced ones and that smell of chocolate just brightens my mornings when doing my eye makeup.

Too-Faced Chocolate Bar Palette [55$-60$]

Too-Faced Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar Palette [55$-60$]

Price comparison?
UD Naked 60$ CA plus tax
Too-Faced 55-60$ CA plus tax
[not much of a difference in my opinion but hey a couple dollars always count!]

Thank you for reading if you made it this far. Please consider your purchases before buying non-cruelty-free, it makes a worlds difference and a difference can sometimes smell like CHOCOLATE :) yum!

STAY HUMANE & UNTIL NEXT TIME!

Sara Pivato

For more information, please visit the websites linked below!

http://www.mybeautybunny.com/category/leaping-bunny/page/4/
https://nevertoomuchglitter.wordpress.com/cruelty-free-beauty/
https://www.toofaced.com/p/eye-shadow-palettes/chocolate-bar-eye-shadow-collection/

Review: Greenscape Organic Homemade Cranberry, Watermelon & Wheat facial cream

Hey there cruelty-free Beauties!

I'm back for another review. These days a lot of moisturizers contain a lot of chemicals, trendy ingredients and of course are tested on animals. No, that doesn't mean putting mascara on a bunny of rubbing lotion on a rodent. It means injecting random ingredients into thousands of animals (and leaving them for dead) to ensure that companies can save money on human testing, and make more profits. For more facts on animal testing in North America, visit the link below. :)

 NOW TO THE REVIEW

Review

I bought the Greenscape Organic Homemade Cranberry, Watermelon & Wheat facial cream in the last couple of weeks at in Winner's skin care section and I have been using it ever since, twice a day and here are my thoughts.

This product claims it is: " A facial cream containing natural antioxidants & Vitamin C to protect the skin. Cranberry, Watermelon & Wheat with Avocado Oil & Cocoa Butter combined with a bespoke blend of multigrain cereals to smooth & soften. Natural derived and free from Petrochemicals, Sulphates, Parabens, Glycols or Synthetic Colors."

NET WT: 50ml, 1.7 fl oz.

Retail Price: Amazon (19$) Winners (5.99$)

Places to buy it? Amazon.com, Winners/Marshalls, etc.

My thoughts? This product has had many confusing reviews online. Some like this product alot and others don't. I have many things to say about this product, but mostly great things! WHen you first apply it, the one thing that I don't like about creams, realizes in this one, it apples WATERY. I hate the feeling of it but within 2 to 3 seconds of running it in and pushing it in to your skin, it is so SMOOTH, SOFT and SOOTHING. IF you ever have irritable skin or sensitive skin in general, you will LOVE this facial cream. Not to mention it contains natural ingredients and has the lightest pleasant scent that doesn't overpower your nostrils, it really works! It keeps my skin moisturized under my makeup and leaves it feeling very soothed while going to bed after a long day of wearing makeup. So overall, if you can get past the initial watery feeling, this cream is very decent and very worth the discounted price of 6$ that I payed at winners for.

Best way to apply it? Like any other facial cream, gel or moisturizer, you NEED (if i can stress this enough) you need to make sure your skin is cleansed and makeup free before applying. WHen you apply it in the morning, again you must wash your face first! Otherwise, this cream can feel like a weird film on your face if your face is not properly cleansed. TIP: if you don't cleanse your face properly of all impurities, your skin will not be able to absorb any moisturizer you use!

You can use a brush to apply it if you dont want to use your hands, but in my opinion it is best to use it with you hands to melt the cream with the warmth your hand provides, and helps it push into the skin for it to be absorbed.

VERDICT? 4/5 product rating and worth the price if you can afford it!

STAY HUMANE & UNTIL NEXT TIME :)

Sara Pivato!

Visit the link below for purchase:

http://www.amazon.com/Greenscape-Organic-Homemade-Cranberry-Watermelon/sim/B004VD7618/2

For more information on animal testing, please visit:

http://www.alive.com/articles/view/21547/animal_testing