Going Cruelty Free

I've always been aware of 'cruelty free' products & I've always hated the thought of animal testing for vanity reasons but over the last few months it's really stuck in my head.
So... Since around April time I've been actively looking into cruelty free brands and to be honest with you, I'm shocked at how many make up brands still test on animals! Especially with the alternatives so widely available now.

I always thought going cruelty free would be way too much hassle and super difficult, but I've found it super easy and I thought I'd give some tips on how best to go about it!

1. Find reliable websites to check cruelty free status
The thing that's probably been the most help while I've been trying to switch to cruelty free is the internet. So many sites exist nowadays (official and non official) that list all cruelty free brands & also tell you the status of your favourite companies.
One of my favourite sites to use is Leaping Bunny: https://www.crueltyfreeinternational.org/LeapingBunny which allows you to look at not only make-up, but deodorant, hair care and household items like Candles.
I also love PETA's cruelty free list: http://features.peta.org/cruelty-free-company-search/index.aspx
I know PETA have been contested on their animal welfare and standards as a charity but this list is incredible and I wouldn't use them normally due to things I've seen but this search tool is very handy and quick.
Another way I've learnt about new brands is through blogging sites, Cruelty Free Kitty and Wife Life are two women dedicated to finding the best cruelty free make-up available.

2. Cruelty free doesn't mean expensive!
I don't know why but there often seems to be a myth that cruelty free products are going to cost the earth and at one point I imagine they did. However, now the technology is so advanced there are more and more affordable cruelty free brands on the market. Boots natural range, Soap and Glory, Lush Cosmetics and NYX are just a few examples.

3. Parent companies can test, but smaller companies might not
This one is a bit more of a personal preference but for me, if I discover a parent company tests on animals it doesn't matter if the smaller ones don't. Parent companies are larger companies that often buy or own smaller brands to support them. For example, The Body Shop claim not to test on animals but I will not buy their products as they are owned by parent company L'Oreal who are well known to test on animals. This means that a lot of TBS profits go directly to L'Oreal.

4. China
Again, this is another personal opinion tip. Due to Chinese laws and standards, products imported must be tested before they can be sold on the market. Unfortunately animal testing is still widely used. So for a company to not test on animals here but do in China, still affects my view on the company

5. Brands can change their stance
Brands and companies are always evolving, which means that they can change their stance on animal testing, for good and bad. MAC for example, used to be cruelty free but are now listed as testing on animals. The same can happen the other way round so it's sometimes very difficult to keep up.

There are a few pointers on how to get started on becoming cruelty free. I find it difficult sometimes & am still going through old products but from now on I will not be purchasing any products tested on animals.

Let me know your favourite cruelty free brands!
See you soon,
Lucy x

Elemis Hydra Balance Day Cream Review

Hey guys, it's been a while...

 It's safe to say A Level exams & blogging is a pretty impossible challenge. They're (finally) all over now & I really want to get back to blogging so here we are!

I visited a spa recently and they sold a range of Elemis products - if you haven't heard of them before they claim to be a company that use nature and science to develop all natural products - and don't test on animals.

My skin has been playing up extremely in the past year, the perks of being an 18 year old and I've had awful spots with an oily t-zone but dry patches everywhere else and I've found it impossible to find a moisturiser that doesn't make me break out more, that is until I discovered this beauty:

The Elemis Hydra Balance Day Cream

This Day Cream is for combination/oily skin and claims to hydrate dry patches and distribute the oil production on your face.

It's safe to say this has been a skin and life saver. I've only been using it for a week yet there's been visible improvements, my skin is moisturised and I've seen minimal new spots and no dry patches.

The moisturiser itself is very lightweight and absorbs into my skin without leaving a greasy residue and is a perfect day cream for me.

 At nearly £40 a pop I was quite wary but with the amount of high street moisturisers I've been through, it had to be worth a try.

With the wonders it's done to my skin combined with the tiny amount I have to use each time, the money spent was totally worth it and I know I'll be repurchasing this again.

Have you ever tried any Elemis products that you'd recommend for combination skin? If so let me know!

Lucy xx

Late Summer Favourites Video

So a few months back, my bestie Rachel and I created our own YouTube channel - CollinAndBoo (nicknames we give each other) and we finally got round to a new video!
It'd be great if you could check it out, and if you enjoy it* like and subscribe!
* Also, if you don't, let me know any constructive criticism!


Hope you enjoy it!
Until next time,
Lucy :) xx

Summer blogging fail

Hey guys,
as we can all see my 'summer blogging' took an epic and awful turn and well, didn't happen!
I ended up being extremely busy this summer much to my surprise and I basically forgot to blog. To make things even worse I'm even more of a poor student after buying my first car, so I haven't been able to afford much lately and have lacked any decent ideas for blogging...

But with a new year at college approaching and a determined Lucy, I'm going to persevere through this broke-ness and give myself motivation because blogging is something I enjoy a LOT!
So, starting off with 1 post a week, I will get better at this, and can't wait to share some new posts with everyone...If there's any of you left!

Hope you all had a fab summer and aren't dreading a new school/college/uni year too much.

See you next week!
Lucy
xx

P.S. I've started a YouTube channel with my bestie Rachel, so it'd be great if you could check it out!

Blogilates Review

For about two years now I've regularly attended Pilates class, and I love it. So when my friend told me about Blogilates Youtube channel and app, I knew I had to get it.

The way the app works is that you choose what point of your body you would like to work on and use the videos surrounding this. At my Pilates class we never use music, so the POP Pilates series of workouts are super different and really good as I find it's easier to repeat the Pilates moves to a familiar song. The way Cassey explains and shows the moves is very helpful and not over-complicated.

The thing I've always loved about Pilates is how inexpensive and simple it is, but how much it works your body, and I was super happy to find that the case, the only thing you need for some workouts are weights (or as Cassey says, a heavy piece of fruit or bottle of water will do). These workouts are definitely more difficult than a lot of the stuff we do at our local fitness centre so it's a great way to tone your muscles if you can't afford a gym membership (the app is actually free, with access to a monthly calender costing 0.99p/month)

Another dynamic that I love about this app is the forums. You can login and read through posts with other Pilate's fans before and after shots, recipe ideas and just tips to keep you motivated. I've found it's a great way to find a sense of community in an otherwise solitary app. All of the Before and Afters are so so inspiring and give you such a push and remind you to keep going with it.

Finally, another great feature of this app as opposed to just Casseys YouTube videos is the recipes section. With things as simple as detox water to healthy breakfasts and desserts, the app does give you an all round kick into healthy eating.

Overall this is one of my favourite things to use when I'm trying to up my fitness, the workouts can take from 5-20 minutes, work you really hard and are super easy to fit into your day. I'd recommend this to anyone who's trying to tone up and get fitter for summer!

If you have any tips for easy healthy eating/exercise I'd love to hear them c:

Thankyou for reading! 

Until next time,

Lucy 

xx

I'm back! Summer make up look.

Hey everyone! It's been months since my last proper post, and I'm so excited to be back. I've missed blogging so so much and now exams are over, I can get back to regular posting!

As Summer in the UK has just about started, I thought I'd show you all a summer look I love to wear.

The products used in this post are Rimmel London Stay Matte Primer, Rimmel London BB Cream 9-In-1 Makeup (Light), Naked Flushed, Naked Palette, Naked 3 Palette,  Benefit Browzings Kit (Medium), Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion, Rimmel London Lash Accelerator Endless Mascara,  Tanya Burr Lipgloss in First Date , Rimmel Colour Rush Balm in Shade 'All You Need Is Pink'

 During the summer months, I really dislike wearing foundation as it always feels so heavy on my skin. Usually I tend to go without any kind of coverage on my face, but this year I really wanted to try out some BB Creams. So as a base I have used the Rimmel Stay Matte Primer and the Rimmel 9 in 1 BB Cream. It does actually say the BB cream works as a primer, but I've felt that using an extra primer just helps it last a little longer.

I then took Naked Flushed and put bronzer on my cheekbones, sides of my nose and a light coverage on my face to give me a little more colour and help my cheekbones become more prominent. I tend to only use a light dusting of the Flushed blush as it's quite pink and can become very obvious, whereas I prefer blush to be subtle. I then took the highlighter and used in on the tops of my cheek bones and on my nose.
And voila, there's my base! Nothing fancy, just a quick simple bit of contouring.

For my eyes I used the Urban Decay Primer Potion, to make sure my shadow lasted all day and had no creases (not that I've ever had that issue with the Naked palettes). I then used just the powder from the Brow Zings Kit to shape and define my eyebrows (doing the best I could, in need of getting them done again!)

For the actual shadow, I used Half Baked as an all over colour. I love the sparkle and gold of this colour, it's super summery and brings out the blue in my eyes. I then used Trick from Naked 3 from the outer corner to the middle of my eyelid to create a more varied colour. I then used Mugshot from Naked 3 along the crease and in the very outer corner of my lids, and finally the matte colour of Dark Horse as a softer eyeliner, as liquid liner can often run and make my eyes itchy in the heat. 

I put Dark Horse on my lower lash line and put Half Baked over the top to create a soft, shimmery and smoky liner look.

To finish this off I just applied mascara to define and extend my lashes (using my old favourite mascara, it's in like every blog post I've written I think!)

(so I totally forgot to take a picture of my lip gloss and balm up close... Oopth!)

I really like two coloured lips at the moment, so for this I took the Rimmel Colour Burst Balm and put it all over my lips. I adore this colour and find it quite pinky, which is an odd choice for me, as for lip colours I usually stay quite dark or neutral. I adore these balms because they're super pigmented and so so moisturising!

I then used Tanya Burrs lip gloss and put it on the centre of my bottom and top lip, dabbing it on and blending it out, to create a sort of 'gradient' look. Tanya's lipgloss's are also super moisturising and not too sticky.

And that's that! Here's the overall look I created, I hope you like it. I'm super glad to be back and cannot wait to start blogging more again!

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed this!

Lucy

xx

Life Update/Hiatus

Hi lovelies, 

I know I haven't updated in a while, sadly this is gonna be a short post to update you on why this has been the case. 

As I've mentioned before, I'm in my first year of college. It's getting to exam season, and exam season for me means a lot of stress. As well as all of that I've been trying to juggle learning to drive and working 15 hours + a week, which means I have minimal amounts of spare time. 

I love blogging and I've really enjoyed taking it up as a hobby this year, but I'll be honest - posting regularly takes a lot of time and effort, especially when I'm as picky as I am. At the moment, I'm really struggling to find that effort, especially when all my free time is spent trying to chill out or revise. I mean, I know I could throw together a few crappy, rushed posts about things I really don't care about but I really like spending my time and creating something I'm proud of. 

So, to cut a long story short, I will rarely be posting on here until end of June- beginning of July when I have more time, which really sucks. However, I think I've gotta have my priorities and unfortunately blogging has to stay in the background for now.

I hope you all understand and stick around until I can resume posting regularly again, have a fantastic few months.

Until next time,

Lucy

xxx