Moving! +Links

Hello, Everyone!  As you have most likely already guessed, the absence of posts has been due to my crazy pre-moving schedule.  I recently finished my visa application and am going out of town for a family event before returning and packing my life up to move to London early September.  I have so much information and correspondence to discuss but simply haven’t had the time to write the posts. 

Instead today I wanted to share a few links to cruelty free/vegan articles and websites as well as current event videos.  We must nurture the whole self, right?  These are just some things I’ve been enjoying that I wanted to share with you in lieu of original content.

Vegan
“B-12and the Vegan Conundrum”

“Is Wool a Cruelty Free Product?”

“Plant Based Birth Control Methods”

Vegan in London

Vegan London – This website has a plethora of information on vegan restaurants, salons, stores and more in London.

Fat Gay Vegan – I love this blog which discusses eating vegan in London and vegan social events.

Go Cruelty Free – This website has a search for Leaping Bunny approved items in different countries!

Vlog Brothers because they make the news understandable

"Egypt…Explained!"

"Why are American Health Care Costs so High?"

Manic Panic Review

            

          For the past few months, I have been rocking some green Manic Panic streaks in my hair.  My experience with Manic Panic products was different than I anticipated so I’ve decided to do a review of their Flash Lightning bleach kit and Classic hair dye.  Overall, I am happy with the way my hair turned out but disappointed with the Manic Panic products.  Honestly, some of my disappoint stems from my own lack of research but other issues are inexplicable.

           Manic Panic is a cruelty free company, and all of their dyes and bleaches are vegan as well as some of their cosmetics.  They label their Classic dyes as semi-permanent, and they have a rather large variety of unnatural hair colors.  Using this brand was convenient, since unlike my other hair dyes, I could pick all this up at my local Sally’s, and the bleaching kit included a bowl and brush.

          I purchased the Flash Lightning 30 bleach kit because, on top of having dark hair, Manic Panic recommends bleaching your hair first to get a vibrant color.  I followed the instruction manual exactly but had issues.  I had a friend help me apply the bleach from tips up to roots in an even coating.  However, within ten minutes the hair at my forehead and temples was almost completely bleached and the rest of my hair was still black.  I also didn’t realize how yellow my hair would be after the bleaching process without a toner.  Manic Panic’s website and the bleach kit made it sound as if the kit was all I needed to get a true color so I assumed a toner or something was in the mix.

          I colored my hair with Manic Panic’s Classic dye in Midnight Blue.  Now you may be thinking ‘Didn’t she say she had green hair not blue?’ and you would be correct.  The yellow in my bleached hair mixed with the blue dye giving me green hair.  I was happy with my hair eventually, but it is disappointing to spend money only to have issues with a product that seemed pretty popular.

         The thing that has annoyed me the most is this product’s lack of staying power.  I’ve used semi-permanent dyes in the past, and I would not categorize this dye as semi-permanent.  The vibrant color you get is gone after only two washes (I’m being generous here), and it fades revealing the bleached hair in less than six washes.  It came off on pillows and stained the floor of my shower, but couldn’t manage to stay in my hair very long.  So little of my hair was properly bleached that I kept re-dying the small sections as they quickly faded.  However, I will not be repurchasing this now that I’ve run out.

         I’m baffled as to why this is such a popular hair dye company and wish I had done more research before purchasing with them as it seems other people had the same issues.

What Does Cruelty Free Mean?

I know there are many terms that get thrown around in the cruelty free community that might be slightly ambiguous and confusing.  My mother recently went cruelty free and vegan as well, and I noticed some of the issues she was having with terms assuming one thing actually meant another.  So today I’m putting together a little Cruelty Free vocabulary lesson to go over some basic terms.

Cruelty Free

Cruelty free only refers to the testing of products on animals (anything from rats to monkeys and dogs) usually through vivisection.  Because there is no way for consumers to learn if a specific product (say your mascara or dish soap) has been tested on animals, this term usually applies to an entire brand or company.

 

What qualifies as cruelty free is different to many people.  For me, a company should not animal test ingredients or finished products, not contract another company to do this for them, not stipulate “unless required by law,” or sell in China or any other country which requires animal testing of all beauty products.  To some people, a product is cruelty free as long as there is no animal testing of the finished product.  Cruelty free does not mean vegan, natural, or anything else although it may also be these things.

Vegan

Vegan products contain no animal products (ex. bone or sinew) or byproducts (ex. milk or other secretions) as ingredients.  There are many ingredients that can come from both animals and vegan sources so double check with a company to see which theirs is if they have not specified on the ingredient list.  Some items are considered vegan even though they contain insect ingredients.  Some people consider these vegan, and others (like myself) do not.

 There are many 100% vegan companies that are also cruelty free, and many cruelty free brands will provide you with a list of vegan products even though they aren’t completely vegan.

Parent Company & Subsidiary

A subsidiary is a company owned by another company (ex. Burt’s Bees is owned by Clorox).  A parent company is the company that owns the other (Clorox).  I avoid purchasing from brands like Burt’s Bees because their profits really go straight to Clorox, the parent company, who do animal testing. 

Some people do not mind purchasing these brands and consider them cruelty free.  On the Leaping Bunny list, subsidiaries owned by an animal testing parent company are marked.  For more information, check out my previous post on the subject here.

Leaping Bunny List

TheLeaping Bunny List is a list of cruelty free brands put together by the CICC.  It is free for a company to get on the list, but there is a fee to put the Leaping Bunny symbol (not all rabbit symbols are from LP) on products.  These companies must not animal test ingredients or finished products or have a third party do so on their behalf.  These companies must also not sell in China or any other country which requires animal testing. 

Unlike many other lists, the company’s claims are verified by a third party audit.  Companies can be and are routinely taken off the list if they do not continue to meet these standards.  For more information, check out my previous post on the subject here.

PETA’s “Don’t Test” List

This list is compiled by PETA with companies which signed their “statement of assurance.”  These companies must not animal test ingredients or finished products or have a third party do so on their behalf.  These companies must also not sell in China or any other country which requires animal testing. 

PETA does not verify the company claims and has had questionable companies in the past that eventually lost their cruelty free status.  It is free for a company to get on the list, but there is a fee to put the PETA bunny symbol on products.  Although this would not be my only or first source for information, they do have a plethora of companies listed and have begun labeling vegan companies.

The Vegan Society

TheVegan Society Trademark is truly the gold standard for people looking for products where absolutely no animals were harmed whether through animal testing, harvesting for ingredients, or previous testing. 

To get on this list a product must not contain animal or insect products or byproducts, not have ingredients or finished product tested by the company or a third party, and contain no animal derived GMOs.   They do verify these claims.  This list appears to go by product rather than company.

[EDIT:  It has been pointed out to me that The Vegan Society does certify products that are sold in China.]

I hope this crash course was helpful.  These seemed to be the main terms thrown about, but there are obviously more concepts, labels, and groups out there.  Please feel free to comment if you have any questions or would like to clarify anything above. 

Is MUA (Makeup Academy) Cruelty Free?

MUA or Makeup Academy is a cosmetics brand available in Superdrug stores.  From what I understand, MUA is on the low end of the quality spectrum, but I still wanted to check it out.  I was disappointed in the response I received and will not be pursuing any more clarifying information about the brand.

April 26, 2013
“I have some inquiries about MUA's animal testing policies. I understand the EU ban on animal testing recently went into effect, but I would appreciate if you would still answer these individual questions for all of MUA's products, not only those produced and/or sold in the EU. Does MUA test ingredients and/or finished products on animals or have a third party do so on its behalf? Does MUA direct sell to China or any other place which requires animal testing of products? Also, are any of MUA's products free of animal products and suitable for vegans? Thank you in advance for your help!”

April 26, 2013
“Thank you for your email.  We can confirm our products are not tested on animals and are 100% cruelty free. Our products are not Vegan or Vegetarian suited, as some of the ingredients are derived from sources not accepted by Vegans or Vegetarians. If you would like more info on the ingredients please see our ingredients page on the website.

http://www.muastore.co.uk/ingredients”

            I will be avoiding MUA because I can’t be sure about vegan products.  Although they provided a link to ingredients it isn’t actually that helpful since many ingredients can be either plant or animal based.  They also didn’t provide information about selling to China.  However, after poking around their official website I see that they ship directly to China.  I’m assuming this is a transaction the Chinese government would step in and test the products.

I will not be purchasing from MUA.

Is Sleek Makeup Tested on Animals?

            I am a Youtube person.  I honestly learned everything about makeup by watching famous makeup artists and amazing everyday gurus on Youtube.  Somehow I follow an unproportionally high number of British makeup gurus so, although I’ve never bought makeup in the UK, I know what they have.  Sleek is one of these brands I’ve noticed in numerous videos so I sent them an email.

April 26, 2013
“I have some inquiries about Sleek's animal testing policies.  I understand the EU ban on animal testing recently went into effect, but I would appreciate if you would still answer these individual questions for all of Sleek's products, not only those produced/sold in the EU.

Does Sleek test ingredients and/or finished products on animals or have a third party do so on its behalf?  Does Sleek direct sell to China or any other place which requires animal testing of products?  Also, are any of Sleek's products free of animal products and suitable for vegans?
Thank you in advance”

April 26, 2013
“Thankyou for your interest in Sleek Makeup.

We do no currently test ingredients or finished products on animals.
We do not test ingredients or products on animals through a 3rd party
Our manufacturers do not test ingredients or products on animals.
We are not owned or affiliated with any companies that test products or ingredients on animals.
We do not currently sell our products in China and have no future plans until the laws there change on animal testing.
A list of our vegan products is attached.”

            As far as this list of vegan products is concerned, you can see it is very well organized.  When I compared this list to Sleek’s website there seem to be more items online.  Some of this has to do with repackaging certain products in palettes but other than that I’m not sure.

I’m happy and satisfied with this complete and clear response I received from Sleek.  This is the kind of prepared, comprehensive, and competent response we should be receiving from forthright and professional companies.  While I wish they had a greater variety of vegan products, I’m happy to know there is a drugstore/high street brand that I feel comfortable purchasing. 

I will purchase from Sleek’s selection of vegan products.

Vegan Food in Paris, London, and Dublin

I’ve spent the past few months traveling much more than usual.  Therefore, I’ve been out eating awesome food and not emailing companies about their animal testing policies.  It only makes sense that I post a blog on vegan food and not my usual shtick.   I have six places that I will be covering split between two posts.  This post will cover vegan food in Paris, London, and Dublin while the previous post covered Los Angeles, Seattle, and Israel [link].

Paris

This was my first time in Paris as a vegan.  I thought Paris would not be the best place for vegan food, but I was wrong.  I went to Loving Hut and had a nice bowl of pho and the pictured seitan in orange sauce.  East Side Burgers has the best vegan burger I’ve had to date.  I have no photos because I ate it so quickly.  This is a vegetarian restaurant but almost all of their burgers are vegan and can be made with vegan cheese.  I also got this awesome apple tartlette with a crème brûlée-ish sugar top.

MOB is also another burger restaurant which I believe is all vegan.  I had their signature burger, and while I was eating I wasn’t too into it.  It was very plain with bun, patty, sauce, and some onions (I believe).  However, I’ve been thinking of it since and would probably try it again if I were around.  I also got this amazing chocolate cheesecake.

London

London has two Loving Huts. Yes, two both off the Northern Line.  I personally like the one farther from central London, but they are both good.  Maybe buffets are big in London (?) because both offered a buffet for a really reasonable price with many good options.  They were also selling these cute illustrations of vegan sources of vitamins and vegan holistic remedies that I wish I had picked up.

Ms. Cupcake was pretty good, if I do say so.  My first time there I got the Pecan Madness cupcake and enjoyed it.   However there was a lot of frosting and it was very sweet.  The second go around I got this amazing chocolate chip cookie sandwich.  Yum!

I ended up spending a lot of time around Trafalgar Square during this trip and there was a great grocery nearby (had co-op something in its name).  I could be in and out in about 3 minutes as they have a sort of express hot food station set up already.  I was particularly fond of their potato wedge fries for a warm option and a bigger package of cut up fruit.

Dublin

Dublin was the last stop on my whirlwind Fall/Winter travel extravaganza.  By this point I had picked up some weird congested cold thing from an Australian girl.  I needed to take things a bit easier, so my first night in Dublin I headed out for the closest vegan restaurant called Govinda’s.  The food was so tasty, the portions so big, the prices so reasonable, and the people so nice that I ate every other meal there. 

If you go, get the small plate.  Trust me they will pile it up with all the food you ask for.  They make five new entrees a day plus rice and soup.  The vegan items are marked, but I simply walked in and asked for a bit of all the vegan food.  Again, I ate so quickly that when I remembered to take a photo I had demolished most of it.

Is elf (Eyes Lips Face) Cruelty Free?

Most people have heard of elf cosmetics or Eyes Lips Face because it is one of the most inexpensive cosmetics brands on the market.  I have purchased quite a few of their products in the past even before going cruelty free.  Honestly, I was disappointed with most of their products although the few I do like, I really like.  Please leave a comment if anyone is interested in a post on the elf products I enjoy.

I’ve emailed elf at least twice before without receiving a response which, to say the least, was annoying.  I was happy to finally get a reply with my last email since I was chiefly concerned about whether their ingredients were vegan or not.  On elf’s FAQ page [link], seen in the image below, they state all their ingredients are vegan, but then only discuss beeswax and lanolin.  I wanted to confirm that all their ingredients were vegan not only their lanolin and beeswax replacers.  Of course, their animal testing statement was also very narrow so I wanted to confirm they met all of my cruelty free requirements.

April 26, 2012
“I have emailed elf about its animal testing policies multiple times, but have yet to get a response. Can you please let me know if elf animal tests ingredients and/or finished products at any stage of development or has a third party do so on its behalf? Does elf sell in China or any other country which requires animal testing? Also, many elf products contain ingredients which can possibly be plant based or animal based. Are any elf products free of animal ingredients and therefore suitable for vegans? Thank you”

April 26, 2013
“Thank you for your support and interest in e.l.f. cosmetics. At e.l.f. Cosmetics, we believe that beauty comes from within all of us. Our line of luxurious cosmetics captures great looking skin with gorgeous colors and quality ingredients. Our products are designed to let your inner beauty shine through.

We are proud to say that we do not test on animals or endorse such practices. We currently support PETA and are partners with PETA in the Caring Consumer Project. All of our brushes in our essential line are made from cut natural horse hair and have genuine wood handles. Our brushes in our studio line are vegan friendly and made of anti-bacterial, synthetic Taklon hair. You can find all e.l.f. ingredients indicated on the packaging of our products as well as on our website. All ingredients used in e.l.f. cosmetics are vegan friendly, safe and meet F.D.A requirements. Ingredients are listed on our website as well as on the packaging of our products.

Our vision is to empower and educate women to play in innovation without sacrificing their budget and feel confident in herself and the products she's using. We offer a complete line of makeup and professional tools-all at an extreme value price! To learn more please visit eyeslipsface.com.”

May 20, 2013
“Thank you for answering my original email but can you please answer these three questions clearly.  Does elf or a third party test ingredients?  Does elf or a third party test elf's finished products?  Does elf sell in China or any other country which requires animal testing of products? Thank you!”

May 21, 2013
“We manufacture our products in our own factories. We test our own ingredients and products. We do not sell our products in China, although we do manufacture them there. Please feel free to contact us with any other questions or concerns.”

I was happy to learn that all of elf’s cosmetic ingredients are vegan friendly.  However, I was a little surprised that they sell horse hair brushes.  As I discussed in my Real Techniques post [here], synthetic Taklon brushes have numerous advantages over natural hair brushes.  As always, I don’t believe PETA’s animal testing standards are up to par, so elf’s association with them is not a plus to me.

The only element of their response that strikes me as controversial is their relationship with China.  They do not sell in China and therefore their products are not subject to Chinese government animal testing.  However, they manufacture their products in China making their products extremely inexpensive and presumably bolstering the Chinese economy.  This distinction is another one of the personal comfort decisions to be made when deciding what you consider cruelty free.  At the moment, I am personally fine with this as I do not purchase much or often from elf.

I will continue purchasing elf’s products.