27·09·15

On the side of my large fairy cross stitching, I've been working on a little Nyan Cat picture for Tyler! It was his own request, because he had a phase when he was obsessed with watching the video on YouTube.

I found this pattern, and thought it looked kinda easy and cute, so I ordered some threads and aida weave (I chose 14 count).

I also decided to add some sparkles on the rainbow, inspired by this picture. I'm very pleased with my work!

The frame is custom ordered from EzeFrame.co.uk, because I couldn't find one small enough.

I really fancy some more geeky cute cross stitch projects. Wonder what's next? :P

12·09·15

This is going to be a continuously growing list where I add the names of companies and brands that I use, like and support. It's not in any way going to be a list of all cruelty free brands, just my personal favourites.

To find out if a brand is truly cruelty free and doesn't test on animals directly or third party, I've got a few methods that I like to use. The first thing is checking with PETA. I've noticed that not all approved companies are listed though, so I also visit Logical Harmony's Cruelty Free & Vegan Brand List. I trust this list and always refer to it even if a company is listed as cruelty free on the PETA page, because it also lets you know if the questionable brand's parent company is acceptable. I think this is just as important.

Let's get started!

Currently the brands on my favourite list are:

• Dr. Bronner
• Zoya

To be continued...

11·09·15

And my journey to cruelty free beauty products begins with this - a nail polish remover! I found Zoya when I was researching alternative nail polish brands that are cruelty free, and the Zoya products are also non toxic and vegan!

This particular nail polish remover I had actually hear of before, when Nicole from "Young Wild and Polished" on YouTube mentioned it and gave it very good reviews in this video. I never thought I'd be buying it, because I never heard of the brand before, and buying from an American website (almost) always gets pricey...

But after a bit of research I found a UK website called Nail Polish Direct that stocks Zoya products. So when I ran out of my old nail polish remover, I decided to take the plunge and buy it.

It's kinda pricey for a nail polish remover, but after using it, I think it's worth every penny. I paid £9.95 for it, but it's a pretty big bottle (237 ml), and it comes with a very handy pump, where you just put your cotton pad and press down to soak in nail polish remover. It means you don't have to tip your bottle upside down to get too much out and waste lots of product.

The nail polish remover is also used as a prep for nail polish, and on the bottle it says "extended polish wear guaranteed". The nails definitely feels clean after using the remover, and it doesn't leave a strange stain.

Another plus is that it smells nice too! At least that's my opinion. :P I will definitely keep this nail polish remover in my collection. It's an amazing product, and you get such a good feeling using a beauty product you know is completely cruelty free!

03·09·15

I've found a new life mission. To make my skincare and makeup stash completely cruelty free! I don't know, I think I've just woke up to things that I've previously chose to ignore. Obviously I've been aware of the cruelty occurring, but I don't think I've understood the true extent of it. Most companies are corrupted in some way - even if they don't test their products on animals, they test their ingredients on animals, or buy products from third party companies who test on animals. And if they pass all those tests, they're selling their products in China, which by Chinese law requires the products to be animal tested.

I've decided I'm not very happy to support this. Animals shouldn't suffer because humans want to wear lipstick. Getting all my makeup and skincare products cruelty free will be a long process, and a lot of research is going to be required. I'm not going to throw any of my makeup away - I can't afford that. But when I run out, I will do my best to buy something cruelty free.

I think I will also make a list to post here of which brands I'm using that are cruelty free!