Restructuring

You may have noticed my absence lately. (well, hopefully!)

There are many (positive) changes in my life lately, asking me a lot of energy.

However, I do not want to give up my blog.
But I am going to restructure it a bit.

The idea behind my blog is actually to talk about non animal tested products.
Which I will continue to do.

The animal cause stays in my soul.

But more and more, I realize that if I want to live a lifestyle which corresponds to my values​​, there are not only cosmetics to look at.

So I want to expand a little more the subjects on the blog.

I want to talk about a cruelty-free lifestyle in Montreal, to share my little discoveries.
I also want to talk about advancements in the animal cause.


My goal is not to be the party pooper, but to share what I know.
No graphic image will be presented.


I hope you'll enjoy my blog!

I write to you soon  :D

International Kissing Day! MOUAH!!

July 6th, it is International kissing day!

That day, Lush invites you to their Sainte-Catherine store to help them to set a new Guinness world record between 11 am & 3 pm.

Yes, the brand who fights since forever against animal testing wants to collect as many lip prints as possible in only one day.

For more details, click here!

Cannot be there ?

You can still participate!

Take a picture of your kiss and publish it on Instagram or Twitter with the #crueltyfreekisses hashtag.

You could win a full set of their Emotional Brilliance collection.

lush.ca

I can't wait to see the pictures!


I hope to see you participate!

After Israel and EU, here comes India!

Yesterday, I forgot my cell at home, and of course a huge news got out!
I should forget my phone more often! :-)

The Humane Society International (HSI) has been working for a long time to convince India to put an end to animal testing.


here is the great news !

It will be now forbidden to use animals to test ingredients and finished products for cosmetics in India !!!  

It is now MANDATORY for cosmetics brands to use alternative tests methods that don't involve any animals.

That's a victory for people fighting against animal cruelty.

 

The war is not won... yet!

Unlike Europe, the importation of products cruelly tested won't be illegal.
This means a brand will have the possibility to test in another country and then sell its products to Indians.


However, if you see ''made in India'', it will be cruelty-free !! (the product, not the brand)
And we all know that brands like to make their products in that kind of country since there's cheap labour there.

You may read what HSI wrote about this news here.


We must remember that the animal testing ban law in EU did not apply in one and only step.
Before March 11th, it was the same situation than in India.


That's why this new Indian law is great news.
Eventually, even imported cosmetics will have to be cruelty-free.

pic from hsi.org

The rumour says that we'll have another good news Monday.
I Wonder what it might be ?

Any theory someone ?

Physicians Formula : Organic Wear Mascara

I almost finished my Organic Wear  100% Natural Lash Boosting mascara from Physicians Formula


It is meant to enhance lashes by lengthening, thickening and giving them some volume.

It is pretty easy to find in drugstores and costs approximately 10 to 15$

100% of the ingredients are natural
44% of the ingredients are organic
Hypoallergenic and fragrance free
Gluten free
Ophthalmologist approved

It is not vegan unfortunately :-(
There's beeswax & yogurt extract in the ingredient list.

The brand is approved by PETA and cruelty-free

I have to say I am satisfied with this product. It does its work and stays there the whole day.

When comes the time to take if off, it's easy.

It does smudge a bit though , but since it is not that much, it's easy to correct.
Nothing dramatic.

The only downside I see about this mascara is that it's not waterproof.



Mine is in Black.
But UltraBlack is also available.
                                                                





On the web, many compare this Physicians Formula mascara to the Covergirl Lashblast.
Since I do not buy from brands that condone animal testing, I can't tell if it's a good comparison.

There are 3 other mascaras from the organic wear line:

Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin FakeOut

 

Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin Jumbo

 

Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin

 

 

 

 

 

Have you tried this mascara ?  What do you think ?

What's the difference between a rat, a banana and you ?

 

 

 

 

 

veganism is the future

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sun! Where are you ?

The sun is capricious these days in Montreal.

But never mind, we must still protect ourselves from its rays.
We should use a sunscreen shine or rain, summer or winter.


Here are my sunscreen suggestions :

 

 



From left to right :

 

Alba botanica

12.99$ for 113g

vegan

 

Aubrey Organics

23$ pour 118 ml

 

Kiss My Face

13.99$ for 88 ml

vegan

 

Badger Balm

21.99$ for 87 ml

From left to right :

 

Coola

36$ for 90 ml

vegan

 

Suntegrity

45$ for 50 ml

 

John Masters Organics

32$ for 2 oz

 

 

Let's not forget our lips :

 

 

 

From left to right :

 

Kiss my Face

Balms at 3.49$

 

Alba Botanica

Balms at 3.99$ & 2.75$


 

Finally, some advices !

 

 

To make sure we are well protected, we must choose a minimum SPF of 15.

We should apply the sunscreen at least 30 minutes before exposing ourselves.

Don't forget to put some sunscreen on your ears !

The moments the rays are the most dangerous ? from 10 am to 4 pm.

With that, wear sunglasses that protect you from UVA & UVB and wear a hat.

I'm preparing 2 other posts about sun products :
after sun & sunless tanner :-)

Don't forget to come back !

 

Hard Candy - it ain't sweet...

Hard Candy is not on PETA's cruelty-free list no more.

As you may see in this print screen showing the list as it was in November 2012, HC was there :

 

 

 

 

 

 

And now, here is a print screen from that same list as of today, June 9, 2012

Hard Candy doesn't show after Harbingers brand as in the November list...

 

 

 

When a brand is off PETA's cruelty-free list, it means the organisation has doubts and serious reasons to believe the brand is not animal friendly anymore.

 

 

 I boycott Hard Candy.

Father's day!

It is father's day June 16th!

Do you already know what you're going to do to celebrate?
I don't either :-(

Here are some gift ideas :

John Masters Organics ?

 

 

leave-on hair treatment (37$)

 

 

 

moisturiser & after shave 2 in 1 - eucalyptus & agave (39$)

birch & cedarwood cleansing & shaving bar (11.20$)

Yarok ?

 

 

starter kit (shampoo-conditioner-foam-spray) (48$)

 

 

styling whip (25.34$)

 

Herban Cowboy ?

 

 

 

 

aloe shave cream (12.99$)

 

 

 

 

after shave balm carrot & cucumber (12.99$)

 

 

 

 

cologne (34.99$)

 

A wallet ? yes, a vegan one with a picture !

 

cork wallet from Corkor on Etsy.com (approx. 40$)

 

 

 

 

retro wallet from ohsoretro on Etsy.com (approx. 20$)

 

 

 

 

Men love food !

 

Aux vivres seen by me

Chuch Bistro seen by Vegan à Montréal (in French)

Yuan seen by Nouveau Vegan (in French)

 

 

And you ? What will you do ?

 

 

 

 

The vegetarian baby

Here's a video you may see a lot lately on the web

In Portuguese (Brazil) with English subtitles

I want to adopt him!

A beautiful color

It's summer and we love to use vibrant colors on our nails.
But no need to spend a fortune to buy new nail polish colors !

Here's a trick I saw on youtube, I don't remember exactly where.

You only have to put a first layer of white.
Then you can put the color you want.

I would suggest the LA Colors white which costs about $ 2 at Jean Coutu or the essence white at Pharmaprix for about the same price.
The bottle of LA Colors is a bit bigger.

Since we won't see the white, no need to spend a lot on it :-)

 

 

I do not know if you can see the difference between the two fingers, but the left one is more pimpant.

I do not think the picture does justice to the colors.

 

Obviously, once you have completed your manicure, you will not see any white around.
As I did this as a test, I have not put much effort into it.

 

This technique works well with colors that are already vibrant but for which you want even more sparkle!

 

I used SpaRitual Dreamsicle color

 

 

Eyebrows threading

This is the method that I use for my eyebrows for some years now.
It costs me a big $ 4 each time.
I have to go every 2 or 3 weeks.

No product is used, so I know it is not tested on animals.
In addition, unlike wax, skin cells are not torn during the operation.

I do not say it does not hurt, but as it is fast,we do not suffer too long.

I found you a video on youtube that demonstrates the art.






I always go at Dees but there is also IndoPak

Tea is ready!

Some nice David's Tea

Why am I talking about tea ? Because animal testing can go that far...

Around a year ago, PETA found out that Lipton was doing it for its teas.
Thanks to the organisation's work and to the public reaction, Lipton that belongs to Unilever, did put an end to the testing. (only for the tea, not for the other products!)

If you want to know more about that, you may click here.



That is why I also check teas now.  :-)

I wrote (in french) to David's tea and got an answer that is really clear :
No animal testing on ingredients, formulations or finished products.
They make sure their suppliers don't do animal testing either.

When you write to a brand, you should always expect an answer that is that clear. That's the only way you'll be able to tell if the brand is Cruelty-free or not.


Now, let's talks about the teas!

Iced teas

Since summer is almost here, let's look at some iced teas!
There is 39 different flavours at David's tea.

I'm pretty sure you'll find one you will like :)  Here are some examples:



coconut grove



kiwis big adventure

citron oolong



midsummer night's dream



mango fruit punch





 

a dog with rythm!

It is totally not what I talk about usually!

But this video is way to funny to not share it   :-)

Mother's day !

The month of May is the return of spring and the sun but also the return of Mother's Day!
This year, it's the 12th it happens!

Here are few gifts ideas

A vegan Matt & Nat bag and wallet ?

 

 

 

 

 

 A Lush bath flower ? Or a bouquet ?

 

Some DAVIDsTEA ?
 

A perfume ?

 

 

 

 

 

Makeup brushes ?

 

 

 

 

 

Tickets for the Continuum show ?

in Montreal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What will you give your mother this year ? 

 

 

 

 

 

Real feathers are so out!

You like feathers but knowing it is brutally taken on live birds bothers you ? Me too.

 

Here are some more interesting options that are cruelty-free.

 

 

 

Woojoo store on Etsy - 36.25$

 ChelseaSmileVintage store on Etsy - 13.46$

 

 

 

 

Lovesexton store on Etsy - 25.68$ & 20.51$

 Still prefer the real feathers look ?

No problem !

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery !

 

LoudMouthDesigns store on Etsy - 10.70$

 

GoldenSilence store on Etsy - 14.50$

 

 

LeosLantern store on Etsy - 8.29$ & 10.36$

What am I going to choose now ?