Vegan on the Weekend: Trip to Lush

The bathroom in my new (gorgeous) apartment features this:

Obviously, I had to go to Lush to get some bath bombs to try out the tub (and the bath bombs, which I haven't used before because I always have been scared of sitting in the tubs in my previous apartments, even once scrubbed). I got 2 -- the geo phyzz ($7.15), which is composed of sea salts that dissolve slowly in the tub and soften the skin; and the avobath ($5.80), which I have heard turns tub water a lovely avocado green color. As you may have guessed, I used the geo phyzz last night and am saving the avobath for later. Of course, both are vegan.

While at Lush, I browsed their new holiday collection. At 47 days away, as I commented to my salesperson, it is way too early to be thinking about Christmas, etc. She assured me that Lush will be having a black friday sale complete with a DJ, and I assured her I will be there to get my free face something (I forget exactly what) with purchase of a holiday gift set. Until then, my favorite of Lush's vegan holiday items are:

Let Them Eat Cake lip balm (pictured right). A vegan lip balm with the tastes of orange and lemons, currants and sultanas, vanilla and sherry. Clearly top of the list. $6.95.

Satsumo Santa bath bomb (pictured left). Get cosy in the bath with the Santa man? I find this a bit odd, but it features a refreshing citrus fruit blend with manadarin oil, bergamot oil and orange blossom absolute. Sounds yummy to me. $5.95.

Best Wishes gift set (pictured below). Features four holiday bath bombs, all vegan: Satsumo Santa, of course, Mr. Butterball, filled with bits of cocoa butter, So White, and L'il Lush Pud. $19.95 -- the perfect price for a holiday gift.

Designer Vegan Deal: Urban Decay Sale

Urban Decay, purveyor of a huge line of vegan cosmetics, is hosting its Friends & Family sale online now through August 30th. My friend who alerted me to the sale "highly recommends the 24/7 eye liner pencils, the brushes (amazing), eye shadow primer potion, and the eye shadows (the less glittery ones), especially the deluxe shadows." I enjoy Urban Decay's de-slick mattifying powder, perfect for nights out when oil and shine pervade. Find the mattifying powder here ($29).

The code for the event is FNFF1; it'll give you 30% off your whole order until 8/30.

Vegan(ish) Purchase: Makeup and Kiehl's!

I haven't updated my swiftly dwindling stock of makeup and skincare products for months and months and months, so when I landed at the King of Prussia mall on Sunday, I went a bit crazy and purchased a mini-stockpile. Here are the highlights, all of which I think are vegan, but I'm never really sure with makeup and skincare products unless its clearly marked one way or the other (such as Kiehl's stylist haircare line that includes silk -- eek -- that was my favorite pre-vegan!). As for the companies I purchase from, I have no idea what their policies regarding use of animals for testing are (either on their completed products or as to their suppliers). Please don't pounce on my choice of companies or products. Transitioning a life to eating vegan, dressing vegan, and using only vegan products is complicated and takes time; for me, the products that land in my bathroom or makeup case seem to be the biggest challenge. Regardless, here's some of what I got:

To begin, I replenished my supply of Laura Mercier's foundation primer. I use the original, created in 1995, to "prime" the skin before application of foundation and other layers. It is $30; available here.

While I was replenishing my supply of primer, I noticed, and fell in love with, Laura Mercier's shimmer bloc. I purchased it in the peach mosaic and intend to wear it over foundation to add a bit of shimmer to an otherwise matte face. The shimmer bloc is $38; here.

For my eyes, I've been craving a purple-hued shimmery eye-shadow. Naturally, I went to MAC for that and ended up purchasing the mineralize eye shadow duo in odd couple (pictured), a combination of purple with gold mixed with lavender and bronze veining. The eye shadow goes on sheer and leaves a soft shimmer. The eye shadow duo is $19.50; find it here. To apply the eye shadow, I also purchased a tapered blending brush ($28; here).

Finally, I bought a bag-load from Kiehl's, including intensive treatment for dry and callused areas, which is the best I have found for swiftly taking care of ultra-dry areas ($22.50 for a tube; here).

Designer Vegan Deal: Urban Decay Cosmetics Sale

Urban Decay is holding a "friends and family" sale on all its products now through April 17 -- 30% off (everything!). Urban Decay clearly marks all its vegan products and even has a separate page highlighting solely its vegan products. You can find that page here; there is tons and tons of stuff. My friend who is obsessed with Urban Decay wrote me to tell me that her favorite vegan items are the 24/7 eyeliners, the eyeshadow primer potion (pictured right), and the brushes ("which are so soft and gorgeous," according to her email). So, start there and keep browsing.

To receive the 30% off, enter the code: FNFS9. Also, if you spend $35, you get a free deluxe lipstick sample in "sellout," which is vegan.

Relaxing on the Weekend

It's a cloudy, potentially rainy Sunday where I am located, which means it's time to take a long, luxurious bath. I'm still working through some of my pre-vegan bath products, many of which I assume are not vegan. But, over the holidays, one of my best friends sent me a gift set from Lush filled with entirely vegan items! I love it all, especially the handmade soaps. They are pretty to look at too, such as the ice blue soap (a peppermint soap; here). A search of Lush's website reveals that it has over 200 vegan product, all clearly marked as such, so check it out!

And recently (as in 2 days ago), I stumbled across a retailer of natural spa and body products, all created by hand, all never tested on animals, and all vegan: Cactus & Ivy. The company is based out of California and sells body lotion, body balm, body scrubs, face moisturizer, and lip balms, among other items. Check out the complete product line here.

Cactus & Ivy markets sampler packages, which I would love to try! Better yet . . . which I would love to win . . . MF4U is giving away one Traveler Sampler to a lucky reader. Enter the contest here! This is what you could win:

Friday's Accessory: Christopher Drummond Beauty Vegan Makeup

Christopher Drummond -- a former fashion model who is now (or once was?) Eve Ensler's personal makeup artist (among many other professional activities) -- has created a line of "luxury" cosmetics that are vegan (note: except for the lipgloss). Praise him! Vegan! If only they were a teeny bit less expensive.

I haven't tried the products, but my favorite based on the packaging (a dark violet glass jar!) and my current makeup need is the powder/cream Veludo Velvet Foundation (pictured right). The 8g container is $65 . . . and it comes with a flat top synthetic brush to apply the foundation, which offsets the cost a bit. A sample size is $4.99 (here).

Find all the products and more information about Christopher Drummond Beauty here.

More Vegan Cosmetics!

One of my friends from way back in the day -- we've known each other since we were three years old -- recently started a makeup company with her sister called KristenLaura Cosmetics. The company is based out of the Farmington Valley Area of Connecticut and ships its products nationwide. It offers a full line of cosmetics -- the powder products including foundation, eyeshadows, blush, and bronzer are vegan. My favorite is the stardust (a light gold) shimmer eyeshadow because I like to stay neutral with my eyeshadow tones, but enjoy the extra glimmer.

Check the vegan makeup out here.

Vegan Cosmetics

Last month, I noted that Urban Decay makes a line of vegan cosmetics. If you're not taken by Urban Decay's products here are a few other options:

Ecco Bella via Alternative Outfitters: find lipstick here, mascara here, and lip gloss here (all $15.95). Find more cosmetics at Ecco Bella's website, available here.

Beauty Without Cruelty via Alternative Outfitters: find pressed powder, loose powder, moisturising matte or satin makeup, blusher, mascara, eyeliner, and lipstick here. BWC's prices are slightly less than Ecco Bella's. I especially enjoy the cute packaging (see pressed powder left). BWC also makes hair, skin, and body care products, available here.

Sevi Cosmetics: vegan skincare and hair care products and vegan makeup. Sevi makes a cute mineral foundation and brush kit, available here.

Also, some MAC products are vegan, but not all of them. The most common ingredients that MAC uses that are non-vegan include lanolin, beeswax, and carmine. Via an Internet search, I am told that you can call MAC customer service department at 1-800-387-670, (and choose option #7) and request a vegan product list via email or snail mail. I do know that MAC's Pro Lash Mascara is vegan ($12).

Vegan Cosmetics

Due first to Thanksgiving and then to some intolerable Thanksgiving weekend traffic, my posting has been delayed. I did go shopping on "Black Friday" (of course), although I didn't find very much that was interesting. More on the shopping later though.

Over the weekend, my friend sent me a link to Urban Decay's awesome line of vegan cosmetics. I am amazed and excited that Urban Decay dedicates a whole page to vegan items! Check it out here. You can print an Urban Decay vegan shopping list here.