Hello to all of you beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast nerd universe and welcome back! I know the world is very crazy right now but felt like doing another beauty related post!

Brands I Am Not Buying From!

Disclaimer: This post is not to bash on the brands being mentioned. This is a way of showing the lead writer’s opinion on them and if you like they go ahead so please respect the writer’s opinion while you’re at it!

I know I should have done this years ago when I first started in makeup but I felt like doing this since you know I am in a low buy I am trying to stick to but with the pandemic it’s really hard but I am doing better. The reason why this late is that there are brands that are out of my price range or if I have tried them before with an item that was a sample and don’t like it or just me that I do want to talk about it and shows how I do speak with my cards when it comes to buying. Let’s see what I got!

Sunday Riley: First up is Sunday Riley! I tried this brand all thanks to GB Plus with their Vitamin C moisturizer in one of my boxes last year and I thought it was okay even though it costs $65 and you know me with skin care you don’t have spent butt loads of money to moisturize the face or find a way of reducing wrinkles and so on. Yes, I buy Murad but I get that on discount since it is also good for my sensitive skin but Sunday Riley I am not sure about. I felt weird when I used the Vitamin C moisturizer as in it felt weird after using it and knowing I had to use it very day before it goes bad. Plus the Good Genes Lactic Acid doesn’t appeal to me at all and of course they lied about their products as in Sunday Riley workers lied on Sephora in the reviews section so that is another reason why I won’t be buying from the brand because skin care does not work overnight it takes time to work or not work and also not all products work on everyone either. That is why I read the claims before buying or choosing for my boxes.
Marc Jacobs: I remembered trying a lipstick from this brand in a birthday gift from Sephora and it was tiny and the lipstick reminded me of a Mac lipstick. I feel that sometimes if I try a very luxury brand when it comes to some makeup items I get reminded of the brands I love if it’s similar like how I said that their lipstick mini reminded me of Mac in a way and I think I remembered the lipsticks being in the $45 to $50 range like Tom Ford, which is another brand I won’t buy, and to me that is over price for something you would wear on every day.
Natasha Denona: I tried one of the eye shadows all thanks to Allure’s Beauty Box and it was just okay. I wished I put them in my answer to the pallet tag I did with the question about products that aren’t worth the hype but to be fair I only tried one shadow from this brand. I have to say about my experience with the shadow is that it was powdery and did not last throughout the day. I did not see the smudge on my makeup wipe at all from it coming from my eyes. Even though people hype this brand up but not my favorite and to me too pricey because it is around $100+. Even though there are smaller pallets but they are more than Urban Decay prices and I feel that it’s too much for me despite buying the Game of Thrones pallet last year. Still not my favorite.
KVD Vegan Beauty: I know she stepped down from her brand but Kogendo will be keeping up with the dry formula of her liquid lipsticks. I’m sorry guys but liquid lipstick should not be uncomfortable to wear on the lips and for that price as well. I felt like this brand also lost touch with the fans after what KVD said even with the most recent statements of how she blamed influencers for her downfall when she said some unfavorable things the past two years which does cause people to turn away in the first place. Again a lipstick formula should not be uncomfortable to wear on the lips, besides I have worn liquid lipsticks that felt better on my lips after tossing Echo and Wolf.

Well guys that is it for now for this post. I can’t think of any other brands but once I do I may write another post on them. What is next, new book review on the horizon! Stay tuned!

Hello to all of you beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast nerd universe! I’m back with a new topic that came to me.

MakeUp Stores Stopping Testers!

That is today’s topic because I saw on my Newsfeed on Facebook that someone posted about how Sephora and Ulta are stopping store testers alongside the link to the article. I did take a read and this is what I think!

Disclaimer: This post is based on thoughts and opinions of the writer of this blog. Please respect her thoughts on the topic at hand. Thank you!

All thanks to what has been going on in the world with Covid19 and how the stores are starting to slowly open up and letting customers back into their locations even if it’s not more than ten or so at a time but one thing is that someone wants to do is try out a new foundation they have been eyeing on online and want to try it in store. Once they get in and head over to the counter or the shelves where it may be there are no testers. Why is that? Well, stores are putting customers’ safety first especially with the pandemic we have gone through for the past few months and thinking of removing the testers due to how they are a petry dish for bacteria to form. This includes foundations, concealers, mascaras, and even lip products since those carry the most infectious diseases on display.

If you remembered my story with what had happened to me at NYX, if you’re new here I will tell it again. During 2017 and still living with my parents, I went to one of the NYX locations in town and decided to try out the Alabama lipstick since I heard good things about it and it was a dupe for the Sephora liquid lipstick that was in the same color. The associate who was helping me hands the tube and I look at it in my peripheral and she asks, “Do you want to swatch it on your lips or hand?” I just froze because I have heard a horror story about testers causing infections and then swatched on my hand and it fit my skin. Got a fresh tube and a few more items and did my transaction and left. I was kind of annoyed because the associate could have harmed me with the lipstick if I did swatch it on my lips. Heck, even Sephora got sued that same year for a woman getting Herpes from trying out a lipstick in store. And of course with today’s pandemic the lips, the eyes, and nose are the biggest parts of the face where a disease can go and that is why we got the messages to wash our hands and use hand sanitizer all this time and seeing why that testers may be removed.

Yes, these things are part of the experience and the product should be tried out before buying but do you really want to risk it? Heck, even people have been risking it by using the mascara wand directly on their eye and even lip glosses on their lips but now that won’t be the case. That would go for perfumes too because your fingers are touching the bottle and you have to clean that bottle off after the person touched it. Besides the testers this would also cause the makeup artists in store be more careful with products when they are doing someone’s makeup for events and may go the same way with freelance artists too since products do have to be cleaned and sanitized plus you do have the disposable wands to use for mascara tubes.

Going back to testers and knowing that they are important for the experience I think brands should jump in and change the idea of testing and I am using this as a good example. To me brands should make sample cards with foundations ranging from light to dark, going the same with their concealers, blushes, and even lip products and send them to stores and explain to the customer to use this to match themselves and purchase the product online or come back with the match. It worked with Pretty Vulgar and Becca Cosmetics when they have sent BoxyCharm cards with samples of their concealer and foundation for Charmers to try out and answer surveys with their match to get that product in a future box. I got one of the Becca cards since I prefer trying new foundations and was able to match myself with Cashmere in the shades and got a bottle of this foundation. It worked out because it saved me time from trying to have a store associate going through samples and did it safely from home and having this cards for stores can do the same thing but who knows if it will be implemented or people are going to complain about the lack of testers.

Which brings up another point, with the experience part of it there are going to be people that may break into the products on display since that has been a big issue even before the pandemic happened. I have seen YouTube videos of former Sephora employees talking about customers breaking into gift sets to try out that ever-so-famous charcoal peel-off mask and other times customers go into the foundation drawers which they’re not supposed to and it also happened at MAC a couple of times too. Hearing these stories make me wonder if people don’t want to look at the display would they get into the product more? That can be even more risky because the item does get compromised and can’t be sold once it’s broken into. I remembered seeing this happen once when there used to be a Kmart near my parents’ place and a girl went up to one of the displays and opened the product and took it out of there and who knows what had happened to it. Plus some of my YouTube personalities have experienced while shopping for a foundation or a mascara or lip item that some of them were opened and swatched and like earlier that can have something going into it and build up over time if left on the display until an associate sees it. This does lead to tossing the product afterward because since it is broken into that would lose money and of course throw it out because the store doesn’t want to cause an uproar if someone gets sick. Which also brings to another point.

How stores throw away items when they are returned! I know this is about samples and testers but bringing this up is also important because some people have seen a video of an Ulta employee poking out eye shadows with a sharp instrument before throwing them away and this was a pallet that was returned by the way. Reason being is that when an item is returned after being swatched or partially used it has to be destroyed and tossed out. If they were placed on the rack again people will be more at risk because they don’t know what the previous customer may have had Covid 19 or not and in order to destroy the returned product keeps germs away and also discourages anyone from dumpster diving for it too. Remember how some people have done that at Ulta locations in the past? Best to just buy a new item anyways and just save yourself from being infected.

Conclusion: So, what will happen with ending these testers? It’s hard to say because it can be a safety thing since we don’t know who has passed by and what they may have and if they had Corona in the first place. I think stores want to keep their customers as safe as possible and don’t want to go through issues if it were to happen. What I’m worried about is that there is going to be someone who may break into a product though and leave it after testing it since that can happen. I would prefer if the brands would do the sampling cards because it can be done safely and once the card is used and the shade is matched it’s thrown away in the person’s home versus being at risk in the store and the store will still get it sale online or in person. And also towards mascaras, I didn’t get to mention, good idea is to watch reviews on it before buying because YouTube is a good source for reviews and of course you have customers posting them almost every day and month to express their experience. People have gotten sties and I don’t want that to happen either. So, in the end it will be interesting to see how this change will happen and how effective it would be. Yes some people will be annoyed if they can’t get a foundation or concealer tested but keeping that safety is important.

Well, that is it for this post! I know it was a bit rambly but at the same time trying to talk about the topic at hand and seeing what protocols are being in place as things are starting to open up again and trying to get back to a somewhat normal. Well guys, stay beautiful!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast nerd universe! I am back with much of a serious topic.

Brands Losing Touch With Reality!

Disclaimer: This post is a response to a video and my opinions on what was said. Please respect my thoughts and opinions, thank you!

Yes, another somewhat of a cosmetic controversy where I am seeing it myself. This morning I saw Hot Mess Mama MD talking about how beauty brands have been losing touch with reality in releasing with so much. I agree since I have been a makeup user since 2008 and seen so many brands releasing a lot of products almost every week or month and sometimes they can be either inconsistent in formula due to the demand of pushing them out or even keeping up with other brands. The main example that Hot Mess had used in her video was Anastasia Beverly Hills where they have released their pallet with Jackie Eina in August and then a week or two later Norlina, Anastasia’s daughter, made a video about the Norlina Pro Collection and the first one released after that. I have seen a few reviews and felt like they released one item and jumped to the next even with reviews people have done when they received the pallet as PR. Last month, they did release Norlina Pro 2 and 3 on the same day and now giving pictures of the Carly Bible pallet! Jeez Anastasia pull the brakes! You’re not a factory, let us breathe!

I know, I bet you’re wondering where you can take a breather after all that. Never! The beauty community is over saturated with releases and it’s hard to keep up. I admit I’m getting overwhelmed with the new stuff coming out, heck with Christmas items already out there it it’s not giving a chance for a breath of fresh air. Norlina did mention that the reason why she has been releasing items back to back is due to the demand by retailers and how they are saying the customers want new items. Not really! I think we need a break in between. I remembered when I first got into makeup I was able to get new items once to twice a month and even watch reviews before I buy on my dad’s next paycheck. I am admitting that I used to have my dad buy my makeup and not getting into too much detail either, I was just the daddy’s girl. Anyways, I felt like even drugstore brands weren’t pumping out so much as much Colour Pop has been lately. So in other words a lot of brands are losing touch and losing it bad.

One thing I have noticed is that with the pumping out product the formula suffers a lot as in the formula is not as pigmented as it used to be. One good example is now Makeup Revolution. I love this brand since they were known as the brand that dupe big pallets and I admit I have some of them, one of them is of course the Light & Shade and use that for work when I do and now it feels like they’re putting so much that their eye shadow formula is not as great as it used to be. I see some videos talking about the Shook Pallet and someone did say it was not really pigmented. I have this pallet and hoping it’s pigmented since there are times where it is pigmented for some people while others not so much. Another example is of course Too Faced even though I feel like they have taken breaks in between release this year but their formula has suffered a bit. I remembered how they did one release to the next and so many people saw that the formula was not like how well the Chocolate Bars are formulated and best examples were the Power of Makeup pallet, the Chocolate Chip pallets, the Chocolate Shoppe, and of course the Too Faced side of the Better Together pallet with Kat Von D! Jeffree Starr may have said in his newer documentary is due to how they sold themselves to Estee Lauder but to me it’s that they released so much within months of each other that it felt from what I’ve seen in reviews that they didn’t test it out while making it before they released it to the public. One example was Power of Makeup and I did like that pallet but I do notice the pigmentation issues that I have to dig into it. I am pretty selective with what I buy from them and I admit I bought two of the Christmas 2019 releases and will be testing those on YouTUbe.

Another example I have seen and it’s becoming a bigger trend is where brands uptake their biggest best seller of a shade and release it into other items as time goes on. Nars is really guilty of this because they have done it with their shade Orgasm which is a blush shade that everyone knows and loves. They have made it into a mini version to a big one and even a limited edition collection alone. Now it feels like Kat Von D is doing it with the lipstick shade Lolita which she did it as a blush/shadow and to be a full on shadow pallet and now a sequel to it when she has yelled at Nars for selling to China. I only bought one Nars blush and that was a different shade from Orgasm because I felt like it was too much of a hyped product to buy. It’s great that a brand has a bestselling item but they shouldn’t turn it into so many other things because it bores the consumer and it can cause a loss in interest in that item. Even my best buddy Vivi found the Lolita pallet boring when he loves KVD himself! Heck, someone did suggest Champagne Pop to me and I didn’t buy it because it felt like I didn’t want to be a part of that overhype when Jacklyn Hill was the face of Becca and decided to go for other peachy highlighters that I can enjoy and they came from brands I have loved for a long time which I admit Colour Pop is one of them and of course Maybelline since I feel like they are thrown aside. Which brings me to the next point!

Finally, I feel like some of the brands that have been long time favorites are being thrown to the wayside and being forgotten. I admit I have done that with some of my old favorite brands like Maybelline but have been getting back into them because they were there when I started getting into makeup. Heck, I have been getting back into Revlon after seeing them in one of the top lists in Allure for best lip tints and I could see why and that it’s so good! The brand I’ve noticed that has been brought to the top of all has been Morphe for many years! Even though they’re just a privately owned version of Crown Brushes but a lot of influencers have been promoting Morphe for the longest time, pass out codes, and so much more. Heck, Jacklyn Hill always pushes them like crazy and it feels like with that push from Morphe that we lose touch of our favorite brands of all. I felt like I rarely see anyone talk about Makeup Geek, NYX, and even some more indie brands that are out there due to how much people were getting into Morphe. To me I kind of feel like once that brand gets bigger and once someone tries it it’s not that great. I even mentioned I found the brushes just okay not the best because I get brushes from other brands and even in my subscriptions that I enjoy due to quality and how good it feels, I admit one of the Morphe brushes in the vegan set did tickle me when no other brush does.

Whew! That was a lot to cover because I want to see a break in between releases because I felt that I can see what will be coming and also be able to play with the pallets in between and that is why Urban Decay has been a favorite of mine due to how many months in between they allow to let people play with their makeup. I mean Naked Reloaded was released in February then Game of Thrones around May leading into June and finally Naked Honey released last month and of course in between Naked Honey and Game of Thrones we did get Stay Naked foundation which they released a lot of shades for more consideration of people’s undertones. If I see the trend continuing for Urban Decay we will probably see their next item probably around January or February which excites fans a lot more than most other brands. Heck, Coastal Scents really waits for a year and a half before doing anything new from what I’ve seen. Still brands should at least give their fans a break and just slow down because if they keep speeding up more people are not going to care about their stuff as much as they used to and plus sometimes the formula will suffer if they’re not too careful with testing it to see how it shows on someone’s lid. And of course, no more of the same shade because that has been all done before!

Well guys that is it for this post! I know it was a bit of a wordy one but had to get my thoughts out there. So, next time I will have the next book review and now waiting on my box subscriptions to come in. Until next time!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds traveling the vast universe, it’s time for something serious!

My Thoughts on the Beauty Community Now!

I wasn’t expecting myself to travel down this dark nebula but I think it’s time to talk about it. If you guys have not been on YouTube for two weeks or so, Tati, James Charles, and Jeffree Starr had a bit of a Dramagedon! First, James was sponsored by Sugar Bear Hair for sleeping pills which Tati got upset since she has Halo and he has been a huge friend of her’s and she couldn’t believe what he did. Then Jeffree ended up in the mess after sending text messages and plus there were videos made and things went crazy! If you have been on YouTube and tired of this, I think everyone has because it feels like we’re losing focus on the Beauty Community as a whole. I am glad that Jacklyn Hill decided to bring focus back by advertising her own makeup brand she has been working on and people got excited and what made me happy is that she was bringing focus back to what brought the community together.

When I first got into makeup, I remembered watching YouTube around 2009 when I was graduating with my A. A. and soon to go to get my Bachelor’s and I remembered getting into watching hauls by people like Makeup By Tiffany D. and Dulce Candy and other smaller people. Back then I didn’t know who Tati was, nor Jeffree, not even Jacklyn, I only watched other people doing huge hauls from CVS, Target, even Sephora and heck Ulta was started being mentioned and I even wondered if there were locations near me i9n my part of Orlando when I lived back there. I still remembered even going to Kmart when it was still open and got my very first lip glosses from Wet N Wild and it went from there and I got into Almay, Maybelline, L’Oréal, and even NYX later on because of YouTube. Now it feels like that’s lost because of the drama. I may have mentioned that I do like watching drama channels but to see what is in the news since I am hardly subscribed to some of the people that get mentioned, wait I am subscribed to Jeffree myself sorry, but I used to like Jacklyn but I felt like as time went on since around 2016 since that thing between Jeffree and KVD happened that is when it felt like the focus from makeup shifted. As in, we kind of lost the makeup aspect that made this community thrive.

Should We Cancel?

Not exactly! The thing is like reality t. v., we always love to watch some of the drama and sometimes we want to either keep up with it or like me be more informed about what’s going on with some of the stuff taking place and if I get bored then I will watch some of my favorite beauty people talk about stuff they want to get or what they picked up that may catch my eye, heck I still enjoy What’s Up In Makeup when I am not a convention for a weekend. I would say if you’re just bored with the drama then watch someone else doing something else. Heck, I watch Anime Abandoned and What the F Is Wrong with You two take a small break.

My Advice: I would say if you don’t like the idea of supporting problematic makeup influencers I would say follow the smaller ones that aren’t getting much notice and not just me but other people. I do have makeup videos and have two coming up this weekend. It’s only fair that paying attention to some people who love makeup as most of us do should be watched more. Who would I suggest?

Danielle Schmidt
Kirsten Leigh Ann
Nicole Quinn
Angelica Nyquist
That Girl Shea XO
Leisha who as also known as Ssparkedge
Head to Toe
Makeup by Tiffany D.
Jessica Braun
And That’s Jacob
And so many more but I highly recommend these people and should get more views despite how famous of some influencers. Heck, even Samantha Ravendal and Raw Beauty Christy are getting up there but still down to earth!

In the end, really it comes down to is really who we watch and also getting that focus back to makeup since this is supposed to be for beauty and beauty’s sake.

I know this post didn’t make much sense but I felt like I should say some of my thoughts. I am missing the joys of makeup on YouTube and heck it even brings new people in like we have Molly Berk who is blind and loving makeup despite her challenges like me. Again with all the drama, I feel like the focus has shifted from “Check out what I bought!” To pretty much something toxic and hoping things do get better. Since we are the audience we should pick the stuff we want to watch and who to support and hoping we can bring that makeup focus back to YouTube rather than just focusing on the drama. Now next will be the convention stuff!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds! Welcome back from traveling the vast universe! I am back with a new post!

Brands I Have Not Completely Cancelled!

Yes, it’s time to talk about brands I have not cancelled out completely. Cancelling someone or something has been a big thing lately and beauty has been a big part of it. As someone who has been in it for a while knows what’s it like to hear about the drama about different brands or about their owners and well I feel like I moved on or just feel like I still like the brand despite the controversies and choose to step those bits of drama aside. What brands do I include? Keep reading.

Tarte: First is Tarte Cosmetics! As we know that with how brands are starting to expand their foundation range to include every skin tone like Riana did with her brand Fenty, Tarte had a bit of a controversy with their Shape Tape Foundation. They only released a few shades on launch and that didn’t include everyone which ticked everyone off. Tarte did say they were going to release more shades but haven’t seen the result of that. I didn’t really cancel them because for a while after getting the Swamp Queen pallet is that their stuff was kind of boring for me. They release a lot of neutral pallets even though I tend to wear those most of the time but I do like to do colorful ones other times. I was hoping to get a colorful pallet until they revealed Icy Batch last year for April Fall’s. I wouldn’t mind buying that version but had heard the one that got released is not really pigmented and I already have Blue Blood. Anyways, I have purchased some Tarte items that are more colorful and they are the Tarte Toasted which is like Naked Heat but has more reds to it and the Tarte Tartiste Pro Remixed which has more colors like a painter’s pallet. I did also get their blush pallet that went on sale recently and waiting on that to arrive and of course Rain Forest of the Sea 3 in BoxyCharm. I may get their summer pallet if it’s still available because it has more colors to it and in my 21 Days of Beauty Haul I did say they should span more into colors since they did it in Swamp Queen, Toasted, and Tartiste Pro.
Jeffree Starr Cosmetics: For a while I didn’t buy from Jeffree Starr due to how there have been issues in his warehouse and how he has treated customers. Now that things have changed for him due to Shane Dawson’s documentary series last summer, I have noticed that he has focused more on his brand rather than getting himself into more drama. I think the only most recent stuff Drama Channels have bene talking about were the burglary of his products and how Burlington and TJ Max have bene selling expired makeup from his brand. Yes, I remembered the stuff KVD had said but now she is going through her own controversies as the moment and well it’s not doing well with her brand. Jeffree, on the other hand, there is one thing is that brand do change their tune and that is what I have seen. SO far I have purchased Blue Blood Shadow and Liquid lipstick Bundle, Deep Freeze from his Skin Frosts which I heard really good things about and Unicorn Blood and they are all amazing! I am wondering why I didn’t try it earlier. I will be trying more items from Jeffree and that includes lip glosses he will be releasing soon.
• Huda Beauty: Next is Huda Beauty which there was a controversy where she copied off of Beauty Bakerie. Basically Huda copied othesame powder that Beauty Bakerie have with their Easy Bake Baking Powder and used the same promoting campaign and everything. Yes there are times where brands do copy off of each other and well it didn’t stop Ipsy from sending me their products. I started with getting their liquid lipsticks and it is something I never thought I would love. Then I got one of the lip Strobes and fell in love with that and then got one of the Obsessions Pallets in Smoky as a Glam Bag add-on and loved it. Now I got another Lip Strobe as an add-on and hoping to get more from this brand. I did love how the owner of Beauty Bakerie did say this as a response, “Huda is still welcomed here.” As in she will let it pass and forgives Huda. I will also try out items from Beauty Bakerie since I want to try her blending sponges.
• Too Faced Cosmetics: Almost forgot these guys! I have not exactly cancelled these guys and it is one of the first high end brand I bought from or shall I say got gifted with a pallet and that was the Chocolate Bar pallet. After getting some of their Christmas Café items and their Chocolate Bars, which this was around the time they had three before the fourth one came out, I decided to not get any more of their stuff since I heard how the quality of their newer items went downhill. As in not enough pigmentation in some of their shadows, heck the Too Faced Side of the Better Together was less pigmented than the other. When I heard about Chocolate Gold coming out and how people reviewed it I did put it as a maybe since I did remember the issues I also had with the Better than Sex minis. Now that time has passed, I did get the Gingerbread Spice Pallet from Holiday 2018 but had to go through EBay for it. I did miss getting items from the band and then got the Better than Sex mascara in BoxyCharm and all thanks to 21 Days of Beauty I did get two of their bronzers from the Chocolate line and the Golden Chocolate Bar. So, yeah did not cancel them out right. They are pretty much a big staple in a lot of people’s collections even mine next to Urban Decay.
• Z Pallet: The last brand is Z Pallet! Not sure if you guys have heard but the reason why a lot of people stopped buying is that I think it was two or three years ago the owner announced a new induction plate was being released and it would help with getting shadows out of pallets easily, even blushes and other things that people want to get the pans out of. People noticed the price being close to a hundred dollars and commented that they won’t pay that much and that they can get one cheaper on Amazon. I did research it and saw them for cheap and people tend to use different ways of getting pans out and the owner made fun of them when she had taught them how to use their oven to create their own pans. This caused people to leave and stop buying from the brand even just after getting into Ulta when I remembered a ton of their magnetic pallets were there and now it’s just two. I love having a magnetic pallet and create custom pallets for work with shadow pans through sites that provide them. I know other places offer them but Z Pallet paved the way for them. I still have the two pallets I got from Amazon and got one from Ulta since my Coastal Scents one broke. So yes, haven’t cancelled them.
Well, that is it guys! Those are the brands I have not actually cancelled. Yes, we speak with our wallets but we do think about what we want to buy and these brands still got my money and plus it’s just makeup and some of it should be enjoyed. If you still want to buy from a brand then do so, these are the brands I like and also still like.

What is next? Well, our last few Holiday Matsuri videos and hoping to get my subscription boxes for this month since BoxyCharm did arrive but it’s in my leasing office so will send Gondras to get it. Stay tuned!

Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back to this blog for a second time. I forgot to write something!

CoverGirl Is Now Cruelty Free, What about the Other Brands?

You read right! Huge cosmetics brand CoverGirl is now Cruelty Free and Leaping Bunny Certified! They have partnered with Coty in order to become Cruelty Free which for now on they will no longer test on animals and no longer using ingredients tested on animals and Coty is working on making their brands to be Cruelty Free by 2020! That makes a lot of people happy, even me since I am seeing that a good portion of my makeup is Cruelty Free and I did say a long time ago when I first touched this topic here that brands who aren’t on Leaping Bunny’s list should work to losing animal testing and guess what? CoverGirl is doing that just right! As you know animal testing doesn’t give accurate results when it comes to cosmetics, don’t worry I am not going to talk about animal brutality, I did see a documentary named Earthlings all thanks to someone who suggested it and won’t see it ever again. Anyways, like I said testing makeup on animals don’t give you the allergy nor skin irritation and other side effects that makeup can cause on human skin because you’re testing it on a different piece of skin that is not human. I did listen to a BBC podcast episode about how 3D printing is going to be used in order to help with testing cosmetics by printing out flesh samples which can be a really good alternative and not only that, California is starting to take a step in the right direction by getting rid of animal testing in their state and hoping to lead other states the same way but now back to CoverGirl!

What Should This Mean to Other Brands? Definitely taking the leap of course! Like I said above, animal testing with cosmetics is not a good way of testing to see if a lipstick is working right in plumping them and same with a certain ingredient if it’s safe to use. This should be a gateway for other brands to start thinking more especially with consumers nowadays. Like I said in my Pet Peeves Post when it came to beauty, we as consumers speak with our wallets and I’ve been noticing a change towards getting more Cruelty Free items. I admit it, I did say most of my stuff is that even though I do confess I still buy MAC and Maybelline but it doesn’t mean they can’t turn around either for one reason.

What is that reason you may ask? Well, a good portion of the market is in China! In order to have your makeup brand to sell in China it has to be tested on animals before it hits shelves due to safety reasons. This only includes the Republic of China not Hong Kong and also any airports in China as well. They also lifted testing any local products and now apparently, just reading an article on living kindly from this July, that China will start working on moving away from testing on animals with Leaping Bunny and the United Kingdom International Trade will be helping them on it. Yes, they are a huge market for a lot of brands and that is why they’re selling there and they do state in their policies that they will be helping the fight, for example the most recent one to go and sell was Nars. Famous for their Orgasm blush, still shaking my head at that, Nars started selling the beginning of this year and knew what they had to do but claimed they are doing it in order to help China fight to end the testing. Wouldn’t it be better to just not do it and sell in Hong Kong instead? That’s my question. At least now the Chinese Government is starting the fight but the question is will it show results? Who knows we will find out probably before 2025 which according to studies China and Japan are looking towards for better alternatives and more vegan products?

Which brings me back to what CoverGirl did, everyone is starting to say that brands should take notes and start doing what CoverGirl has done over time and finally kicking the testing out the door. I am glad they did work on it and it shows that starting now is not too late nor too hard. Yes the FDA says there is no laws on testing your products even finished products but there are the brands that keep their status to a “T.” And I did say before about consumers speaking with their wallets because if the brands notice that their fans are leaving their products on store shelves like Target, Sephora, Ulta, Walgreens, and even Walmart, then it kind of paints a big picture. Some brands that are indie and Cruelty Free are showing up more in stores like Colored Rain, MakeUp Geek, and even Colour Pop has bene showing up in Ulta and Sephora. Even Juvia’s Place and Beauty Bakerie is showing up in Ulta now. Heck, NYX Professional MakeUp has brick and mortar stores now, Orlando has two locations even as an example! If the consumers are starting to turn to them more then they have to start kicking out this testing and take CoverGirl as an inspiration for that.

What Will I do? Okay, I do admit I still have some animal tested brands which include Maybelline, Garnier, L’Oréal, MAC, and I did used to use Almay but their makeup has become a little pricey on my pocket for a while now, I am seeing that if these brands for example and many more that have been testing for many years can take a page out of CoverGirl’s book and ask them and Coty how to start? Where to start? How can we get onto Leaping Bunny? And so many other questions over a cup of coffee and a plate of scones. Heck, do the same thing in talking with Urban Decay, NYX Professional MakeUp, and some of the indie brands in how they keep it altogether when it comes to that status? The right conversation can lead to more conversation and be able to work with each other. This brings the dialogue and hopes for the future since I did say China is working on it and now the brands should still work on it and help more, who knows the future will be bright. Glad that CoverGirl has made those first steps and let’s see if Maybelline and other brands follow suit!

Well, that is it for this post! Yay for CoverGirl for leading the way and I am admitting I will be buying more stuff from them since I need another tube of Total Teaze mascara after all since that works on my lashes better! I understand it’s hard for me to leave some of these brands behind when a good portion of my makeup includes NYX and Wet N Wild after all, now hoping for the best for other brands even my fave hair care one, Garnier Fructis. Anyways, I hope this post will be my last one before Ranger Stop since I have bene on a roll with posting lately even in the Beauty Category. Except…it looks like I will have a beauty haul coming up, haven’t done those in a while! Stay tuned for that and any other posts to come from Ranger Stop 2018 by paying attention to our Twitter! Until next time! Stay beautiful while traveling the universe!