Hello two thousand and fourteen, pleased to meet you.

Ah, a new year is freshly upon us, eh. It's normally a time when people reflect on the year gone by and make a new resolutions.....but my memories too bad for that and I don't make promises I can't keep. So, I'm going to attempt to look to the year ahead & maybe lay out some plans. Some of which I may even keep too!

Firstly, move house....maybe.

Big changes are afoot & moving to a new homestead is among them. I've been in the city centre for 10 years and, as much as I love my flat, it's time for change. The fantastic summer we had last year made me pine horribly for a garden...I'll probably do what I always do in the nice weather and admire it from indoors & never expose my alabaster skin to it, but it's nice to have the option, y'know?! Also, a whole room to work from! A whole space that's dedicated to making stuffs that doesn't encroach & then take over and destroy the rest of the living space...I can almost taste it! Think of the possibilities, how much more creative and productive I can be....oh, baby, am I excited at that thought. Less so at the automatic assumption that the boy & I will produce offspring, but you never know, eh....

Get more housewares on the go.

In relation to the above, I can now expand on the amount and size of furniture I customise. Yes I am excited about this, think of the possibilities! My wee mind is awash with ideas, but don't expect to see any of them for the first few months of the year, cos it's gonna be a busy one!
And not to fret if your into the wee disfigured figurines, they'll still be plenty of those in the mix...

Little and large....the possibilities are endless!

Attempt to blog more.

Yes, it's fair to say my blogging is anything but regular. It's sketchy at best, but please forgive me, I have dead good reasons, honest!!
Firstly, my flat is too big of a middin (tip) to take any kind of decent picture to do regular outfit posts. I work from here & it's jam packed as a result, but hopefully the big move ahead will remedy this. 
I'm also pretty busy a lot of the time making stuff and attempting to go to the gym as well as being very absent minded, but I shall attempt to remedy this & bring more of my random rants, reviews & nonsensical chat for no apparent reason.

Rant more!

I am a big animal lover, always have been. I have always been vehemently anti-fur, but in the past wee while I've been less vocal about it than in the past. Not sure why. The recent images of Miley Cyrus and Rita Ora are massively dis-heartening & just lend to thoughtless consumerism in my opinion. So if they're gonna wear it, folks like me are gonna combat it where we can!! Although I'll try not to make the picture I post too graphic......try.
Holding in a good rant poisons the soul, so time to let it out!

Let Ms Cyrus know how you feel - https://www.facebook.com/MileyCyrus?ref=ts&fref=ts

Now, I may do a range of Taxidermy? jewellery, but please bare in mind that any wee beastie I use met a natural end, they WERE NOT harmed in any way by me or anyone else. They are normally found & I think they are beautiful and it's better to preserve them forever rather than see them lie about the ground, waiting to be unknowingly squished by a passer by....

A beautiful butterfly I found and preserved.

Get my make-up ooooan.

I qualified as a make-up artist in 2007 & it's safe to say that I really love it....colouring in faces is never a bad thing. But of late I feel I've neglected it in favour of crafting. In the coming year I will be the maid of  honor at my best friends wedding, so that shall be the first task on my agenda....wedding make-up ago-go. I'll also be doing my best to get back into photo shoots as I always really enjoy them and have had the privilege of working with some cracking photographers and models who really make you feel like part of the overall creative process. 

On top of that I'm also going to try and wear make-up more myself. There's no better way of testing out and practising using a product than on your own face, but sitting making things or going to the gym don't lend themselves to putting on make-up much, do they? Time to get out more Lady Bon! I may have to get ma ass a part time job I think....

Have I mentioned my best friend is getting married?

That's right, my dearest chum has decided that it's time to sacrifice herself to the God of matrimony this year ....mental, I know ;) But I get to wear a fabulous dress & be fancy for a day, so batter in! 


All this sounds positively exhausting....think I'll see you all in April!

UPDATE: vegan/vegetarian make-up available on the high street

PLEASE SEE NEW LIST HERE

Updated 15th DECEMBER 2015

Righto. I did a rather lengthy blog on how I was making sure all of my make-up kit was vegetarian and vegan (read the full blog here). This isn't something I imagine I'll ever really stop looking at as these things change all the time, and I've updated the lists I made already.

This is an updated list of cruelty free make-up that is also suitable for both vegans and vegetarians. It's a pretty long list and it's nice to see cosmetics companies sitting up and taking notice of concerned consumers & not sacrificing their previous ethics for a quick buck! It's also good to see as it also makes life much easier on those looking for halal make-up. 

Logical Harmony - This site is a really great resource. They have all kinds of useful information ranging from product reviews to a detailing typical animal derived ingredients. They have a complied a list of cruelty free companies that have vegan options and there's a few high street retailers in there. Every company on the list has been contacted directly by Logical Harmony. 

See their list  here.

Now, like I said, most of these companies can also be found online and usually that is where they're full range of products is to be found.

'B' by Superdrug - Most of Superdrug's own brand products are suitable for veggies and vegans (see individual products for details). B is a skincare and make-up range and I think almost of, if not all, of the make-up is vegan. 

They're Full Coverage Foundation and B All mascara are fabulous!
Needless to say, B can be found in Superdrug.

Barry M-  All products are veggie friendly and their vegan products are marked as such in the individual product ingredients on their website.

Barry M can be found in both Superdrug and Boots.

Barbra Daly for Tesco - Tesco aren't the easiest to make contact with, so you can imagine my delight when I came across My Kind of Beautiful blog and find that she had done just that & provided a list of Barbra Daly make-up that's vegan! (see it here). I highly recommend the moisturising foundation.

Barbra Daly makeup can b found in larger Tesco stores.

Body Collection makeup - Another budget beauty. This one is a bit harder to find on the high street as it seems to pop up randomly, usually in sets at Christmas. I've seen it in Debenhams before during the festive season as well as B&M and pound shops. It's not bad quality either, especially when you consider its price, so if you come across it it's definitely worth checking out. A list of their products which are NOT suitable for vegetarians/vegans can be found on Love Thy Make-up, read it here. Body Collection can also be bought from this site.

(Thanks to Silly Sarah for bring this to my attention). 

Butter London - Most know Butter London for their nail products. They are cruelty free and have a long list of vegan products. Admittedly most of their make-up can be found online, but their makeup is creeping in there and lip glosses are on the stands with the nail lacquer. 

Having said that, it is worth noting that the were using the Leaping Bunny logo without permission back in 2013!! How rude. See blogger Hotashi's post on it here. (Credit -  Je Taime by Hotashi).
Having said that, hopefully this is something Butter London will look to remedy by getting actual certification! 
The Plastic Diaries contacted them for a list of their vegan products (2014).
Butter London can be found in larger BOOTS stores.

Collection - Formally known as Collection 2000, this make-up has been a budget beauty favourite for many of us since our teen years. Good news is they now have a list on their website of items suitable for vegans and/or vegetarians! Find it here . (Thanks to Silly Sarah for bring this to my attention).
Collection make-up can be found in Superdrug stores.

GOSH - GOSH make-up is cruelty free and much of it is vegan. List here (credit: mykindofbeautiful.org)

GOSH can be found in most Superdrug stores

Illamasqua - Illamasqua have a good range of vegan products, they were kind enough to send me a list of their non-vegan make-up which was only 13 items long. They asked I don't print the list for legal reasons. However beauty blogger got a response from them detailing some products (link here) & My Kind of Beautiful has another (link here).

I have seen on Peta2 that they are in the process of compiling a list of their vegan products (ref - PETA 2 here)

Illamasqua can be found in Debenhams stores.

Lush - All their make-up vegan. Their Emotional Brilliance loose powder is great. 

All of their products are veggie and vegan items are clearly marked.

Lush stores can be found on most city centres as well as online

Make-up Gallery - Firstly, this make-up lives in Poundland! How good is that?! This brand received a lot of attention when it launched for offering good quality products for incredibly low price. It is cruelty free & the Vegan Womble has a list on their blog listing vegetarian/vegan options. Read it here. (Thanks to Silly Sarah for making me aware of this).
Make-up Gallery is available in most Poundland stores.

Miss Vegaloucious - If you're lucky enough to live in Glasgow you should def check this place out. If not, don't worry as they're now online!! (link here). They only sell veggie friendly make-up and most of it is vegan. Lots of different brands, some of which I'm unfamiliar with, but the ones I do know are impossible to get anywhere else in store. They have Yaby, OCC Liptars and Sugar Pill!! Not to mention a range of beautiful Bedellum brushes.

They are also working on their own brand products, I recently got a black eyeshadow and it's pretty fantastic.....

Models Own - Models Own used to be a staple of most BOOTS stores, but they do seem to be vanishing, bar the cosmetics tools and brushes. However, they do have other stockists dotted around the UK. 
All their products except lipsticks were once vegan (see), but this is no longer the case. They are good enough to mark their vegan products in their ingredients section. See it here.

Sleek - Sleek now mark which of their products are vegan and vegetarian in the ingredients section. The I-Devines are now vegans and pack a whole to of pigment in them. And at 8 quid a pallet they're well worth a try.

Sleek can be found in Superdrug and some branches of Paul's Hair.

Technic makeup - Almost the same as Body Collection, they seem to appear in stores randomly, especially at Christmas. Again Love Thy Make-up have a list of their products NOT suitable for vegetarians/vegans. Read it here.
Again, their products can be bought on this site.

Too Faced - Too Faced products are all cruelty free and they have a vegan list in the FAQ section of their website, read it here. 
Too Faced used to be located in larger Boots stores, but seems to be disappearing. I'll be keeping an eye out for other high street stockists to list.

Whole Foods Market - Whole Foods supermarkets are dotted all over the country, the Glasgow store is to be found in Giffnock. They have a small make-up but I don't know if they vary from store to store. They definitely have vegan approved make-up but it is pretty pricey Each brand marks it's products accordingly. 


Companies to beware

So this may be a bit of a downer, but i felt it important to add, as there are still A LOT of misconceptions out there.

Lime Crime - Lets start with a controversial one, why not!

Lime Crime are ever expanding and the have a lot of loyal fans, not least of all due to their Velvatine lip colours. They have claimed to be cruelty free and marked their products vegan for a long time,  they can even be found in the vegan section of Cocktail Cosmetics (although this will soon cease to be the case as they have pulled distribution and will only be able to be bought direct from their own site). But there is SOOOOO MUCH information now out there saying Lime Crime is are indeed NOT vegan as well as alluding to all sorts of shady shenanigans. Claims that they have bought cosmetics wholesale and simply changed the packaging, claims that they have threatened to sue bloggers for simply giving their products a bad review, claims that they're ripping off other brands....the list continues. 

There is some pretty nasty and personal stuff out there, most of it targeted directly at Lime Crime founder Xenia (aka Doe Deere) and quite unnecessary. However one blog which I believe to be reliable on this matter is Oh Dear Doe Deere. The writer of this, Nicola, has done her research!! This is one gal who knows whats she's taking about and strives to information unlike some of the other sites I've seen on the matter.

(Though the only high st store I have seen LC in is Miss Vegalusious, I still thought it still worth noting here).

Urban Decay - Urban Decay were once champions of the cruelty free and, bar one hick-up with the Vegan Eye Pallet, were much loved by followers of cruelty free. They had good products in a great range of colours and vegan items were clearly marked. Unfortunately in 2012 they were bought over by notorious animal testers L'Oreal. L'Oreal then decided to take them into China where animal testing is compulsory, carried out by the Chinese government. After a rather fierce consumer backlash they then turned on their heels and announced that they would no longer be entering the Chinese market.

While that is great news, they are still owned by animal testing giant L'Oreal. There are two schools of though on weather to still buy from companies like Urban Decay; those who feel that by purchasing their products that they are sending a message to companies like L'Oreal that they should change their ways as consumers want to shop 'cruelty free' and will not purchase from the mother company. And then there are those who will now consider Urban Decay to no longer be cruelty free until L'Oreal, and all companies under their umbrella, change their ways. I am of the latter, I want no part of them, regardless of their retaining their PETA and Leaping Bunny symbols.

Body Shop - This one breaks my heart. Again, pioneers of cruelty free (with all products vegetarian) and sending out the ethical message well before it was 'trendy', they were bought over by L'Oreal in 2006. They have never tried to take then into China, but other than that the above information applies.

Liz Earle - Almost the same again. All vegetarian products and they have maintained their Leaping Bunny status, but are owned by Avon. Avon are another one who denounced their cruelty free ways and decided China was the way to go (although they have not taken Liz Earle with them).

If you think there is any misinformation here, or that there are companies missing from the list, please LET ME KNOW!

 Thanks for reading, and always remember...Lady Bon loves you...

http://www.tattybon.com

The great make-up purge of 2013...confessions of a hording queen. Again.

(Please note: the company lists on this blog have been updated as of OCTOBER 2015)

Oh 2013, you are upon us, and at this time of year we all feel the need to purge. In my case it was with my make-up and I went, well......NUTS! The endeavor to have a vegan make-up kit hath begun.

I've been a make-up artist since I graduated in 2007. Anyone who has seen my kit knows that I own ALL the make-up...all of it. I've actually had pangs of guilt due to owning stuff that I've barely even looked at much less used! But I needn't worry about that any more....cos I've hardly anything left!

In the beginning...

I'm a pretty militant kinda chick. I'm vegetarian and don't cheat. I don't wear leather, fur (it doesn't matter that it's vintage!), silk or pearls. If your gonna do it, do it right. So I thought that my kit was pretty much veggie friendly and cruelty free......oh, how wrong I was. I am in actual awe at my naivety! Seriously, I need a slap on the wrist.....I will now continue writing with red, slapped wrists.

It's been a while since I really looked into ingredients and the information available has dramatically increased. I know the names of a lot of little nasties that find their way into make-up, but, again, I was a complete clown. Such things as tallow and cochineal . Well now cochineal is known as carmine. Carmine is essentially crusted up dead beasties, they are boiled and mashed up, mainly, for the blood red colour. It then goes into lipsticks and pressed powders as well as many other things (I found it in a cake eyeliner).....mmm, smearing dead insects all over your lips for a red pout. Charming. 

Carmine.....1,2,3 - boak..

Tallow is the goop left over in a slaughter house, y'know, bones, fats....gunk really. Well, so is stearate. And it's fecking everywhere! Zinc stearate, magnesium stearate, steric acid...it goes on. Now on the plus side sterate can be of animal or vegetable origin. On the downside it's most commonly animal when it comes to cosmetics and there's no way of knowing unless it states otherwise (such as with Liz Earle, who products have sterate, but no animal byproducts) .  

Thank you Liz Earle for not being minging - ALL products are vegetarian, many are vegan.

(Since originally writing this I have found that Liz Earle is no longer suited to this list. see below for details)

I, for one, do not relish the thought of smearing this over my face, nor anyone else's. And so began the mission to make my kit veggie, but mostly vegan. 

I've been talking about making my make-up kit vegan for a while, & I'd bought some handmade, organic, vegan make-up (you can find lots on Etsy and can purchase small samples to try it out). But my research lead to me searching out vegan make-up in general, vegan brands, individual products from other companies and what I need to get rid of. Which was most of it. The reason being that it can be hard to get information on the ingredients in the majority of make-up, which is kinda sad.

Popular misconceptions. 

Firstly; that MAC products are all suitable for vegetarians. 

They most certainly are NOT. They contain a fair amount of carmine, waxes and stearate. I think this is some kind of urban myth lead to the impression that they were veggie friendly, probably born from the ethos they started out with and their reputation as a cruelty free company. Of course none of this matters now as they were taken over by Estee Lauder some years ago, and will be going into the China, where animal testing is required by law, and the whole lot are loosing their previous cruelty status.....sad days indeed.

The status of my pre-existing MAC make-up is in suspense while I wait on them getting back to me with a vegan list.

Dear MAC. You know spill blood for beauty and you SUCK!

Secondly; that STARGAZER products are all vegan or veggie.

Nope, wrong again. This 'alternative' brand, once renowned for it's affordable vegan safe cosmetics stopped bothering to make it's products vegan or veggie a couple of years back. Who knows why; maybe alternative just isn't alternative anymore, it's too main stream, maybe they just got lazy. Either way, they ain't sayin'

Thirdly; All the major cosmetic companies will be safe (in cruelty free terms) once the new EU laws on animal testing come into effect later this year.

Afraid not. As already mentioned, LOTS of companies are going into the Chinese market for the money and will be conducting animal experiments as a result. Even those who held the BUVA leaping bunny status and used their cruelty free ways to market their products have decided to pack it in. It's incredible.

Former stalwarts of the cruelty free world such as the Body Shop and Urban Decay are now owned by L'Oreal. Both offer vegan products (all of the Body Shops are veggie) and have been a saving grace for those who buy animal free, cruelty free products, especially on the high st. But L'Oreal are notorious animal testers, so that's both these companies out the game. Same with companies owned by the aforementioned Estee Lauder. They own MAC, Bobby Brown, Smash Box, L'Occtaine and a whole lot of others.....EU be dammed, eh! 

There's always a bright side!!

Indeed there is. There's still a TON of companies who are both cruelty free and have a wide range of not only cruelty free but vegan products too....yippee!

 

High st goodness

On the high st - 

On the high street

Now, like I said, most of these companies can also be found online and usually that is where they're full range of products is to be found.

'B' by Superdrug - Most of Superdrug's own brand products are suitable for veggies and vegans (see individual products for details). B is a skincare and make-up range and I think almost of, if not all, of the make-up is vegan. 

They're Full Coverage Foundation and B All mascara are fabulous!Needless to say, B can be found in Superdrug.

Barry M-  All products are veggie friendly and their vegan products are marked as such in the individual product ingredients on their website.

Barry M can be found in both Superdrug and Boots.

Sleek - Sleek now mark which of their products are vegan and vegetarian in the ingredients section. The I-Devines are veggie (sorry vegans) and pack a whole to of pigment in them. And at 8 quid a pallet they're well worth a try.

Sleek can be found in Superdrug and some branches of Paul's Hair.

Lush - All their make-up vegan. Their Emotional Brilliance loose powder is great. 

The rest of their products are veggie and vegan.

Lush stores can be found on most city centres as well as online

Illamasqua - Illamasqua have a good range of vegan products, they were kind enough to send me a list of their non-vegan make-up which was only 13 items long. They asked I don't print the list for legal reasons. However beauty blogger got a response from them detailing some products (link here). 

I have seen on Peta2 that they are in the process of compiling a list of their vegan products (ref - here)

Illamasqua can be found in Debenhams stores.

Too Faced - Too Faced products are all cruelty free and they have a vegan list in the FAQ section of their webite, read it here. 

GOSH - GOSH make-up is cruelty free and much of it is vegan. Beauty blogger Love Lipstick is nice enough to have made a rather fantastic list here (Credit; Love-lipstic blog)

GOSH can be found in most Superdrug stores

Whole Foods Market - Whole Foods supermarkets are dotted all over the country, the Glasgow store is to be found in Giffnock. They have a small make-up but I don't know if they vary from store to store. They definitely have vegan approved make-up but it is pretty pricey Each brand marks it's products accordingly. 

Miss Vegaloucious - If you're lucky enough to live in Glasgow you should def check this place out. If not, don't worry as they're now online!! (link here). They only sell veggie friendly make-up and most of it is vegan. Lots of different brands, some of which I'm unfamiliar with, but the ones I do know are impossible to get anywhere else in store. They have Yaby, OCC Liptars and Sugar Pill!! Not to mention a range of beautiful Bedellum brushes.
They are also working on their own brand products, I recently got a black eyeshadow and it's pretty fantastic.....

Online goodness

Websites of awesomeness - 

My Beauty Bunny - this is a fantastic blog. Def worth a follow....even has a phone app!

Manic Panic -The original iconic cosmetics of the alt scene, all of Manic Panics  products are vegan

Beauty Without Cruelty (uk) - A pioneer of cruelty free beauty since the early 80's all their products are vegan .

Pretty Zombie Cosmetics - All vegan company that specialise in liquid lipsticks....and not in your average colours. The can be bought straight from their site or in the UK through Cute Cosmetics.

Arbonne Cosmetics -  Arbonne are a company specialising in botanically based cosmetics and toiletries with a bit of nutrition thrown in for good measure. Their cosmetic products contain no animal by products. If you want to buy online you need to go through their international site (http://www.arbonne.com/pws/homeoffice/tabs/home.aspx), other than that they seem to mainly be sold through 'reps', a bit like 'Avon calling' of days of yore, although I am aware that they sell through some beauty salons as well. 

White Rabbit Cosmetics - Eyeshadows handmade by an American lass in Glasgow, the full range  is cruelty free and many are vegan. See product descriptions for details.

E.L.F - E.LF have gained iconic status over the last 10 years for their wide range of budget cosmetics. Their lash primer is a favourite of mine. All E.L.F cosmetics are now vegan, although they do have a couple of animal hair 

Sarah Hill Cosmetics - Sarah Hill is a Glasgow based makeup artist who has turned her hand to creating her own line of cosmetics. Everything is vegan with the exception of the eye liners (which are veggie). Have heard so many good things about her line, really looking forward to trying some.

Gabriel Cosmetics Inc - US All cruelly free and vegan cosmetics company.

Wet'n'wild cosmetics - Budget, all cruelty free make-up brand with vegan options. There is a list of their vegan products on their FAQ They can often be found in UK stores such as B&M & the even the pound shop!

Paula's Choice skin care - The aforementioned Paula is a cosmetics critic who started her won range of beauty products, make-up included, most of it is vegan. She has a UK site, but (confusingly) the list of NON-vegan products is on her .com. Many of the non-vehan products are veggie friendly. Read this list here

Sugarpill Cosmetics - All cruelty free make-up with a vegan section on their website. UK stockists are Cocktail Cosmetics and Cute Cosmetics. Each site usual offer different product options.

Tarte Cosmetics - All cruelty free make-up with a vegan collection.

The All Natural Face - Handmade make-up to be found on Etsy. There are many handmade vegan makeup options to be found on Etsy, but this seems to be one of the bugger ones....& i'm dying to try their eye shadow primer...

Concrete Minerals - All Vegan make-up specialising in vibrant eye shades. Uk stockists Cute Cosmetics

Inika - All vegan make-up and skin care. One of the companies included in Birch Boxes.

OCC Obsessive Compulsive - All vegan make-up. These guys have become icons in the beauty world thanks to their lip tars and airbrush foundations. UK stockists are Cocktail Cosmetics and Cute Cosmetics

Honeybee Gardens - Worth checking out for the name alone! They're all about being natural and recycling and use all organic ingredients and they're very reasonably priced. Most (i'm not sure if all) products are vegetarian and most of them are vegan. Check the ingredients panel for details.
UK stockists include Amazon and Henna Herbals.

Melt Cosmetics - Another one slightly on the pricier side, but my friend has some of the eyeshadows and raved about them. All cruelty free and vegan items are marked on their websites listings.
UK supplier here.

Jeffree Star Cosmetics - Drag extraordinaire Jeffree Star has started his own product range. So far we have a range of velour liquid lipsticks, but I'm sure there will be more to come.
All cruelty free and vegan. UK wise it can be found on Love Make-up

Insomnia Cosmetics - Another Etsy brand. Not tried these guys, but they have a great range of lip colours and fairly reasonably priced.

Sarah Hill Cosmetics - Sarah Hill is a Glasgow based makeup artist who has turned her hand to creating her own line of cosmetics. Everything is vegan with the exception of the eye liners (which are veggie). Have heard so many good things about her line, really looking forward to trying some.

Cocktail Cosmetics  (uk) - This is a website which only stocks cruelty free products. Even better than that it has a whole section dedicated to vegan products.  It's fantastic. 
Brands included -  100% Pure Cosmetics,  Bdellium tools,  Cozzette Brushes,  Everyday minerals,  Illuminare Cosmetics,  Lily Lolo,  Lime Crime,  Neve Cosmetics ,  OCC Obsessive Compulsive,  Real Techniques,  Rosebud Company,  Sugarpill Cosmetics,  Yaby Cosmetics,  Eco Tools,  EOS,  Konjac Sponges

Its worth noting that often, when looking online, when a company has a UK site that the lists of vegan/veggie suitability can actually be found on their .com or US sites. It's always worth having a look.

Well, in addition to being epic, I hope that was blog was helpful. If you feel like slinging me a wee sneaky 5er to help me re-build my now sparse make-up collection, feel free.
As brutal as it was to throw so much away, it was also pretty liberating. I now feel that I am going to utilise my entire kit rather than just having a shit ton of stuff that won't see the end of my make-up brush before it goes out of date.....so it seems I am a make-up hording queen no more.

But, for now, I'm off to bed....this shiz was tiring ;)

Thank you for reading. And always remember....Lady Bon loves you...
http://www.tattybon.com