There’s no need to compromise your love of preening and pampering yourself when you go vegan. Instead, you can dive into the phenomenal range of vegan beauty offerings available in the modern age of conscious cosmetics. Of course, there is always room for tips and tricks when it comes to navigating this side of life as a vegan.
For your inspiration and ease, here are five indispensable beauty tips for vegans:
Always Check The Ink
source: plantbasednews.org
If you’re trying to avoid questionable make-up products, it can be tempting to type “cosmetic tattooist near me” into Google and assume that, with permanent makeup, you’ll never have to worry about vegan ingredients again.
The truth is that some of the inks used in cosmetic tattoos are not vegan. They can contain gelatin, bone char, glycerin, shellac, and other animal products that you definitely do not want in your body. The tip is to find a tattooist who uses vegan inks and vegan products, with no testing on animals involved. That way, your ethics don’t have to suffer for your looks.
Cruelty-Free Doesn’t Mean Vegan (And Vegan Doesn’t Always Mean Vegan)
source: goodblogscdn.com
It is good to know that cruelty-free means “not tested on animals” but it’s important to note that this does not mean vegan. It could also be that the final product is not animal tested, but the individual ingredients have been.
Then there’s “plant-based,” which doesn’t exclude the use of animal products. Meanwhile, “vegan formula” means the ingredients are vegan but the company is not necessarily cruelty-free.
Lastly, sometimes companies get it wrong and use the word vegan incorrectly. If they’re not vegan-owned, they may include honey or even milk derivatives without being aware of the issue.
The best thing to do is to choose products with a limited number of recognizable ingredients and labeling you can trust. Also, look out for official vegan-approved logos.
Get To Know Common Non-Vegan Ingredients
source: optimole.com
It is a good idea to know about some non-vegan ingredients that often appear in beauty products, so you can avoid them. Milk and honey are easily recognizable, but animal products like the following may be new to you:
- Glycerin (can be animal or veggie in origin)
- Lanolin
- Lactic acid (can be non-animal)
- Amino acids (can be plant-based)
- Bee pollen
- Biotin (often comes from milk)
- Pig bristles
- Bone char
- Casein
These are just a small pool of examples. You can find more extensive lists of animal-derived ingredients online.
Get Stuck Into Some Epic Brands
There are plenty of brands out there looking to boost the vegan cosmetics market. Indeed, it’s set to be worth more than $20 billion dollars within the next five years. Find those brands and get to know your favorites. It helps to have a brand or two that you know you can rely on for your beauty basics, especially in the early days of being vegan. You can then branch out and explore to add to your holy grail products.
Be Compassionate To Yourself Too
source: sheebamagazine.com
85% of Americans have low self-esteem, and if you relate to that, the most vegan thing you can do is show yourself some compassion. Beauty products are wonderful, but true beauty comes from within. Love yourself, and you’ll come to realize how beautiful you are, regardless of the condition of your skin or hair.
“I can’t think of anything better in the world to be but a vegan.” – Alicia Silverstone
The tips above are a great start for getting your very own vegan beauty habits in great shape. Don’t forget, it’s a learning curve. You won’t always get it right, but nobody is keeping score – you’re doing great.
