Vegan Beauty Review» Urban Decay

My Current Beauty Regimen

Sunny — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 23:18:58 +0000

Ooo child, it’s been many moons since I dished about my ever-changin’ beauty regimen, so here goes… Enjoy!

Face:

Earth Science Chamomile & Green Tea makeup remover – This is an oil-free formula that is gentle and gets every itty bitty teensy weensie bit of makeup off, including all the bits around my eyes—I’ve been using it for years!
L’uvalla Foaming Facial Cleanser – This organic, super pure facial cleanser which contains billberry, lotus flower and antioxidants like Vitamin C, is gentle, removes makeup and helps fight acne, too.
Infotone Face Mist – This is like the everlasting gobstopper of toners. This is a reusable facial mist that you can refill with purified water for up to a year. It has a special clay ball inside that transforms the water into an anti-aging, refreshing spritz.
Moisturizer: Dermadoctor’s Photodynamic Therapy Laser Lotion – It’s a cruelty-free laser lotion (you heard correctly) set out to fight wrinkles (with SPF for daytime), and I use Pai Macadamia & Rose Cream (rich dry-skin formula for nighttime)

Makeup:

Arbonne makeup primer – I received a sample of this from my FB friend, Maureen, and I fell in love with it (on par with UD’s Primer Potion, but actually vegan)… will have to order more soon!
Everyday Minerals Fair Neutral Matte Powder Foundation – This foundation is light but still provides excellent coverage. I’m obsessed with everything Everyday Minerals—I wish they had a physical store right outside my house… no wait, I’d be broke as a joke—but I’d be lookin’ foin!
LUSH Color Supplements (liquid foundation) – When I’m in the mood to switch it up from powder to liquid foundation, I use LUSH’s “light yellow” base and mix it with a bit of moisturizer. It looks good and provides even coverage but the downside is that it contains parabens. Wompers.
Urban Decay’s Midnight Cowboy Rides Again eyeshadow – This glittery goldie shade is a staple in my makeup box. It perfectly complements my olive-y skin tone, and it sparkles all day long. It’s works for day and night va-va-voominess!
Manic Panic’s Eye Wear Glossy Mascara – This has become my new favorite vegan mascara. It’s thick, it stays put, and it’s bee-free (which is rare for mascaras).
Zosimos Botanicals Apricot Nectar lip balm – I have 5-7 lip balms scattered throughout my house at any given time. This is the one that currently lives on my night stand for last lubes before beddies. It smells like fruity candy and the formula is perfect.

Hair:

Pravana Naturceuticals Karatin Fusion Shampoo & Conditioner – This vegan salon line is exquisite. It’s designed for heat styling, so if your hair’s in need of some TLC, I highly recommend you seek this out. It contains sunscreen and a mega-dose of keratin amino acids and botanical extracts to keep your hair looking silky-smooth and healthy.
Thermafuse Leave-in Conditioner – This works as a detangler and de-frizzifier—hallelujah! I swear up and down by leave-in conditioners, and this one (which is packed with amino acids) makes my hair stronger and adds the perfect amount of shine.

Which vegan beauty products are you currently diggin’?

Vegan Primer? We’ve Got You Covered!

Sunny — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 23:05:06 +0000

This is a guest post by Adrienne Orpheus of adorpheus.com.

It was recently announced by Urban Decay that their Primer Potion is no longer vegan. Millions of vegans the world over lamented at this loss. Urban Decay insist that they’re going to try to reformulate it to exclude the animal-derived ingredient (lanolin), but personally don’t hold your breath on that one. It’ll be extremely surprising if they actually bother to change it, since it’s one of their most popular products, and they sell loads of it regardless of whether or not it’s vegan.

So what is a vegan make up fanatic to do? Find an alternative! There are lots of vegan eyeshadow primers out there made by ethical independent companies. Searching for the perfect one can be frustrating and painful to your wallet if you aren’t careful, since frankly there are a lot of lacklustre primers out there. But fear not, I’ve done all the work for you and found the best vegan primer on the market yet!

But wait a minute – what is a primer anyways and why do you need to use one?

For the uninitiated – eyeshadow primer is something you apply to your eyelids before putting on make up in order to make loose eyeshadow stay on your eyes, and/or to improve the performance of pressed shadows. Primer also prevents your eyeshadow from settling into the creases of your eyelids, which happens a lot to people with oily skin. All loose eyeshadows must be applied over a primer, but primers can really make your pressed shadows POP as well!

So what can I use to make my eyeshadows FIERCE?

SoBe Botanicals sells a primer called Primed & Proper that’s just as good at the Urban Decay one, if not better, and it costs half what the Primer Potion does. I say “better” because 1) its actually vegan! and 2) it comes in a practical and easy to use squeeze bottle. As much as I love the look of Urban Decay’s “genie in a bottle” primer potion, it’s such a pain to use.

You can also give your eyeshadows an even bigger boost when you combine SoBe’s Primer with Fyrinnae’s Pixie Epoxy.

From the Fyrinnae website:

Originally developed and formulated for a friend/pro artist, this unique “glue” is designed to hold the sparkliest, most shimmery eye shadows in place, minimize “fallout”, and also to easily create a foiled look without foiling.

Pixie Epoxy, like all of Fyrinnae’s products, is 100% vegan and free of animal ingredients! Not only can Pixie Epoxy give you a foiled look, it will keep your shadows fixed all day, without any fading.

Not convinced? Want to see proof that Primed and Proper is even better than Urban Decay’s Primer Potion? Check out Grey’s comparison of the two products on Le Gothique.

It’s easy to rock glamorous looks with 100% cruelty-free products!

Have you tried any other vegan eyeshadow primers? What did you think?

Adrienne Orpheus is a vegan singer/songwriter and cruelty-free fashionista extraordinaire. You can read her blog here at adorpheus.com or follow her on Twitter at @adorpheus.

Urban Decay’s Lush Lash System

Sunny — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 07:52:58 +0000

Hallelujah, dog bless America, holy balls I’m excited!
I’m always bitching about my balding lash lines… I was not blessed in the lash department. Seriously, I have like 2.5 lashies per eyeball, and it sucks.

No matter how much extra chunky mascara I cake onto my eyelashes, I still look like a bald eagle.

I’ve been ogling those Latisse ads in my beauty mags, but since I assume the product is neither vegan nor cruelty-free, I usually distract myself with thoughts of cupcakes (with extra tall icing and sprinkle-sprankles).

*angels singing*

And then lo and behold, Urban Decay—one of my all time fave beauty brands—grants my birthday wish from ’09 by coming out with their Lush Lash System. Yup, they’ve released a vegan, cruelty-free lash lengthening system that is not only supposed to work wonders (even after only 2 weeks), but it only costs $42 (compared to all the other brands that are in the $100 range), and there are zero funky side effects (like changin’ eyeball colors—WTF?).

This double-ended miracle worker holds TWO products in one: a gel serum (with growth peptides) that you apply along your lash line at beddies, and a conditioning mask (also with growth peptides and high potency ingredients like Panthenol and Vitamin E) that you coat your lashies with afterward.

Expected results?

25% longer and thicker in 2 weeks
40% in 4 weeks
63% in 6 weeks

Now, I’m only on day two, but I’m going to keep y’all posted with before and after pics. I hope my lashes get so long I can curl them over my forehead. I am so so so so SOSOSOSOSO excited. Stay tuned, beautiful bitches! ♥

Urban Decay’s Eyeshadow Primer Potion Not Vegan

Sunny — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 23:03:02 +0000

VBR reader Melinda brought this bit of news to my attention today → Urban Decay posted a disclaimer on their website saying their Eyeshadow Primer Potion was mistakingly labeled “vegan.” Thanks for havin’ our backs, Melinda!

What a bummer… but at least they’re honest about it. So yeah, go ahead and gift those primer potions to your non-vegan friends, and keep your fingers crossed that they come out with a vegan version soon!

Urban Decay, we still ♥ you!

How to Curl Your Hair Without Heat

Sunny — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 17:03:30 +0000

Curling irons, flat irons and blow dryers are so bad for your hair! I wanted to show you guys how to make your hair curly using only your fingers and some bobby pins—it’s so easy and fun! As a bonus, I wanted to show you some of the cruelty-free beauty products I use on a daily basis… watch me go from drab and makeupless to curlicue cutie.

What should I make my next video about?

My Current AM Beauty Regimen 9/10

Sunny — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 22:55:24 +0000

I wake up. Decrustify my sexy eyeballs. Enter the magical chamber o’ beauty delights (aka the quarto del baño) and then…

Time to Cleanse My Skin:

Splash some agua on my face
Use a tiny dab (a lil’ goes a long way) of Lamas Pumpkin Spice Polish (smells like pumpkin muffins – YUM)
Rinse
Spritz (3 times) Yum Mandarin Blossom Toner all over my face. Smells good, feels amazing!
Moisturize with Earth Science Almond-Aloe Facial Lotion (light, absorbs quickly, fragrance-free)
Dab a teensy amount of Mychelle Fabulous Eye Cream under both eyes

Makeup (Everyday Look):

Dab Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer Pencil (in FBI) on my splotchy spots. It goes on smoothly and seamlessly – love it!
Evenly apply Monave Mineral Foundation with a cruelty-free brush (ditch the animal butt-hair brushes, people!)
Lightly brush on some Everyday Minerals Blush (Pink Ribbon – it’s such a happy shade of pink)
Apply a light layer of eye color (Pink Champagne) from The Body Shop on my eyelids
Use 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil (Zero) to line the inside of my lower eyelids; this stuff doesn’t budge
ZuZu Luxe Mascara time! This stuff is the shit (don’t forget your bottom lashes)!
Last but not least, gotta beautify my smackers with Zuzu Luxe Vegan Lip gloss (Tango)

End Result:

I switch up my beauty products at least once or twice a month, so check back later for more updates!

Which cruelty-free, vegan beauty products are you currently diggin’?

Urban Decay Vegan Palette

Sunny — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 22:50:36 +0000

I’d like to start out by saying that I am, and forever have been, smitten as a kitten with Urban Decay… their products are cruelty-free, richly pigmented, shimmery, cutely packaged, and over half of their cosmetics line is vegan. Even though they have a slew of vegan products, this is the first time Urban Decay has come out with an exclusively vegan palette (featuring their best-selling vegan eye shadows and more). Are you as beyond mega hardcore excited as I am?

This vegan palette ($34), which is the perfect size for travel and comes with a nice sized mirror, includes the following:

Eyeshadows: Minx, Urb, Gunmetal, Twice Baked, Smog, Half-Baked (these shadows are shimmery and H-O-T and complement each other well); Travel-size 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil: Zero (my favorite eyeliner ever!); Eyeshadow Primer Potion: Sin.

The packaging is 100% adorbs, artsy-fartsy, retro-y with beautiful animal drawings, all printed with soy based inks on recycled materials.

Run, don’t walk, to Sephora, ULTA, Macy’s (or order online), and pick one of these vegan palette up today! The more we show support for vegan makeup lines, the more vegan options we’ll have to choose from!

Urban Decay: Shimmery, edgy and fun!

Sunny — Wed, 05 May 2010 01:36:19 +0000

Special guest post by Jennifer VanWie-Dobson

I wanted new eyes. Rather, I wanted to give my eyes a lift with some new eyeshadow. I started reminiscing about shadows from days gone by and my mind wandered to Urban Decay. I landed on their website and saw a couple pleasant surprises right off the bat!

Urban Decay has long been known for their cruelty-free products. The company has made sopping for vegan cosmetics easy by placing a purple paw print next to all vegan cosmetics, taking the guess work out of shopping. These items are called “Marley Approved.” Marley is the longtime canine companion to Wende Zomnir, Urban Decay’s executive creative director.

One more nice little option on their website - you can print out the vegan product list to take with you when shopping - handy! Yes, these cosmetics are more expensive than my normal “bottom of the clearance barrel” purchases – each eyeshadow is $18. I was prepared to splurge a bit, so away I went to Sephora with my list in hand.

I bought two eye shadows from the Deluxe line. Ruthless, a pale sandy taupe shimmer and Underground, a medium fawn. Both of these come in a mirrored compact with some edgy graphic designs their covers.

These shadows are nice and silky. I used a shadow brush, which allowed me to layer the colors so that I could make them as light or as intense as I wanted. There is a really nice, light catching shimmer to both of these shades, which is exactly what I wanted! They are also kind of subdued and are perfect for everyday wear. I didn’t wear any kind of lid primer under the shadows, but they seemed to endure fairly well through some desert wind!

I really do enjoy Urban Decay’s colorful titles for their products as well – definitely part of their appeal for me. For the prices, however, I will have to wait awhile before I can add some Mildew and Acid Rain to my eyelids!