50 Shades Of Blonde

I've been doing my best to post more frequently on this blog, as well as to talk about new topics. So I'll be talking about a topic that I don't normally dive into which is hair. I don't really know what I'm talking about at all when it comes to hair, but I do love admiring pictures of pretty hair and experimenting with my own style.

About 4 or 5 years ago I was actually a blonde! Yep trueeeee story. Since then I've been practically every single colour under the sun, and now I'm kinda missing the lighter Izzy. 

So I've been itching to rejoin the blonde club, the only trouble is I'm not sure to what level of blonde to go to. I've attempted to add a bit of blonde into my hair in a sort of balayage/highlighted style, however my hair hasn't been taking to the bleach. So before I pour the peroxide onto my hair, I've decided to explore the different options of blonde, and to be honest I've fallen in love with all of them.

These are all the blonde looks that I've been loving and I may have to try:

Highlights

I just adore the dimension that highlights add throughout the entire length of the hair!

Ombre

Ombre is absolutely perfect if you want to switch up your look, yet don't want the hassle of touching up your roots!

Balayage 

As you can probably see, balayage is the perfect mix between highlights and ombre, in case you can't decide between the two looks

White Blonde

This might sound really weird, but I find completely, one-toned hair so satisfying to look at, especially when the roots match the rest of the hair. I just find its such a fun, fresh colour

 (if that even makes sense lol)

Silver Blonde

At first when I saw this trend, I must admit I was a bit like "urrrm why are young people dyeing their hair grey?!" But since seeing it in person on a few people I've fallen absolutely in love with this look. I love the kinda wintery look it gives people #icequeen

Lilac Blonde

If I was to bleach my entire head of hair, I'd most definitely have to try a grey/lilac look. I just find it looks classy with a little fun twist!

I gathered all the pictures for this post from Pinterest so obviously they are not my own. I'm wanting to go blonde more than ever now and I'm not even fussed if it doesn't suit me, it just looks like a lot of fun to try! Which of these looks is your favourite? Let me know in the comments,

Izzy K xxx

Izzy K Cruelty Free Standards

You may have already heard me blabber about the fact that I've recently started buying only cruelty free beauty items. I'm a huge animal person, and I could never forgive myself for contributing to anything that promotes animal testing.

However, doing research into whether or not brands are cruelty free can be extremely tiring and sometimes even frustrating. You can get a basic idea of what sort of brands are the main culprits in animal testing. However, when you get down to the nitty-gritty details about what exactly the definition of "cruelty free" is, there is often a conflict of opinion. That's why from now on I'll be doing my own research by emailing companies, and I'll write all my feedback on this blog. 

Some people claim that if a specific brand is cruelty free, but it is owned by another company that sells in China, that brand is still cruelty free. Other people believe that it isn't actually cruelty free. Also, some people claim that if a brand uses ingredients that have previously been tested on animals, the brand is not being cruelty free. Again that is up for debate.

I personally turned cruelty free because I wanted to be part of a movement that makes all cosmetic brands reevaluate their ethical standards. For me it is more important that a current beauty brand feels like they are able to regain their status of being cruelty free, rather than feeling like there is no hope to win the trust of cruelty free customers.

Some brands use ingredients that throughout history have been tested on animals, although they have never contributed to the animal testing themselves. I personally disagree with saying that these brands are not cruelty free. Most ingredients that were around in the cosmetic industry like 50 years ago will have been tested on animals, because back then it was standard procedure to do. I feel like its unfair to dismiss these brands since they're not the ones that have contributed to the animal testing. You can't change the past and the fact that certain ingredients were once tested on animals, but you can change the future ideology of companies. And I feel like immediately calling a brand "not cruelty free" will only discourage brands from aiming to commit to a cruelty free future.

So here are all the things about companies that I consider cruelty free:

• They do not test the ingredients or finished products on animals themselves, or do not send anything for testing. 
• Not selling in China- This is the obvious one because it is required by law that any cosmetics that are sold to customers in China must be tested on animals first. Therefore you can guarantee that selling in China = not cruelty free. On some websites it says "We do not agree with animal testing, unless required to do so by law". This is basically code for "we sell in China where we have to test on animals".
• Not asking other companies to test products for them- Some companies say "we do not test any products on animals ourselves" when in fact they pay another company to do the dirty work for them.
• Their parent company (if they have one) is also cruelty free- If a "cruelty free" company is owned by a bigger company that sells in China, it doesn't make a difference to the bigger company if it's cruelty free. The parent company that's not cruelty free gets money regardless of whether the smaller companies sell in China or not. 
• Their ingredients are not currently being tested on animals in anyway- as I said before, almost every ingredient that was around years and years ago has been tested on animals. The way I see it, if a company does use these ingredients now and they haven't contributed to any animal testing themselves, then they are indeed cruelty free.

So here is what I class as being "cruelty free" and I will be only reviewing and talking about brands that follow these guidelines. I will keep this list updated if my views change. But I'll continue to be cruelty free until every company does their best to ensure that they have a cruelty free status. Thank you very much for reading,

Izzy K xxx

Sleek Highlighting Palette Solstice

Let's just address the elephant in the room shall we? Okkkkk I know I haven't posted anything since my exams, but I'm finally getting back into posting on this blog at least once a week! 

Recently I've been told I don't wear enough highlighter... jk I get told literally on a daily basis that I wear too much highlighter (as if that's even possible!) So what did I do? I went out to add another highlighter to my drastically growing collection.

Here's another version of the pic where my cat decided to invade the photoshoot!

I popped into a Boots in Dublin Airport with my heart absolutely set on the Sleek Solstice Highlighting Palette. You're able to pick this bad boy up for just £9.99

Top left: Ecliptic

Top right: Hemisphere

Bottom left: Subsolar

Bottom right: Equinox 

This packaging comes with four different shades; 2 are baked powders, 1 is a cream and the last is a silky shimmer powder. Personally, the baked powders are my favourite formula, however I still love the fact that there is something for everyone's highlighting desires in this palette.

From left to right: Ecliptic, Hemisphere, Subsolar, Equinox

The pigmentation in this palette is insane, and by insane I mean INSANE! You only need to dip your brush into the colours for a natural glow, and this formula is definitely buildable if, like me, you prefer walking round town resembling a disco ball. 

And finally I want to talk about the lasting power of these highlighters. I was very impressed with how long their glittery magic lasted, and even when you blend them out you can tell that they will last the whole night. Without a doubt it's the cream formula that has the longest lasting power though.

I would most definitely recommend this to a friend, and I will definitely be purchasing this again. Not even joking, I would rate it a 10/10 which is very rare of me to do, but I honestly couldn't think of any more improvements. Have you tried this product yet?

Izzy K xxx

Bubbasdoll Lip Scrub

Over the last few weeks I've been trying a lot of matte lipstick. But with great matte coloured lip powers comes great responsibility. And by responsibility I mean you have to deal with the fact that matte lipsticks will absorb any moisture in your lips and leave them resembling a desert. That's why this lip scrub came into my life at the exact right time and I'm so glad I was able to try it out.

Bubbasdoll is a skin care company which was founded by the amazing 18 year old Kiera Mcrhule. She is a fellow youtuber and blogger of mine and I've been admiring her work for quite some time, so I was absolutely chuffed when I found out she was launching her own company. You can find her on her youtube channel Le Cameleon or her blog Bubbasdoll.

Bubbasdoll is an online company which prides themselves in "offering good quality, homemade natural products at an affordable price". They currently sell lip scrubs for a very affordable price of £4 a pot and come in 5 different flavours: Coffee, toffee, bubblegum, peppermint and tropical. I personally think there is something to suit everyone. They are also cruelty free and suitable for vegetarians.

The flavour I tried was bubblegum, one of my personal favourite flavours in the world. Something I was quite surprised about was how much product comes in one pot, I definitely think you get your money's worth. The colour of my product was pink and the scent was really really strong and it really did taste of bubblegum. Needless to say it was absolutely delicious to try.

Something else I completely adored about this product was the fact that it's packaging was so cute. Because it arrived in the post, it was packaged with care in bubble wrap to make sure no damage was done whilst sending it. And it came wrapped in purple tissue paper, with handwritten instructions of use. Included were also 4 toothpicks to be able to stir the mixture for easy use. The packaging of the actual pot was also adorable, you guys know I love my pastel colours, and I think the fact it came with a little bow around it was another adorable touch. If you want to feel like a loved customer, I definitely recommend buying something from Bubbasdoll, a lot of effort clearly went into the packaging.

And now onto the actual product and how well it actually works: I personally found that it was really effective as a scrub. I can honestly, hand on my heart say that ever since using this product it has got rid of any dry skin I've had on my lips. I've used products before to stop my dry lips, but nothing seemed to have worked as well and as long as this product.

So there was my review of my new favourite lip scrub, Bubbasdoll lip scrubs. I would definitely recommend them to a friend and I know I'm interested to try their other flavours so I will most likely be purchasing more from this brand,

Izzy K xxx

Barry M Flawless Matte Finish Oil Free Foundation

Recently I've been making a fairly big deal about going cruelty free with all my makeup, which means I actually had to switch up a lot of the brands I use on a daily basis. Because of this I was left without an "everyday" foundation since none of the drugstore foundations I owned were cruelty free. I read up online and found out that a brand I had used before, Barry M, was cruelty free and decided to try out their Flawless Matte Finish Oil Free Foundation in the shade Ivory (which is actually too light for me but I can always pick up another shade later on). It cost £5.99 and here are my thoughts on it:

 

Please ignore the carpet background (my blog is so professional!)

But this is the packaging and I think it's so cute

The formula itself is a pretty light one and I found it very easy to blend out evenly. The coverage is, I would say, between light and medium. It feels very lightweight on your skin and looks very natural and not cakey at all. The coverage is enough to blur out any imperfections, however not enough to fully cover any of those major red spots that might sneakily creep up on your face (let's face it, they appear on all of us at some point).

The scent of this foundation is much stronger than any other foundation I have used. At first I thought that it might irritate my sensitive skin because it is clearly heavily fragranced, however it didn't appear to do that. The smell really reminded me of something and it was really bugging me because I couldn't quite put my finger on it. I then asked my sister if she knew what it smelt like and she was like "it smells of Always pads" which really did make me laugh because now I always feel like I'm rubbing a sanitary towel on my face lmao! It could still smell worse I guess...

The finishing touch was something I was really impressed with. It dried fairly quick and I have never seen another foundation dry as matte as this one. And it wasn't drying at all which really impressed me. The lasting power was fairly impressive too; without a primer it started to get a bit thinner around my nose and T-zone throughout the day, but with a primer it lasted all day.

So those were my thoughts on my first cruelty free drugstore foundation. Overall I would rate this foundation a 7/10. I personally look for slightly more coverage in a foundation, but for the price you definitely can't go wrong with it and I'll be repurchasing this product (maybe in a slightly darker shade) in no time! If you're looking for a cheaper drugstore foundation I definitely recommend adding this one to your makeup collection. Have you ever tried this foundation before, if so what did you think of it?

Izzy K xxx

Beauty Brands I'm Boycotting

In a few days time (spoiler alert) I'll be posting my video about my decision to go cruelty free with my makeup and beauty products. In that video I talk mainly about why I decided to stop buying anything that is tested on animals, so in this post I decided to talk about the specific brands I'll no longer be using since I ran out of time in the video.

Long story short, I've decided to stop using any products who's ingredients or final product have been tested on animals. Therefore I am completely boycotting any products that test on animals in the meantime and I will not be purchasing anything from their brands until they stop.There are so many different ways that companies can test their products which don't involve the lives of innocent creatures, yet some brands choose to ignore that and only look at the profit side of things. 

Upon research I've discovered that a lot of the brands I use on a daily basis are not cruelty free; something that surprised me since to be honest I thought we were past all that in this day and age. When I found out how many of the brands that were my "top favourite brands" actually do permit animal testing I was instantly disgusted and now, whenever I see those brands, I just get an image in my head of a little bunny or mouse being subjected to cruel treatment. I know for sure I wont be going back to those brands because for me no lipstick could possibly be worth an animals life. 

There are many different ways that companies say that they are cruelty free, but they are not in fact. Some of their "little tricks" to get away with testing on animals is saying things like "we don't test any of the ingredients on animals ourselves" when in fact they hire another company to do their dirty work just so they wont ruin their image. Another thing they do is say "we don't test on animals unless it is required to do so by law". It is required by law in China that any cosmetic product sold in that country must be tested on animals before hand, so naturally, any company that sells in China 100% definitely contributes to animal testing. Although I get where they're coming from that makeup products are high in demand in China where being cruelty free isn't even a possibility (my condolences for any Chinese people trying to live a cruelty free life), I still find it shocking that so many companies rather choose to give up their morals than lose profit. And I'm disappointed by the increasing number of brands that are slowly starting to sell more and more of their products in China. 

So after doing my research and sorting through my makeup bag I have realised that a lot of the products I own have been essentially tested on animals (I will not be throwing away any of the products I already have because I don't believe in waste and in my eyes the damage is already done but there is NO WAY I will be repurchasing them) The following brands will be leaving my makeup collection:

• L'oreal (these are big offenders since they are the parent company of many other brands)
• Maybelline
• Bobbi Brown
• MAC (goodbye dreams of owning a MAC lipstick collection)
• Rimmel (You know I'm serious about something when I'm giving up my beloved Kate Moss lipstick)
• Urban Decay (a little part of me died typing that but it's so worth it for the animals)

There are many more brands that unfortuantely are not cruelty free but these are the main offenders in my own personal collection. 

If you too are interested in going cruelty free I have found a wonderful blog that provides information on which brands do not test on animals called Cruelty-Free Kitty. When I first decided to change to this lifestyle I honestly though I would have to give up makeup completely so I was pleasantly surprised to find out that there are in fact LOADS of cruelty free brands, and I will be able to replace all my current beauty faves with an ethical alternative. 

From now on everything in my videos and blog will be cruelty free since I am no longer supporting the use of animal testing. I really hope that these laws will be changed in the near future and that animal testing will no longer be a thing but in the meantime it looks like more and more companies are going down the wrong path which is why I decided to make a stand. I understand that going cruelty free can be a drastic change and it can be hard to give up the things you love. But (without sounding preachy) I strongly ask you to at least think about the products you are using and what you are contributing towards by buying them. If any of you are thinking about going cruelty free I'd love to know in the comments, after all, many voices standing together and saying "this is wrong" is much stronger than one person taking a stand on their own. And then who knows, maybe one day we will live in a world where every beauty product is cruelty free!

Thanks for reading and please let me know your thoughts on this issue,

Izzy K xxx

Oops I Did It Again

It's been a long ol' time since I posted something on this blog. I've been slightly more active on my other blog, Izzy K, over the last few months. But due to exams I've kinda neglected the world of reviewing products so I wasn't as active on this blog as I'd like to have been.

So yes, I did it again, I changed the name of my blog. It was only a slight change from "Izzy K: Reviews & More" to this one. You may think that it wasn't even worthwhile me posting this but I thought it was time to post something on here just to let everyone know I'll be back to writing my normal posts next week. And I though that the "chats" fits in better with the theme of this blog because all I really do here is just have a little natter with you guys.

So here was my little update post which was totally worthwhile me writing (note the sarcasm). Thanks for reading if you did haha,

Izzy K xxx