My Kind + Cruelty-Free Make-Up Routine

Hi, kind friends :)

Over the last few years, I have replaced my entire beauty drawer with cruelty-free products. It’s a much kinder way to shop. We’ve explained what cruelty-free means in the past, but just to refresh: cruelty-free means that the product has not been tested on animals. Animal-testing is an eye-opening industry, and I encourage you to take a second and educate yourself on these inhumane practices. You won’t like what you find, but that is why you need to look.

So, without getting too into the ethics of it, I wanted to share my morning beauty routine with you guys. A lot of you wonder if it is expensive to shop cruelty-free, and that answer is absolutely not. I buy most of these products at Target, to be honest. Even the more expensive products are of great quality and last almost up to a year. I promise, it is very affordable.

Let me start from the top!

FOUNDATION

I do not like to smother my skin in product (and thankfully, I do not need to!) I like to let my natural skin breathe, so I only use foundation as a spot concealer. Flawless Finish Foundation from ELF is only $3. Three dollars!! It has SPF 15, goes on very smooth, and blends well. I honestly refuse to go with anything else.

As for a brush, I use ELF brand, as well. They have a wide variety. I’ve found that the black handle brushes are best (again, only like $2-$6 bucks for these!)

CHEEKS

I love a little blush on the top of my cheekbones, and airblush from Tarte lasts me over a year. At $26, I think that is a steal. I prefer shimmering peach.

EYES

Starting with eyeshadow, I use a mix between ELF (cheapie) and Urban Decay when I actually decide to use eye-shadow (I don’t usually). The Urban Decay palette is natural – think browns, golds, and greens. I use ELF to highlight. Urban Decay was a bit of a splurge, but I have had this for over a year. It has everything you need, and lasts forever! If you don’t want to splurge, just grab all ELF. They have amazing color palettes and are inexpensive at Target.

I use eyeliner everyday, and NYX is tried and true (and affordable). I prefer brown or green. I recently also got 100% Pure brand in my Vegan Cuts beauty box. It’s a great product! I switch back and forth between those two brands.

For mascara, I’ve been using tarte brand, since Joe bought this for me as a gift. I LOVE it. It is a little on the pricier side (about $20), but I’m just going to enjoy it while it lasts. I usually am fine with ELF (of course). However, if you are looking for a high-quality brand, this is the one. It is working beautifully.

LIPS

My new favorite brand for lip color is Power of Love by Pacifica. I am in looove with their colors and it goes on completely smooth (and lasts longer than an hour). My choice color is Compassion Passion.

I am also into Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics – my sister turned me onto their lip tar. There are SO many colors to choose from. It goes on like paint, kinda? It’s a bit watery, but once it dries, looks amazing and lasts for a while. I am not crazy about the packaging, but the color makes me happy. The good news is, I think they did away with this type of packaging… looks new here.

Pink pout for liiiiife!

So, there you have it. Some of my current favorite products and my morning routine. I’m all about that natural, peachy look, so it doesn’t take me too long to get my game face on ;) And the best part – no animals were harmed in the process!

I’d love to hear what some of your favorite cruelty-free products are – share away, loves. xx bianca