Plastic free: MASCARA
EnviroWoman is cursed with tiny, beady eyes. That’s why mascara is a must have….she needs all the help she can get. Oh, she knows, mascara is nothing but toxic waste carcinogenic chemical crap - but hey, whatya gonna do when you’ve been cursed with beady eyes?
Before taking the NoNewPlasticPlege EnviroWoman bought her mascara from The Body Shop – the mecca for all makeup that’s cruelty-free.
But alas, The Body Shop’s mascara comes in a plastic tube, and even worse, wrapped in a layer of anti-wacko protective plastic. So Body Shop mascara was off limits for 2007. Nuts.
By June, EnviroWoman was living in desperate times….she had totally depleted the mascara she bought in 2006, down to the very very last drop. She literally was scraping the bottom of the barrel. As a result, she was starting to get eye infections.
Yuppers, it was time to go mascara a-hunting.
She dreaded this particular hunt…because my friends, she knew finding a cruelty-free mascara that was also plastic-free was going to be like finding ice-cold water in the sahara desert.
It’s tough shopping for cruelty-free cosmetics. Most beauty boutiques, when asked if they carry cruelty-free cosmetics, will say ‘all our products don’t get tested on animals’ because they believe a rumour that no cosmetic companies test on animals anymore. That’s bunk.
And when you probe a little further and say 'But, cruelty-free means it’s not testing on animals AND it doesn’t contain animal ingredients’…then they get a bit stymied. And when you pull out your handy cruelty-free cosmetic lists from The Leaping Bunny, Choose Cruelty Free, and the National Anti-Vivisection Society and ask ‘Do you carry any of these brands?’…they sadly have to answer ‘No’. Nuts.
Then, to top it all off, most mascara comes in that plastic tube, with a plastic wand and is sealed in plastic wrap. Nuts.
So EnviroWoman asked ‘The Secret’ cosmic forces to work their magic and bring a cake mascara in a metal case into her life. Was that too much to ask for?
She searched the beauty shops in LaLaLand. No luck.
Then she searched the world wide web and found one French brand, Longcils Boncza that had cake mascara refills that appeared to be completely plastic free. But could she find their corporate website to check the product out? NO. Could she find a supplier that carried it locally? NO. Could she find a mail order company that could guarantee it wasn’t packaged in plastic? NO.
So EnviroWoman had to cross off cake mascara from her list. Nuts.
She then e-searched known cruelty free brands…looking for one that didn’t have plastic. Nope.
The hunt turned to homemade recipes. But, no luck. None seemed doable, or they called for plastic-packaged ingredients.
She searched the ethnic shopping districts in search of kohl. But never found any. And even if she did, could she be guaranteed it was cruelty-free when she couldn’t even read the writing on the package?
Ever the optimist, EnviroWoman turned to Sephora. She had such great luck with Sephora’s CARGO Plant Love lipstick, which is packaged in a compostable bioplastic tube made of corn, that maybe, just maybe, she’d luck out and find they had cruelty free mascara that was also plastic free. Rumour had it they might. Alas they didn’t. Nuts.
(But EnviroWoman had to give major points to Sephora, they sent her the best response she’s ever received to one of her email inquiries. It’s so good, it’s included at the bottom of this post.)
It was starting to look grim. So she headed to Capers, the local mecca of all things organic and healthy. They carried one brand which she finally had to settle on. Dr. Hauschka.
It’s not a perfect solution because, although it comes in a metal tube, with no plastic wrapper, it does have a plastic wand. But it’s cruelty free, and as plastic free as she’s gonna find in mascara. It doesn’t have the best staying power, and ooeeee – it costs $30. Yikes.
But at least EnviroWoman’s beady little eyes aren’t looking so beady anymore. (Yeah, like who is she kidding?)
So here’s how things add up:
Category: Mascara
SAINTs: Dr. Hauschka
Price: As expensive as the high end brands.
Quality: Not as good, but at least it's cruelty-free
SINNERs: Body Shop, Cover Girl, L’Oreal, Maybelline, Marcelle, Annabelle, Lise Watier, Clinque, Quo, Almay, MAC, Estée Lauder, Kiss Me, Fresh, Elizabeth Arden, Philosophy, DuWop, Cargo, Urban Decay, and all the other drugstore brands.
Lessons Learned:
- Sometimes The Secret cosmic forces don’t answer your requests. Nuts. Like what’s up with that, anyhoo? I mean, we’re living in the 21st century…surely, somewhere on this planet there really is a completely plastic-free, cruelty-free mascara.
- There's a price to pay for vanity. Sometimes it's animals in cages that pay that price. Always it's women who get suckered into thinking that somehow, a $30 tube of mascara is really going to make beady eyes bigger.
As promised, here is Sephora’s answer to EnviroWoman's email request. Notice how they too confuse 'cruelty-free' with 'not tested on animals' but even so, there's alot of great info below they were happy to share:
Thank you for contacting Sephora.com
Sephora.com is a retailer for over 250 brands. Our private label brand, Sephora Collection, is cruelty free (meaning, the products have never been tested on animals) (Note from EnviroWoman: Cruelty-free is more than this, the product should also not include animal ingredients), but I cannot guarantee that every brand we sell is. Due to public outcry in the 1980's, the vast majority of cosmetics companies stopped animal testing.
Other than the CARGO Plant Love lipstick I don't know of any other lines that we carry that are entirely free from being packaged in plastics.
You will want to look for any of these logos: (Labels can be deceiving, so be careful. No specific laws exist regarding cruelty-free labeling of products, so companies can take liberties.)
- "No New Products tested on Animals"
- "No Animal Testing"
- "Cruelty Free"
Here is a list of a few lines that have never tested on animals:
Organic: The FDA does not regulate the term "organic," but these brands follow strict internal standards for their organic products: all active ingredients are grown without chemicals and pesticides.
- Juice Beauty
- CARE by Stella McCartney
- L'Occitane
- Dr.Hauschka
Natural: Products made without the addition of certain synthetic additives like chemical preservatives, or non-natural fragrances and colors.
- Phyto
- Boscia
- Skyn Iceland
- Caudalie Jonathan Products (100% vegan)
- Decleor (Their Aromessence Oils are organic and preservative-free)
- REN Clean Skincare (free of petrochemicals, sulfates, parabens, synthetic fragrance, and color)
Botanical: Made from naturally derived ingredients and essential oils, these products harness the full power of Mother Nature
- Ole Henriksen
- Carol's Daughter (paraben- and sodium laureth sulfate-free, and also free of petroleum-based products)
- TESS(Teen Everyday Skincare System)(Made with fruit and botanical extracts, essential oils, and vitamins)
- Ojon
- Rene Furterer
- Korres Natural Products (created at the oldest homeopathic pharmacy in Athens, Greece)
- LaVanila Laboratories (free of petrochemicals, synthetic dyes, sulfates, parabens, and phthalates)
- CARGO Plant Love
Also cruelty free:
- Anthony Logistics
- Stila Cosmetics
- Benefit Cosmetics
- Bourjois Cosmetics
- EI Solutions
- Urban Decay
- Hard Candy
- Too Faced Cosmetics
- Bare Escentuals
- Sue Devitt Studio
If you would like more information regarding Animal Ingredients and Companies that don't test or ones that do check out these websites:
- www.leapingbunny.org
- http://www.peta-online.org/mall/cc.html
- http://pw1.netcom.com/~axleplus/stuff/hotstuff/company.html
The best place to retrieve or purchase Vegan/Animal free cosmetics would be: www.animalfreecosmetics.com
Again, thanks for contacting Sephora.com and if we can assist you further please feel free to contact us at www.sephora.com
Best regards, Sarah R. Sephora.com Client Services
See, wasn’t that a great response from a company? Sarah R….whoever you are….I hope one day Sephora promotes you to upper management.
34 comments. Read or write:
Wow. I'm really glad that I rarely use makeup. I thought I was just lazy, but now I understand that I'm saving the planet! :-)
Maybe your eyes aren't as beady as you think they are?
Hi ... I've missed you! I know exactly how you feel because whenever I go without mascara everyone worries and asks me if I'm sick. One option I've been considering is to just get my eyelashes tinted, thereby avoiding mascara altogether, but I'll have to check what they actually use at the Salon. Thanks for doing so much leg work and hope you're enjoying your new house.
I'm packing to move and I accidentally dropped my Dr.Hauschka toner out the window! It's stuck on the roof below me. What's a girl to do?
I am absolutely, completely, entirely blown away by your blog and your mission. I've only just discovered non-plastic bags for my produce; I haven't even begun to think about my make-up. So if you feel a friendly force behind you, it is me, trying to follow in your non-plastic footprints.
(BTW, eyeliner pencils might solve your problem - enlarge the eyes and, look ma, no plastic!).
Cheers!
Yes, I was also going to ask if you had thought about having your lashes tinted rather than using macscara? It looks better too - no lumpy bits.
Last time I had mine done it came in a metal tube.
Hate to have to tell you this, but since Body Shop got bought out by L'Oreal in 2006 I don't think you can call them cruelty free anymore...
I just got this little tidbit of info in my email today (from sprig.com)...
"The makeup contains organic ingredients, which means they've been grown without the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and it's free of petroleum products (non-renewable resources) and parabens (synthetic preservatives, which have been linked to breast cancer). The pretty metallic rose product packaging is biodegradable, and the outer boxes are made of a corn-based plastic and soy ink."
I don't know how corn-based plastic fits into your ban but I thought this might be helpful in your mascara quest...
http://www.josiemarancosmetics.com/
beth in the fake plastic fish tank
Yes Beth, you are lucky you haven't been suckered into the whole 'I ain't beautiful enough so I gotta plaster my bod with chemicals' phenom.
Sadly, I actually think my eyes are much beadier than I think they are!!!
Cheers
EnviroWoman
a year in a day...
I considered getting my lashes tinted, but my eyes are pretty sensitive little suckers (on top of being beady). One of the WonderWomen I work with had her's done and 'twas a miserable, puffy experience. Yikes.
Plus, I have no guarantee the dye they use is cruelty-free.
Thanks for the idea though. I often use mascara for about a month and then suddenly ferociously react to it. If that happens with my Dr. Hauschka I just may have to do the dye thing...and book off two weeks from work in case I end up with a bad case of puffy, beady eyes for a while.
Cheers
EnviroWoman
Emily
Borrow someone's fishing rod, tie a really strong magnet to the end, and do some cruelty-free fishing!!
Good luck.
EnviroWoman
almost vegetaran....
Quite honestly, finding plastic-free cruelty-free eye crayons is probably going to be just as difficult as mascara. Most come with a plastic cap, or are sealed in that wacko-preventative plastic wrap. Or alas, are not cruelty-free. But I should check Capers out and see if they have any.
(I tell ya, finding makeup and body related products that are cruelty-free and plastic-free are proving to be a bit of a misery)
Here's what I'm doing for eyeliner...I use my eyeliner brush (which is plastic, but purchased way back in 2006) and dip it onto my Dr. Hauschka mascara brush - then apply liberally.
Ya know, it's working for me!!!
Thanks for being a friendly force behind EnviroWoman. Send some good makeup karma my way!
EnviroWoman
rebekka
I figure my new mascara will last for about 6 months (if I scrape the barrel like I did with the last one). Maybe I can spend that time hunting for a local salon that guarantees their lash tint is cruelty-free...And then take the plunge.
How long does a lash tinting usually last?
EnviroWoman
Jessica at Bwlchyrhyd
I know, isn't that an absolute heartbreaker! I noticed that on one of the cruelty-free sites I was on the other night and thought - 'yikes what's up with that'.
All that wonderful 'pave the way to a world of cruelty-free cosmetics' work that Anita Roddick did when she launched and built The Body Shop, blown right outta the water when her company gets sold.
Bummer. Big bummer.
EnviroWoman
mythell
You so totally ROCK. This sounds promising. Corn-based bioplastic is an 'okay' plastic on my list. I visited the link you sent, and didn't find it very informative and then checked out her blog. She seems more intent on making herself the next Paris Hilton, then communicating stuff about her product...I'll have to check out the sprig.com post.
Her site says launching Sept 2007...so I'll have to be patient a little longer.
But thanks so much for telling me about something that could prove a saviour!!!
EnviroWoman
One thing I've noticed is that when women who usually wear makeup come into the office bare-faced, for whatever reason, they look awful! But women who never wear makeup look fine all the time. I think it's just what we're used to seeing. If you never wear makeup in the first place, no one will ever think you look awful when you don't have it on.
That's what I tell myself anyway to justify how low maintenance I am. And I'm certainly not a "natural beauty" by any stretch of the imagination.
Hey, tell us about the house buying.
I mean no offense by this but it seems rather mixed up (on the priority scale) that you would go without protein and risk getting sick, rather than to compromise a bit. But you will compromise on a beauty product that you don't actually *need*.
Xr6cgJ Your blog is great. Articles is interesting!
KXQZUP Please write anything else!
Good job!
actually, that's brilliant. Thank you. I'm going to pass that on to a couple of people.
Wonderful blog.
actually, that's brilliant. Thank you. I'm going to pass that on to a couple of people.
actually, that's brilliant. Thank you. I'm going to pass that on to a couple of people.
actually, that's brilliant. Thank you. I'm going to pass that on to a couple of people.
Hello all!
Thanks to author.
zR78nA Magnific!
Is that mascara good for winter time? Do you know other good winter skin products?
Hi there. I'm a plastic free girly and I bumped into your blog by accident. L'Oreal own The Body Shop now and, as such, The Body Shop was wiped from the Cruelty Free List in March 2006.
As for 'cruelty free' mascara, I think you're pushing the party line too hard. Have you considered a curler and adhesive lashes? Ones on the market today by Ardell are not bulky and are easy to adhere..and are sold in cardboard cartons. Alternatively, you could tint your lashes using powdered kohl.
Have you tried making your own? I have recently been looking for a decent recipe which didn't used materials I couldn't pronounce, to no avail.
I've just started playing with making lip balms, and they're basically the same as cake mascara: wax, oil, pigment (amounts vary depending on which types of waxes/oils/pigments used; I'm still experimenting).
Reuse a lip tin or other flat container. Using a double boiler, mix piment with oil, add wax, stir until blended, test with a cold knife for colour, pour into container, let cool, apply with old mascara brush.
I did find Honeybee Gardens to have a great "natural" mascara at $10; doesn't flake, though is in a plastic tube.
I've also emptied out one old mascara tube (popped the filter off and cleaned the interior and brush) , then filled the container with a few drops of honey and olive oil. It works, but takes some practice.
Good luck!
I forgot to add that for less than the cost of Dr. Hauschka mascara, you could get literally a lifetime supply of all of the raw materials (waxes, oils, pigments, tins) at http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com
I know this is a super old post, but I was just searching for plastic free mascara and came across this Etsy brand-
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=22916937
I haven't had a chance to ask them about the applicator though- but you could wash and re-use the one you have in your current tube. :)
Re Michelle's etsy suggestion... It doesn't specify whether the applicator is plastic, but seeing as it's etsy, one could always contact the seller and a) ask, and b) ask them not to include it if it is, and keep using a cleaned old applicator. Still plastic, but it's plastic that would've been thrown away anyway.
And that's awesome. I didn't realize you could find things like that there!
Nic
have you tried "Kiss Me Mascara" by blinc, Inc.?
Post a Comment