2015 Cruelty Free Beauty Favourites

Too Faced Blushing Bronzers

My skin changed a lot throughout the year which forced me to try a lot of new skincare products. Sensitivity, eczema and dermatitis are my main skin concerns so I needed to find products that wouldn’t cause any of those to flare up. Thankfully I found the Innoxa Organic range and Moo Goo products. I use the Innoxa Organic Gentle Cleansing Gel, Hydrating Daily Moisturiser, Replenishing Night Creme, Hydrating and Anti-ageing Serum, and the Brightening Eye Creme. From Moo Goo I use the Eczema and Psoriasis Cream, Soothing MSM Cream and the Full Cream Moisturiser – check out my review. I also wrote a review on the WotNot facial wipes in March and I am still in love with them. I often add oil to my skin when I feel that it is extra irritable. The oils I frequently use are the Trilogy Certified Organic Rosehip Oil, the Sukin Facial Treatment Oil, and the Rosehip Plus Rosehip Oil in the rollerball package. 

Base products seemed the be the hardest thing for me to find as my skin does react to a lot of products. I found a few primers that didn’t irritate my skin. The Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer is the best for giving a luminous glow to the skin, but it’s not oily at all. I have very large pores on, and around my nose, so even when I use the Hourglass primer I still need something to smooth those out.  The main smoothing primer I reach for is The Balm Time Balm Primer, if you’re on a budget, Innoxa have the Skin Perfecting Pore Vanishing Cream and Designer Brands Cosmetics have their Blur Primer. For most of the year I used the Innoxa Long Lasting Foundation but as my skin got drier I turned to the Chi Chi Super CC Cream – the Chi Chi is very sheer, so I have just started using the Too Faced Born This Way foundation for times when I need more coverage – it will probably be my favourite in 2016. I am still on the hunt for my holy grail cruelty free concealer, hopefully I find one soon. When Australis Cosmetics came out with a lighter shade in the Fresh and Flawless Pressed Powder, I was so excited, it has been my favourite powder since. I also use the Too Faced Primed and Poreless loose powder to set my face when needed. 

One of my favourite products to collect is blushes. Being so fair means that I really need the pop of colour on my cheeks to bring life back into my face. The blushes I loved during the year were TheBalm Down Boy, many of the Colourpop Super Shock Cheek products (Prenup is extra special), and I also love the Too Faced Love Flush Blushes. I don’t really use bronzer but I own both of the Too Faced Blushing Bronzers because they’re too cute to pass on. Contouring also wasn’t a big thing for me in 2015 but I did finally find a product from Designer Brands that is silky to touch and easy to blend on my skin. Unfortunately, the Designer Brands Pro Contour Kit was limited edition, but there is a lot of pressure on DB cosmetics to bring it out again so they may do so – fingers crossed. 2015 was definitely the year of the highlight/strobing. My first ever highlighter was The Balm’s Mary-Lou Manizer and it is still a favourite of mine. Colourpop have a large range of highlighters, including very light ones for fair skin tones. I also loved the Too Faced Candlelight Glow Highlighting Powder Duo and the Anastasia Beverly Hills Illuminator in Starlight, both of which add a beautiful shine to the tops of my cheekbones. 

Eyebrows were also a big trend in 2015. My favourite products are the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz and Clear Brow Gel. The Anastasia Brow Powder Duo is lovely too, but I don’t reach for it as often as the Brow Wiz. Designer Brands have the Extend A Brow which is good to fill in areas where hair is sparse. 

I found some great eyeshadow palettes throughout the year, they include the Too Faced Stardust Palette, Saucebox Batalash Palette, TheBalm Meet Matt(e) Nude Palette and Anastasia Beverly Hills Shadow Couture Palette. You can’t go past the Colourpop Super Shock single eyeshadows for that pop of colour or sparkle on the lid. My eyeshadow primer and mascara favourites didn’t change throughout the year as the Too Faced Shadow Insurance Eye Primer and Better Than Sex Mascara are great quality, so I have no need to try others. 2015 saw me embrace the light coloured eyeliner in the waterline, as it certainly brightens up my eyes on tired days (which are all the time). Models Prefer make my two favourite nude eyeliners, they have the Infinite Colour Eye Pencil in Nude Appeal, it is shiny so it reflects the light back, and they have the Magic Multi-Purpose Pencil in Silk which is a bit more salmon in tone and gives a matte effect. Australis Cosmetics had my heart when it came to black eyeliners. I love the Stayput Long-Lasting Retractable Eyeliner in Midnight and the Tiny Tip Eyeliner Pen in Carbon Black. 

Too Faced Stardust Palette by Vegas Nay

I tried a lot of new lip products throughout 2015. My favourite lipliners included the Innoxa Invisible Lip Shaper which can be used with any coloured lipstick and the Colourpop Lippie Pencils which come in a huge range of colours so you can find a match for any lip colour you want to do. I’ve never really been into lipsticks but finding the Colourpop Lippie Stix changed that, and now I have lots of them in my collection. 2015 was the year of the liquid lipstick, so naturally I tried a few different formulas. My favourite liquid lipstick formula is from Dose Of Colors as it isn’t overly drying but is still very matte. Jeffree Star Velour Liquid Lipsticks come in at a close second. Despite the liquid lipstick trend, I am still a glossy lip lover. The two lipglosses that I really liked in 2015 were the Dose Of Colors Classic Lip Gloss in Rose and the Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Gloss in Vintage.

I am a bit of a makeup brush junkie, as for a long time I felt I hadn’t found the right brushes, 2015 saw a change to that. I found the Furless Cosmetics Couture Body Contour Kit and Couture Base Essentials Kit, which are amazing for applying foundation and any face powder product, including blush, highlighter and contour. Furless are a vegan company so I always know that I am getting synthetic bristles, which is important to me as I don’t want to rub animal bum hair all over my face. The eye brushes that I fell in love with are from the Morphe Brushes Elite range, the whole elite range is synthetic/vegan and have very soft bristles. I use my Beauty Blender, Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge and the Chi Chi Yellow Makeup Blending Sponge all the time, and I will try to put up a comparison post on them soon. I always use my BLVD Cosmetics Brush Shampoo and Conditioner in Lemon Grass Swirl to wash all my brushes and sponges. It cleans all my products really well but it’s also vegan and biodegradable which makes it extra special in my books.

I own quite a few cruelty free makeup setting sprays but my favourites are the Innoxa Anti-Ageing Make-up Setting Spray and the Models Prefer Finale Make-up Setting Mist. The Innoxa bottle is quite small so it is good for traveling and touch ups during the day and the Models Prefer is alcohol free which makes it especially good for sensitive skin, they are also both vegan which is a bonus.

In 2016 I hope to try products from certain brands that I’ve never tried before, they include; Becca Cosmetics, Makeup Geek Cosmetics, Ofra Cosmetics, Kat Von D Beauty, Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics, Makeup Revolution, and Sigma Beauty (especially the synthetic copper range). I would also like to try the Too Faced face primers, TheBalm liquid lipsticks, Eye Of Horus Brow Products, Anastasia Beverly Hills single eyeshadows, and more foundations and concealers.

Dose Of Colors Liquid-Matte Lipsticks

I think I have covered everything that I liked throughout 2015 and I can’t wait to find new products this year. A lot of these products are not only cruelty free but also vegan. Just remember to double check the ingredients on any vegan products as companies get their vegan lists wrong all the time. I know this post is long but I wanted to include everything so that you could find it all in one post. Did I miss your favourite cruelty free beauty product from 2015?