Miessence Foundation (Review)

Previously, I used Almay Smart Shade foundation. I liked the price point (18.99 on well.ca) and Almay's cruelty-free status. Things changed in the cruelty-free claim so I began my hunt for a better foundation.

I started by ordering a sample of Miessence foundation. The sample cost $8 (with tax and shipping) and I was mostly satisfied, so I ordered the actual product.

The good:

• It works better than the Almay foundation. I don't get shiny nearly as quickly.
• And that's pretty much it.

The bad:

• If I worked with little kids there would be a problem. At first, they would love me. But then that would wear off because while I smell like Play-Doh they would be let down when they realized I am not made of Play-Doh. Yes, that's right. Miessence has a Play-Doh odour.
• The sample I ordered was an ok texture....but the real deal is watery. It may get better in time, but I've been using it for a week and it's still watery.
• So, at $80 (including shipping and tax), this will not be a repeat purchase.  

Make-up review

A while ago I purchased 100% Pure foundation powder from Raindance Cosmetics. I put off using it because I'm adverse to change and had been using Almay's Smart Shade pressed powder. I was satisfied with how it worked but decided to change over to a company that is cruelty-free. Almay was once upon a time but have made concessions to be able to sell their products in China. Anyway, that's not the point of this post. (Can you tell that I'm still bitter about having to change over all of my cosmetics?)

I wasn't sure about the shade of the 100% Pure powder. It doesn't match Almay's. I wasn't really expecting it to, but I was worried that I would like orange or something. Thankfully, that didn't happen. The 100% Pure goes on sheer. The powder is a bit looser and it doesn't blend quite as well. However, it's not awful and I can live with doing a few extra brush strokes.

The main downside is the price. Almay's is 14.99 (on well.ca) and the 100% Pure is $33 on Raindance Cosmetics. Yikes. My ethical views support the change and (at the moment) my wallet can handle it.

Almay's Smart Shade comes with it's own brush. 100% Pure did not. The thing with cosmetic brushes is that some (many?) are made with animal hair. It could be horse/pony, goat, squirrel, etc. I have no interest in being that close and personal with a squirrel (or any animal really) so I wanted to buy a set that is cruelty-free and vegan.

I bought a set from EcoTools that I found at target. I love them. They are *so* soft. And they are kind of pretty. The bristles are synthetic and the rest is made from bamboo and recycled aluminum.

Green Beaver Makeup Remover

I am slowly replacing all of my Almay products because (IMO) they are technically no longer cruelty-free since they sell to markets that require animal testing. I'm not a wasteful person, so I didn't throw everything out and am instead replacing products as they run out.

The first item to replace was makeup remover. I had been using Almay's makeup remover pads and I have recently tried Green Beaver's Eye Makeup Remover.

While I like the convenience of Almay's pads, Green Beaver works a lot better at removing my stubborn waterproof mascara. It seems gentle on my skin and does not sting even when I smash it into my eye.

The only not-so-great part is the price. I bought Green Beaver off of well.ca for $13.00 versus Almay's pads for $7.59. However, in time I will find out if the Green Beaver lasts longer than what I would get out of the pads (approx 5 weeks).

Unless I decide to try some other product next time, I do like Green Beaver enough for this product to become a regular. The product itself works really welll.....*and* it's cruelty-free, vegan, Canadian, and all natural. Take that Almay!

One of my reasons

Finley enjoying the sun through the window

Every single day of my life I have four little reminders of why I purchase cruelty-free products. Rabbits are commonly used for animal testing, but in our house rabbits are safe. Here, their job is to be happy. My job is to keep them happy and relatively comfortable. In return, I receive their affection and daily interaction.

Some of you won't 'get it'. And that's why I'm posting about my bunnies. To show that they are awesome pets and should not be used in testing for the newest miracle cosmetic cream (or anything else either).

Finely's story isn't the most amusing (stay tuned down the road for Behr stories). Finley is pretty low-key and I'm not sure that she realizes that she is a rabbit. However, Finley is a super special bunny. Finley is the bunny that has taught us the most about rabbit behaviour. She forced us to work for her affection and we had to learn new ways of approaching her...which basically means that she is the boss and she will receive attention on demand. She would do this by not-so-gently nudging our feet, and then hopping across the room to reach her 'pet-me' location.

Finley is also the most manipulative bunnies we've owned. She typically only acts like a bunny if no one is looking. She would do her binkies/races/destruction in another room and then pretend it wasn't her. Uh, yes Finley. The carpet chewed *itself*. But really, you would start to think that *is* a possibility since it would be so out of character.



Finley snuggling with Behr

Finley's also the boss of the bunny room. She sends other bunnies out to explore and report back to her. She also keeps the others in line in some magical way. I'm not quite sure how she does it.
 
Finley joined the family six years ago. She's estimated to be eight years old, which is elderly for a rabbit. These days, Finley's job is to relax, which is good since she can't do much else. She has become quite arthritic and incontinent with age. She's also deaf and has a tumour in her ear. She gets a cartrophen injection once monthly, metacam once daily, and gabapentin twice daily.

The good news? Over the years, Finley has proven that she's a trooper. She's had a few health scares and we almost lost her multiple times. But she's not done yet. She lets us know this every day with her excitement to eat and the enjoyment she gets from snuggling with her main-bunny Behr and her other-bunny Zayne. Some days, when she's up to it, she will move beyond the rabbit room into the living room (mostly when no humans are looking). And if we do catch her, our job is to stand perfectly still. I'm good with that. I enjoy seeing her explore because I don't know how many more days I will get to spend with her.


Finley loves her blankets

 As the owner of an elderly rabbit, I get peed on and flicked at. I'm no longer her favourite person and am often avoided. However, once the yucky medicine is finished, I will sometimes get licked for my efforts to keep her healthy. And so I go through a lot of laundry (from being peed on) and I pay significant amounts of money to keep her comfortable.

And I purchase cruelty-free products because every bunny deserves a chance to be loved and respected like Finley.

Deodorant

My sister gave me a really awesome knitting bag for Christmas. (It has all of these handy little pockets for my knitting projects). Anyway, she filled the pockets with different little treats. One such treat was a tin of her homemade deodorant. I'm pretty sure she'd given me some before but I don't know where it ended up and I probably didn't give it a fair chance.

(In my defense, that is unusual. I did listen to her about the salt-rock/crystal rock deodorant thing)

But this time I came to my senses and tried her gift. And I have to say it works pretty well. There was one day that I didn't feel as confident in it but that could have been because I didn't apply enough or just because it isn't an anti-perspirant so you will feel a bit damp. But you don't get smelly!

It's really easy to make too and it takes less time than hopping into the car and going to the store. Even if you live right above the store. And you may have the ingredients to make it already (at least I did).

Here it is:

Mix together 1/4 of cornstarch, a 1/4 cup of baking soda, and 5-6 tablespoons of coconut oil. Place in a sealed container. Voila! You are done.

In cooler temperatures it will be a solid mass and as it warms up with your body heat it gets a bit melty (you can see this a bit in the second icture). Because of that, it's not the neatest/easiest thing to apply but it's also not a huge deal either.

My sister says that she makes half the recipe because she stores it in small containers. I am lazy. I made it all and put it in a bigger container. Downside? As it gets empty it will be a pain in the ass to get out. Oh well. Lesson learned.

(The pictures are of the stuff from my sister just because it's a nicer container.)