Graduation

I haven't blogged for a while, but I'm going to jump straight in - last month I graduated, and I couldn't have been more proud of myself. This funny sized photo is ruining my blog layout, but I'm one big happy bunny and I don't even care :)

Ethical Living: Preserve Razor

As you may have seen in my bamboo toothbrush post, I'm trying to purchase items that are sustainable, as well as cruelty free. When it comes to razors, reusable handles are the most environmentally friendly option, and this little fella takes it a step further by being made from recycled materials.

Ethical Fashion Brand List

As I mentioned in my Rapanui post, I'm trying to be much more conscious when it comes to fashion. I want to purchase my clothes from ethical sources, making sure they are both fair trade and environmentally friendly.

One easy way to shop ethically is buying from charity or vintage shops - your money is going to a good cause, and you're helping to reduce the extreme waste caused by fast fashion. (The clothing industry is the second largest global polluter, only being beaten by oil), but there are also a growing number of ethical brands out there, so I though I would try and collate as many as possible in one place. This post has gained its own tab on my blog navigation bar, and I'll keep it updated as I stumble across new ethical fashion gems.

Do let me know if you have any favorites, or any other additions for the list! :)

Makeup: B. Cruelty Free and Vegan Lipstick

I've been blogging for a few years now, but I'm pretty sure that this is my first ever make up post! On a day to day basis I'm not a massive make-up wearer, but I do like to have fun with it on special occasions, and every now and then when it takes my fancy. I have a good basic cruelty free collection, so I will try and do a few more makeup posts, but I do tend to stick to my favorites and not branch out too much! This is the first item from B. that I've tried, and I've heard pretty mixed reviews, but I was really pleasantly surprised with this little purchase. 

Ethical Living: Bamboo Toothbrushes

I had a post uni clear out a few weeks ago and the amount of rubbish one person can accumulate really made me stop and think. I've always tried to be conscious about my environmental footprint, but this has really encouraged me to put more effort into making ethical decisions. Reducing the amount of waste you produce however, doesn't have to be hard work, and this little bamboo toothbrush is a super easy way to do just that.

One person will typically get through over 300 toothbrushes during the course of their life, and that's one big landfill pile. The plastic wont break down during our lifetime, but bamboo toothbrushes are both biodegradable and environmentally sustainable.

D.I.Y: Painting Satin Shoes

This is a bit of a different post, but I painted my best friend's wedding shoes! It was a really fun project (and a little terrifying too) but I'm pretty pleased with the results. My friend had seen lots of custom painted wedding shoes, which all looked really fab, but where oh so expensive. She really like the idea of turning her shoes into something she could keep as a reminder of the day, and it became my bridesmaid duty :) I thought I would share the process as I struggled to find any advice for painting designs onto satin shoes at the time.

Ethical Fashion: Rapanui

So it's been a while, sorry! My third year at university saw blogging take a backseat, I'm not going to make loads of excuses, but now that I've finished University (eekk!) I plan to go back to blogging regularly :)

I'm trying to be a lot more conscious when it comes to ethical fashion. Information seems to be a lot harder to come by than cruelty free cosmetics, and I've definitely been guilty of clinging on to my ignorance in the past, but I'm trying to make some changes. Hunting out affordable ethical brands is my first step, and I want to share all my newly discovered gems with you.

Winter Book Haul 2015/6

If I ever find a better way to spend a wet winter's evening than curled up with a good book and my dogs then I'm going to be surprised. There's nothing quite like lighting a fire, switching the fairy lights on and grabbing a good book. At the moment I'm sticking to History books for uni but I'm slowly building up a big old pile of books to read in the summer. These are the latest additions :)

Favorite CF Brands: White Rabbit Skincare

Happy New Year! I thought I'd start of a new year of blog posts with one of my favorite cruelty free brands from 2015. I'm sure it's going to keep it up in 2016 too! White Rabbit Skincare has got a lot of love from the cruelty free blogging community, but if you need some more convincing, then holla! - this could be the post for you. It really is as good as everyone says. :)

Life update!

So its been a while. 

I always read blog post where bloggers apologise for not blogging for a while and feel like they shouldn't need to, sometimes life gets in the way and that's okay. But, well, its been a fair few months so I felt like I needed a little explanation (and apology!). My third year of uni has taken over my life a little bit, I'm still making sure that I give myself breaks and a work like balance, but when I've spent the day staring at a screen, I tend to turn to knitting over blogging. 

Saying that, I have missed it! So I'm trying to get my blogging game back on and get some posts scheduled. I cant promise posts every week, but I can promise that they'll be more regular, and then the end of May will role along, and I'll be free, and Lucadonta wont know whats hit it ;) 

I have some cruelty free and ethical living posts lined up for you, but to ease myself back into the blogging world, and catch up with you all I thought I'd start of with a little life update. If you fancy knowing what I've been getting up to when I haven't been immersing myself in books about life in Stalinist Russia then this is the post for you...

Sea Inspired Nails

Autumn is probably my favorite season, I love jumpers, big scarfs and orange and red. But at the moment we're in an awkward in-between stage. Its September, summer is coming to an end, but we're also still getting a few sunny days, and Autumn, though round the corner, isn't quite here. I haven't been able to fully embrace Autumn yet, and I'm still morning the end of the holidays, so I'm going to cling on to them for a little while longer with some sea inspired nail art. 

Favorite CF Brands: Faith in Nature

I love finding new cosmetics to try, but there's nothing better than finding a whole, or big chunk of a company that you love. Having companies that you can trust, and know work for you make shopping for cruelty free products so much easier and gives you some great 'safe options' that you know you can fall back on.

I thought I'd start a mini series to share some of my favorite brands with you. Some of them will be old favorites, and others will be newly discovered gems. I'm planning to make this a regular thing, so let me know if you have any suggestions, or constructive criticism! :)

But anyway, back to the important stuff - Faith in Nature.

A Week in Devon

I've got a love hate meh relationship with Devon. Devon itself is pretty great. Its a place I've visited year after year for family holidays while I've been growing up. These holidays have adapted and changed with us as we've grown older, and they have a special place in my heart. We started off with some short walks and a lot of crabbing, dabbled with a bit of sailing in the middle, and now I've gone back to cliff top walking, with a few extra miles thrown in.

Sunday Stamping: Floral Nails

Nail art is one of my favorite hobbies. I love having something to do while I watch a TV show and I can happily paint my nails without getting distracted. Having something to watch also stops me from getting too impatient and smudging them before they dry! All in all, its a perfect combination :) Having to remove nail varnish for work is the worst part about my job, and the only downside to summer time nail painting.

This summer I've been loving stamped floral designs, and I've experimented with a few different colour combinations and patterns. I thought I'd share two of these with you in this post.

Cruelty Free Cosmetics: Evening Skincare Routine

 

To follow on from my morning skincare routine post, I'm going to share the other half of my daily skincare. Well, I say half, this bit is definitely shorter. In the evening I want to get into bed, and there's no time for dilly dallying. Depending on the condition of my skin, some of these products can be skipped, but I'll talk about that in more detail below. I just want to make sure that my skins clean, and there's no product build up so I can sleep easy and wake up feeling refreshed in the morning.

Cruelty Free Cosmetics: Morning Skincare Routine

I never used to be much of a 'skincare routine' kinda gal. I had products that I used regularly, but it was far too chop and changey to be a routine. Recently I've found products that really make a positive difference to my skin, and I've been motivated to use them daily. I even have a nice little routine for the evening too, and this will feature in next weeks post. :)

Book Review: Go Set A Watchman (Spoiler free)

Go Set A Watchman has been very very well publicised, not that that's really a surprise when it can be branded as a To Kill A Mockingbird Sequel.

Vegan Snacks: Nakd Bars

I'd love to be the healthy friend, the one that prepares snacks for the week ahead on a Sunday and rules the tupperwares (or mason jars if their particularly trendy). But well, I'm not. Every now and again I surprise myself, but it never really lasts. If I have time Sunday is a walking/reading/blogging/family kind of day, and I like that.

I also like healthy snacks. So I have a tiny bit of a dilemma. But this dilemma has been eased by Nakd Bars.

D.I.Y: Two ideas for blackboard paint

Blackboard paint is a great way to easily revamp home accessories and change up a space. It brings another texture to a room, and adds small amounts of bold mat colour which can look great. Being able to draw on it also makes it really useful, and gives you the ability to constantly revamp the item.

Cruelty Free Skincare: Fair Squared Facial Sun Cream, SPF 15

A few weeks ago I wrote this post which listed a few different cruelty free facial SPF's that are currently on the market. This Fair Squared facial sun cream was on the list, and it turned out to be the winner! Well, in the sense that is made its way into my shopping basket. I don't have enough cash to trial all of them for you (or come to think of it, enough faces), but I do have a few opinions on this one to share, and they're all rather positive.