Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Flower Cosmetics | Drew Barrymore @ Walmart




Hey guys. So I'm sure you've heard by now about Drew Barrymore's new makeup line. I first heard of it from watching her interview with Oprah. (Yeah, I know). I really love Drew, but of course when I first heard about this new line, my first question was: "Is it cruelty-free?"


So I went to their website, and looked for a 'Contact" or "FAQ" link. But of course, being that it's so new in the market, they don't have one. (Which I hope will change with time).

They did have a 'Philosophy' link. Which explains why this line was created, etc. They also mention that Flower products "are never tested on animals". As far as information about their animal testing policy, that is all I got. I tried researching on google, but all I would get were links to other posts (like this one). Apparently no one knows exactly.

I don't doubt that Flower's final products are not tested, as a company would look terrible if they lied about their cruelty-free status. However, what about their raw-ingredients? What about their parent company? Do they have a parent company? All these questions, which I use to determine if a company is cruelty-free, are left unanswered. 

So what does this mean? It just means I will have to get in contact with Flower more directly. I pride myself in presenting you with a cohesive post, with evidence to back up my conclusion about a company's cruelty-free status. I'm posting this, even-though, it's quite inconclusive just to warn you that this company might not be 100% cruelty-free.

If you are like me, you don't support company's unless they are 100% cruelty-free. Meaning that their final product, raw-ingredients, parent company, and sister companies do NOT test on animals. That is the standard I hold my blog up to. So just be aware.

Hopefully, soon I will have a post ending the question of "Is it?"

Until then, hold tight. If you happen to find a cohesive post, please let me know. I would really appreciate it and I'm sure anyone reading this will to.

Until Next Time,

Camila Alvarez

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Nars and bareMinerals
















Hey guys.
I had been corresponding with a representative from Nars for about a month now. Of course, to get the details on their cruelty-free status.  As I researched, I managed to learn bareMineral's cruelty-free status as well, along with a collection of other companies. Some I'm sure you probably never heard of and some maybe you have. I'm just listing Nars & baraMinerals because they are the most well known.
They will also be on my cruelty-free list.

 So get ready, this is going to be lengthy.

I know a lot of you are anxious to hear whether these very popular & lusted after companies are cruelty-free.

I hope to help clear the rumors you might have heard.

I began by emailing them. I won't share it, just to save you some time and to get to the point. (If you're really curious, it went something like: "I'm a [potential] costumer and I demand to be listened to!!"

I then received a series of email, so get ready to do a bit of reading.
Dear Camila,
Thank you for contacting NARS Cosmetics. 
 While NARS is not a member of PETA, Nars does not test on animals, nor do we have any other parties, including our suppliers, conduct animal testing on our behalf. Nars uses only the highest quality ingredients which have a proven safety record and are widely used in the cosmetics industry. If you are questioning a particular product ingredients, please specify the product and we will be able to better answer your question. If we can assist you further please don't hesitate to contact us.
Kind regards,
 [I've omitted any names] 
Customer DesiresNARS Cosmetics

I have a few problems with that email. For one, they say "nor do we have any other parties, including your suppliers, conduct animal testing.." To me that says, 'although we do not encourage third party animal testing, we do not exactly demand that third party companies DO NOT conduct animal testing'. Hopefully, you understand what I'm getting at.


They were not clear on the China issue. I had included that as a question in my original email. Therefore, I emailed them again.

"Thank you for contacting me so promptly.
 Why doesn't Nars become affiliated with PETA? It would help people, like myself, that only purchase cruelty-free products. Also it would open a huge new market target. Also, does Nars sell to China? I'm sure you are aware of China's animal testing policy.
-Camila Alvarez 
I always like asking them about becoming affiliated with a animal rights group.(i.e. PETA, LeapingBunny). I feel that it saves time for people who only purchase cruelty-free products.

Maybe a day or two later I received this email:
Dear Camila, 
 We are not aware of any plan to retail in China.
NARS is owned by Shiseido.
If we can assist you further please don't hesitate to contact us.
Kind regards,
 [I've omitted any names]
 Customer DesiresNARS Cosmetics

This is where my research became interesting. As you know, from the description of this blog. I do not support companies who are "cruelty-free" but are owned by companies that are NOT cruelty-free.

It does not make any sense to me. If you buy from those types of companies, your money is going toward who knows what. You might be funding the animal testing.

I then went on Shiseido's website. Before this correspondence I had never heard of Shiseido. Apparently, they are a separate beauty company and the parents of Nars, bareMinerals, etc.  They apparently own: Nars and bareMinerals, and a bunch of other companies. Click here to see that list.

They own makeup companies, they also own skincare, haircare, body care companies.
After my eyes starting hurting from looking at all the companies they own. I went to see if they sell in China. And I'm sure you can guess, that of course they sell in China. Here is their Chinese website. That's evidence enough for me.

So, are Nars & bareMinerals  (they are both owned by Shiseido) cruelty-free?
Of course not. I didn't even bother to check the section where, they mention all the work they have done to end animal testing, because frankly I'm tired of reading that crap over-and-over again.

I hope this post helped you in some form. I know I was not surprised to hear that Nars is not cruelty-free, I was however somewhat surprised to hear that bareMinerals is not. Either way, I don't own any of their products so I wont be missing them. I'm sorry if you are a huge Nars or bareMinerals fan, and this news is hard to swallow. Just remember that the life of an innocent bunny, cat, or dog is more precious than participating in a beauty trend. Also, bunnies, dogs, and cats are not going to be using these products, so it's not fair for them to sacrifice their lives, for something so insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

Don't get me wrong I'm a true, girls-girl but I know where to draw the line. Do you?


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