Vegan Cuts August Box: Ingredients Review

I was recently contacted by Vegan Cuts and they asked me if I would like to be sent one of their subscription Beauty Boxes for review and sign up as an official Vegan Cuts ambassador. I happily obliged as frankly I've missed the fun of a subscription box and Vegan Cuts caters for vegans who are passionate about using purely cruelty-free and animal-free cosmetics. 

I was sent the August box which contained 5 products, 4 of which - I'm happy to say - just about lived up to my green standards. I really think this is great considering that 'natural' is not the company's primary concern. Vegan does not necessarily equal natural (unfortunately) but Vegan Cuts are doing a great job at bridging the gap. As both an ethical and environmentally motivated vegan, this is something that I'm extremely happy to see and want to actively encourage.

If you want to see what was included in this month's box (and how green it was), click play above!

#BeautyChallenge10 Wishlist

You may already know but if you didn't, me some fellow green beauty girls are taking part in something called #beautychallenge10. In fact, some girls have actually already finished the challenge! The basic premise is that we are not allowed to purchase any more beauty products (bar essential replacements) until we successfully use up ten products that we already own. Not quite an innovative feat but challenging all the less! I started off pretty good but I've now reached quite the plateau and haven't finished a product for over two weeks. Although, I've got a sneaky suspicion that a couple items may disappear all at once very soon! As mentioned just a moment ago, some girls have already completed the challenge and I'm still on only 2 items... hats off to them!

Anyway, back to the wishlist. I have now decided that this challenge may actually be doing me a lot of good because I haven't actually been lusting after many beauty products. The only absolute purchase, come the end of challenge, is the Dr Alkaitis Organic Soothing Gel. I've been exposed to far too many glowing reviews and now it must be mine. It's pretty pricey at just over £40 but you get a whooping 120ml which is awesome! It sounds like a perfect aloe vera-based wet dream.

The only other beauty product on my radar is the Lily Lolo Eyeliner in Brown. I don't actually own a brown liner as of yet and it's high time that I fill the gap in my collection! I've heard great things about this budget green liner so I'm eager to give it a whirl.

Finally, I NEED SOME STATIONERY. I had a bit of a breakdown yesterday when I realised that I have just over a month until I start university* and I am yet to purchase many books/stationery items. I quickly made a hefty Amazon order for all my essential reading and I have now begun trawling the likes of Paperchase and Muji for cute writing bits. I've got my heart set on some Kraft notebooks (to destroy with washi tape!), and some beautiful gel pens from Muji. Bring on the revision ;-)

*Sometimes I wonder if you guys are actually aware of how young I really am! I'm only 19 and very much one of the youngest in the green community. I deferred my Uni place so that's why I'm only starting this year! I shall be studying English Literature and (hopefully) German.

New and Exciting Things

I'm sure that - from the title - you were expecting this post to be a little deeper than it actually is. Well it's not. We're talking about new things. I try my hardest to be profound and minimal rather than superficial, but in all realness, I really do like new things.

1:: Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer. Well here is a book that has been on my 'to-read' list for as long as I can remember. I finally got round to picking it up on a recent jaunt to one of those fancy London Waterstones stores with the big stairs and big chairs. Foer is one of my absolute favourite authors and having most of his books, I thought that it might be time to dig in to one of his most famous releases. The artwork for this book is absolutely stunning and from what I've read so far, the prose is just as wonderful.

2:: Coutiver Soaps. I came across Coutiver during an Etsy raid and I was hooked by the bright modern packaging and promise of 100% vegan, natural, palm-free soaps. What makes this brand even better is the intense eco-friendly stance and the fact that they are made just a few miles from my own home! I have only briefly tried the products so far but shall be doing an in-depth post very soon.

3:: Weleda Purifying Lotion. I've been having quite the 'mare with my skin lately. I'm not sure of the catalyst, but almost overnight my skin exploded with horrendous itchy cystic acne. I've decided that it's probably down to my recent slip in eating habits i.e. I've been eating all the (not so healthy) food. I've now got myself back on track and things are starting to look a lot clearer. That's partly down to this little bottle of magic that uses natural herbal extracts to soothe and purify problem skin. This is my first dip in to the world of Weleda after getting my head around their rather confusing cruelty-free status.

4:: Madhava Deliciously Organic Coconut Sugar. I have tried coconut sugar before, but it was very expensive for only a small amount and I wasn't too sure what to do with it. However, I found this large organic bag for hella cheap on Vitacost and I'm excited to get creative. So far I've only used it in smoothies and cookies but I'm already viewing it as an awesome replacement for conventional cane sugar.

What's In My Shower?

I love these kinds of posts and I did actually do them quite regularly, pre-natural. I believe this will be my first fully natural edition! Without further ado, let's see what goodies I am currently coveting within the depths of my shower bag.

I'm currently washing my hair with the Desert Essence Lemon Tea Tree Shampoo and it's pretty good. It's nothing amazing, like there wasn't any "wow" moments like there was when I first starting using Acure, but it's useful as a slightly more clarifying option when the latter is a tad heavy for summer. I've been following this up with an apple cider vinegar hair rinse which is probably one of my favourite green beauty discoveries to date. I've already exclaimed that I may never buy regular shampoo again... I won't go in to too much detail - as I'm planning a dedicated post - but all I can say is stay tuned if you want wonderfully soft, smooth and behaved locks (that do not smell like vinegar). Nevertheless, I am in fact keeping a conventional option close-by for those super lazy days, and currently footing the bill is Rahua's Conditioner. This product gets a lot of hype, but honestly, it just does the job and nothing more.

My current body wash is the Acure Ultra-Hydrating Body Wash which is scented with coconut and pumpkin. The promising scent is what originally drew me to purchasing this product but I've honestly been underwhelmed. It smells nice, but it doesn't last, and every now and then it comes across as being a little sickly. Despite this, it lathers nicely and I really do find it to be moisturising like it claims. For days when exfoliation is required, I've been really enjoying the absolutely heavenly Mount Olympus Scrub from Bathing Beauty. This rosemary-scented salt scrub is all I've been reaching for lately, and only a tablespoon is needed for a truly sensory experience. I find salt scrubs to be less abrasive than sugar scrubs and a great deal more effective - this product is no exception. I picked this up at the recent Love Natural Love Organic show and I do not regret it in the slightest. Bathing Beauty is an absolutely wonderful and inspiring brand.

Finally, my current shower cleanser of choice is the Suki Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser that I reviewed in my previous post. I'm a fan of keeping a separate cleanser for shower time, usually something exfoliating or clay-based that is a bother to remove in any other situation. I really love this product but I won't badger you with the details as you can read all about my pure admiration in my review post that you can find here.

So that was a quick peek in to my current shower routine. This is always rotating, so look forward to more posts like this in the future! For some reason, I'm always curious about what body products people are using... let me know if you are too!

Review: Suki Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser

This is an extremely over-due review. I've been using this cleanser for nearing on six months and it is about time that it was sung a little praise on my dear old blog. The Suki Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser is a product that I actually prefer to use as a scrub, rather than it's primary intended function. A concoction of aromatic lemon oils and natural cane sugar, this glorious potion sloughs away dead skin cells like no other and leaves your face smooth and glowing. Of course, the inclusion of citrus oils means that it is however not suitable for all times and all people. If you have sensitivities/allergies to citrus oils, please skip this one. Also, if you do choose to splurge, keep this one for night time use only as these precious oils unfortunately increase photosensitivity.

Warnings aside, this is a really beautiful product. I feel like I don't even have to mention how amazing it smells because how can it not with such ingredients? The mention of cane sugar can be quite misinformed, leading you to believe that such a product would be scratchy and stripping. However, the granules emulsify and create the most luscious foam which stop the cleanser from becoming too harsh on even the most sensitive of skins. I do suggest remembering to add enough water though, as too thick of a consistency will lead to a stubborn sugary film that calls for a second cleanse. Also, I would choose not to use this on particularly acneaic skin as the combination of citrus oils and manual exfoliation could lead to inflammation, especially when the skin is already unhappy. Therefore, I love to use this when my skin is surprisingly behaving as it keeps me on a good skin streak and encourages a wonderful healthy glow. Also, there is the bonus that a freshly exfoliated face will easily accept and absorb serums or treatment oils. This in turn, leads to a happy, plump, bright face come morning. As a quick note: I would suggest using this product in the shower to ensure complete removal as the couple times that I have done otherwise (and removed with a flannel instead), I have been left - a few minutes later - finding sugar crystals stuck along my jawline, or more annoyingly, in my eyebrows! 

Another thing that I love about this product is that it just never seems to end! Granted I haven't been using everyday, but I have at least been using near enough 2-3 times a week. You only need about the amount shown to cleanse your entire face and I have not yet even reached the half way point after about six months of use. Now that's bang for your buck! The product itself is more on the high-end of price ranges but you can always track it down with some kind of discount and the longevity is impressive. If you're worried, you can always pick up a sample, which are available in pretty generously sized pots. I haven't tried much else from Suki but I'm really impressed with this cleanser and I'm really going to enjoy using it up!

Have you tried anything from Suki?

Ingredients:

natural (sugar) sucrose, organic potassium cocoate (saponified coconut oil), organic oryza sativa (rice) powder, cymbopogon flexuosus (lemongrass) oil, avena sativa (colloidal oat™) l., poaceae, citrus aurantium dulcis (sweet orange) peel extract, squalane (from olive oil), calming complexion complex™ (chamomilla recutita (chamomile) flower/leaf extract, calendula officinalis (calendula) flower extract, lavandula angustifolia (lavender) flower extract), carthamus tinctorius (safflower) seed oil, organic ascophyllum nodosum (seaweed) extract, 100% pure (fragrance) essential oils, limonene*, citral*.

*components of 100% pure steam-distilled essential oils.

17% certified organic ingredients