Last January, I made a few New Year’s resolutions. One was to become vegan, another, to only buy recycled clothes from thrift stores, and the last, to purchase cruelty free as much as possible. About a year later, I have mostly stayed true to these three promises. I’m still vegan, did not purchase any clothing other than thrift bought, and tried my best to be cruelty free. The last of these resolutions, the cruelty free one, was probably the trickiest. It’s not that I buy a lot of stuff, it’s just difficult to distinguish what is and isn’t cruelty free, and more often than not, cruelty free tends to be more expensive. Regardless, I still make a conscious effort to follow this resolution, and along the way I found a few new favorite products I now swear by.

In terms of makeup, there is no shortage of drugstore or more high-end brands which offer cruelty free makeup. From drugstore brands, I love physician’s formula, Pixie by Petra, NYX, and Burt’s Bees. From physician’s formula, I use their multi-colored blush in shade “blushing rose” which is $11.95. Pixie by Petra, a target brand, also has a ton of great products. My favorite is their endless silky eye pen in “bronze beam,” which will set you back $12.

NYX has many affordable, good quality products, my favorite and most used being their contour/highlight double ended “wonder stick,” which is $12. Lastly Burt’s Bees is my go to for chap stick ($3.30), but they also have a ton of other beauty and skincare products to choose from.

In terms of more high-end products, I usually go to Sephora or Lush if I’m in a spending mood. Tarte is by far my new favorite beauty brand, and although expensive, I splurge on staple products like their Amazonian clay BB tinted moisturizer $36, or their “gifted” Amazonian clay smart mascara $23. These have lasted me over 5 months, so you definitely get your money’s worth. Another high-end brand I love is Buxom. I use their matte lipstick ($22) when I’m in need of something long lasting and highly pigmented.

In my search for new products, I realized I had been using multiple products that were cruelty free all along. My favorite hair brand, Aveda, uses all natural ingredients and is also, to my pleasant surprise, cruelty free as well. I realized the solid perfume from Pacifica I’ve had for years is also not tested on animals. Furthermore, the products from Lush I have gotten as gifts or bought in store have all been made without animal testing, one of my favorites being the R&B hair leave in cream ($25.95), or really any of their funky bath bombs.

Although at first it was hard in the beginning to find products which fit my resolution, I learned that doing my homework really payed off. I downloaded a few apps, one of which called “cruelty free,” allows you to scan products at stores from your phone, and it gives you a full analysis of the brands. I also, now, before walking into Sephora, do research on worthy products by looking at reviews to see if they’re not only cruelty free, but also worth the price.

I’ve realized along the way through this year of conscious living, that it really isn’t as difficult as you think. I will definitely try my best to follow through with these resolutions for as long as I can. Even if I fall off the wagon once or twice by buying a must have retail swimsuit, enjoying a slice of non-vegan cake, or purchasing a cheaper, un-eco/animal friendly facewash, at least I’m still making an effort, and am conscious of my choices.