Cruelty-free makeup products are products that are not tested on animals, made in, or sold in countries where animal testing is required. I now choose to use all cruelty-free makeup products. I don't really enjoy the thought of animals suffering over something as unimportant as the lipstick color I'm rubbing on my face, it makes my stomach turn.

There are plenty of extremely popular brands that do test on animals, like Maybelline, Revlon, MAC, etc. (as of today, at least). I don't think these brands deserve to be as/more popular than brands that chose not to test on animals, so I don't buy from them, and I encourage everyone else to switch to cruelty-free brands too.

When I tell people I don't buy from brands that test on animals, I sometimes get responses like, "you're not going to single-handedly make these companies change, so why go through the trouble?" Most companies will go wherever the money is, and that means selling in countries where animal testing is required by law. Companies like this still make money regardless of whether or not they test on animals. One person refusing to buy their products is not going to make much of a difference in the loads of money these corporations swallow up from consumers, I know that. But the fact is, I don't really care. I'm not going to use these products, and you shouldn't use them either. It's wrong to me, no matter how much of a potential "difference" I make by refusing to buy makeup from those brands. Maybe I can convince a few other people to go cruelty-free too, and we can all motivate companies that haven't yet gone cruelty-free to make the change. Hey, CoverGirl just did it very recently, a few more brands may follow.

Finding brands that don't test on animals isn't hard, there are plenty of lists of cruelty-free makeup brands online you can look at. You can also look for symbols or logos of cruelty-free certification organizations on the packaging of makeup products, like the Leaping Bunny logo. Also, cruelty-free does not necessarily mean more expensive, that's a myth! Cruelty-free brands range anywhere from cheap drugstore makeup to expensive high-end products. A few of my favorite cruelty-free brands to use are e.l.f., NYX, and Tarte, for example. Next time you have to go out and buy a new foundation color or mascara, consider doing a quick search on whether or not your favorite brands are cruelty-free, and by which standards. Be conscious of what you're putting on your face every day!