Article: Cruelty-Free Shopping Guide for Canadians

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I'm delighted to host this guest post by Cruelty-Free Kitty, a beautiful blog about cruelty-free products and lifestyle. Read on for her wonderful suggestions on shopping cruelty-free in Canada.

Choosing ethical and animal-friendly cosmetics when you’re in Canada can be hard: in stores, the availability of cruelty-free brands is limited, and online, shipping prices are often sky-high when ordering from American stores. Whether you’re interested in budget brands, vegan products, high-end makeup, or eco-friendly beauty, I’ve put together a list of my favorite cruelty-free sources for Canadians, both in stores and online!

If you're looking for cruelty-free brands in Canadian drugstores, the options are limited, but Shopper's Drug Mart carries the most well-known animal-friendly brands such as Wet'n'Wild, Physicians Formula, Marcelle, Annabelle, Yes to Carrots, and Burt's Bees. Marcelle and Annabelle are Canadian brands owned by the same cruelty-free company:  Marcelle offers more polished makeup, while Annabelle offers bold or vibrant colors and glittery products at an affordable price range. Both of these brands are good quality -- especially look into their face powder, eye shadows, and lipsticks. You can also visit my list of cruelty-free drugstore brands for a full list as well as parent company information. Please note that Quo, Shopper's Drug Mart's mid-range makeup brand, is not cruelty-free.

My absolute favorite retail store for all my budget-friendly makeup, skincare, and household essentials is Target!  They carry Sonia Kashuk, NYX, Pixi, and recently started stocking some ELF items as well. Target also has an entire aisle of "green" skin and body care brands, and most of them are cruelty-free and have vegan options: Avalon Organics, Alba Botanica, Giovanni, Burt's Bees, Desert Essence, Andalou Naturals, Jason, Weleda, Yes To Carrots, and my personal favorite multi-purpose product: Dr. Bronner's castille soap! Target also carries Attitude and Method cleaning products, which are both cruelty-free and non-toxic.

If you're looking for higher-end brands, Sephora does offer animal-friendly alternatives, some of them being excellent: Hourglass, Urban Decay, Bite Beauty, Cover FX, NARS, Tarte, and Too Faced stand out -- you can see my full list of cruelty-free brands available at Sephora. If you're shopping online, Sephora offers free shipping to Canada on orders over 75$. Another great online retailer for those who love green and natural beauty is Eco Diva Beauty, a Canadian site offering all the top green beauty brands. Cruelty-free makeup brands they carry include W3ll People, ILIA, Vapour Beauty, Kjaer Weis, and Alima. As for skin and body care, they carry May Lindstrom, Tata Harper, One Love Organics, Kahina Giving Beauty, Schmidt's deodorant, and more. Something worth mentioning about Eco Diva Beauty is that they list all their vegan products, and shipping is free over 75$!

Last but not least for cruelty-free Canadian shoppers is this little gem called Nail Polish Canada, which offers not only a wide array of nail polish brands, but also hard-to-find cosmetics such as ELF, theBalm, 100% Pure, Everyday Minerals, and Real Techniques brushes.  Some of the cruelty-free nail polish brands available are China Glaze, Seche, Orly, Zoya, Deborah Lippmann, NCLA, Scotch, and SpaRitual. The best thing about this online shop is their free shipping over 25$!

For more cruelty-free resources, reviews, and how-to’s, visit Cruelty Free Kitty!

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