Greening Georgie: December 2017

Sunday, 31 December 2017

Project Pan 17 Update #12

So this is my last post for 2017. I had hoped that as my traineeship was over and I was waiting for a job in the field I would have a lot more opportunity to wear makeup regularly, using up much more product than before. Unfortunately I got ill and was in now mood for putting time into applying the makeup or touching my already soar and red nose. I did make some progress, just not as much as I had hoped.

Let's start with the Urban Decay original Naked palette. I had hoped that there would be more obvious change in these shadows. However, apart from more of a dip in a number of them there isn't any obvious changes here. I'm doing something different with my palettes next year so this won't be part of my next project pan as such.

There's more of a dent in the Barbara Day eye primer but this is still not complete yet, so I'm rolling it into next year's project pan to use up. It works pretty well, though not great, but as I can't find out if Barbara Day is cruelty free or not I want to use it up and I won't buy it again.

As the never ending story of this year the MUA powder foundation in Shade 4 and Bourjois blusher in Ceidre still look like they haven't been used, despite using them every time that I wear makeup. These products are both quite old and I'll now be getting rid of them. Both MUA and Bourjois are cruelty free (though I will be checking Bourjois' status again in 2018 as I've heard mixed things).

Now for the products I've added in for this last month. The Pacifica perfume in Tuscan Blood is now finished. I liked the smell a lot better than I thought I would, but it doesn't linger for very long and I prefer more simple scents. Pacifica is cruelty free though.

I've managed to get through a lot more of the Zoya Pixie Dust nail varnish in Dahlia then I thought I would this month. There's still a bit to go so I'll be rolling this into next year's project pan to finish off all my nail varnishes and then my nails can breathe. Zoya is a cruelty free company.

I've managed to make some more progress in the Neal's Yard lipstick in Persimmon despite not wearing it regularly. Lipstick is the one bit of makeup I definitely don't wear when I have a cold. This product is also being rolled over into next year's project pan as one of the four lipsticks I want to get through. I do quite like the colour and texture of this lipstick (and Neal's Yard is cruelty free), but I don't think I will buy this product again as I'm thinking of only having one lipstick in my makeup bag in the long run.

The Living Nature eye pencil in Midnight may be a very soft pencil which is easy to use, but it's still taking a long time to get anywhere. In fact, it doesn't seem to have gone down at all. I'm glad that I've started this early as I think I'll be lucky to even finish this by the end of 2018. Living Nature is a cruelty free company, but this product isn't the longest wearing eye liner I've ever used, even when it is set with an eyeshadow.

So that's the end of my project pan for this year. I didn't use up as many products as 2016 and I decluttered quite a few (something I haven't done before). I will be doing another project pan next year as an incentive to reduce all my beauty products to the bare minimum.

Thank you for coming along for the ride and I hope you have a great New Year!

To see my progress so far:

Sunday, 24 December 2017

Living Out of One Bag

My six month traineeship is now over and I'm looking for work in the field of path construction. Right now I'm homeless and if I do manage to get the work I'm applying for I could be travelling all over Scotland staying in work cottages and hostels. Due to this I want to be able to fit my life in a bag I can carry on my back.

As a quick disclaimer I'll also be taking my Eurohike wellies carrier in which I keep my work boots, work waterproofs, and work PPE (all of which get very dirty and which I like to keep separate).

At the moment I have way more stuff then I could possibly carry on my own and after having to move it all down to my parents I am now keenly aware that I have too much stuff. Firstly I need to go through everything and have a major declutter of everything I don't use and really don't need. I think I got used to having space in my homes and so kept items I didn't really need. I also have a tendency to get emotionally attached to things and keep them for that reason only.

Then I need to go through the items I have felt and work out what I need to take with me for work and any additional items for the day's I'm off work. It's going to be a balancing act between what I want to take with me and what I can actually fit into the bag (which is 65l in size) and carry.

I'm lucky that my parents have said that I can keep some items at theirs over the next year, but I don't want this to be a long term solution or an excuse to hold onto more then I had originally intended. So I'm going to be to be very strict with myself and to keep myself on track (and accountable) I'm going to document what I'm doing on this blog. Even if my life changes I still want to keep what I own to a minimum so this process will still be important.

Sunday, 17 December 2017

Mini Film Review: Earthlings

Just like Food Inc I've been putting off watching this documentary (probably more so) as I knew it was going to be a really difficult watch. And it was.

Released in 2005, it was made by filmmaker Shaun Monson, narrated by Joaquin Phoenix, and using footage predominantly shoot using hidden cameras it looks at the suffering animals go through in factory farms, puppy mills, the entertainment industry, research labs, and more. It even draws parallels between the issues of racism, sexism, and what they have called speciesism.

Separated into sections which first looks at how we treat animals we see as pets, and then looks at animals for food, animals in entertainment, and animals for research purposes. The documentary didn't show me anything I wasn't already aware of, but there's something about actually seeing it that really brings the reality home. Perhaps the most disturbing part wasn't just that a person could be so indifferent to the pain of the animals under their care, but that they were actively enjoying inflicting even more pain on them. Knowing what psychologists say about this type of behaviour and its connection to how these individuals actually treat other humans, it doesn't bode well for the human race.

They do also make some valid points about the connections between factory farming and the spreading of some very deadly disease, as well as the fact that positive results in animal testing doesn't necessarily mean positive results in humans (in these cases they start the tests on 'lower' mammals and work their way up which is meant to make them certain of the medicines safety).

Whether you believe that all animals deserve to be treated with respect and dignity for their own right or that it's all about the health implications it has for humans, the one thing this documentary does make obvious is how absolutely dependent we are on the animals we show such little respect to. It has definitely given me more impetuous to carry on becoming more cruelty free in my lifestyle.

Sunday, 10 December 2017

Ethical Christmas Gifts

Christmas seems to be a time of year when all my attempts to live more sustainably goes out the window. I have all the excuses: that it gets very busy; I don't have a lot of money; I'm buying presents for other people...... But I want this year to be different. My budget may be even lower then it has been in the past but, I think with a little planning I should be able to do everything I want to. Even if I don't, the experience will help me improve what I do next year.

This year I want to focus on the gift giving side of things. Depending on what my family wants I may still have to buy some items less 'ethically', but this is how I'm intending on purchasing sustainably this Christmas.

Buying from Christmas Fairs

The number of craft fairs increases around Christmas time and it's usually a good place to find locally made, hand crafted products. Don't get me wrong they can be a bit hit or miss, but they are also an opportunity to support local crafters and I'll definitely be looking at any I can find so see if I can pick up a gift or two.

Shopping Online
Unfortunately where I live doesn't have a whole lot of shops which sell products with an ethical and/or sustainable back story, so it looks like I'm going to have to hunt online. I'll be looking at the usual websites, like Etsy and Not On the High Street, but I have also found other online stores like Ethical Superstore, Ethical Shop, and Be Good Shop to try out. The questions I'll be asking when doing the shopping (other then would they like it - obviously) is:

Is the item made from sustainable and ethically sourced materials?
Is it Fair Trade and does it support local communities?
Is the item made in the UK?

This is all the questions I'll be asking this year, but if it goes well I'll add some more for next.

Wrapping the Presents

Every year I buy rolls of wrapping paper which only get thrown away at the end of Christmas (the way Christmas paper is made means a lot of it can't be recycled). So this year I want to do something which produces a lot less waste and have been thinking about furoshiki (a type of traditional Japanese wrapping). I've decided to buy some scarves and fabric from some charity shops to wrap the presents in. That way they will also get a scarf to wear if they like it or they can donate them back to a charity shop. That way the charity shops get an income from the first sale (and possibly a second if they are donated again) and no additional paper needs to go to the landfill.

Christmas Cards

This is the one item I have already brought. I don't send out too many any more thanks to social media. But of the ones I do send out I always make sure that the cards are recyclable and I always buy cards that help support a charity. This year I've brought from the RSPB, but a pick a different charity each year. I'm also looking into making some of them myself, and this might be a more sustainable option in the long run.

Christmas can be a really stressful time of year and it can be difficult to remember some of the ethos you have been trying to live by the rest of the year. I am still learning, and always will be, but I think if I can give it a good go at this time of year then the rest of the year should feel like a breeze.

Sunday, 3 December 2017

Project Pan Update #11 and Other Products

I knew this month was going to be quite a slow month when it came to using up products, especially as I've added products in. So it's not surprising I haven't really got a lot to talk about.

Let's start with the eyeshadow. I've been using the Urban Decay Naked original palette every time I wear makeup (about three times a week now). There's more of a pan on Toasted and some very small dips in the other eyeshadows, but nothing obvious. I'll carry on working on this palette alone until the end of the year and then I'm going to make a few small changes.

The Barbara Day eye primer isn't really showing any further improvements, but at least I now know it's going down. Always a good thing.

As usual the MUA powder foundation in Shade 4 and Bourjois blusher in Ceidre are not showing any signs of change. I'm going to keep using these until 2018 and then they'll be going in the bin, so I'll do my best to use as much as possible.

Now for the items I've added in for this last two months. The Pacifica perfume in Tuscan Blood is going down pretty quickly and I should be finished with it in the beginning of December. Always nice when one of the products is easy to use. I'm actually enjoying the smell much more than I thought I would, but I probably won't buy it again.

The Zoya Pixie Dust nail varnish in Dahlia has also gone down quite quickly (probably because I need to put on three coats everyone I use it), but I don't think it'll be finished by the end of the year. Still, it's my last mail varnish so that's not too bad.

I had hoped the Neal's Yard lipstick in Persimmon would have been a little shorter by now, but it seems to be taking its time. It's a nice colour for the season though, so I don't mind wearing it on a regular basis. It's the only lipstick I'm going to concentrate on right now, but I will be adding more onto next year's project.

Lastly the Living Nature eye pencil in Midnight. I knew this product would take a very long time to use up, but I just wanted to start it now in preparation for next year's project. It's a very soft pencil and pretty easy to use, but it doesn't have the best staying power ever.

The last product I'm going to write about here is the Jāsön's Sun Facial Sunscreen. This is a great product, is easy to use, protects my skin well, and I have no reactions (both in the allergy or spot department) to it. I have a few other SPFs I want to use up first, but once they are gone I'll be buying this again.