Vegan Beauty : Switching To Skincare That Cares

4 Minute Read 

Vegan skincare is one of the most searched for terms and is constantly trending. But you’d be right to ask what it really means, why you should trade in your old favourites, and whether it really delivers on results?

Take heart. Gone are the days when making the switch meant taking the entire top layer of your skin away by sloughing it with oat-bran at home or polishing with pumpkin seeds. Or forgoing the thrill of a gorgeous glossy bottle or delicious scent for a homemade jar of something green, entirely unidentifiable as skincare and packaged in hessian. 

But first things first – what actually is Vegan skincare ?

To start with, Vegan , despite widespread confusion, doesn't mean the same as Natural. Or Organic. Or Cruelty-Free. Generally skincare that is Vegan does, coincidentally, tick several of those boxes as brands lean in to more responsible choices. What Vegan means, at its heart, is that the finished products contain no ingredients from animal sources at all. That means no honey, no beeswax, no lanolin, no keratin, to name but a few. Several of which could be deemed natural, but only come from animal sources.

Vegan skincare is also not the same as Vegetarian skincare, which does not contain any parts of an animal but is allowed to contain animal by-products, such as lanolin from sheep’s wool.

So why , if I don’t follow a Vegan diet, should I consider switching? 

Firstly, plant-based ingredients are generally better absorbed back into our surroundings after use, breaking down into non-toxic compounds making them more planet-friendly. And typically the production of these uses less energy and avoids environmental impact. For example, the AHAs in our gorgeous Luminous Glow Cleanser are from fruit acids rather than milk sugars which , when traced back to their animal origins, contribute to greenhouse gases.

Secondly, and perhaps most-importantly when complexion is king, plant-based and therefore Vegan ingredients are typically rich in protective vitamins, polypeptides, fatty acids and antioxidant rich anthocyanin. The raspberry leaves used in our Morn to Eve Concentrate, for example, stimulate skin regeneration whilst also protecting against free radicals AND they help to boost the skin tone. A whole host of benefits in one tiny powerhouse.

And if you needed more persuasion, as a rule of thumb, plant based oils vs mineral oils are more easily available to the skin.  Unlike synthetic mineral oils or animal-derived hydrating ingredients, they don’t block the pores and lead to breakouts. Our EZ Rubus ID®, a proprietary ingredient developed by KELSEY and world-leading chemists, and the key ingredient in our Full Bloom Concentrate, contains an exceptionally high dose of omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, plus proactive vitamin E and alpha-linoleic acid. Also shown to have mild UVB absorbent properties, it’s the ally your skin has always needed.

The latest climate-change and environmental statistics don’t make for encouraging reading and we could all do more to minimise our impact. Team KELSEY are BIG animal lovers, and have opted for plant-based Vegan ingredients that mean no animals are harmed or exploited to provide any of the ingredients we use in our glow-giving skincare.

It has never been easier to make the switch. Choosing your skincare consciously means you can feel good about your self-care and skincare, and we all need a bit more of that this year!