As I have mentioned in a previous post, where I profiled the fabulosity of Ka'oir cosmetics, I love a vibrant lip color. One can never go wrong with the classic look of a vivacious red, the flirtatious nature of a pretty pink, or the sultriness of a bordeaux shade. Regardless of one's skin tone there is a perfect shade of red (or any other color for that matter) out there for you.
In the past few months, however, cosmetic fanatics have been thrust into a sea of panic as studies revealed that some of our most beloved brands of lipsticks contained a significant enough amount of lead to cause the FDA to publish an extensive list detailing the quantity of lead in each of the 400 guilty perps.
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| Photo: www.makeupgeek.com |
What to do? Throw them all away and start from scratch? For some that is definitely a solution, but for others that may just not even make the list of options - however silly it may seem that risking one's health comes second only to your favorite lippy.
So many of us buried our heads in the sand and pressed on with the rougiest of lips for the sake of fashion (I didn't bury my head but I damn sure wasn't about to sacrifice my perfect red lip! *hangs head in shame*), but then a few weeks ago came the great hullabullo over an ingredient used to put the "berry" color in Starbucks' strawberry flavored beverages....
Crushed beetles.
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| Ay Dios mio! (Photo: unboxedthoughts.com) |
Yes... that is what I meant to type. According to inhabitat.com:
Cochineal dye is produced from dried female cochineal beetles, and PETA estimates that it takes somewhere in the region of 70,000 beetles to produce one pound of the red dye. The dye has been used for centuries, and can be traced back to Aztec and Mayan populations of Central and South America. In present day usage, the pigment shows up in everything from cosmetics to pop tarts. But cochineal and its cousin, carmine, are skin and respiratory irritants — studies have traced a link between the dye and asthmatic attacks and anaphylactic shock in factory workers exposed to the substance.
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| Did I use this face already? Oh ok. |
Since January 2011, the FDA has required cochineal and carmine to be prominently listed on food and cosmetics labels, which is how one vegan Starbucks employee was able to send a tip to This Dish is Veg when she noticed that their strawberry concentrate packaging changed and so too did a vital ingredient. Read more.
| Happy Lippy Hunting! |
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