Category: Lifestyle

Vegan friendly Grocery stores in Austin

Published on by theaustinveganLeave a comment

 

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So, I just finished a 15 day cleanse that allowed for 500 calories a day. Don’t you know by the end of those two weeks I was craving everything under the sun! One of the numerous things I was craving was an Omelette. Being vegan, I pondered over how I would able to satisfy this longing. I came across a great recipe on Fork and Beans. Here is the link to the recipe: www.forkandbeans.com/2015/01/15/vegan-chickpea-omelet/

However, this is not the discussion of today’s blog! When I decided to create this masterpiece of an Omelette, I immediately became anxious when I began to look at the ingredients. Once again I overreacted for nothing. The recipe didn’t have any “crazy, hard to find ingredients”. It did have Chickpea flour. Chickpea flour is the MAIN ingredient. It’s what stimulates the egg-like texture. So, I NEED this! But where in the world would I find Chickpea flour? Oy vey!

That is when I was proud to call my resourceful city, Austin home! I immediately was able to conjure up several grocery stores to go to find the illusive Chickpea flour. I moseyed on over  to Trader Joe’s (since it is close to my job). I know that some of their products cater to the vegan lifestyle. NOPE, no Chickpea flour. Sprouts was right across the street. I decided to go next. BAM! There it was, in all its glory staring back at me with the other flours. Garbanzo bean flour by Red Mills. I snatched it up for a very reasonable price of $2.58.

If it wasn’t at Sprouts I was going to go on a tour of grocery stores. I’m pretty sure I would have been able to find it at Whole Foods, Natural Grocer, Wheatsville Co-op, Fresh Plus or Rabbit Food Grocery . I am truly grateful to live in a city that I am able to have options to find what I need when it’s not on the straight and narrow so to speak. Trader Joe’s is usually my go to place. I am usually able to find products for my vegan needs at a low price.  Sprouts is where I get my produce. They have amazing weekly specials on their Veggies and Fruits. Whole Foods- I lose myself! I am never able to leave without going over my budget. I enjoy going to Wheatsville Co-op when I am in need of a(n) appetizer for a gathering. They have a nice variety of cheese spreads, that I love! I have to admit they are a little pricey! I haven’t been to Fresh Plus in awhile. But whatever, I purchased, I don’t remember it being terrible. Even my regular grocery store, HEB, had a plethora of Red Mill products. I was so proud! They even had Xanthan Gum powder, y’all! I can’t wait to make something with that! I digress. Back to the lecture at hand.

If you live in Austin and have never tried these grocery stores, give them a try! Or, if you are one of the 100 people moving to Austin on a daily basis… well here are some options for you! Oh, you want to know how my Omelette turned out? It.was.amazing.

The quest to find Vegan foundation at Sephora

Published on by theaustinveganLeave a comment

Let’s talk about something near and dear to my heart. Make up. Specifically, foundation. It’s interesting how I love make up. However, I don’t particularly wear a lot. BUT, coming from a girl with far from flawless skin. I HAVE to wear full coverage foundation. Also, I am a black female. So, it can be frustrating at times when trying to find the exact color match. When I metamorphosed into a vegan. It went to nearly impossible to finding the correct shade. You may be wondering what can make a foundation (or any makeup for that matter), non-vegan?!

Well, let’s talk about that! Most of the makeup that we purchase for our eyes, lips and skin contains non vegan ingredients. Of course, we recognize Beeswax/Honey, Lanolin (wool grease), Collagen (placenta derived) and Elastin (animal connective tissue) as non-vegan ingredients. But how about: Squalene (shark liver oil), Carmine (crushed beetles), Tallow (animal fat) and Allantoin (cow pee)? Honestly, I wasn’t’ familiar with some of these ingredients until I started doing research. I’m sure this isn’t ALL the non-vegan ingredients that are used. However, these are the ones that are more commonly used in the industry. Also, did you know that just because a product says that it’s cruelty free doesn’t necessarily mean that it is a Vegan product? That is why it is imperative to look at ALL the ingredients before purchasing a particular product.

Now that we have been schooled. Let’s get back to the story! We as females, ALL know how difficult the task of finding the correct shade of powder/foundation. I explained that at the beginning of our discussion.  Recently, I went to Sephora to explore. I did some research and had found some make up (foundation), brands that were totally vegan or some of their lines were (i.e., Kat VonD, Tarte, Cover FX and Hourglass). At this point I had tried most of the foundations in the store. They were either were not my shade or not enough coverage. Feeling defeated I asked the makeup artist if they knew of any other lines that carried vegan products.  To my surprise she told me that Too Faced has a vegan line. It’s named Born this way! This foundation went on flawlessly. It was as if, I didn’t have on any makeup on. It was so perfect. I started to doubt the validity of the makeup artist. She assured me it was vegan.  I found out not all Too Faced products are Vegan. However, this line of foundation is! I heard the birds a singin! I’m in foundation heaven!!! This product is so awesome! Not only does it go on flawless. It also gives me FULL COVERAGE with minimum product. It took me a couple of months to run out. Which is great because it costs around $40. I feel that this foundation is revolutionary (for me at least)! Also, Too Faced has a list of their vegan friendly products on their website.  Here’s the link! https://www.toofaced.com/shop/collections/vegan-friendly/

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So, the take away is: there are vegan make up options out there! We just have to do a little research ourselves in order to find these products! Personally, I think (slowly but surely), the makeup industry (and the world in general), are moving towards being more plant-based . Just my opinion. Anyhoo, happy vegan makeup shopping!