Shampoo = Good

It can be difficult enough to find food and clothes that are animal-friendly. But holy poop, things start to get really dicey when you try to find makeup and hygiene products that fit in with your veggie lifestyle. Despite being a vegetarian for several years, I still struggle with this. Many familiar brands do offer vegetarian (and even vegan) items, but you have to do a little research to make sure. Sometimes it feels like you need a PhD in chemistry (which, regrettably, I don't have) to even understand all of the ingredients listed on the package! That's one of the reasons why I love companies who proudly market themselves as veg*n, and who make it clear on their packaging that no animals are harmed in the making of their products. One of these wonderful companies is Alba Botanica. They have an extensive line of hair and skin and bath and lip care items, all of which are vegetarian and most of which are vegan.

The first of their products that I purchased was the Mango Moisturizing Hair Wash. Yes, they call it hair wash but it's just shampoo. They have others that they call shampoo and I don't know what the difference is. And they translate both into "shampooing" en français. Annnnyhoo - this stuff smells delicious. It smells like the Mango Tango bubble gum that I used to love when I was 13 and can never find anymore. It serves its clean-y purpose. It is vegan. The bottle is really cute. I was able to find it at my local drugstore and at many grocery stores (not to mention online). There are apparently no harsh chemicals in it. And it is so very nice to wash my hair with something that I know doesn't contain animals and was never tested on them.

My issue: it is expensive (roughly $9 US for a 350 mL bottle). If you are on a budget at all, it may be too expensive for you. I certainly would not have been able to afford it when I was a poor undergrad living on rice and a dream. At that time, $9 was just about my monthly grocery budget (shut up). Having at least a liiiittle more disposable income now, I am willing to pay extra for things that are in keeping with my beliefs, especially since this is a really nice shampoo. And maybe if we buy more of this stuff, eventually the price will come down? Well, I can wish anyway. Overall, a thumbs-up! Now I'm off to see if I can find out what happened to that mango gum.

Product info: http://www.albabotanica.com/?id=60&pid=563