Funtime In The Sunshine - The Cruelty-Free Way
By Shari Black Velvet

Whether you go to Download or Glastonbury, Warped Tour or Soundwave, it’s easy to be cruelty free while partaking in festival fun. Since we recently checked out Nature’s Boutique, and they’ve offered SaveAScream readers a 10% discount, we figured we’d highlight a few of the items they sell that are perfect for your weekend away in open-aired musical mayhem. 

Well, first up since all the festivals tend to happen in the Summer months, the weather is likely to be quite hot (ok ok, if you're in England... maybe not, but for the sake of this article and because Nature's Boutique currently don't sell umbrellas or ponchos, picture the scene as joyfully hot and sunny, ok!? It was hot at Warped Tour the other month, anyway...), thus you need to make sure you pack some sun protection. Our first recommendation is for the Lavera anti-age suncream SPF 15. Lavera has won awards from Natural Beauty Magazine and Lifescape Magazine. It includes Hyaluronic Acid and Organic Aloe Vera which moisturise the skin and increase the anti-ageing benefit. £10.50 for 50ml. Or you may prefer to opt for Green People’s Edelweiss Sun Lotion with Tan Accelerator. A 200ml tube costs £15.65. Green People support the Penny Brohn Cancer Help Centre and 30p from the sale of this product goes to the charity. Inositol extract from the fruit of the carob tree helps speed up your natural tanning process.

Many music fans cut down on their make-up at festivals and become more natural. If you don’t want to spend time getting glammed up, you may want to carry a lip balm instead to keep your lips nice and smooth, especially with the strong sun rays powering down. Lavera’s Sun Lip Balm SPF 10 is priced at £5.

You can’t go to a festival without taking some cleansing wipes. Well, you can, but you’ll end up wishing you’d packed some. Rawganic Organic Facial Cleansing Wipes include Aloe Vera & Green Tea and are the perfect accompaniment for any traveller wanting to freshen up and get rid of any dirt or dust on their hands, face or anywhere else for that matter. At £2.50 what you get is 25 wipes in a resealable pack. The fragrance free wipes soothe, moisture, cleanse and condition the skin.

The outdoor weather may well play havoc with your hair – so why not splash out on a bottle of John Masters Organics Dry Hair Nourishment and Defrizzer? The leave-in treatment is perfect for dry or frizzy hair in need of TLC. This is definitely on our ‘must-have’ list. You don’t want to end up with hair like straw that breaks off!

Make sure you don’t forget your toothbrush and toothpaste. Bad breath is not good, even at a festival. The random person stood next to you that you end up chatting to may get grossed out. Green People’s Minty Cool Toothpaste is 100% natural with no harsh detergents. You won’t be finding any Fluoride, Triclosan, Sorbitol, Parabens, phthalates, artificial sweeteners, petrochemicals and colourants in this item, yet the minty flavour will make your breath smell nice.

Let’s also not forget the deodorant, one of life’s essentials. Urtekram Organic Rose Deodorant Roll On is priced at £4.39. Urtekram use mineral salts in their crystal deodorant which keeps bacteria and odour at bay. That said, if you prefer spray, you may be interested in Lavera’s ‘Lavendar Secrets’ Organic Deodorant Spray, £7.75. We love lavender deodorants so Lavera get a thumbs up for that.

And if you’re looking for something to stuff all of the above into, then the Sativa Horizontal Hemp Shoulder Bag/Camera Bag may be to your liking. It’s £25.99 and comes in either pink or brown – your choice. The funky 7” x 5” bag, which can be worn as a shoulder bag or even around the waist, includes an eyelet for an ipod/mp3 player headphones to travel through. It’s not too big, but big enough for your daily essentials. Men however may just prefer the Sativa Mini Hemp Wallet with Security Chain, £11.99. It has space for 9 credit cards, a coin compartment, notes section, photo compartment and like the shoulder bag also includes a free Sativa key ring. The wallet comes in a range of colours.

We’ve outlined just the basics. Nature’s Boutique sell a lot more. If you want shea butter, condoms, if it’s the wrong time of the month and you need female sanitary care, if you want perfume, aftershave, or nail files, www.naturesboutique.com has it all. The only thing they don’t have are the festival ticket themselves. Oh and tents. But I think you can find those elsewhere.