I recently discovered Lush, you know the shop that you can smell before you see it? No? http://www.lush.co.uk I'd always avoided it because it smells so strong! I saw a link to it recently and thought I'd have a look, to my surprise they have just got Vegan Society approval. (Sunflower logo) http://www.vegansociety.com for about 75% of their products, the rest being vegetarian. I couldn't believe it, a Vegan shop on the high street! I do have a bit of a moan though, there are no vegan logos on their website, but if you get the newspaper with their product listing in, then they tell you what's vegan.

So I couldn't resist finding my nearest store, they do a range of Vegan make-up too, apparently the only Vegan make-up on the high street (what about Beauty Without Cruelty? More research needed, I think).

I found a Vegan shampoo, nothing special there you might think, but its a shampoo bar, like soap. I have treated myself to a bar of 'Ultimate Shine', it was a bit of treat at £4.50 a bar, but apparently it lasts ages longer than a bottle of shampoo and its green because it saves plastic! Take bottles into the shower, no not me :-) It smells lovely, but all their stuff does, having spent a while in the shop though, everything smelt the same :-) It made my hair really clean too, I was worried it might not wash out too well, but it does. If anything its a bit too good, because I need a conditioner now because it dries my hair out. I think its a fabulous idea to save plastic.

Another way of saving plastic is to use soap instead of shower gel. Use it with a flannel to save the hassle of chasing the soap around the shower! Then you will have a plastic bottle free shower :-) Co-Op do a vegetable based soap for about 50p, so save pennies too. Can I just say that anyone looking for cheap, but vegan toiletries, look no further than Co-Op, not too sure of their 'green' credentials, but they have products which are clearly marked 'not tested on animals' and 'no animal ingredients'. They operate a fixed cut-off date of 1985. They are BUAV approved too, look for the 'jumping bunny' logo.

Alternatively there's a wonderful company based in Derbyshire, called Honesty Cosmetics, it is a vegan company, run by Vegans and they operate a fixed cut-off date of 1978. All their stuff is vegan as you'd probably imagine! They do all manner of shampoo, conditioner and moisturisers and you can buy a 200ml size and then a 1000ml refill for it, or just the big bottle with a dispenser top. http://www.honestycosmetics.co.uk

I was really disappointed to find from the Vegan Society website, that Ecover no longer have their Vegan Society approval because they operate a five year rolling rule, so their goes my refillable hand wash, grrr. I will save the bottle, because it has a squirty top, but I will probably switch to Co-Op soap again. Still, on the bright side it save even more plastic bottles! http://www.ecover.com

To save on plastic waste, use an electric tootbrush with removable heads or a standard brush with removable heads, I think Honesty Cosmetics do one and The 8th Day, in Manchester.