As you all know, we are going through a really powerful and difficult time in the world right now. The pandemic and also the Black Lives Matter movement. If you are wondering why we haven’t posted anything about it on this blog, it was because we were waiting for this exact blog post to be ready.

My sister and I fully support the Black Lives Matter movement. And if you don’t support racial equality, please stop reading our blog. Thanks bye!

It can be really overwhelming to find ways to make a difference during this time, but as a white person, I must educate myself, listen, donate to organizations that support racial equality, sign relevant petitions, go to protests, and support Black owned businesses as well as Black artists and Black voices. 

My sister, my friend Monica, and I decided to do a little gift exchange where we had to buy each other two gifts each from different Black owned businesses. And of course we found some AMAZING vegan products that we wanted to share on here with you guys 🙂 

Please go check out these businesses and support them 🙂 We will give our honest reviews on all of them and if you choose not to purchase items from these exact businesses, check out other Black owned businesses!

1. Maya’s Cookies 

Maya’s Cookies is an amazing VEGAN Black owned cookie company that sells all different types of amazing, unique, delicious cookies. I used to work at Milk Bar and couldn’t eat any of the cookies because they weren’t vegan so Maya’s Cookies really fulfilled my desire to eat gourmet cookies!! The flavors were so incredibly unique and the cookies were so delicious. If you are a cookie fan, try these cookies. The birthday cake and the butterscotch one were my favorite. I’ve also had their seasonal Christmas cookies and WOW. Definitely ordering the gingerbread cookies this December.

Check them out here: https://www.mayascookies.com

2. Golde

Golde is a Black owned wellness and beauty brand that is not only SO aesthetic but also so chic and trendy. They sell all natural face masks, superfood lattes, and even comfy sweatshirts. I mean, even the website has good vibes!!! My sister got the Superfood Latte Sampler pack which came with turmeric, cacao turmeric, and matcha turmeric latte mixes and she said they were really yummy! Turmeric is literally so magical because it’s incredibly anti-inflammatory. I totally understand why it’s in all of their mixes lol! Deff check this company out if you are a wellness/skincare junkie like my sister and I!

Check them out here: https://golde.co

3) Homebody 

Homebody is a Black owned CBD bath soak company that makes AMAZING and beautiful bath soaks. I’m usually not a fan of CBD but WOAHHHH. Every time I use one of these bath soaks, I have the BEST sleep of my  life. It feels like I’m sleeping on a CLOUD. And the colors of the bath soaks are so mesmerizing with the addition of the beautiful shimmer. And the best part is… they don’t stain your bathtub!!! All the ingredients are super natural too!! I want to buy like 1000 bags of these. I love you Lush Cosmetics but…. Homebody’s got you beat!

Check them out here: https://www.homebodyworld.com

4) Hanahana Beauty 

Hanahana Beauty is a Black owned skincare company that sells 100% natural shea butter balms and body butters. The best part is that their shea butter is straight from Ghana! I bought the vanilla lavender body butter for my sister and she said it not only smelled INCREDIBLE but it also melted into her skin like butter. Right now they are currently sold out (I know!!), but keep checking back to snag one of their amazing products! If you’ve got dry skin like I do, this is the product for you.

Check them out here: https://www.hanahanabeauty.com

5) Love Notes Fragrances 

Love Notes is a Black owned candle company that sells candles that “evoke an aroma, mood and emotion”. All of the candles are hand poured and soy wax and the candle I got was the No. 10: Fig, Amber, and Vanilla Cream. It smelled DIVINE. If you know anything about me, it’s that I’m currently obsessed with candles and am very picky about my candle scents. This candle did not disappoint. I burned the entire thing in like three days. It just smelled so amazing. If you’re a candle junkie like me, buy one of these candles! 

Check them out here: https://lovenotesfragrances.com

6) Briogeo

Briogeo is a Black owned haircare company! Not everything is vegan but they do have a ton of vegan options and they are cruelty-free! My friend got me this “Don’t despair! Repair!” strengthening treatment oil, which was such a good gift because I have been having some hair thinning problems. What I love about this product is that 1) It’s beautiful (there’s a literal rose inside the bottle!!) 2) It smells amazing 3) I put it on the ends of my hair to prevent split ends 4) They don’t use any harsh silicones, parabens, sulfates, or artificial dyes.  If you are in need of some haircare products, definitely check out this company!

Check them out here: https://briogeohair.com

Okay so the rest of the companies are things we bought for our friend Monica! We haven’t tried them ourselves but we will give reviews based off of what our friend told us about them! We also are going to use her photos that she took from her iPhone! 

7) KNC Beauty 

KNC Beauty is the CUTEST Black owned skincare brand ever. Not everything is vegan (including the non-vegan eye masks I got my friend- pictured below) but they do have a vegan lip balm that looks AMAZING.  My friend really loved the shooting star eye masks and although they are not vegan, I can only imagine how amazing the vegan lip balm is! *heart eyes emoji *

Check them out here: https://kncbeauty.com

8) Freres Branchiaux

Freres Branchiaux is the cutest little Black owned candle company, run by three young boys (All younger than 15 years old!) How adorable?! They sell candles, diffusers, and room sprays and all of their scents are so unique and yummy like: Cherry Blossom, Heart of Wakanda, and Christmas Cheer. I bought my friend the cherry blossom candle and she said that it literally smelled SO GOOD. Plus, 10% of all proceeds go to organizations that help people transition out of homelessness. This company could not get any sweeter!!!

Check them out here: https://freresbranchiaux.com

9) Southern Roots Vegan Bakery 

Southern Roots Vegan Bakery is a Black owned vegan bakery that sells donuts, cinnamon rolls, cookies, brownies, and cake!! Yes! You heard that right. It’s the cutest little bakery and you can tell a lot of heart goes into the baking process 🙂 My sister bought my friend Monica the cinnamon rolls and unfortunately my friend Monica didn’t love them. She said they were a little dry. BUT, as a vegan, sometimes desserts  just taste different so maybe she wasn’t used to vegan desserts (Monica is not vegan). I’d say to try it for yourself! You might be pleasantly surprised!

Check them out here: https://www.southernrootsvegan.com

 

10) Hanahana Beauty 

Hanahana is a black-owned skincare line made with clean, ethically sourced ingredients to make your skin feel as smooth as butter… vegan butter of course. My sister got me this vanilla lavender shea body butter from this company and, I’m not even kidding, it literally MELTED into my skin like butter. It was soft, luxurious, and delicious smelling. It’s a bit thick, so it’s not your everyday body cream, but if certain dry parts of your skin need a little loving, this is it!

You can find them here: https://www.hanahanabeauty.com

Check out all of these companies! And if you buy anything from them, DM us on Instagram (@the_cohen_twins) and let us know what you thought of them!

BLACK LIVES MATTER