The more simple you keep life, the easier it will be. I don't wear makeup ( and never have except when I was performing on stage years ago), and put very few items on my body. For a few years I would wash my hair with tea tree oil/water and rinse with a vinegar. That's it. Then I started using Dr. Bronners liquid soap. I also use it for cleaning dishes. However, they recently started adding palm oil to their products which I find disappointing. I use Kirks Castile bar soap also, but one bar will last me and my partner about a month.
Also for cleaning I use stuff like lemon juice for tough stains or caked on food particles. Vinegar for mirrors and windows. Washing soda to scour the bathtub (about once every two or three months).
I do buy commercial toothpaste sometimes, usually organic Kiss My Face products, and use a wooden toothbrush and nonwaxed vegan floss.
I remember when I went vegan, I did almost all of it overnight or within a month. I really took the time to analyze everything I did and used from the time I woke up to the time I went to bed. I made lists of stuff to replace as it was used up, but some products I got rid of immediately. In my city there is a local Waste Management facility that has a warehouse where you can bring stuff like hairspray, bleach, paints etc and they are shelved for others to come and use for free. None of it is thrown. I brought some chemical cleaners (Windex, bleach etc), hairspray, toothpaste etc there. I started also using mesh bags and cloth bags for grocery shopping and produce in place of plastic (more for the environment than veganism though). I am disturbed by all the plastic out there now, and even a lot of produce is prepackaged. Argh!
I also cleaned out my closets of silk scarves, leather belts, wool socks (I now use hemp socks for snowshoeing in winter and they are awesome! Otherwise heavy organic cotton works well in cold NE Minnesota winters). I already had a canvas purse and bags and a leather free wallet so those were not issues. I've had that same purse and wallet for a decade, so that debunks the myth that leather is superior and vegan materials cheap and not lasting.
It took a few months to acquire some quality vegan hiking shoes, boots, etc. So I did continue to wear leather shoes for a time. I have all purpose hemp hikers that can double as casual shoes for work (made by Wicked Hemp). I also have some Merrell hiking shoes with great grippy traction for mountain biking. My winter boots were already "accidentally" vegan with no leather, suede etc.
For me, I did not want to wear dead animals and perpetuate the idea that we need to exploit animals to live well. So it was important for me to be very aware of what I use and wear on a daily basis, as well as my thought processes and langauge. I used to call myself a "pig" or "cow" as a put down/derogatory thing for example. I read the book "The Sexual Politics of Meat" by Carol Adams and it really opened my eyes to the way our culture is designed to belittle animals as "inferior" in very subtle ways. Retraining my brain has been a work in progress to undue all that I learned (I went vegan at the age of 38 and am 44 now).
Funny thing. The one product I never thought about was candles. One day, a year or so into being vegan, I was dusting a candle I had on a shelf, and realized that it was made with beeswax. I learned quickly that there are soy candles out there. So I eventually replaced it.
But remember your reasons for being vegan, and look at the big picture. Try not to lose yourself or your vision and ethics in all the little details. I have seen others fall into this trap and try to be pure and perfect. It is impossible in our world today. The point of veganism is not perfection and personal purity. It doesn't have to be all or nothing. Learn, grow, and appreciate the steps you are taking to live a better life with more compassion and health and respect for our Earth. Start with the big stuff...food...and branch out as you go.
And realize there are grey areas. If you have a pet, there is the dilemma of what to feed him/her, especially if it is a cat. There are arguments both ways. If you take medications, chances are it may have been tested on animals (or the company tests on animals that makes your med). But maybe that medication is giving you a quality of life or keeping you alive. If you decide to bring children into the world, consider that at some point they may choose not to be vegan and may contribute to exploitation and suffering of animals. those are areas that are very individual and there is not always a clear black and right wrong answer.
Veganism will open your eyes to not only the way you live your life, but you become more aware of how you treat others and live compassionately or not. It doesn't mean we become saints. I feel like I became more sensitive to others and to suffering in general, as well as to how precious life is. It's actually helped me in my own recovery from past dilemmas and illnesses.
