July 27, 2017

Please Stop What You’re Doing and Support Transgender Rights

I won’t go into any great details because this isn’t a political blog and I’m not here to insult anyone’s political choices. As an American it’s your God given right to have any political view you want. However, I am here to say support the LGBT community especially the Transgender one today (and everyday).

Yesterday, one of my favorite Indie brands launched part of a collection that was slated for a 2018 release against the US military ban on transgender people. If you’re brave enough and willing to serve your country your sexuality shouldn’t make a difference.

Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab has done many, many different fundraisers and donations to a variety of incredible charities. Last night, they released two different fragrances with proceeds going to the National Center for Transgender Equality and for the American Civil Liberties Union.

It’s pretty brilliant that not only are you helping a worthy cause but also getting your hands on some incredible perfume oils as well.

The two scents offered are:

If you’ve read my past reviews on BPAL you know they do coffee perfume oils really, really well. I suspect maybe Ted had a helping hand is making these because his coffee blends are incredible.

Each bottle is $26 and proceeds go to National Center for Transgender Equality and for the American Civil Liberties Union.

94 Comments

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Dora

    Right on. I don’t typically like dessert-y or coffee fragrances but will make my donation directly to the National Center for Transgender Equality. (Have been donating to the ACLU regularly the past eight months.) Thanks for posting.

  • Dee

    Thanks for posting this. Have never tried this brand but heading over now to purchase one.

  • Colleen

    Totally support transgender rights. Muse, thank you for speaking up and taking a stand. Especially in a public setting. Not everyone would have the courage to do that. I applaud you,

  • Paula

    I have been following your blog for years and really enjoy it. You do a great job keeping your readers up-to-date with reviews, new releases, sales, etc. I was so disappointed when I read it today though. I am only interested in the makeup and skincare reviews and prefer to leave politics out of it. Musings of a Muse is yours to run however you choose, but I can no longer support you because of your stance on transgenders and gays. I am a Christian and don’t agree with that lifestyle choice. I do wish you the best and appreciate the enjoyment your blog has brought to me.

    • Isabella Muse

      Hi Paula, I’m really sorry to hear that. I thank you for your readership and it’s my wish you’ll be tolerant enough to return. I left politics out of this post and didn’t address the issue as it stands at the moment but I did however, wish to bring attention to a cause I support. If you don’t support it, that’s quite ok, as I said in the post it’s your god given right as an American to have any political view you want. What does disappoint me is the fact that you choose to ignore that statement in my post. Because as far as I’m concerned we are all friends no matter your views on life/politics/sex/or makeup and as much as it pains me that you don’t support the LGBT community I am tolerant of your choice and can try very hard to understand your stance and opinion on the topic even though it is vastly different from my own views. However, I wish that you were as understanding to my views and stance on the topic. Again, thank you for your long time readership and it’s my wish we can remain friends even though we are have a different view on life, the universe, and everything!

      • Pdo

        I really don’t understand when people use their religion to excuse their bigotry…..It really saddens me. You are a classy gal Isabella, some people would have dealt with that comment in a different and not so nice way. Way to support the LGBT community. I am with you girl!!

        • Isabella Muse

          Hi Pdo! Thanks 🙂 I appreciate and respect her view, it’s ok to believe whatever it is she chooses to believe in and I would hope that she would return me the same favor 🙂

          • Jenniferffrank

            I don’t have a religious view on the subject. But, yeah, you probably should have stuck to cosmetics, perfumes and candles. With that one paragraph, it tells me whom you voted for, and I would think the rich would support the rich? I’m sorry, I don’t gree with you. But, I like your blog. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. As long as it’s respectful.

          • Isabella Muse

            I don’t either really, I’m Catholic but not practicing although, raised as one and my parents are very much Catholic to their bones 🙂 This is actually beauty related as it concerns fragrance but fragrance with a good cause that I believe in attached to it. I blog BPAL a lot and do reviews on it often so why not tell you about some yummy scented perfume oils that also have a good cause that I believe attached to them. Mmm I’m not sure what you mean about the rich supporting the rich?? Trump is rich but I didn’t vote for him soooooooooo? And I’m not rich sooooooooooooo? I think most presidents and presidential candidates are in fairly good positions money wise. I mean just to name a few, Al Gore, Mitt Romney, Ross Perot, we’ve had quite a few candidates that have run who are quite well off. Although, I would like to point out in my dreams I am living some sort of luxurious lifestyle (I don’t care, I’m driving Cadillacs in my dreams ha)! But yes, everyone is indeed entitled to their opinion as long as it’s respectful and mature.

      • Jules

        Ya know, this really SHOULDN’T be a political issue. It’s a human issue. There’s a big difference between who you want to ban from your country club in the sky, and who you want to ban from our government institutions. We all have, or should have, the freedom to believe what we want and be who we want, so long as we aren’t hurting anyone else.

        Discrimination is wrong, and un-American. Thank you, Muse, for speaking up.

      • Eraser

        I have to commend you for being so gracious and charitable with your reply. Although I also happen to disagree with you on the larger issue and wish that all beauty blogs were safe spaces from all the sociopolitical arguments that bombard us, I had to tell you how impressed I am with the way you expressed yourself – like a lady in the best sense of the word (okay, I’m old enough to remember when we aspired to be ladylike). Kindness seems to be forgotten these days, no matter what side of the issues people are on.

        • Isabella Muse

          Oh please do feel safe here Eraser. You can always disagree with any damn thing I say whether it’s about how brilliant sparkly eyeshadow is or more important issues such as this one. I’m not here to attack anyone’s beliefs and I hope no one will attack my own. We’re ALL adults here, not children, and we can easily and happily agree to disagree without busting up a perfectly good friendship because of it. Kindness, is indeed forgotten, it’s become a novelty easily tossed aside in a very self-centered universe lately. I hope I can always remember to be kind to everyone and if I forget to be you’re all welcome to call me out on it. <3!

          • Eraser

            You make an excellent point – adults should behave like adults and stop demonizing each other because they disagree. I’m also practical so to me, boycotting never works.

          • Isabella Muse

            I think I put away the “I won’t play with you because you don’t like the color pink!” when I was five years old. You can’t just stop doing the things you love or reading the blogs you enjoy or stop using the makeup you like because you don’t agree with beliefs of brands, or beauty editors/writers, etc..etc…..you’re just making your own life less enjoyable in my opinion. You’re just never going to find someone that agrees with you 200%, that’s what makes the world so great…I mean if we were all the same exact way it would be boring as hell! We’d really have nothing to debate about if that was the case 😀

        • heather

          Speaking of being ‘ladylike’, I happen to look at different websites, like Instagram ( a bit tacky and overexposed at times, if ya know what I mean?!), and other blogs, but I’m mainly talking about Instagram here…….man, oh man…….the things these women say!!! They literally cuss each other out and call each other b!tches if they disagree with each other!! And its over makeup!!! I am crazy shocked how nasty people have become, when calling a makeup color ‘ugly’, or saying you won’t buy ‘that’ brand, leads to insults……I’m just dumbfounded?? And it’s an everyday thing, not one day goes by that I don’t see the name calling on Instagram!! I just wanna see the new, pretty, sparkly things, without the drama!

          • Isabella Muse

            amen preach sister preach. I can’t believe the shenanigans on Instagram and youTube sometimes.

      • Isabella Muse

        Emma, please take this with love and as a friend, I’d appreciate it you don’t name call. She’s entitled to her opinion and expressed it as an adult. Return the favor to her and explain why you might feel she’s wrong but try not to call her any names. Not everyone is going to agree with how we feel 🙂 Let’s keep it friendly and civil when we voice our views.

  • Sarah

    I REALLY prefer musky, spicy scents and I want to like the scent profile of these, but…I can’t risk buying perfume I might not like. So instead I’ll donate to the ACLU and the National Center for Transgender Equality directly. Thank God it’s payday and I can!

    Thank you for spreading the word!!

    • Isabella Muse

      aw my pleasure <3! Your donations will be appreciated I'm sure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Carol

    Muse, I am with you 100%. When I woke up yesterday and saw that 45 had tweeted about not allowing transgender people in the military I was livid. You know what we all have in common? We are ALL human beings.

  • Jennifer

    Thank you for posting this. I am always looking for brands to use that support the LGBTQ community.

    And to those that don’t agree with her post. Keep scrolling-but why stop reading all together? There is not a single blogger, news outlet, or anyone that I agree with 100%. When I don’t agree I keep scrolling and move on to the next post. Obviously if the blogger or whatever is intolerant of a certain group or are filled with hatred I generally choose not to read or support them. But, if I had to agree with everything everyone supports in order to read their blog or writings- I’d be left without anything to read!

    • Isabella Muse

      This is so true, Jennifer thanks for pointing it out. It would be hard to find an exact match for a blog that shares your identical views and thoughts because hey, we’re all different that’s what’s wonderful about humans. Not to mention, being part of the makeup world means you’ll run into a lot of different types of people. If you go to MAC and a man wearing makeup that could potentially be gay (or even straight) offers to help you does that mean you’ll boycott MAC? That would mean Paula would have to stop using and supporting a lot of brands since 99% of brands support the LGBT community.

    • Nikole

      Jennifer, you are so spot on with this. There are so many bloggers with only a very thinly veiled severe leftist philosophy who go on the attack when any viewer so much as questions them about their philosophy. I have not seen any other blogger handle this kind of situation with anywhere near as much diplomacy and respect as Muse has on this post, so major kudos to her. But to your point, if I insisted on all bloggers that I follow exactly matching my own opinions, I would have no one to follow. Just scroll along to the next post and don’t order these particular perfume oils if you do not agree with the cause (although I must admit that I’m tempted by both scent descriptions). People, for goodness sakes, have some tolerance for opinions other than your own!

      • Isabella Muse

        Thanks Nikole 🙂 and agreed it would be hard to find a blogger or youTuber that matches my view identically. I wouldn’t be reading or watching any vids if I stopped because the editors/gurus have different opinions, views, and philosophies on life <3!!!!!!!!!!!

  • heather

    I feel very differently from all you guys on here, but as the Muse says “we can still be friends, even though we share different views”. I think what saddens me about this topic, is that people don’t read enough into it before they comment on the ‘headline’. I am not ‘against’ anyone. This is America, and thank God, it’s still a country where as of yet, we are all free, free to choose and live how we please, as long as we don’t harm others. But the ‘ban’ part of the presidents’ order, refers to Obama’s order for paying for their ‘reassignment’ surgeries. That is most definitely not right. If you have a desire to have surgery for anything not medically necessary, you should pay for it on your own dime, not my money, through my taxes. It’s not fair for Americans who work hard and pay taxes to have to pay for another persons surgery, when it is not a life threatening issue. I have 2 children, and my stomach does not look the way it did before kids, but if I want to change that, I have to go pay for it myself, and I sure as heck can’t afford to. The ban isn’t to kick anyone out of the military, or to prevent them from joining, it’s just to not pay for their surgeries. The military isn’t a smorgasbord for freebies for anything your heart desires, it’s a job, and I don’t know of any other job that will pay for plastic surgery. Please don’t yell at me, but don’t just jump on the bandwagon of bashing everything the president does, before you read what it’s truly about. With that being said, everyone can still live their lives however they see fit, and however they choose to, but you just gotta pay for your own ‘changes’.

    • Isabella Muse

      Well said Heather and NO one is bashing you for your thoughts or views. We are most definitely all friends here no matter how you feel! Trump originally tweeted: “……..United States Government will not accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming…..” and I believe this is what got people into a major uproar. And of course, “victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail. Thank you!” Again, NO one including myself would bash you for anything you said here today Heather!! You’re just sharing your feelings and thoughts in a very MATURE manner and no one can fault you for that at all! Hugs!

      • heather

        YAY!!! Thank you for being so nice! Usually people get so riled up and nasty when talking about issues like this, and that’s EXACTLY what causes even more anger and division between people. You can feel one way or the other, but don’t attack, and scream, that gets no one anywhere. Have a great day everyone!

        • Isabella Muse

          No and no 🙂 there’s no reason for nastiness. We can agree to disagree, we’re all adults 🙂

    • Dora

      The ban is 100% to kick people out of the military and prevent them from joining.

      • Isabella Muse

        There are reports that are backtracking it today saying that transgender people are welcome in the military but the US government would not be paying for any medical bills associated with transgenderism. There’s so much back and fourth at this point it’s hard to tell which is “fake news” and what’s real news! I do know his tweets were his own and he has to live up to those.

    • Jennifer

      I’m pretty sure there was no band wagon jumping here. The original intent regarding a ban was to prevent the military from paying for reassignment surgery. However, that has somehow turned into a full blown ban. At least according to the tweets from POTUS. The post was not a blanket bash on anything. Instead it was a specific response to the ban announced by POTUS.

      And just FYI the “tremendous medical costs” amount to a heck of a lot less than what the military pays to provide erectile dysfunction medication to service members (the cost of that medication is about 10 times more than the cost to provide transition care for trans service members)

      But, as Muse said-I still respect your views and ability to express them.

    • Jane

      The US military – aka, hard-working taxpayers – spends more annually money on Viagra than they do on gender reassignment surgery.

      And no matter how you feel about gender reassignment surgery, it is something that active military and veterans are entitled to, and that’s based on their years of service to the United States and what medicine has decreed is appropriate treatment for appropriate individuals.

      • Ru

        I’ll definitely check them out, thank you MUSE!!!

        I’m OK on the Viagra bc a good amount of them go to veterans who experience PTSD. With ED it also directly affects fertility. Hormone replacement therapy doesn’t. The down time for GD takes months off duty, and MTF vaginas require maintenance after surgery such as regular dilation using dilators for the rest of her life.
        I did some research into how strict the US military is. The list is quite extensive. I just didn’t like the delivery of this matter, but there are legitimate concerns.
        EX: diabetes, severe acne, flat feet, any history of ADD/depression/mental illness, uncircumcised males, anything that requires constant medication, any history of broken bones, etc.
        We have to remember it’s not like any job, but these guys/girls are going to war in unimaginable conditions, and must reduce any potential liability.

        • Isabella Muse

          My pleasure! And thanks for sharing that PTSD/Viagra knowledge! VERY helpful!

  • ChynnaBlue

    I think you may want to edit this section: “Yesterday, one of my favorite Indie brands launched part of a collection that was slated for a 2018 release in support of the US military ban on transgender people.” This reads as the brand supporting the ban. They are supporting trans people in the military (which is awesome), not the ban.

    Thanks for sharing this. When civil rights are at stake, we cannot afford to stay quiet and I very much appreciate those who are brave enough to speak up. Thank you.

    For the record, I’m Christian and I absolutely support the LGBT+ community because I don’t see any conflict between Christianity and loving and supporting our fellow humans – that’s what Jesus told us to do and He didn’t tell us it was love* or tell us to put conditions on that love and support.

    • Isabella Muse

      sorry that reads right to me but looking at it from a reader’s stand point it sounds wrong lol! Apologies 🙂 I’m Catholic as well and it doesn’t influence my choice to support the LGBT community either. Thank you! <3!

  • Missy

    I just wanted to chime in and say that you are a lovely, warm person and your responses to people with differing opinions shows your character ~ the highest! I’ve been an avid reader for years and have always thought that, but when someone shows the kindness you do, it needs to be highlighted. You are so very appreciated and loved!

    • Isabella Muse

      Missy stop you’ll make me cry! HUGS! <3! xoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxox! Thank you for being a long time reader and thank you so much for the beautiful comment!

      • Missy

        You’re so very welcome! I am a Christian and like ChynnaBlue, I believe we’re to love each other, no matter what! She stated it perfectly 🙂 It’s so easy for people to spew out hate and vitriol for a simple difference of opinion.. and most people would! But you handled it all with such grace. I’m just so proud to be a reader of yours! 3

        • Isabella Muse

          I’m catholic not practicing but I was always taught to love everyone no matter what that God accepts us for who we are, whoever that is. I don’t think Paula was being hateful intentionally I think she just believes what she believes and that’s cool but I do wish she’d stay and hang with us whether we agree or disagree with us 🙂 I’m proud to have you as a reader 🙂

          • Missy

            Yeah, I don’t think she was being hateful – I think she was quite nice about it really.. I just meant usually in these kind of discussions, people get way out of control and start spewing all sorts of ugliness.

            And I wish she’d hang with us too! There’s room for everyone 🙂

          • Isabella Muse

            Sorry about that took it out of context! 🙂 And agreed. Sometimes people can get WAY out of control in these situations! And it turns not only ugly but kind of scary fast. There is literally room for everyone here, come one, come all ;-D Hang with us, we have cookies and makeup haha!

    • Dee

      I so very much agree with Missy and others who have pointed out how wonderful your response has been to those that disagree with your viewpoint. It’s easy to lash out, but if we could all remember to show respect and love for each other what a different world this would be. You have set a good example for us to follow, Muse!

      • Isabella Muse

        aw thanks Dee. You’re a wonderful person too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! <3!

  • Morgan

    Super classy Isabella. I’ve been following loyally for the past few months and though I love (**LOVE**) your blog, had never felt compelled to comment. But I had to today. THANK YOU for being brave and taking a stand to defend others. You didn’t have to do it, but you did. And that makes you a hero in my book <3

    • Isabella Muse

      aw thanks Morgan! I’m no hero, just a weird girl that likes makeup a lot xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo! But thank you for being a reader! I appreciate it so much!

  • Aimee

    ❤️❤️
    I love this post. It’s so wonderful to see people with a public voice stand up for what’s right. We all have the right to our own opinions. When your opinions infringe on the rights of others, however, it ceases being a mere “opinion” and starts becoming hate.

    • Isabella Muse

      <3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! No hate here only love for everyone :D

  • Nat

    Musey-poo, you say whatever you want – this is YOUR blog! I hate it when people say “you should stick with blah-blah-blah”; yes you review beauty products but you are also a HUMAN BEING so you get to have whatever opinions you want! Something I like to call “having a personality” lol. Also, I love how people are totally cool with some opinions being mentioned (like saying no to animal testing) but as soon as you say anything related to genders…sound the klaxon!

    I can’t wait until we get to the point where people don’t feel the need to pigeon-hole everyone into categories. People are people; I don’t care what they wear or who they love!

    P.S. The only time you’ve ever offended me is you liking the pineapple-headed Dr. Who. Because he is yucky lolz

    • Isabella Muse

      My thoughts exactly 🙂 I’m not a makeup machine, I’m a person and I like to share my personality, likes, opinions with everyone. I HOPE that’s why people enjoy Musings because I’m personal and friendly. People are indeed people and that’s all it is. Nothing complicated about it. I think perhaps we overthink the situation too much sometimes 😀

      HA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I knew you didn’t like my Doctor Who choices! Damn you we can’t be friends now!

      PS A VERY important song:
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzGnX-MbYE4

        • Isabella Muse

          LOL! I’m too sexy for this post, Nat! Fred was too sexy for that damn song 😀 Nooooooooooooo Not Tennant noooooo!

  • Seuni

    Thanks you so much! Will buy one of these : )

    I am honestly so shocked by all of these replies you’re getting. First of all, the people telling you not to mix sociopolitical topics with beauty product talk must be missing the entire point of of the beauty industry. The makeup industry is completely built on the principle of gendering. This business was built on the idea of creating beauty standards for women and forcing and selling the image of femininity for women to conform to.

    The comments about women on instagram here are so telling. These commenters are saying they can’t stand brash women on instagram and that they should behave more “ladylike.” This is exactly what all of this is about: gendering. Whenever a makeup collection launches with ads that encourage women to be EMPOWERED and BOLD, we all say “yaassss slay”, but when women dare to be bold and brash, we just judge and berate them for it.

    I bet none of the commenters here would accuse you of forcing sociopolitical topics on your blog if you had decided to post about an ad campaign featuring some TSwift grade feminism. This is why learning about feminism and intersectional feminism is so important. Trans issues, LGBT issues, race issues (a very real issue in the makeup and beauty world: the limited availability of darker shades in a lot of brand’s ranges, for one) concern all of us. These ARE all our issues.

    Gender issues are makeup and beauty issues: the branding of fragrances as male and female, women’s hair length, the “boy” brow look, basically everything hair and body hair related, etc.

    To say that makeup should be a safe-space away from sociopolitical issues is to be ignorant of this microcosm you wish to be your respite.

    Thanks so much for your open-mindedness and your convictions in your beliefs, Muse! 😀

    • Isabella Muse

      aw thanks seuni! I’m sure you’ll love it. I agree completely about the beauty industry. This industry is built on a variety of different people with vastly different personalities and views. That’s what makes the beauty industry and community so great, the uniqueness! If you boycott my blog you might as well boycott 99% of the industry as most share my exact same beliefs! xoxoxo!

  • Gurllllll

    I’ve been a long time reader of you blog, in fact numerous times I’ve found solace in your reviews. I love that you try out new products and that you have an obsession for skincare because let’s face it, I’m ballin on a budget and can’t afford to spend money on makeup. Well I could, but adulting is expensive, lol. I never expected to see a post like this and I am so happy. I am a soldier in the army and it hurt to see what the president had to say about my brother and sisters in arms. I’m going to spit out so some because some individuals are misinformed. The intent behind the presidents comments were not about medical cost, although he did cite that, its about discrimination. To transition in the armed forces isn’t some whilly nilly decision. The service member (at least in the army) has to meet with a military medical profession and express that they identify as transgender and wish to transition. From there the service member will workout a plan with the medical provider for transition. Not all transition involve surgery, or horizons therapy. Further more numerous service members are currently on supplemental horomones and it in no way or capacity effects their ability to perform their military duties. The service members transition involves therapy to ease the transition and constant medical supervision. After the service members had completed their transition per their medical plan the army will change their gender identifier and they will formally be identified as their new gender. The amount of money spent on the supposed transition pales in comparison to the money spent on dependents care. If your spouse is severely overweight the military will pay for them to get weight loss surgery and then surgery to remove the loose skin (if it’s medically necessary) wirh the exception officers typically we don’t make very much money. Service members are not aloud to have supplemental insurance so we HAVE to go through tricare. The same things being said about transgendered individuals service has been said about desegregating the army, allowing women to serve and most recently the integration of non heterosexual people. Guess what? Transgender and gay people have been serving honorable for years. We give an oath to serve the people of the United States and it saddens me to see such bigotry and ignorance. I don’t give a damn what hardware you’re rockin, but you damn sure better have my back in battle. A fun fact too is that once the individual completed their transition and are considered stable they can deploy. Lots of individuals are considered non deplorable for medical reasons, some caused by the army, some not. It takes a lot of courage and intestinal fortitude to serve. It takes even more courage to be who you are in a organization that doesn’t value individuality. I am proud of my fellow soldiers and I DARE anyone here who does not support them to spend a day in their boots. Its not easy, but they get the job done. I know this is a rant and probably horribly written but it angers me so much. These are people with families. Anyhoo, that’s my two cents. The army is so diverse that someone identifying as transgendered isn’t that shocking. We have muslims, christian, gay people, straight people, you name it serving. Let’s also not forget thy they are fighting for something that we all benefit from: freedom.

    • Isabella Muse

      Hey Gurllllll!

      Thank YOU so much for your readership. I find such comfort and joy in the fact you have found solace in my reviews 🙂 Hopefully I’ve saved you some $$$ along the way! Damn straight adulting is expensive. Why didn’t they tell us that when we were kids and in such a rush to grow up?

      Thank you for your service. You must hear that daily but please remember when you hear it and people say it they REALLY mean it. Because not everyone is as brave as you or as willing to go out their and fight for their country. We all love our country but when it come downs to it some of us aren’t courageous enough to fight for her. That’s what makes people like you very, very special. Thank you for doing something I could probably never hope to do because I’m not as strong or as brave as you are.

      And thank you for educating us about the medical/insurance situation in the military. It’s ok to be angry! 🙂 You aren’t attacking anyone with your thoughts and opinions and you’re being a perfect great adult about the situation so getting upset is a ok.

      Please keep fighting the good fight <3!

  • Robin

    Like Missy and Blue Chynna, I’m a Christian and I support LBGT people. It doesn’t go against my beliefs. I watched on the news last night that a trans Navy SEAL who did five tours in The Middle East and her health benefits may be in jeopardy by what Trump tweeted. This person volunteered to protect and serve our country, did a job that most of us would not want to do nor are qualified to do, and is now worried she will have no health benefits. I have no problem for paying for her surgery either. Again she risked her life to keep us safe!

    Love and respect to all people. ❤️️”�

  • Eileen Smith

    Wow….did you open a great big can of worms! You revealed alot about yourself. You are entitled to your opinion, but please keep to the subject.

    I have enjoyed your blog for several years. Informative, honest, and my “go to” for narrowing down my many cosmetic choices. I appreciate the way you highlight the products and not yourself. I have appreciated all these years that you kept to the subject . You have introduced me to numerous products that I would have never purchased and conversely, saved me from making many mistakes. I trust your judgement and have recommended you to friends and family as a solid choice for advice. My recommendation is high praise!

    I saw that email yesterday from the company of which you were speaking. I thought it very inappropriate and unsubscribed from their emails. They, as a small company, really narrowed the numbers of people who would enjoy their products. Obviously, their personal views were more important to them than their financial bottom line.

    I have never been in the military, but I do trust that our military leaders understand this situation better than me. President Trump is listening to those leaders of the military who deal with these situations on a daily basis. Allow them the latitude to keep us safe. Let us all keep our opinions about about politics and religion out of what has up until now been a great blog.

    • Isabella Muse

      Hi Elieen. Actually, I always reveal a little too much about myself on the blog! By now you know I’m a bookworm, you realize I’m a geek that loves gaming, comics, and Doctor Who. You know I’m self depreciating, slightly weird, and perhaps a little eccentric. You know I have a little dog that I dress up in dresses. You realize by now I’m a pure blooded New Yorker and proud of it. You know my religion as I’ve talked about it in a few different posts. Hell, I’ve even gone TMI and admitted my love of hentai. There’s a lot you know about me at this point. A lot of my posts reveal my identity, my personality, my loves. That’s what blogging is about, personality. A blog run by an individual (Me in this case) that is written in an informal or conversational style. I’m not a big company or brand. I’m one on one and I consider everyone that here part of my extended family. I talk to some of the people every single day and not just about makeup. Sometimes we talk about TV shows or movies or books or the fact we simply love makeup. BPAL has always been about fighting for what they consider good causes. I think you missed the mark by the mile when it comes to Bpal. It’s a family run business that isn’t out to simply make a buck. It’s a small independent brand that has personality, beliefs, feelings. If you join their forum you realize how interactive they are with their fans and consumers. They CARE. Beth and Ted go out of their way to keep their fans happy. If every brand ran a business the way these two people did, we’d have a ton of happy consumers. I think their consumers are ones that share their beliefs. Why shouldn’t their personal views be important than making a quick buck off someone? Their are plenty of brands that donate to a variety of different charities. How about MAC Viva Glam? MAC Viva Glam has donated over 400 million dollars to benefit HIV/AIDS victims. Are MAC’s belief that helping AIDS victims more important than their financial bottom line? MAC has also long been a supporter of the LGBT and has been quite vocal. As their slogan has long since said, “All ages, all races, all sexes”. I am so glad you enjoy my blog! And thank you for recommending me to your friends and family and thank you for being a reader. I understand this isn’t a place you want to listen to me preach about politics, because that’s no fun, we want to hear about lipstick. However, I wasn’t sharing political views in this post and didn’t go into any great detail about my views nor am I trying to force those views onto anyone. I’m here to tell you there are two great smelling perfume oils out there by a brand I love and that brand happens to be supporting a cause I believe is a good one. You don’t have to buy them, you don’t even have to read this post, skip it, go on to the next one but please try and respect my views on life as I respect yours. And I hope you realize that sometimes things will get off topic and I’ll babble about stuff that isn’t makeup related.

      And most important, no matter how you feel we’re all friends here and we’re all adults I hope we can agree to disagree sometimes!

      Happy Weekend!

    • Robin

      Actually Sect. Matthis and the Joint Chiefs were blindsided by Trump’s tweet and do not plan on making any changes in the near future. Generals are okay with trans.

      This comment is not meant to start a fight; just to clarify a point.

    • Robyn

      I spent 9 years in the Navy..Trump is wrong..you are wrong and this is ALL about gender and gay bashing

  • Rebecca

    Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. My daughter is transgender, and I have learned so much since she came out. I have been able to meet people across the gender identity and sexual preference spectrums, which has greatly enriched my life. Please ask yourself how you would feel if your child, sibling, parent, friend came out as transgender. Would you love them any less? Would you want them to have different rights and opportunities than everyone else? These are people like you and me who just want to live their lives.

    • Isabella Muse

      Preach Rebecca, Preach. I think it’s always a good idea, no matter what the situation is, to put yourself in someone’s shoes!

  • Emma Hawes

    Well done Muse. I’m in the UK and we are horrified with what the Orange Cheeto is trying to do!

    • Isabella Muse

      I can imagine how you guys feel 🙁 Please don’t think badly of all Americans because of it!

  • Lorrie

    Regardless of where you stand, and imo President Trump listened to the Generals etc who know best, I have to applaud Isabella for the way she handled this situation. It’s something she feels strongly about but she did not attack those who disagree with her. I enjoy the uniqueness of the items she presents especially perfumes so I will continue to read her blog. Now, Kat Von D should read her post and learn a little something. In short , she had a contest and her readers found out the winner supported Trump, and like the intolerant hypocrite she is, she took the prize away from the winner. She can go f herself and I hope the winner sues. Next time, have a contest and say no Trump supporters need enter.

    • Isabella Muse

      Hi Lorrie. Whoa on Kat Von D! I didn’t hear about that. I’m a strong believer that you can vote for whoever you damn well want be it Spongebob Square Pants or Donald Trump When we start telling people who they should and should not vote for that’s when things go downhill very, very fast. We live in a FREE country! It’s an important thing to remind ourselves daily. This means we can vote for whoever we want, we can say what we want, and within limits as long as we aren’t killing anyone we can do whatever we want. Judging people for who they vote for is insane. There are people with way different views than my own but that doesn’t make them bad. I have a gay friend who told me his parents voted for Trump. Keep in mind his parents are SUPER supportive of him yet they voted for a president that doesn’t support him. Does this make them evil human beings? Hell no. They just have a vastly different political view than my own or his for that matter. Judging people for their opinions and personal views is also a rather big fault in someone’s personality. You have to realize not everyone is going to like what you like. I don’t like orange juice, my sister LOVES it, does that mean I should stop talking to her? Likewise, for Trump supporters. If someone voted Trump, hey, they have their reasons. They believe he’s going to do something good for this country or they saw something in him that they admire and like. THAT”S OK. I don’t support Trump and guess what? THAT’S OK! 🙂 I just wish people would understand we can all have a difference of opinion. If Kat Von D really did this, well, she has a little growing up to do because not everyone is going to have her liberal view of life. You can’t just offer a giveaway to your fans, pick a winner, and take the prize away. That’s absurd, not to mention childish! Sheesh.

      And thank you for your comment 🙂 <3! Please believe when I say we are all friends here, I mean that. We can all agree to disagree without having a hissy fit am I right?! 😀

      • Lorrie

        Hi Isabella, thanks for your kind reply. Yes, we all don’t have to support Trump I agree, but President Trump does support gays. He just appointed a gay man as ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell. He took the advice of those who know better than him about transgenders in the military. As a fellow New Yorker I’m sure you’ve never heard a racist, misogynistic or other derogatory comment said about Trump. He’s had women and minorities running his companies. It’s all BS from Hillary’s supporters shocked she lost, same as the Russia narrative. Ivanka has been supporting women who work for a long time but you’ll never read a positive article about that from the left, especially feminists. Just like they were silent about Bill’s rape accusations and his neglect in helping Haitians. The lies, hypocrisy, the emails, loss of healthcare, triple premiums etc it’s all why Trump won. Let’s see how a non-politician runs the country, especially one not in politics for decades as millionaires. How does one newly married and unemployed afford a ten million dollar apt like Chelsea and her husband. Have a good evening.

        • Isabella Muse

          Hi again Lorrie! I never said he didn’t support gays nor anything about him having women or minorities running his companies. This post was merely pointing out a perfume oil that supported Transgender rights which I also support. I am in disagreement about Trump’s earlier tweets about banning transgenders from the military. That’s about the extent of it. I haven’t gotten into any other great details about Trumps and his pros or his cons. As I said in the beginning of the post, “I won’t go into any great detail…” I hope he does make a difference. It’s my greatest wish he proves every single one of his non-supporters including myself wrong. Hope this clears up some issues! Have a good night!

  • Sayre

    The scents sound incredible and the cause is indeed a worthy one. I have wanted to try BPAL for a while since I have a serious addiction to perfumes and perfume oils. Also, this post was completely relevant to a beauty blog in my opinion since it was regarding beauty products and a brand you blog about regularly. I second what others have said, you are very kind and gracious. 😉

  • Chris

    Thanks for your blog post about this item. We have been supporting the ACLU , Southern Poverty Law & Planned Parenthood since January 20th.

    Just a little education @ information — those who are straight know from the time they are preschoolers, know they are attracted to the opposite sex. Gay people know this at this young age that they are attracted to the same sex. Transgender people feel that they were born with the wrong sex. If born a boy, the person feels that they should be a girl. The same if a girl being born feels she should be a boy. These are not ‘lifestyle choices’ and education and dispensing information about these differences to people helps people who might encounter the LGTBQ population when they come into their lives to understand this better.

    A transgender person undergoes psychological counseling before, during and after transitioning to the opposite sex. It is not taken lightly or that a person changes their mind about their sexuality like flipping on or off a light switch. I’m a firm believer in fighting for the rights of all people and that their sexuality is NOMB and what goes on in their bedroom is NOMB.

    Ignorance and hiding behind the cloak of a religion is not acceptable in today’s world where many cultures cohabitate this planet. We should be accepting of all people because we are all humans.

    I’m off the soapbox. I definitely will view the website and see about ordering something because who doesn’t like coffee?

  • Kirsten

    I never comment, but I had to read through the comments on this post and share my two cents: thank you for posting about this. your replies to those who disagree with you are perfection, and it is so nice to see a space where people can disagree and be respectful adults, in both directions! ❤️

  • Mira85

    Thank you, muse! I love your blog and don’t comment on it often- though I’ve tried some new brands because of your reviews. Thank you for voicing your opinion and taking a stand! I’ll always be interested in hearing about beauty brands that do good by bringing awareness to causes harmed by our current administration

  • CarrieAnne

    I’m really inspired and energized by the discussion on here. It’s so infrequent but much appreciated when adults can have a difference of opinion or views and not just v start verbally knifing each other. Lots of other forums where people could learn a thing…or 30. 🙂 I am happy to get a peek inside your mind, Muse. There’s a lot more to what inspires us and molds us than just our love of makeup. Not trivializing what brought us all here, either. Much love to you all.

    • Isabella Muse

      Agreed Carrie! It’s nice to be able to calmly discuss these issues. <3! much love!

  • genevieve

    I am a Christian and I don’t believe that Jesus Christ said anything about excluding people based on their race, gender, political views and probably LBGT status. He was all about inclusion,treat others as you would like to be treated yourself, peace and harmony.