Happy Tuesday Everyone!
I have been talking a lot lately with a good friend of mine named Aly about doing a post like this about zero waste beauty. She has an awesome blog where she documents her life as she transitions into a zero waste lifestyle. She has a post similar to this coming out soon, so be sure to subscribe to her blog so you can be up to date with all of her latest posts!
Now onto the topic of the day. The more we expand as a society and the more we consume beauty products, the more important it becomes to be smart about our waste. The beauty industry, like most industries nowadays, is known to create a lot of waste. Just think about all of the hair products, toothpaste, deodorant, perfume, lotion etc, that we use as a society and all the plastic that comes with it.
According to this article from beautyindependent.com “In 2016, Euromonitor estimates the global beauty market was flooded with nearly 19 million squeezable plastic tubes. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates plastic accounted for 13% of the 258 million tons of waste generated in the U.S. in 2014.”
Knowing this, I think it’s important that we all educate ourselves on ways to reduce our plastic consumption in all areas of our lives. Today I thought I would share with you some of my favorite zero waste beauty products.
- Solid Shampoo
I bought a solid shampoo bar from LUSG in August of last year and I’m just now starting to need a new one! It cost around $12 and it has lasted me over a year. Talk about getting your money’s worth. And what is even better about this product is that it comes with absolutely no packaging. I love shampoo bars and will most definitely be buying another one once I am completely out of this one.
The only downside to this bar from LUSH is that it is made with SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate) which is an ingredient that I tend to want to avoid. If you have any suggestions about brands that don’t use SLS, let me know in the comments!
2. Body Scrub
Late last year, I started to notice a lot of dead skin on my legs which led me to body scrubs. Of course, I had to find some that worked, but also weren’t terrible for the environment. Naturally, I thought of Lush! So far, I have used two of their body scrub bars that I really love, one called the “Scrubee” and the another one calle”Buffy Bar”. I was not disappointed with either. Both exfoliate really well and also hydrate the skin. They are made with natural ingredients such as shea butter, ground almonds, ground adzuki beans, lavender etc, that are good for your skin and the planet.
If you do decide to buy one of these products, here is my advice. The Buffy Bar is a bit more of an intense exfoliant than the Scrubee, so if you have sensitive skin, go with the Scrubee.
3. Crystal Deodorant
Okay guys, this last product I swear by! I, like most people, had been using stick deodorant for most of my life. Until one day when I was still working at Whole Foods, a couple came through my line with this product. I asked about it and they both raved about it and said it was amazing and that I should try it. So, I did. Surprise surprise, I loved it.
Not only does it work super well, but I’ve been using the same exact one for two years now. Yes. Two years. I bought it just before I started my first year of college in September of 2016 and I’m still using the same one. That’s how long this thing lasts. I’m still nowhere near done with it!
While this product does come in a container, I’m including it in this list because the amount of waste is greatly reduced. Normally, a stick deodorant would last me 1 1/2 to 2 months. Within a 12-month period, I was throwing away 6-8 plastic containers. That may not sound like a lot of plastic, but when you multiply that by thousands or millions of people all using deodorant… do the math. Also, take into consideration that is one deodorant has lasted me two years! Two years. Same container. And it’s still going! Crazy. Oh, on top of that, this thing cost me about $6. You really can’t go wrong with this product.
That’s the end of this list for now! I’m by no means an expert on this, but as I come across new things in my own life, I love to share them with all of you. I would love to hear about the ways that you reduce waste in your beauty routine! And be sure to check out Aly’s blog here!
Have an amazing day, everyone and as always…
Stay Fabulous.
Gianna
Feminine Boutique Blog 