How to Make Your Self Care Routine More Sustainable
This Earth Day, you may be wondering how to give back to the environment that sustains us. Giving on earth day is wonderful, but one thing that also helps is to make long term changes to your daily life that reduce your negative impact on the environment. Our bath and beauty routines are full of a surprising amount of waste, and reducing that cuts down on plastic use and the amount of garbage ending up in landfills or incinerators.
The great news is that you don’t have to give up quality or the enjoyment of your routine to do it, either.
Make Your Own Products
We may be a bit biased, but we think that making your own self care products is a great way to take a step toward greater sustainability. When you DIY your products, you often spend less and waste less! You can choose what goes into your products, too.
Natural handmade soap, for example, is made with lye, distilled water, and vegetable oil; all natural substances that eventually biodegrade harmlessly in the environment. Some facial bars and cleansing bars are made with surfactants and detergents instead of natural soap.
Surfactants aren’t necessarily bad, though! We offer surfactants that are plant-derived; from coconut or palm. That means that they aren’t made from petroleum derivatives, and they’re gentler on the environment.
When you get to choose what ingredients you use in your bath and body products, you have the power to make informed decisions about the things you use.
DIY products can also be stored in reusable containers instead of disposable ones, so that means less trash in your local landfill.
If you’re interested in getting started making your own soap or beauty products, we have kits and projects to help you get started.
Buy less, make more
There’s a reason that reduce comes first when we say “reduce, reuse, recycle.” Reducing your consumption is the best way to reduce your impact on the environment. Reducing consumption means fewer products produced and less going to landfills and incinerators.
But what does that look like?
Some of us are real beauty product fanatics. Our routines are a way for us to take time and focus on caring for ourselves, and that’s a good thing. But if you think you might have a few too many products on your bathroom counter, consider limiting yourself to one cleanser, one toner, one treatment, and one moisturizer. Not only are you consuming less, but you’re saving money and space. It’s worth spending that beauty product budget on a few really good products rather than a lot of potentially lower quality products.
It bears mentioning that when you DIY body care and skincare products, you buy fewer skincare and body care products. Makes sense, doesn’t it?
Refill and Reuse Containers
Get some bottles, jars, and pots that can be reused! Either refill them with product once you’re empty, or repurpose those things for other uses. Plenty of beauty companies are offering refillable products now. It’s always best if you get your refills packaged in recyclable packaging, too.
In terms of repurposing packaging, you might need something to hold cotton swabs, face wipes, or toothbrushes. Some skin care products come in pots or jars that are perfect for those purposes.
We offer a lot of good quality glass and plastic packaging that’s great for filling with skin and bath products. And of course, a great way to refill and reuse packaging is to DIY your beauty products!
Avoid Microplastics
Did you know that you very likely eat and drink microplastics every day? According to a fact sheet from earthday.org, 83% of tested water samples from cities around the world contained microplastics, and even 93% of bottled water shows contamination by microplastics.
We carry a host of exfoliators that don’t contain plastics, from seeds to salts to clay! Each is easier on the environment than plastic exfoliators, and do a fantastic job cleaning and smoothing skin.
If you like a little sparkle, don’t worry. You don’t have to give up the glitter in your routine. We also carry EcoGlitter, a glitter that’s actually made from cellulose from plant fibers! That makes it biodegradable. It comes in a range of colors, and it’s the glitter fan’s best friend! All the glitz and none of the guilt.
These are some of the fun creative choices that you get to make when you create your own skincare products.
Say No to Disposable Products
We already covered this a little with our reusable packaging, but there are other disposables that can be replaced. Consider instead of makeup remover sheets or pads, get a bottle of product and washable and reusable face cloths and scrubby pads. You’ll be amazed how much money you save when you stop buying disposable products for your beauty routine.
Some things you don’t want to reuse, though, or can’t find a reusable alternative. For these, try to find something that’s recyclable or biodegradable instead.
These are great ways to be kinder to the earth while being kind to yourself too. Change can be hard, especially when you’re changing something that you do every day. If you find yourself struggling, just try to change one thing at a time to be more sustainable instead of trying to do a complete overhaul of your routine. Some positive change is always better than none.
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