Get Plastic Out Of Your Bathroom
It’s heart-breaking to think of wildlife mistaking plastic debris in our oceans for food; turtles thinking plastic bags are tasty jellyfish or sea birds feeding shampoo bottle cap ‘eggs’ to their young.
When you tune in to it, there’s an awful lot of plastic lurking in your bathroom cabinet; everything from toothpaste tubes and hairbrushes to dental floss, make-up cases, sanitary pads and the many bottles of shower gel and shampoo, not to mention deodorant, disposable plastic razors…
Many of these products will have been fixtures in your daily routine for years so it will take some adjustment and trial and error to find the right alternatives for you.
But a new generation of eco-conscious brands has created a wealth of products which are planet-friendly, cruelty-free and natural and at the same time effective, reliable and feel-good. Many also support amazing causes like reforestation.
Avoid throwing away existing products; you’re better off swapping them for greener alternatives once they have run out. And watch out for greenwashing.
Changes we make can feel like drops in the ocean but actually, they have a collectively mighty impact on the environment.
Deodorant
Deodorant is a big culprit when it comes to waste as it’s not just the bottle that’s made of thick plastic but also the rollerball or pump. There are a growing number of natural, plastic-free alternatives out there - like Fussy, The Natural Deodorant Co’s paste in a jar and Nuud’s cream in a recyclable sugarcane tube.
Our top pick is Wild. It’s a reusable and refillable deodorant stick which is easy to apply - with an applicator not your fingers as with some brands - and keeps you smelling and feeling fresh without leaving a residue or needing regular reapplication. The bamboo refills come in six scents, can be bought on subscription and are compostable once empty. We love that Wild plants trees to offset the carbon released by production of its deodorants and has partnered with On a Mission to fund sustainable reforestation projects around the world.
Go Wild for plastic-free deodorant.
Hand wash
We go through a lot of liquid hand soap, especially because it’s so easy to over-pump So think how many single-use plastic dispensers and refill packs find their way into the bin.
If you want to replace like-for-like, there are some great plastic-free liquid hand washes though they don’t necessarily come cheap. Milly and Sissy sell aluminium and recycled amber glass bottles which can be refilled with the brand’s compostable pouches of hand wash.
Then there’s the beautiful simplicity of a humble bar of soap. Bar soap has recently had a revival and been lovingly reimagined by brands such as Faith in Nature. They’ve made it their mission to make the stuff cleansing, skin-nourishing and luxurious whilst cutting out plastic waste. Their soaps are full of natural ingredients like shea butter and coconut oil and come in minimal, biodegradable wrappers - think a paper sleeve or cardboard box. Our favourite is Wild Sage + Co whose soaps are packed with goodness and smell divine. We love that they grow many of the herbs in their soaps in their own garden!
Tip - If you opt for bar soap, get yourself a plastic-free soap tray with drainage holes so the soap doesn’t go gunky.
Try Wild + Sage bar soap for a natural and plastic-free alternative to liquid hand wash
Shampoo
We’re wedded to our liquid shampoo in a bottle and the idea of it being anything different is hard to wrap our heads around. But many zero-waste shampoos come in the form of a solid block.
You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to use solid shampoo including how well it lathers up and how clean and fresh your hair feels afterwards.
Ethique are our front-runners. They have different products for different hair types and needs, from dry and frizzy to oily and lifeless, and smell lovely. Their minimalist packaging is compostable and they donate twenty per cent of their profits to various good causes.
That said, if you’re not quite ready to part company with liquid shampoo, Nirvana and Life Supplies are good, plant-based refillable options which come in recyclable aluminium bottles and paper-based pouches or cartons.
Zero-waste shampoos like Ethique come as a solid block.
Body wash
Once you’ve set your sights on ditching plastic-bottled shower gel, there are plenty of refillable alternatives like Kankan’s recyclable aluminium cans. Get yourself an amber glass refillable bottle to store the gel.
However, if you’re open to trying something a little novel and crossing into solid body wash territory, Beauty Kubes are small cubes which crumble into a lathery paste when wet and come in biodegradable paper packaging.
Or you can of course stick with good old bar soap lathered up on a facecloth or loofah. You don’t even have to waste those leftover scraps; pop them in this nifty soap-saver sisal bag. When rubbed together with the bag, they foam up into a sudsy lather and the textured bag gently exfoliates the skin.
You can also try a natural exfoliating soap. These contain ingredients like tea spices/repurposed coffee grounds/crushed herbs/oatmeal/poppy seeds/sugar and can be scrubbed directly on the body to gently slough away dead skin cells and give a really good clean. UpCircle’s Fennel + Cardamom Chai Soap is our top pick.
Move over liquid shower gel: these days we’re washing our bodies with zero-waste bars, blocks and cubes.
Cotton wool pads
Surely cotton wool, that soft, fluffy household staple which brings to mind clouds and bunny tails, is planet-friendly? Sadly not. It takes gallons of water and tons of pesticide to produce, comes packaged in plastic and is used for a few seconds before being tossed in the bin. Unless organic, cotton wool is also non-biodegradable.
Reusable organic cotton pads are an excellent like-for-like eco-friendly alternative. There are literally hundreds to choose from but not all are created equal (some contain polyester). These from Tendertouch stand out from the crowd because they’re fully biodegradable at the end of their life. They’re also super-soft on the skin, a good size and machine-washable; they come with a nifty drawstring bag so they don’t get lost in the laundry.
Konjac sponges or a good, old-fashioned organic cotton face cloth are also ideal subs for disposable cotton pads.
Reusable cotton wool pads are much more planet-friendly than the one-time-use, throw-away pads we’re used to.
Toothbrushes
The humble toothbrush is such a bathroom basic and essential part of our daily routine that when the bristles are mangled, we don’t think twice about binning and replacing it. But in the UK alone, a staggering 264 million plastic toothbrushes end up in rubbish tips every year.
We’re spoiled for choice with bamboo alternatives. Bamboo is 100% compostable, naturally antibacterial and anti-fungal and one of the most sustainable plants on earth thanks to its fast growth and ability to regenerate organically, without intensive farming or fertilisers. Bamboo brushes are also affordable, have a lifespan similar to plastic brushes and leave your mouth feeling clean.
But there are subtle differences between different brands: some are carbonised to make them water-proof and mould-resistant in steamy bathrooms, some are charcoal-infused for whitening, some have coloured handles to ensure no mix-ups, some use Moso bamboo - a specific type that pandas don’t eat so production of the toothbrushes doesn’t affect their food supply – and some come with varying brush head sizes and bristle types (soft, medium and firm). Others offer a subscription model and provide dental care to vulnerable children around the world.
The Truthbrush ticks several boxes and has a really nice ergonomic handle. Recently, the company pioneered the very first solid bamboo electric toothbrush heads, compatible with the Philips Sonicare brush. And whilst you’re at it, give Truthtabs a try at the same time – they’re zero waste ‘toothpaste tablets’ which taste, foam and clean like toothpaste but don’t come in a traditional plastic toothpaste tube.
