How to use less plastic in your beauty routine

You may have nailed the BYOB (bring your own bag) to the supermarket and you’ve invested in a Keep Cup for your coffee, but what about the plastic in your skincare and beauty regime?

A quick look in most people’s bathroom cupboards, wash and make up bags would reveal a whole heap of plastics. But all is not lost. Here are our top tips for reducing your plastic use.

Ditch the glitter

With festival season fast approaching, it’s tempting to stockpile the face paints and glitter transfers. But glitter is made from tiny pieces of plastic and foil, which are non-recyclable and can take several YEARS to decompose. So invest in some bio-degradable glitter instead. Simples.

Go package-free

We buy over 1.4 BILLION plastic bottles across the world. And while LUSH Cosmetics is a great champion for so-called ‘naked’ cosmetics, opting for products that are packaging-free is the best way to make an impact. Solid shampoos, soaps and deodorants are great choices.

Shop in store or buddy up to combine orders

Online shopping is wonderfully convenient but often comes with excessive packaging. The cardboard used for shipment in America alone equated to 1 billion trees in 2018. So what’s the answer? Mindfully shop online and steer away from outlets that are renowned to use copious amounts of packaging. Alternatively, ‘buddy up’ with a friend and combine your orders to ensure that only one shipment is made. Of course, shopping in store is a great alternative as you can use your own bag.

Ditch wipes

Wet wipes, baby wipes and make up wipes are all plastic-based, meaning they won’t break down and stay in landfill blocking water systems. Worryingly wipes are responsible for 93% of the make up in blockages found in our water systems and the fastest cause of pollution on our beaches. So ditch the wipes and use biodegradable products, cleansers in glass bottles or good old fashioned soap and a flannel!

Recycle make up

Include a recycling bin in your bathroom. Many people only have one waste bin for recycling, usually in the kitchen. This often means that every mixed rubbish ends up in the generic bin.