Your bathroom. One of the areas in your home that probably has the most single use plastic products. I'm going to focus on the shower for this blog and share all the products my family uses, and the struggles that went along with the change. Haircare and skincare were two areas that took me the longest to make the switch from single use plastic products. When I tell people I use bar shampoo, conditioner, and face cleanser they either tell me that's odd, while making a puzzled facial expression, or have tons of questions.
The average shampoo bottle has 25-35 washes, which means we throw away at least 1 plastic bottle per month!
Take the above and add on conditioner, body wash, and face wash. That's 4 plastic bottles a month or 48 each year, and that number just goes up the more people in a household.
Let's Talk Products
Shampoo & Conditioner
When I decided we were going to make the switch to bar shampoo and conditioner I wanted to find a brand that had options. Not all hair types are the same, and living down in tropical Florida I needed a shampoo and conditioner that would help fight frizz due to humidity. For my son I needed to find a product that was gentle, since he has extremely sensitive skin and does not do well with fragrances. I discovered Ethique, a company out of New Zealand, that is a Certified B corporation with compostable packaging AND their products are amazing!
I will say that a solid shampoo and conditioner is not for everyone, and by everyone I mean my kids. However, Ethique has another option that gives them their liquid while still ensuring we aren't contributing to single use plastic. They sell shampoo and conditioner concentrate bars that you melt down with water and pour into your reusable pump bottle. It's a win win!
Body Soap
Soup for us is easy. We just use bar soap. There are again so many options for bar soap, just finding one that isn't wrapped in plastic is key.
Face Cleanser
For a face cleaner, we have switched to a bar. Again we use the Ethique brand, but there are many brands out there that offer face cleanser in a bar form.
Razor
I was very guilty of using disposable plastic razors for years. One item I hadn't considered switching over was my razor, until I saw a targeted ad on Instagram for a safety razor. Not familiar with a safety razor? These razors are metal and have a single, double sided razor that is positioned between the base plate and the top cap. The blades are recyclable, and I can tell you it's been the best shaver I have ever used. I also use bar soap to shave, so there is no need for shaving cream. Although, I'm sure there is a a shaving cream option that is also plastic free just a google search away.
Around 2 billion pounds of disposable razors were trashed in America in the 1990s.
However, I did find one downside. You cannot fly with a safety razor and have them in your carry on bag. I learned this the hard way recently and was stopped by TSA two times for a bag check. The first flight they took the razor blade out of the razor and the second time they just stopped to double check there was no blade. We very rarely check a bag, and I've never had any issues with standard disposable razors in a carry on, so I needed to find an option for our next trip. Thankfully, a quick search on Amazon, and I did find a great option I plan to try out called MyFriendly Crazors, Eco Friendly Razors. They are a disposable, 3 blade biodegradable razor.
The Average Woman Creates 52,000 Items of Cosmetic & Hygiene Waste Over Their Lifetime
Now a picture I'm very proud to share. The full view of all our products in our shower! From left to right of the bars they are: body soap, 2 face soap options, shampoo, and conditioner.
I hope I have inspired you to consider switching at least one shower product. Do you already use similar product that you love? Please share in the comments below to help a fellow reader discover more amazing zero single waste plastic products!
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