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Why use this guide?
Ideas and tips to replace your everyday purchases with sustainable choices
What's In Your Beauty and Bath Products?
Sustainable, organic, all natural...we’ve all heard the terms, seen the marketing and read the labels but what does sustainable beauty and bath actually mean? First off, take a look at the products in your bathroom. Whether it’s the shampoo bottle sitting in your shower, the floss in your mirror cabinet or the lipstick in your cosmetic bag, the impact these products have on our planet can be detrimental. Unless, of course, you shop sustainably. We want to make it easier.
What is sustainable beauty?
Sustainable beauty and bath goods are products with ingredients sourced from organic farms, made of vegan materials, not tested on animals, made in recycled packaging, produced in energy efficient ways, have responsible waste management practices and most importantly, won’t harm our oceans once they’re washed off of our bodies and down the drain.
Whew, that’s a lot, we know. You may not find a beauty brand that offers ALL of these things, but if they are making a considerable effort to at least hit a few of those bullet points then we want to celebrate that. As a baseline, however, the next time you buy something new for your bathroom, if you don’t know or can’t pronounce at least 75% of the ingredients on the back it’s probably not the most sustainable option.
What is Give Back Beauty?
Giveback beauty means a few different things, but for starters, it could be any product purchased that donate a product to those in need. There are a ton of amazing companies who know that access to basic sanitary products isn’t a guarantee for many. Look for brands with a clear practice of giving back to the community, such as providing jobs, promoting education, or building schools.
Savvy Tips you should know
01.
What's Current?
The sustainable beauty landscape is currently packed full with designers and brands making changes to adopt recycled packaging, reduce ingredients, source responsibly, and stay on trend with the newest sustainable make-up practices. We couldn't be more excited to see all this change and shift happening in the beauty space. However, we are aware how confusing and noisy all this information can be. So, how do we combat this and make sense of the information in a way that helps each of us make better choices? One easy "do" is to look for certifications that highlight organic ingredients (check out our list of certifications and what they mean). If you love reviewing details, visit The Environmental Working Group and check out each ingredient's rating. Or take a look at the beauty brands we assessed and see how they are doing in terms of Giving Back and Sustainability (See our company pages and their medal rankings).
02.
Tips & Tricks
Products in the beauty and bath industry are some of the biggest culprits for single use plastic so it should be no surprise that our first tip is based on packaging. Look for products made in recycled or reuseable containers. Did you know you can even order fresh deodorant to go in your existing dispenser? We also suggest trying some at home recipes for common products and storing them in glass jars. Speaking of jars, if you have any empty cosmetic bottles, lipsticks, etc. check out some local beauty stores to see if they have a recycling program. A lot of brands will offer discounts for bringing in empty containers. Lastly, switch to vegan cosmetics. There’s a ton of brands these days finding awesome alternatives to animal ingredients in their products and by shopping vegan you’re not only saving animals, but also the environment. (Plus, who wants to know they have animal products on their face! yikes!)
03.
This for That
One of the easiest ways to be a more conscious shopper when it comes to your beauty and bath products is to switch out some everyday products for more sustainable options such as:
- Plastic Toothbrush → Bamboo Toothbrush
- Shampoo Bottle → Shampoo Bar
- Cosmetics full of Chemicals → Organic or Vegan Cosmetics
- Single Use Razors or Deodorant → Refillable Razors or Deodorants
04.
Lingo To Know
Whether you are starting or continuing your conscious beauty journey, it’s important to understand some of the common terms you’ll come across while shopping. Check out some lingo to know below!
- Organic: products were created with only organically farmed ingredients
- Vegan: no animals were used for testing and none of the ingredients come from animal products
- Sustainable: the product was produced in an eco-friendly manner, the container is from recycled materials, their waste management is controlled,
- All Natural: no clear definition for this and often does not mean much. We suggest reading the ingredients on products labeled as “all natural”
- Cruelty Free: no animals were used for testing the product, but could still contain ingredients from animals
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