Making your beauty routine more eco-friendly or sustainable can sound like a big job… a job that seems a lot of effort when you don’t see an immediate difference yourself.
Whilst your beauty routine might seem like a small part of your day, it can still have a big impact on the environment… from the ingredients you use, to the packaging the products come in.
Plastic has detrimental effects on eco systems, especially the coral reef, where we get 70% of our oxygen that we need to live. Did you know that by 2050 there is supposed to be more plastic in the ocean than fish?
That’s why it’s more important than ever to do your bit to help the environment, no matter how small. If everyone did one small thing, it would add up to a big difference in helping the planet.
And it can start with your beauty routine!
Choosing a more sustainable and eco friendly beauty routine doesn’t mean compromising the quality of your products, it just means choosing those which are better for the environment - and you’d be surprised which brands you already use are doing their bit for the environment too.
Here are 5 small changes you can make to create a sustainable beauty regime:
1. Say no to face wipes
I think everyone goes through a phase where face wipes are reached for at every opportunity. But not only are these wipes really bad for the environment, taking hundreds of years to biodegrade, they also aren’t great for your skin either.
Instead opt for a cleansing balm and a reusable cloth or flannel to remove makeup and cleanse the skin. If you’re using makeup remover, choose the reusable makeup removal pads (cotton rounds alternatives) which can be washed time and time again.
2. Shop from brands which are helping the earth
More brands are starting to take care with the products that they create, by using reusable packaging, less plastic and ingredients which don’t harm the environment. Many of these brands are brands you may already use such as Ren, Burts Bees and L’Occitane. From pledging to be zero waste, to recycling products, choosing to shop from these brands is helping the environment without much more effort on your part.
3. Recycle packaging
Just like you recycle other products in your home, packaging from beauty products can easily be recycled too. Clean out glass jars or rinse out plastic bottles to prevent any contamination, and pop them in with your recycling.
If a brand has gone all out on their packaging and it seems a shame to throw it out… don’t! Upcycle it by creating storage jars for beauty products. A candle jar makes a great makeup brush holder!
4. Use up products
This one might sound obvious, but how many times have you opened a new product and started to use it before the other one is empty? I know I’ve done it a lot. This sometimes means that products get forgotten or discarded without being finished. Not only is this wasting money, but it means you’re getting through much more packaging than you would if you finished a product up completely before opening the next one.
5. Check ingredients
If you read the ingredient list on your beauty products, how many of the ingredients would you know? Probably not a lot - not many of us do! Some ingredients included in beauty products can have a damaging effect on the environment, from micro plastics in shower gels, to chemical sunscreens, each of these products are having a negative, sometimes irreversible effect on the environment.
If you want to learn more about the ingredients in your products, you can copy and paste the ingredient list onto incidecoder.com or Paula’s Choice. These websites can help you understand what you’re actually putting on your skin… and what is eventually being washed down the drain.
You can check most ingredient lists online before you buy the products now, so it’s even easier.
To celebrate Earth Day this April, try and make one small change in your beauty regime and know that you’ve made a difference.