Make The Change And Switch To A Eco-Friendly Beauty Routine
You want to adopt a solid beauty routine so that you look and feel better - but you wonder, at what cost?
Unfortunately, many beauty products include harmful ingredients that are damaging both to your health and to the environment, from packaging to fillers that are made out of nasty toxic chemicals.
If you’re looking for a more eco-friendly beauty routine, there are some things you can change in order to get the look and feel that you want without sacrificing the environment. From swapping your makeup brushes with synthetic bristles to going cruelty-free, these changes will leave your skin feeling smoother - while your conscience feels clean as a whistle, too!
What is a Sustainable Beauty Product?
You might be a pro when it comes to recycling items in your kitchen, but there’s a good chance that you haven’t given much thought to how you are recycling in other areas of your home, like your bathroom - which is where you’ll likely find your beauty products, of course!
What is a Sustainable Beauty Product?
From plastic bottles to hold shampoo to mascara wands to toilet paper tubes, there’s a wide assortment of bathroom and beauty products that are going straight into the trash. Most of tmhese are made out of plastic - and some even contain chemicals that can be harmful to your health and to the environment.
Fortunately, more companies are starting to hop on the sustainability bandwagon so that you can feel good about your purchases - and about how you look at the same time.
A sustainable beauty product has a bit of a murky definition because there’s no governing agency that defines this term officially. However, a beauty product or brand is often considered sustainable depending on the ingredients in the product, the way it is produced and manufactured, how it is shipped and distributed, whether recycling options are offered, and how the product is packaged.
Because of this, a product can be considered sustainable even if it contains synthetic ingredients. As long as the production process incorporates various green principles, it counts.
A product with solely organic ingredients can also be sustainable even if it wasn’t packaged in the most eco-friendly way.
There’s a lot of variability in what sustainability means in the beauty industry, but hopefully, in this article, we will be able to give you a few tips to incorporate the most sustainable beauty tips in your daily routine.
Think Eco When Choosing Personal Care Product
There is a misconception out there about sustainable beauty products that is similar to the misconceptions faced by other sustainable products - that they are, in some way, of a lesser quality than their alternatives.
Think Eco-Friendly Personal Care Products
Sustainable or natural beauty brands have received a lot of bad (and undeserved) press, with some users complaining that these products compromise on smell or quality, but eco-friendly doesn’t always equal sub-par. In fact, some of the best and most well-known brands are redesigning products to make them more eco-friendly.
In other words, it might be worth a second look!
Although you might not yet be able to buy sustainable versions of your favorite beauty products, shop around and always be sure to ask if there is a more eco-friendly version of your ideal product available. Always shop with sustainability in mind and you’ll likely be surprised by what you find.
Don’t go raid your medicine cabinet just yet - use up the products you have, and as you do, gradually look for sustainable alternatives to replace them.
Take The Slow Approach
Take The Slow Approach To Perfecting Your Beauty Routine
Again, don’t toss everything out at all at once - this is by far the most wasteful and least eco-friendly approach. Instead, as you use one item up, replace it with another.
You may want to start with something simple like soap or body wash. You tend to use these up quickly and you may not have as many preferences for these products as you might for something like a face cream, which can be quite specific to your skin type and color.
Look for products one by one and spend time trying out new products to find your favorite. Before you run out of a product you already have, take some time to read some reviews online, check out beauty counters or salons, ask for advice from friends, and get as many free samples for sustainable alternatives as you can. That way, you can try them out before you have to worry about your other products running out or expiring.
Eco-Friendly Packaging
You might be worried about some of the ingredients in a sustainable beauty brand, assuming that they just won’t be as good or as effective as the ones in the favorite product you already know and love.
If you’re not quite ready to make that switch, consider looking for a beauty brand that has eco-friendly packaging instead. You’ll still be able to feel good about the product you are buying but you won’t have to switch to a totally new product (the results of which you may be uncertain about).
When it comes to eco-friendly packaging, search for beauty products that are packaged in glass. This is much easier to recycle than plastic. In any event, plastic should be avoided at all costs.
Formula Ingredients
Once you’ve made the switch from plastic to glass, your next step will be to look for eco-friendly ingredients.
Some brands use natural or organic ingredients, which can be a big help not only in improving the health of the environment but also in improving your overall health, too. Avoid things like phthalates and parabens and instead, look for ones with more natural ingredients like algae and marine extracts. They’ll work wonders for your skin and are much better for the environment, too.
Also avoid beauty products that contain microbeads and microplastics. These are made out of polyethylene and are proven to be extraordinarily harmful to plants and wildlife. These products are not recyclable and can pollute oceans, where they are later ingested by fish and other marine life.
Eco Beauty Routine Tips: Consider The Formula Ingredients
In the United States and the United Kingdom, the use of microbeads in products like toothpaste and face wash is now outlawed. That should make your shopping decisions a bit easier. However, they are often still found in things like hair gel, sun lotion, and deodorant, so be on the lookout.
Other ingredients to avoid include polymethyl methacrylate, polyethylene, poly-e-terephthalate, and polypropylene.
You should also avoid using anything that is a petroleum derivative. It’s not sustainable and it's horrible for the environment. Use beauty products that contain ingredients like vegetable oils, cocoa butter, and beeswax and avoid ethylene, propylene glycol, and paraffin oil.
Swap Your Beauty Tools
You may not have given this one any thought but it’s important that you consider your beauty tools as you’re overhauling your beauty routine, too.
This is easy to do, since there are lots of simple and budget-friendly swaps you can make that will pay off big time. For example, you might ditch cotton pads and makeup wipes that are meant to be disposed of after one use. Instead, use washable pads that are meant to be used. Not only is this better for the environment, but it’s also a great way to save some money.
You can also make the switch with your razor. Rather than using a plastic disposable razor, use a stainless steel safety razor. These do not contain any plastic and are fabulous for the environment. Plus, many people say that these razors give you a cleaner shave that also lasts much longer - so less time spent shaving every day!
With stainless steel razors, you’ll have to swap out the blades, which are made of metal, but they can be recycled much more easily.
You can also swap out makeup brushes, hairbrushes, and applicators. Look for ones made out of things like bamboo.
Shampoo Bars
Sustainable Beauty Routine Tips: Consider Using Natural Shampoo Bars
Are you still washing your hair with a plastic bottle of shampoo? The time has never been better to switch to shampoo bars. These can help make your beauty routine more eco-friendly and can be used both for body and hair - meaning you can free up space in the shower and get clean all at the same time.
Shampoo bars often last much longer than bottles of shampoo. Often, you can get just as many washes from a single bar as you might from two or three bottles of shampoo. You should be able to find these in a variety of brands and with lots of scents and styles.
Make the Switch to Multi-Use Products
A shampoo bar is just one example of a multi-purpose product you might want to upgrade to. There are countless others to try, and the benefits of making the switch extends far beyond just that of sustainability.
By reducing the number of products you buy and use, you can reduce the amount of packaging consumed as well as your overall waste.
Here are some examples.
Rather than buying separate cheek and lip stains, buy an all-in-one product. Rather than using wipes and cotton pads, use a combined foaming cleanser and makeup remover.
You’ll save so much space, time, and money by choosing these multipurpose products - and you’ll do your part when it comes to saving the planet, too.
Simplify Skincare Routine
As you might have already gathered from reading the rest of this article, simplicity is key when it comes to a more sustainable beauty routine.
Eco-Friendly Beauty Tips: Simplify Skincare Routine
Advertising is clever - it tells us that we need dozens of different beauty products when in reality, there are probably only a handful that are actually truly necessary. So many products serve similar purposes and contain similar ingredients.
Likely, all you need is a good toner, moisturizer, and cleanser - you don’t need anything else for your skin.
Simplifying your skincare routine and following simple beauty tips is a great way to streamline your day and reduce the amount of time you spend in the bathroom. You’ll save time and be able to live a more sustainable lifestyle in the process!
Minimize How Much Product You Are Using
It is so easy to overuse a product - after all, the more you use, the better the results, right?
Wrong.
Just think about how often you’ve used your moisturizer as a hand cream because you had a huge glob left on your hand afterward. You waste far more product than you think - and this is not only bad for the environment, but it’s bad for your wallet. Start with just a small amount of product and then go from there.
Beauty Routine Tips To Consider
Recycle Beauty Products
Now that you’re finished with your beauty products, it’s time to toss them in the trash, right? Wait! Before you do this, check to see if your packaging can be recycled - and figure out what steps you need to take to recycle them properly.
Often, you will need to wash out containers before you recycle them. You can also put screw tops and lids back on the containers, which can streamline the recycling process as well.
Look into the recycling programs offered by various retailers. Some brands and stores, such as MAC and Kiehl’s have their own makeup return programs where you can actually get a free beauty product in return for sending in an old one. How fun is that?
If you’re like many of us and have a hard time remembering to tote recyclables from the bathroom into the kitchen recycling bin, keep in mind that there are special trash cans you can buy that have separate sections for waste and another for recyclables. Brilliant!
Incorporate Sustainability Into Your Beauty Routine For List Costs and Little Time
Do you want to live a more sustainable lifestyle? Is there a way to be eco-friendly without sacrificing your beauty routine?
A lot of people are under the impression that sustainable living is hard. They are under the impression that it's a lifestyle that is too expensive to maintain or one that will take more time and effort than they're willing to give.
The good news is that this simply isn't true! There are plenty of ways you can incorporate sustainability into your life for little cost and even less time.
Rebekah Pierce is a professional social blogger and has worked on several online publications including Citrus Sleep. Rebekah is an experienced content writer and copyeditor. You will find many of her works throughout CitrusSleep.com that cover a wide array of subjects including sleep education, natural, sleep products, electronics, fashion and many more. She is passionate about her work and family.
Follow Lisa at Rebekah Pierce
Finding the best natural and organic pillow online is hard to do, but we are here to help. We researched, tested, tried, slept on, crushed and even had a few pillow fights. We completely love finding the non-toxic pillows that are made without bad chemicals and toxic fire retardants. Enjoy our updated 2025 list of the top reviewed natural and organic pillows.