Why is it important to have a zero waste skincare routine? 

Skincare products are in extremely high demand.

Most women use around twelve skincare products in a single day, many of them containing several harmful ingredients and chemicals. These ingredients sit on your skin, get absorbed via hair follicles, and enter your body.

The product may advertise that it has anti-aging properties but in reality, it most likely promotes premature aging and wrinkles.

Knowing exactly what you’re putting on your skin is extremely important and a luxury that not many people have.

A common ingredient in some conventional skincare products is formaldehyde, the same chemical used to preserve dead bodies, which can cause irritation to the skin if exposed. Sodium lauryl sulphate is another common ingredient in some products. The purpose of this chemical is to make bubbles. It can also be found in floor cleaners, engine greasers, and car wash detergents. Yeah, no thanks.

These harsh chemicals are just as toxic for our environment as they are for our skin. They lead to waterway pollution during creation and when rinsed down the drain. That conventional cleanser you use? It gets washed down the drain and enters a waterway where it will pollute and disrupt the ecosystem. Not ideal.

Not to mention, most skincare products come in excessive plastic packaging. Only 9 percent of plastic is actually recycled, so cutting back on the amount of plastic you bring into your home is essential.

What are the best zero waste skincare products and DIYs?

The best zero waste skincare products are the ones with all-natural ingredients and sustainable packaging. The ones where you know exactly what’s being rubbed into your face and how it’s going to benefit your skin. So there’s no need to worry about skin irritation from chemicals, toxic smells from artificial fragrances or potentially polluting ingredients.

These zero waste skincare products and DIYs I’ve rounded up are all 100% natural, eco-friendly, and packaged sustainably. Plus there are several vegan options mentioned as well.

You can’t go wrong with any of these zero waste skincare products. I’ve includeda toner, soap, lotion, face mask, exfoliator, face scrub, and many more to choose from!

1. Yay for Earth- Sensitive Skin Face Lotion

I have been using Stevie’s Yay for Earth sensitive skin face lotion for several months now, and I think it’s safe to say it’s a holy grail of mine.

It’s hand-made, mixed, and poured by Stevie herself using only organic and natural ingredients. It’s advertised as a face lotion, yet it’s an extremely multi-purpose product.

You can use it as an exfoliate, moisturizer, makeup primer or something to apply before sunscreen. Its antioxidant and collagen boosting properties have also been known to help with eczema, acne, scars, and most physical blemishes.

This product is very affordable, especially considering how much product you’re getting. A little goes a long way. I’ve had my 1 oz. travel tin for months now and I’m hardly halfway through it! It’s sunshine in a jar.

Packaging: The larger sizes come in a glass jar while the mini version (1 oz.) is in a tin case. Also, your lotion will be delivered in a cardboard box sealed with compostable paper tape and filled with completely dissolvable package peanuts made from cornstarch. How cool is that?! All ingredients are sustainably sourced and natural.

Vegan friendly?: No

Ingredients: Organic olive oil, beeswax, organic shea butter, organic pomegranate seed oil.

2. Fat and the Moon- Masa + Olive Exfoliating Face Paste

A hydrating and sustainably made face paste is exactly what your skin needs during these nasty heat waves. This exfoliating face paste uses corn flour to polish and stimulate your skin, and olive oil to moisturize.

This amazing product is extremely affordable, vegan, handmade and contains no parabens, sulfates, or toxins.

It works wonders when it comes to opening up those pores and removing any dirt that clogs them, which is important because- not so fun fact- the bacteria inside those clogged and dirty pores are exactly how blackheads and pimples are formed.

Packaging: It’s packaged in a recyclable glass jar with a metal lid and you’re given 2 oz. of useable product.

Vegan friendly?: Yes

Ingredients: Corn flour, olive oil, lavender essential oil, organic elderberry oil.

3. Bestowed Essentials- Natural Sensitive Skin Face Mask

Have you ever tried a powdered face mask? It’s a great way to exfoliate your skin while knowing exactly what you’re going to be putting on your face.

All you need to do is mix a nickel-sized dollop of powder with a liquid of your choice. Some options are: witch hazel, diluted apple cider vinegar, aloe vera, coconut milk, herbal tea, toner, or just plain water.

Personally, I love being able to pick and choose what I want to use on my face. You’re quite literally picking the ingredients for yourself! Plus, this freedom allows you to choose which liquid you know will work best for your skin specifically.

Packaging: This affordable, handmade product is packaged in a 30% recycled glass with a metal lid. Just like the rest of the products so far and the ones after this, you’re highly encouraged to reuse or recycle the packaging once it’s finished.

Vegan friendly?: Yes

Ingredients: Kaolin clay, ground oats, ground dried lavender buds, ground dried chamomile flowers, Brazilian purple clay.

4. Kindred Black- Ocotillo Eye Balm

Need a zero waste, all natural eye balm to help with those puffy under eyes?

After feeling like they were drowning in a sea of plastic waste and harmful fabric chemicals, Kindred Black decided to take initiative. They realized how pointless it would be to dump all the responsibility on the consumers and tell them “please recycle this plastic bag” when they have the power to create sustainable items and packaging themselves.

Ocotillo eye balm is made with Ocotillo shrubs, a shrub native to the Southwestern desert that grows stunning orange, edible flowers after rainfall. All parts of the plant are medicinal, and the shrub’s bark has toning properties that help move lymphatic fluid and stimulates circulation.

Ocotillo balm helps as an anti-inflammatory undereye treatment, but it can also be applied to hemorrhoids, spider veins, and broken capillaries.

Packaging: This luxury brand item comes packaged in a beautiful blue glass bottle with a large cork sealing it shut. Every single part of their packaging is plastic free and sustainable! They use recycled boxes, recycled tissue paper, recycled shipping paper, water activated tape, and their signature floral paper is printed with vegetable and soy inks. They even replaced bubble wrap with Green Wrap, an alternative to plastic that’s compostable, biodegradable, SFI-certified and fully recyclable. Even the bottles are handmade by a glass artisan. It doesn’t get more handmade and sustainable than that!

Vegan friendly?: No

Ingredients: Organic Sonoran jojoba oil, organic beeswax, wildcrafted whole ocotillo bark.

5. Bell Mountain Naturals- Vegan Soap

Looking for a vegan soap with natural, locally sourced ingredients? Soap is probably one of the most common skincare items we use, yet most of us are clueless when it comes to what types of chemicals we’re rubbing into our skin.

This vegan soap is made in small batches with plant-based ingredients that are ethically harvested. They’re great for washing your hands and the whole body. Plus, they smell heavenly- which is a bonus.

It’s an amazing feeling to know you can purchase a soap bar that’s plastic-free, palm-oil free, vegan, and 100% compostable. It comes in four soothing scents and each bar is 4oz. in size.

Packaging: Each soap comes packaged in a really cute, compostable linen pouch with cardboard wrapped around it.

Vegan friendly?: Yes

Ingredients (Metairie Soap): Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Olea Europaea (Love) Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, distilled water, sodium hydroxide, Ocimum Basillicum (Basil) Oil, bergamot oil, Cupressus sempervirens (cypress) oil, Rubia Tinctorum (Madder root).

6. LOLI- Polishing Face Scrub

Have you ever tried a grain-based, food-safe polishing scrub? Well look no further- LOLI provides a high-antioxidant face polishing scrub that helps all skin types just as much as the conventional face scrub would, sans the planet-polluting micro beads.

The smooth, cleansing grains can be activated with water, hydrosols, or vinegar to create a wet paste. It can be used on all skin types on your lips and face, preventing breakouts, flaky skin, and dry spots.

All ingredients are high in antioxidants and powered by Peruvian superfood. It’ll leave your skin glowing and feeling as smooth as a baby’s bum!

The pure ingredients used will help rejuvenate and detoxify your skin. The grains are ground from kernels of Peruvian purple corn, a vibrant grain that boasts more antioxidants than blueberries. Kaolin, a sebum reducer, deep cleans the skin.

While this product may be a bit pricy, it’s not unreasonable considering how organic, sustainable, and hydrating it is. The full sized jar holds 1.4 ounces of product and LOLI makes it clear that a little goes a very long way.

Packaging: It’s packaged in a glass jar, so you’re highly encouraged to reuse it once you’re finished.

Vegan friendly?: Yes

Ingredients: Purple corn, pomegranate, almond flour, kaolin, orange peel, hibiscus, yucca root powder, rice starch.

7. KYPRIS- Antioxidant Dew

This versatile antioxidant elixir lavishes your skin with preserved essential oils and plant extracts.

KYPRIS’ goal is to provide people with holistic skin-care boasting organic, sustainably grown botanicals.

This product provides nurturing amino acids and an array of soothing botanicals that will leave your skin extremely hydrated with its lightweight texture – making it the perfect dew to use during the summer or wintertime, depending on when your skin gets the flakiest.

Add a few drops to your skin in the morning, nighttime, or during the day to keep your skin nice and hydrated. You can use it on its own as a hydrator or mix it in with your favorite face oil or serum for an extra boost.

Some notable ingredients include:

Sea Algae, which has been studied for its ability to hydrate; Waltheria Indica, a botanical gem from the Mallow family known to soothe your skin’s appearance; and DPHP (dipalmitoyl Hydroxyproline), an amino acid that smoothes your skin’s appearance to enhance luminosity.

Packaging: This antioxidant face dew is packaged in glass, made with plant-based ingredients and absolutely never tested on animals. It is rather costly considering it’s a high-end brand, but once you try it you’ll learn that it was worth every penny.

Vegan friendly?: Yes

Ingredients: Water, Glycerin, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Camellia Oleifera Seed Oil, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Xylitylglucoside, Betaine, Dipalmitoyl Hydroxyproline, Panthenol, Ahnfeltia Concinna Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Anhydroxylitol, Calophyllum Inophyllum (Tamanu) Seed Oil, Symphytum Officinale (Comfrey) Leaf Extract, Tocopherol, Urtica Dioica (Nettle) Extract, Waltheria Indica Leaf Extract, Citric Acid, Dextrin, Ferulic Acid, Lecithin, Mannitol, Phospholipids, Prunus Cerasus (Sour Cherry) Flower Extract, Rosa Centifolia (Rose De Mai) Flower Extract, Rosa Damascena (Damask Rose) Flower Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Superoxide Dismutase, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Gluconate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Levulinate, Xanthan Gum, Xylitol, Sodium Anisate.

8. Marley’s Monsters- Organic Cotton Facial Rounds

Don’t feel like using your fingers to apply products or clean your face? These 100% organic cotton facial rounds are the perfect tool for the job.

You can use them to cleanse your skin or remove your make up before tossing them into the wash and reusing them all over again. The best part is that you don’t need to worry about releasing any toxic chemicals, pesticides or microplastics since these babies are nothing but pure cotton.

Packaging: For a very fair price, you’ll received a pack of 20 pads that are packaged in a recyclable paper sleeve. These cotton pads are the perfect replacement for disposable facial rounds and cotton balls.

Vegan friendly?: Yes

Materials: 100% organic cotton.

9. Meow Meow Tweet- Organic Face Toner

I think we all want a natural face toner that will make our skin absolutely radiant, instead of those overly artificial ones with who-knows-what in them. This organic and plant-based toner is perfect as a makeup setter, scalp spray, aftershave spray or just some simple face cleansing.

The natural ingredients are packed with antioxidants and nutrients that will leave your face fresh and toned. You’ll receive all the benefits of a high-end toner without ruining the environment or your wallet.

Packaging: It’s packaged in a recyclable glass bottle and pump that can be reused after you’ve finished all 3.8 ounces.

Vegan friendly?: Yes

Ingredients: Witch hazel, water, rose hydrosol, vegetable glycerin, apple cider vinegar, radish root gement filtrate, lavender oil, geranium oil, palmarosa oil, immortelle oil.

10. DIY Shaving Cream

Shaving can be a very tedious task filled with cuts, slippery fingers, and missing that one patch of hair that you could have sworn you shaved off.

Conventional shaving creams may get the job done but they aren’t always great for your skin. Lots of them use surfactant chemicals that actually make it more difficult for your skin to hydrate itself, which will make your skin drier and age faster.

To make this DIY shaving cream, you’ll only need shea butter, coconut oil, aloe vera, and essential oils (optional). You just heat up the ingredients, mix them until combined, cool the mixture until solidified and then mix it up again to get that whipped shaving cream texture! Once it’s made, you can store it in a glass jar- preferably a sealed mason jar- to keep it as fresh as possible.

For the full DIY, check out Zero Waste Nerd.

 

Source: Going Zero Waste

  

What are your favorite zero waste skincare products and DIYs?

If you’d like more tips, check out these 4 green beauty brands that offer refills.

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