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Bodycare, Clean Beauty, Home, Lifestyle, Skincare ·

Earth Day: Sustainable/Zero-Waste Faves (Updated)

UPDATE 4/22/2024: Happy Earth Day! Hope you’re all doing well and enjoying this gorgeous spring weather! I am always trying to update a few things in this blog post, so keep an eye out for the updated sections (they’ll be labeled, such as this one), and happy shopping/learning! Remember, let’s treat the earth kindly every day!

BONUS: I had the absolute pleasure of chatting all things sustainability and beauty, and of course, Enneagram…with one of my longtime gal-pals Molly (@maisonpur) of Maison Pur! We had a lot of fun with this Girl Talk Episode! Hope you enjoy it! LISTEN HERE!

This post is a long time comin’! I’ve got that highlight on my Instagram called “waste-free” that’s a huge hit, but let’s be real, this is long overdue! I don’t want to gab too much about what I’m about to share — cus, well, you know by now that I’m a big advocate for sustainable living. Whether that be conscious, ethical shopping and slow fashion, limiting consumption of single-use plastics (I say completely eradicate it), composting and recycling properly, and other zero-waste lifestyle changes – I am ALL ABOUT IT. We must respect the earth we live on and be good stewards of our actions and lifestyles.

So I wanted to share some of my faves ranging from home to food + drink to beauty and more! I hope you take away something from this post and practice sustainable living as best as you can! Let me know in the comments what you think and if there are any practices or even brands I missed and should know about! Happy browsing!

Choosing products in packaging that is sustainable is a surefire way to cut back on the amount of plastic that ends up in our landfills, and it’s a great way to avoid toxic chemicals!

The following materials are great to pick from when choosing sustainable products/packaging!

  • Bamboo
    • Strength and Durability – Bamboo is a durable material that can withstand great amounts of stress, having mechanical properties 2 to 3 times better than traditional timber. Your sustainable bamboo packaging can and should be reused!
    • Quick Growing – Bamboo grows much faster than real wood, making it much more renewable and requiring less land and resources to produce. Among the world’s fastest-growing plants, bamboo can grow one inch (2.5 centimeters) approx. every 40 minutes!
    • Locally Sourced – Bamboo grows in many different parts of the world, so packaging produced with bamboo is often locally sourced. This is much more eco-friendly, limiting transportation costs and carbon footprints.
    • Earth Friendly – Bamboo is a hardy, easy-to-grow grass that helps promote healthy soil and doesn’t require replanting after harvesting. Bamboo packaging is biodegradable and can be composted. CLEARLY A WINNER!
  • Compostable/Biodegradable Cardboard
    • Renewable resource – since it’s made from recycled paper pulp when properly manufactured and disposed of, it’s considered a renewable resource.
  • Glass & Metal
    • 100% Recyclable! FOR THE MOST PART. Unfortunately, different glass has various melting points, meaning they can’t usually be processed for recycling together without the risk of them damaging equipment or contaminating each other and compromising the structural integrity of the recycled glass — and after all, you wouldn’t want a recycled drinking glass to crumble in your hands. Now, this doesn’t mean that all of those other types of glass aren’t recyclable at all. It just means that they’re usually not all accepted together in a curbside recycling program — if your city accepts glass for recycling, they most likely stick to accepting glass bottles and jars that hold food and drink. So what to do with a non-container glass? As always, reusing is a smart choice if your old glasses, vases, and dishes are in good shape. Donate them to charity or a thrift store, or pass them on to family and friends who may want them. Window glass can also be reclaimed and reused by businesses or charities!
    • Glass Bottles & Jars – These can typically be infinitely recycled into new packaging! No loss of quality. Interesting fact, though, Frosted Glass typically cannot be recycled!
    • Repurpose – One of my favourite ways to recycle glass is to repurpose it! Either for food storage, transform it into a vase or even a drinking glass…whatever your heart desires!
    • INTERESTING FACT – It does, however, take 1 million years to biodegrade, which is technically the longest-lasting man-made material. But, it’s still better than plastic because it doesn’t leach or have BPA. And again, it is super easy to recycle.
      (source: https://www.friendsofglass.com/ecology/what-glass-can-you-recycle/)
  • Silicone
    • Eco-Friendly – Silicone is a manmade substance and it’s not biodegradable, and because it’s more resistant to heat it may even take longer than plastic to break down naturally if it ends up in a landfill. Although silicone isn’t biodegradable, it can technically be recycled, however, it’s currently pretty difficult to find somewhere to recycle silicone products. Local waste collection services don’t usually accept silicone for recycling, although you could contact them to find out if any recycling options are available. Alternatively, you could try a program such as Terracycle’s Zero Waste Kitchen Box service. It isn’t a cheap recycling option but you could always get together with a group of friends or work colleagues and share the cost of recycling your old silicone products.
      (source: https://naturaler.co.uk/is-silicone-eco-friendly-recyclable)
  • Recycled Plastic
    • Repurposing Plastic – This is probably my least favourite option, but it is one! Some companies repurpose plastic into new packaging or even make clothing out of it! While I don’t love this idea of using plastic at all, and it may not be ideal (in terms of a renewable resource), it can be better than some of the other alternatives.

• • • • • • • • • •

UPDATED

Before we dive into my categorized faves, I wanted to highlight an incredible one-stop shop for all things sustainable: EarthHero!

This online shop has it all, from beauty to clothing + accessories, baby + kids, travel, home, outdoors, and even audio + tech…they’ve got the most sustainable finds! Better materials, cleaner production, high quality, a lower carbon footprint, and less waste! I AM HERE FOR IT!

On any given day, I’ve got a 10% off discount code*: HULLOSAM.

But, seeing as how it’s Earth Week, here’s your very own code for 20% off! Use code EARTH20 *Free Shipping on orders $50+, always! (I’ll be highlighting some of my faves in the categories below as well!)

SHOP EARTHHERO HERE!

If you’re looking for more deals today, head to my IG stories for more! I’ll save them in my “waste-free” highlight as well!

• • • • • • • • • •

HOME

DRINK

FOOD STORAGE

KITCHEN

BATHROOM + LAUNDRY

ON THE GO

HEALTH + BEAUTY

BEAUTY BRANDS

Definitely going to elaborate a bit when it comes to the beauty section since this is my favourite! I will say though that back in the day mascara came separate (in a container) from the brush, and people used good brushes, caring for them for a lifetime! The (mostly) mainstream cosmetics/salon and pharmaceutical industries are HORRIBLE when it comes to contributing to plastic waste. There absolutely needs to be a step toward compostable bags for pills and powders. And you can reuse those reusable mascara wands – just wash them instead of continually throwing them out and buying more.

I highly suggest you check the rest of the links and brands I share by clicking the links! (Most of them are having sales as well!) Read up on the brand/company and what they’re creating the packaging, information, and more!

  • MOB Beauty – refillable, recyclable packaging using 50 – 100% post-consumer recycled materials and launched a biodegradable packaging system in July 2023.
  • Crunchi Cosmetics – mostly glass and cardboard packaging. Their foundations, concealers, and brow pomades are in glass and the rest is mostly recyclable cardboard packaging. Minus their lipglosses/bronzer/powder.
  • Elate Cosmetics – bamboo packaging from China. However, they work closely with a green-certified, fair-trade manufacturer. All of the bamboos are water processed, not chemically treated and their products – such as their powders – are sold separately from the compact so you only have to buy it once and refill the insides. I love that their refills are packaged in seed paper which can be planted in your garden! Another great thing Elate does is any plastic that comes with shipping boxes is always reused by their company and never purchased. You can also let them know at the checkout if you want to do plastic-free and they’ll curate it to your needs!
  • Erin’s Faces – The majority of their products are housed in glass and sent with minimal packaging! They source quality ingredients and they even include a little wildflower packet in your orders so you can plant some pretty flowers! (HULLOSAM for 10% off!)
  • Good Medicine Beauty Lab – a lovely line of natural skincare products and pretty botanical perfumes packaged in glass.
  • ILIA Beauty – products are housed in glass and/or recycled aluminum cases.
  • Kari Gran – they use Miron glass which is a very cool 100% recyclable dark violet glass that blocks the complete spectrum of visible light. This eliminates the need for preservatives.
  • Kjaer Weis – they use a refill system. The product (even their mascara) is housed in a weighty and luxurious metal compact that pivots/slides open.
  • Leahlani Skincare – mostly glass packaging, although it is frosted glass, so check to see if your local recycling center recycles this type of glass. Better yet, see if your local clean beauty shop has a recycling program! (HULLOSAM10 any time)
  • Mahalo Skin Care – bamboo packaging and you can get an “imperfectly packaged” product at a discount!
  • Province Apothecary – all glass or paper packaging! They also accept returns of their primary packaging to increase sustainability and recycling efficiency. They make sure it’s recycled properly, or given the chance to be used again. (I believe it must be local though – not entirely sure!) (Use code HULLOSAM for 15% off – excluding custom serums, gift cards, and treatments.)
  • rms Beauty – minimal packaging; most products are in glass and all of it is biodegradable, recyclable, or reusable.
  • Tata Harper Skincare – the majority of their packaging is made of glass. If using plastic, it’s for the function of the packaging and is as eco-friendly as possible. The plastic resin for their tubes is derived from corn – so it’s made from a renewable resource instead of petroleum. The cartons they use have the Sustainable Forestry Initiative label. They also use recycled cardboard and print with soy-based inks.

PERSONAL CARE

BATHROOM

COMPOST + RECYCLING

RESOURCES FOR COMPOSTING
RESOURCES FOR RECYCLING
CHARLOTTE, NC RECYCLING

xo

This post contains affiliate links + promo codes, which means that I receive a percentage of commission if any products are purchased through my links. As always, these are companies I have used personally, believe in and support. Also, thank you for supporting me, hullosam through your purchases. :)

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