In my bid to eradicate single use plastic from our lives, I’m doing all I can to scrutinise every tiny element of our daily routines and tweaking our buying habits here and there. Plastic-free living is my absolute goal! I totally get that it’s a gradual process…we can’t become perfectly “green” over night which is why I’m taking my time and have really been enjoying the process of finding wonderful smaller companies to start buying bits and pieces from.
At work a couple of weeks ago, we had a vegan fair and I got chatting to a really lovely lady who sells eco friendly household products. It completely inspired me so I thought I’d share some of my latest plastic-free living loves.
First up – deodorant!
A while ago, I tried out a charcoal deodorant and I’m not going to lie, it’s the best deodorant I’ve ever used. It lasted all day; I felt comfortable and even during the hottest of summers days, I was very much sweat-free. SO I thought I’d try another one so bought this for Elsa and I to share/test out together. Fit Pit ‘Woman’ – bought from Greener Habits for £3.25. There are various scents but ‘Woman’ is lightly scented with bergamot and rosemary and smells divine. Even Elsa likes it and she’s super fussy. It has sodium bicarbonate in the ingredients list which helps detract any body odour, coconut oil and shea butter to moisturise your skin and aloe vera to soothe. It’s truly fantastic and I can’t recommend it enough. It’ll last ages because you only need a tiny dot each time.
Second favourite find – shampoo
Ok so this isn’t something I’ve recently discovered but it’s something I just absolutely love. I use this bar of shampoo from Lush and it’s just fantastic. I know other brands are available however there is a Lush shop near us and I can’t walk by the place without buying something or other. The shampoo bar is fantastic because you only use what you need; there’s very little wastage. You simply wet your hair and then either rub the bar within your hands and then onto your hair. Or if you have stupidly thick hair like I do, then it can be easier just to rub the bar onto wet hair until you have enough to clean with. It’s fantastic because you don’t waste a load of product like you invariably do with bottled shampoo.
You can buy little tins to hold your shampoo bar within but I’ve never really liked them. They fit exactly inside the tin so can be a bugger to get out. Once this bar is used up, I’m going to buy this shampoo bar instead just for comparisons sake 🙂
Third up – toothpaste!
Similar to the deodorant, I bought this super cool toothpaste in a little glass jar from Greener Habits. It’s peppermint and wintergreen flavour though there is the option of a fennel one. I LOVE fennel flavoured stuff but think I’m on my own in this household with that opinion. Anyhoo, this jar is awesome. It’s all natural ingredients that leave your teeth feeling really clean. Plus there isn’t that horrible overly strong taste that comes with traditional plastic tubed toothpastes. It isn’t cheap BUT lasts absolutely ages so doesn’t end up any more expensive. £8 for this jar and worth every penny because there is no plastic crap involved.
Finally…bottle-less shower gel from Lush
This shower gel is just a genius product. It looks like a bottle but isn’t a bottle! The epitome of plastic-free living. Just take the bottle away et voila!
It’s fantastic because, like with the shampoo, you waste nothing. By rubbing the bar onto your hands or straight onto your body, you end up just using what you need to. Word of advise though – dry it off properly and store away from the shower. If you leave it damp then it will just turn to mush. I always dry mine with the corner of my towel and store in the cupboard. Greener Habits sell little pouches to hold products like these so I’m going to invest in a few to save all my shampoos and soaps. I particularly like the Lush range of body washes as they are so suitable for sensitive skin. This one doesn’t even bother Jude’s terrible eczema which is a miracle.
So that’s it. Four little products that have removed the need for plastic in one way or another. I’m slowly getting there. I’ve seen a few other products that I want to try out over the next week or so, so will report back to you on these soon.
Which plastic-free living products are your favourites?
