5 easy steps towards a more eco-friendly bathroom - Sustainability Newbie
I am very new to sustainability. I am learning everyday about the environmental & ethical impact caused by disposable products, plastic packaging, overconsumption and so on.
Although I am not the expert on the topic and not pretending to be, I still want to share my journey towards a more sustainable way of living.
Which is why I’ve started this Sustainability Newbie series, as a way of documenting what I’m doing and in hope to inspire you, reading this, to start or keep making small, sustainable changes. Let’s start with some easy swaps we can all implement in our bathrooms.
5 easy steps to make your bathroom more eco-friendly
These are the 5 steps that I’ve implemented this year and that I personally found fairly easy to maintain. They haven’t required me to drastically change my routine, they don’t feel like a burden and therefore, they are also sustainable for my lifestyle.
Shorter showers
Taking shorter showers and watching our water consumption in general is the easiest step we can take to consume less water. I make a conscious effort to get out of the shower once I’m done washing and rinsing instead of hanging in there.
I also turn the water off when I wash my hair (as it takes me a good minute to apply my shampoo) and when I let my hair mask set.
Buying what I need, not what I might need
I used to buy various hair products and cosmetics “just in case” despite the fact that my bathroom cabinet was more than full. I would stock up before I even started to run low and I always ended up not using some products at all.
Nowadays, I only buy what I truly need. I barely use any makeup, so I don’t need to buy much. I no longer use hairstyling products, so I don’t buy any. Not only I save money and have more space but I also waste way less.
Plastic-free where possible
You don’t have to make your whole bathroom plastic-free. You can start with one small swap, because every step counts. For instance, I’ve swapped my plastic packaged haircare products with plastic-free ones.
I am currently using Ksoni, which make shampoo in a can (literally!). I have been gifted some of their products, but once I’ve finished them I will buy them again myself. Their products are vegan and their packaging is fully plastic-free and recyclable.
As for body wash, I just use a soap bar instead of shower gel in plastic bottle.
Reusable over disposable
Once I finished using the disposable cotton pads I had, I started using reusable face cloths.
My next step will be to replace my disposable razors with a plastic-free and reusable one. I’m thinking of trying this razor from Up Circle Beauty: you can simply change the blades and return your old ones which will be recycled.
Vegan products
To me, veganism and sustainability go hand in hand. We need to stop hurting both the environment and the animals.
I still have some non-vegan cosmetics which I will finish instead of wasting them, but every single skincare, hygiene or makeup product I’ve bought this year is vegan.
There are so many affordable vegan brands when it comes to makeup, skincare, haircare… that it seems extremely easy to swap anything for a vegan option.
I have dedicated blog posts to vegan primers and vegan foundations. As for skincare, I am currently trying The Ordinary, which is super affordable.
Making changes can be hard. Sustainability can be an overwhelming topic.
But I just want to remind you that nobody needs to be 100% perfect. We just all need to make some small swaps that can collectively make the world of a difference.
If you’re new to this, I hope this sustainability newbie post has given you some inspiration to get started :)
