Sustainable skincare, put simply, refers to products and routines that meet consumers' skin needs while having a minimal negative impact on the planet. Admittedly, it’s a rather vague term that covers many areas such as how the ingredients are sourced, packaged, and used. The most important thing is that every stage is kind to both the skin and the planet.
In various posts, we’ve covered different areas of sustainability in skincare, such as reducing carbon emissions and plastic packaging, but here we’ve brought them all together for you in 10 simple steps.
Ready to go green with your skincare routine?
How to make your skincare routine more sustainable
- Watch out for ‘beauty miles’
Let’s start with the one that’s most often overlooked. Beauty miles, like food miles, are a measure of the entire journey of your product, from individual ingredients to the bottle on your bathroom shelf.
Apart from your journey to the shop or the delivery man arriving at your doorstep, it’s something you may not have considered before. But the truth is the collection of products on your shelf will have travelled long journeys, bringing ingredients from across the globe together, manufactured in different locations, and shipped across the world. And the problem with these long journeys? The huge carbon footprint that comes with them.
In this post, we shared some hacks for cutting down your beauty miles (p.s. at Mazillo we keep it local every step of the way, doing most of the work for you!).
- Opt for vegan skincare brands
Researchers at Oxford University say that veganism is the single biggest way to reduce your environmental impact, cutting your carbon footprint by up to 73%. And veganism isn’t just about the food you eat; It’s cutting out (or simply reducing) the animal-derived products you use in your everyday life.
If you’re thinking ‘well, what animal products are in skincare?’, we suggest you read this post to find out (sorry, some of them are pretty gross!). Luckily, veganism is one of the biggest skincare trends in recent years so it’s relatively easy to make the switch. At Mazillo, we’re proud to be certified vegan and cruelty-free.
- Choose natural ingredients
When it comes to sustainable skincare products, this is the one you’ve likely thought about the most. In the UK, ‘natural’, along with ‘cruelty-free’, is the most researched term when it comes to finding beauty products. Natural skincare products, unlike some synthetic ingredients, are biodegradable and don’t harm the environment after use. They may even be better for your skin too!
- Turn off the tap
When you’re all caught up in deciphering green-washing claims, dissecting labels, and questioning a brand’s policies it’s easy to forget the basics and your own actions. A simple habit such as switching the tap off as you apply products can cut down your water waste.
- Use every drop
We’ve all been there. Excited to try out our new natural, vegan, and sustainable skincare routine, so that we forget all the old stuff in our cupboards. By the time we remember the products we didn’t finish, they’ve expired, or we’ve become so hooked to our new routine we don’t want them anymore.
The harsh truth is waste is waste. It doesn’t matter whether you throw a product away to make a more sustainable switch, it still ends up in a landfill before it needs to. Make sure to use every last drop of your products before you use something new (they’ll be waiting for you when you’re done, don’t worry!).
- Cut back on plastic-packaging
You may have heard the scary warning from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation that, if our current habits continue, by 2050 there’ll be more plastic in the ocean than fish. Since the beauty industry contributes 120 billion units of packaging every year, most of it non-recyclable, your skincare routine is a good place to help change the trends.
If you’re unsure where to start, in this post we uncover skincare’s big plastic problem, some advice on what you can do, and how we’ve massively reduced the plastic in our packaging.
- Recycle glass jars
Now you’ve cut down on plastic packaging, you probably have products packaged in glass jars instead – just remember to recycle them correctly!
Many people don’t realise that glass can only be recycled when it’s clear, amber, or green. Yep, our green jars aren’t just pretty, they’re practical too. The glass, originally manufactured in green, also protects the delicate natural ingredients in our products from sunlight and heat so they’ll stay fresh till the very last drop. Our glass pipette vials can also be recycled.
- Add a recycling bin to your bathroom
Talking about recycling, research has found that over 56% of Brits don’t recycle their bathroom products because it’s inconvenient, and we guess it’s similar elsewhere too. The solution? Make it convenient!
Add a recycling bin to your bathroom so it’s super simple to dispose of your skincare waste in the most sustainable way.
- Ditch the face wipes
Ahh, face wipes. The quick-fix product experts love to hate. Though admittedly they’re convenient, they’re one of the worst skincare items for the planet (and your skin!). 11 billion are thrown away every year and they can take up to 100 years to biodegrade.
Instead, swap your single-use wipes for reusable cotton pads or microfibre cloths.
- Keep it simple
The quickest and easiest way to make your skincare routine more sustainable is to keep it simple and buy less. Focus only on good quality products from transparent brands you can trust.
To help you out, we made sure all our products fit into a routine that’s suitable for every skin type, age, and gender. We’d love for you to try it out as you make the switch to a more sustainable skincare routine!
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