Pastor SJ

I used to be afraid of oil in facial and hair products because of my greasy skin type. Now I know how that oil is a great way to keep my skin well nourished. 

I use this organic badger hair oil most days on my ends. For wash days I douse most of my head with it before slicking my hair back into a braid. It’s definitely luscious without being overly creamy.

I also love the smell of it.

I admit, I am not loyal to any particular brand. I try to source either organic or plants that are grown in their native habitats. Thrive Market usually has about 20 basic oils and blends which I’ll get there organic. 

Before Thrive Market had the defense blend, I bought this immune boosting blend from Plant Therapy. 

I know some people are hesitant to buy supplements from Amazon because they don’t do a good job of temperature control in their warehouses. I don’t buy probiotics but I’ve not had an issue with essential oils going rancid. Let me know if you’ve had this happen to you though. 

While I do cook with coconut oil, especially with Asian dishes, coconut oil in glass is my favorite thing to use as a makeup remover. 

It also worked well when one of my little people got a bad rash around their lips after eating some food we suspect they are sensitive to.

The important thing you need to know is coconut oil as you should not put it down the drain. I’ve heard horror stories of people who use it for stuff like oil pulling, and they clogged their bathroom pipes because they spat it down the drain instead of in the trash can. 

Beard Oil 

I try to only give gifts that I think people will either find useful or delightful. But it delights me when I can buy someone a gift that also fits my values.

A few years ago I got most of the men in my life this organic beard oil, and they gave good feedback on it.

Vinegar For Cleaning 

Instead of buying vinegar jugs in plastic, we purchase this less diluted vinegar in glass.  

Not only do I not want to be paying for water, but I also don’t want to support brands that dilute products with water because that means unnecessary petroleum products being used in the gas for transportation.

Apple Cider Vinegar for Hair

I like to use organic apple cider vinegar on my roots before I use conditioner. (I’ve also used it as a deodorant in a pinch.) 

Here’s what I put the vinegar in for cleaning and to spray on my roots. 

Glass Spray Bottles

I got these glass spray bottles in amber color because I like to add essential oils to my cleaning products.

The top sprayers do have plastic parts. Let me know if you have an alternative to spray a product out that doesn’t use plastic.

I’ve tried flipping a product over onto a cleaning towel for a moment and then tipping up right side up and trying to use that to spread it out without a sprayer. But I end up wasting a lot of product this way whereas the spring feature is more efficient.

I also got them in a smaller size in blue glass. It’s also tinted to protect the products inside.

The next product has both glass and silicone. 

Scale 

I initially looked for a glass scale to reduce plastic but I was worried about a glass top with kids so I was thrilled to find this glass scale with a silicone cover. 

I also appreciate that it’s just plain gray and the numbers only pop up when you step on the scale. I’m all for visual simplicity these days.

Menstrual Cups 

Instead of plastic free tampons, I think menstrual cups are the better solution. Because they are reusable, there is less waste overall.

I’m so glad a good girlfriend introduced me to silicone menstrual cups over a decade ago. You do lose a little of the convenience of having multiple packages stashed wherever you might need them them. 

I like that this silicone hot water bottle is cordless compared to a heating pad. My favorite place to use it is when I’m sitting outside when it’s cold. 

I started with a natural rubber one and it tore in less than a year. (Not to mention that the natural rubber also smelled for months.) It had a fancy pattern branded into the side of it that I suspect made it weaker because I’ve had other natural rubber products that I’ve loved and that lasted. 

After Sun Balm 

I love these 2 oz tins of Badger After Sun Balm. In fact, I love all of Badger’s metal tin products like plastic free lotion, but this is the one I’ve consistently used the most over the last decade. 

They do get a little bit melted if they sit in a bag and direct sunlight. I’ve always kept them upright so I haven’t had it leak. The seal between metal is not as good as plastic.

Nail Clippers

And at times, reducing our plastic use is as simple as finding a product that just doesn’t need any plastic because some brands unnecessarily add it. 

I have unusually thick nails so I’ve cracked a few pairs of finger nail clippers over the years. I recently bought these all stainless steel nail clippers to replace what I broke. 

Metal Comb And Brush 

I try to use up plastic products until they’re no longer usable if I already bought them.

When my plastic comb had lost enough teeth, I was planning to buy this metal comb.

I actually got a medal comb included with a grooming set for our poodle. 

Plastic Free Razor 

Even though I was excited to find a razor that didn’t have any plastic, this plastic free razor is a dud for me. I want to use it but I always cut myself.

Let me know if you have any tips on how to make this work. 

I tried these stainless steel replacement blades for a few years. Maybe I’m impatient… if I go slow I don’t cut myself as much. 

They are individually wrapped in paper. Let’s look at what else you can buy that comes in paper instead of plastic.

Bar Soap

I love the Dr Bronner’s castile bar soap in rose. It’s my favorite plastic free body wash. 

Rose tends to be a really expensive essential oil so I was surprised the price isn’t higher compared to other scents. 

But at the time I’m writing this, it’s cheaper on Thrive Market. 

I’ve seen some folks who will use a microplane or shredder to dissolve the soap bars to avoid plastic completely. With my chronic pain, that’s not doable in this season for me.

So I also buy the liquid form of castile soap of it even though it comes in plastic. However, I always dilute it at least 10x. 

Actually, I haven’t had to buy the liquid soap for a couple of years now because it tends to be a freebie on Thrive Market often enough. 

I recently saw that they have started using cardboard cartons of soap that use way less plastic. Depending on what you’ll use it for, you can pick between the carton or the gallon container.  

I put the liquid Dr Bronner’s rose castile soap into mason jars with these mostly metal lids. And I put about a tablespoon per pint to get our desired foaming texture. 

When these break, we will probably move back to using bar soap to wash our hands to save on the plastic.

Here’s what else we’ve tried in bar form to reduce plastic use.

Shampoo Bars

As much as I want to use plastic free hair products, I’ve tried multiple brands of shampoo bars, and I have not found one that gets my hair clean. 

This one was the best shampoo bar soap for my oiler hair type. I do wonder if I washed my hair every day if it would be good enough. 

And because I’ve been asked multiple times, this is the conditioner I use right now. It has a 4 rating on the EWG working group. (I usually strive to only use products that are at a level 1 or 2 that are the least toxic but I’ll make exceptions if I can’t find something that works well.) 

Both of these hair products are cheaper on Thrive Market.

Instead of toothpaste, which comes in plastic tubes you can’t recycle, I’ve used tooth powder for a few years now. Admittedly, I love the kids’ fruity bubblegum flavor. I’ve never been a big fan of spearmint. 

A dash of it is enough to clean your mouth, way less compared to a pea sized squirt of toothpaste. 

It comes in a hard plastic container that can recycle. If you like it, I’d highly recommend getting the 4 oz family refill that comes in a brown paper bag.

Annmarie Plastic Free Lip Balm 

I was delighted when one of my environmentally conscious friends gave this Annmarie plastic free lip balm to me as a gift.

I’ve always kept this one upright.

I am hesitant to put it in a place where it could go sideways, such as a coat pocket for fear that it might melt and leak without a plastic seal though. 

Best Plastic Free Deodorant 

I’m pretty sensitive to corn so this non toxic deodorant not only comes in cardboard but is also corn starch free. I’d say it’s the best plastic free deodorant. 

I do end up just throwing out the inmost layer because it gets stained with oils, but I know that will break down a lot faster than plastic.

Fabric Bandages 

Remember that Band Aid is a brand just like Kleenex is a brand of tissue. I am pretty stingy about not having bandages unless someone is bleeding it won’t stop.

This is because I suspect there aren’t any truly non toxic adhesives that don’t have petroleum based products.

These are the larger bandage pads we use. 

Neither of these are waterproof. There are a few times where we’ve had big gashes, we’ve used bandages with more plastic. 

Also, a wonderful tip I learned is that if you get a bandage stuck on someone’s skin, cover it with coconut oil to disable the adhesive.

Plastic Free Q Tips 

It never occurred to me that Q tips contained plastic until I heard a nature documentary with Zac Efron mentioning plastic Q tips polluting the ocean. Since then I have bought these plastic free Q tips and they work great.  Previously, I had been using Q tips made with organic cotton but the bars were still made with plastic. 

It is cheaper to subscribe to them on Amazon than to buy them on Thrive Market. 

Cotton Pads 

Initially, I had tried cutting up old holey T shirts and using them to wipe makeup off with coconut oil. However, I realized the oil was leaving grease stains on other clothes and it didn’t feel worth it to waste the water to do a load all by itself. Now I simply peel my 100% organic cotton rounds in half to try and get as much use of them as possible. 

Plastic Free Shower Curtain

I’ve had this bamboo shower curtain since 2016! For a while I kept a more decorative outside layer. But now I’m content with the plain tan. (Anyone else craving visual simplicity?)

It’s made out of cotton and hemp. It dries super fast.

My hope is that when the fabric does eventually wear out, we can recycle what’s left.

Dry Brush Wood Set

I used to get these in plastic from the dollar store. But one that I got smelled bad. That’s when I looked into wood. 

I love getting this set with multiple types of brushes. I typically use one brush for 3 to 6 months until it starts to smell bad or get gunked up. The face brush is my favorite.

Soap Dish 

After we had been using bars of soap in the bathroom that came in paper packaging to reduce plastic, we got annoyed with the soap scum buildup on our counters and in the shower.

We decided to get this wooden soap dish to reduce build up on the fiber glass. 

Tooth Floss And Picks

I tried other brands of compostable tooth picks but they all would end up having the strings shred between my teeth

I concede that this brand of tooth picks has string is made of nylon but the rest of the product is made from cornstarch that is biodegradable. For me, it’s more important to get the gunk out from between my teeth successfully than it is to completely avoid plastic. 

I grew up with plastic mesh loofahs that came from the dollar store. 

When I was in high school, my mom started growing loofahs herself. I had no idea that the mesh version was based off of a plant. It’s the interior fibers of a gourd after being dried. 

Now I try to buy them locally at the farmer’s market. If you don’t have them locally, look for organic without any additives like dyes.