Toiletries With Less Packaging 28 Nov 07
Back in our little six month review of ‘going green’, I stated that I’d like to switch to toiletries which come in returnable or refillable bottles/containers and avoid aerosols as much as possible. That was in July, but I’m glad to say that, this month, I’ve finally got round to doing something about it.
Having looked around the Internet (you can tell I’m a bloke) at the various, more eco-friendly, options available (and starred in horror at some of the prices), I finally settled on trying some of the products from Lush mainly because they use very little packaging, which is even better than using returnable or refillable bottles. Plus there’s a Lush store just 10 minutes walk from my office.
[A mention must be made here of the Body Shop who, I am almost certain, used to offer a bottle refilling service, but no longer appear do so. Maybe its because the Body Shop is now owned (indirectly) by Nestlé...]
Anyway, off to the Lush store I ventured, only to find it absolutely bunged [very full] and not having the slightest idea how the whole ‘slicing smaller bits off the larger blocks’ thing worked, I did the manly thing and walked out again. Not a great start.
Sarah came to my rescue a couple of days later, picking up a shampoo bar and solid deodorant on one of her trips through town. Inspired, and just a little shamed, I boldly went back to the store the next day and bought a bar of soap for the shower and some shaving cream (the only item that required a bottle).
Apart from the shaving cream, because my old shaving foam has yet to run out, I’ve now been using these products for about 4 weeks and I’m happy to declare them a success because, quite simply, they work. Granted, they’re a little different from ‘normal’ toiletries, but the biggest obstacle I’ve had to overcome so far is suitable storage of the soap and shampoo bars so that they don’t turn to mush. [Tip: don’t use a soap dish with no drainage holes.] The product I’m most pleased with is the solid deodorant bar, which not only manages to keep me smelling fresh all day without needing a top-up, but also doesn’t sting like my old aerosol deodorant used to when first applied.
I have heard some people question just how natural Lush’s products are, but I’m certainly happy that they’re more natural than what I was using before. The company is very clear on their beliefs regarding ingredients, preservatives & packaging and its an openness that I’d love to see more companies adopt. All in all, I’ve been happy with the switch mostly because I’ve now eliminated some plastic bottles and aerosols from my shopping basket. The fact that the products are more natural and possibly less harmful to me is just an added bonus.
Posted by Nev in Going Green with tags eco-friendly, green, lush, packaging, reduce, toiletries
