In addition to making and using zero waste beauty products, another fantastic way to create less waste is to use fewer beauty products!
Embracing multi-purpose products and knowing a few beauty hacks can help reduce the number of products you need to make or buy, and therefore the amount of waste you create.
Many of us have been guilty of products gathering dust on bathroom shelves or products not being used up before their expiration date. When you have separate products for every part of your body and products targeted for very specific functions then you are very likely to end up wasting some of them.
In developing our Diploma in Zero Waste Haircare and Skincare Formulation we formulated some gorgeous zero waste products that can easily double up for multiple purposes.
Here are some ideas to get you started.
Multi-purpose zero waste beauty products
Some of these products have been formulated to have a dual purpose, eg exfoliating and moisturizing, and others typically have one purpose but can easily double up as something else too, eg using a shampoo bar as a body wash bar.
Solid shampoo bars as body wash bars and shaving bars
Solid shampoo bars are not soap bars. They are made of cleansing surfactants, conditioning emulsifiers and nourishing emollients such as oils and butters. They are gentle cleansers with a hair and skin-friendly pH.
Solid shampoo bars can therefore easily be used as body wash bars too and are also useful if you shave your legs, as they create just the right amount of foam without drying on the skin.
Solid shampoo bars as 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner bars
Shampoo bars can be easily formulated to contain conditioning ingredients too (cationic ingredients, oils, butters and other specialist conditioning ingredients) meaning if you only need a light conditioner for your hair then a shampoo bar can be formulated and used as a 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner.
Solid facial wash bars as body wash bars
Solid facial wash bars are another surfactant-based bar. They used gentle surfactants and emollients to create a foaming bar that cleanses without drying. Facial wash bars could easily double up as body wash bars, too.
Hair conditioner bars as in-shower moisturizers or shaving bars
Hair conditioner bars are made from nourishing oils and butters, and conditioning emulsifiers.
They can double up as shaving bars for those of us who shave our legs as they provide slip and glide for the razor and leave the skin smooth. They can also be used as in-shower moisturizers!
Solid cleansers and makeup removers
Oil-based cleansing bars also work a treat at removing makeup. The oils in the bar melt away makeup, sunscreen and other oil soluble impurities from the skin.
Exfoliating and moisturizing bars
Solid scrub bars contain nourishing emollients in addition to exfoliating particles meaning your skin is exfoliated and moisturized in one step!
Solid scrub bars can be formulated for the body or the face by choosing the type and amount of exfoliant carefully.
Hand/body wash powder
Powder concentrates are mixed with water at home by the consumer to become liquid products!
Our concentrated hand/body wash powder is suitable to use as a liquid hand wash or a body wash meaning you don’t need two separate products.
Cold process soap bars
Cold process soap bars are a really useful product to have at home as they are perfect for washing the hands and body.
They are a great addition to a zero waste lifestyle as they last a really long time and are economical to make.
Clay-based exfoliating cleansing bar and face mask
Clay-based bars have a solid, pliable, dough-like texture. When mixed with water a soft paste is created which is then applied to the skin, massaged and rinsed off.
To use a face mask, leave the paste on the skin for ten minutes before rinsing off.
To make a 3-in-1 cleanser, mask and exfoliator, add some exfoliating particles to the bar.
Make your own zero waste beauty products
We are so passionate about zero waste beauty products that we have created an entire course dedicated to showing you how to make your own zero waste beauty products, either for yourself or to establish a zero waste beauty brand.
Our brand new online Diploma in Zero Waste Skincare and Haircare Formulation teaches you to formulate a wide range of zero waste beauty products, including solid facial cleansers and exfoliators, solid moisturizers and serums, solid deodorant, solid shower products, and solid shampoo and conditioner.
You’ll also formulate powder concentrates, and learn about ingredient innovations that are helping to reduce waste – upcycled ingredients and biofermentation.
