4 Zero Waste Makeup Brands You Need to Try
By: Ariana Palmieri from Greenify-Me.com
Zero waste makeup can be tricky: You want to buy good quality makeup that’s going to work without contributing to a wasteful lifestyle. Trouble is, most makeup comes in plastic containers or excessive packaging. Not to mention a lot of conventional beauty brands are far from all-natural:
There are loads of toxins and chemicals you can’t even pronounce in most products.
A simple way to overcome this is to DIY your own all-natural makeup. But if you’re not comfortable crafting your own, don’t fret. There are makeup brands out there that have fantastic ethics (not just in terms of making all-natural makeup, but at limiting their waste creation as much as possible).
Here are 4 zero waste makeup brands you need to try ASAP.
Plant Makeup
One of my personal favorites, Plant Makeup is literally what it sounds like: Makeup made out of plants. The ingredients are beyond simple in each product (and listed candidly on the website).
They’re also locally sourced (or organic), gmo-free, and sustainably sourced. All batches are made small, and each product is cruelty-free, handmade, and 100 percent natural. But the really impressive part is the packaging:
All packaging can be reused or composted.
Most of her makeup is packaged in glass jars, tins or compostable tubes. In other words, they try their very best to always use earth friendly products for their products. Also, all packages are wrapped in eco-friendly materials.
Also, any artwork you see on the packaging is made by the founder, Jes, herself. Jes also created a vegan guide, for those who want to shop only vegan-friendly products (though the only non-vegan ingredients she uses from time to time is honey and beeswax, so nothing harmful).
Perhaps the most impressive part about Jes’ Plant Makeup line is how dedicated she is to minimize her carbon footprint. When she cannot upcycle any more materials into packages, she purchases from a company called Eco Enclose, an eco-friendly packaging company. Also, all the orders she ships are without invoices (this reduces the amount of paper used). But here’s the best part:
All packages are also biked to the post office!
How cool is that? If it sounds too good to be true, there’s more: They don’t just make makeup. Plant makeup also makes bath, body, hair, and fragrance items. That means they make everything from facial steams to incense. Sweet!
Kjaer Weis
Kjaer Weis is super amazing: Not only does it offer stunning organic makeup, but it’s all refillable! Yup, you heard that right:
Everything from the mascara to the blush can be refilled.
The cases the makeup comes in is absolutely stunning to begin with: They’re made out of white bronze. When you run out of the makeup in your pretty white bronze case, all you need to do is order it’s refill.
And guess what? The refill comes in 100 percent recyclable cardstock. Innovative much? You can thank Marc Atlan, an award-winning creative director: These cases were designed in collaboration with him.
Worried your case will break?
Don’t be: The hard-wearing metal means you won’t ever need to replace them. Score! Also, as mentioned previously, all their makeup is crafted with organic formulas: Their products contain a minimum of 70 percent (or more) organically grown ingredients in them. Want to know what the other percentage is made up with? All-natural minerals (like mica).
Zao Organic Makeup
So, glass packaging is great and all, but it’s pretty fragile. Not great for clumsy people who drop their makeup on the floor religiously (and accidently). That’s where Zao Organic Makeup comes in:
Their makeup is packaged in bamboo!
For those who don’t know, bamboo is super sustainable (it grows back super quick after being cut), so it makes total sense to use it as product packaging. Believe it or not, Zao Organic Makeup doesn’t just use bamboo in their packaging either:
They use it in their formulas too.
That’s because bamboo actually provides a naturally silky texture to things (hey, who knew?) and it’s totally safe to use. Made with only natural ingredients, you really can’t go wrong with this brand. They have everything from foundations, to primers, to eyeshadows, to lipsticks.
A lot of the ingredients are organic too!
It’s eco-friendly makeup heaven. And to make things even better, they also offer refills (just like Kjaer Weis). That means if you want to try a new eyeshadow shade (or simply re-buy a shade you’re obsessed with), you just have to purchase a refill (and not a new container). Certainly saves a buck (and space)!
Vapour Organic Beauty
Another personal favorite of mine, Vapour Organic Beauty is goals. Why? Because their ethics are one point. They only craft makeup using 70 percent organic skincare and 30 percent mineral pigment/essential oils (meaning it’s always 100 percent natural). Not to mention their packaging is very low waste: Their stick applicators are aluminum, the most recyclable material available, and their product boxes are made from post-consumer recycled paper printed with soy ink.
So inspirational!
Oh, not to mention they evaluate all their makeup in their very own USDA approved organic lab. Here, product quality, purity, and integrity standards are meticulously protected.
Their products are always free from toxic chemicals, parabens, nano-particles, and phthalates. Also, none of their raw ingredients have been irradiated or animal-tested.
They even have some products that have earned the USDA organic seal (such as their Lux, Clarity, and Replenish products). Vapour has also earned “Champion” safety status from Environmental Working Group and Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. Even better, Vapour uses passive solar and wind power in their lab, offices, and warehouse.
Amazing!
So you tell me, what’s not to love? Not only are there zero waste makeup options to choose from, but they’re all natural, beautiful pigments to choose from. I don’t know about you, but that’s enough to make me happy. Just make sure you look for their stick applicators when purchasing their products (there’s lot of them, I assure you) because these are the ones made from recycled aluminum.
