1: Waterless Home Cleaning Products

By ”waterless” I mean products that don’t contain water. Instead, you’ll add it yourself at home. Tru Earth and Planet Hope are two Canadian companies that make excellent concentrated, waterless cleaning products. On the more luxurious side, FORGO is a standout eco-conscious company that focuses on foaming hand soaps. I get lots of compliments on their chic frosted glass foaming hand soap bottles. I’m hoping that they expand their line because it’s just that good.

If you do invest in waterless home-cleaning concentrates, you’ll need a spray bottle to dissolve them in. You can just re-use any empty plastic spray bottle (both Tru Earth and Planet Hope encourage their customers to do just that.) But if you want a studier and more attractive option, I’m a fan of the reusable glass spray bottles by CleanCult. Note that I don’t use their cleaning solutions since Tru Earth and Planet Hope use way less packaging. For what it’s worth, I have tried the highly-marketed Blueland brand. I personally wouldn’t recommend them over the other brands that I’ve mentioned here. The only thing Blueland really has going for it are the scents. I don’t find their cleaning solutions, hand soaps, or spray bottles superior; though they are more widely available than some of the other brands.

For laundry, I always recommend powdered detergent. You pay an excessive amount for the water-weight of detergents. (And really, that applies to any other conventional liquid cleaning product too.) It always surprises me that powdered detergent can be hard to find these days when it used to be a staple for many households. If you’re having trouble tracking it down, try specialty shops or online. Personally I like the Canadian brand Soap Works. They also make extremely affordable bar soap. I have a small stash that we use in place of liquid body wash. (Another product that you pay horrific markup for!)

Wanting to go waterless? Here are products to be on the look-out for:

• Concentrated home cleaning products
• Concentrated hand soap
• Powdered laundry detergent
• Solid laundry stain remover
• Solid dish soap
• Powdered or concentrated dishwasher solution
• Regular ol’ bar soap for your hands or body

2: Zero-Waste Face Wash, Shampoo and Conditioner

I’ve sampled many solid face washes and shampoos over the years. From everything I’ve tried, the stand out brand for me, both in quality and product offering, is Ethique. They make face washes, makeup remover, shampoos, conditioners, exfoliants, lotions, and even lip balms in solid form with plastic-free packaging. I also enjoy BottleNone and Unwrapped Life from Canada. Both specialize in solid shampoos and conditioners.

3: BioPlastics

Oh, now this is an especially exciting category for me! BioPlastics are sturdy materials made by combining biological material, like plant leaves or—yes—human hair, with plastic polymers. This results in a plastic that is biodegradable in landfills. (And sometimes even home composts.) I’ve purchased several plant pots in this biological-plastic hybrid material. Recently, I was gifted the Go Green Biodegradable WetBrush, which kinda blew my mind. I was a fan of the original WetBrush but felt guilty buying since I avoid plastics when possible. Choosing BioPlastics over standard plastics is a simple swap that many companies can and should embrace.

BioPlastics are showing up in all sorts of places:

• Hairbrushes
• Product jars
• Home furniture, like chairs or side tables
• Garbage and recycling bins
• Plant pots
• and so much more!

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Chatters Style Conscious Event

Chatters is a Canadian-based hair salon and beauty franchise that offers various vegan and cruelty-free product options. You can also shop by these categories online. While I unfortunately didn’t see much in the way of innovative packaging or less wasteful packaging, what did catch my eye was Chatters’ recycling initiatives. The haircare and beauty industries are notoriously damaging to the environment and especially to the professionals that work in the industry. We need to be aware of the chemicals in our products, how dangerous they may be to inhale or apply, and the amount of waste created in the process.

Plastic packaging, chemical by-products, and excess garbage don’t need to be a part of our beauty or cleaning routines. And I think that the three trends that I outlined above prove that.

What environmentally conscious trends have you noticed that you’d like to support?