Is it possible to do Zero Waste Make-Up?

The UN Environment estimates we produce waste plastic almost equivalent to the weight of the ENTIRE human population. That’s a staggering 300 million tonnes a year. Unsurprisingly, the beauty industry is responsible for a huge portion of that disgusting pile. Isn’t it ironic that an industry we created to make us more beautiful has made our home so ugly? I wonder, how the hell did we get to this critical tipping point so damn fast!

As the beauty industry began to boom in the fifties, cosmetic companies realized the convenience and low cost of plastic packaging would make it available to a mass market. Just seventy years later that market has become a 500 billion dollar industry and we can literally see its plastic waste pile in our oceans and landfill.

Equally damaging, albeit less obvious is the runoff from the contents of these products that wash down plug holes daily across the planet. Ingredients of lotions and potions, creams and powders causing insurmountable harm to Earth’s eco-systems. Thankfully the cosmetic industry along with government regulation moved quickly to ban microbeads in beauty products. Some countries have also banned Oxybenzone the coral killing substance used in certain sunscreens. However, there is still a lot of work to do on the huge amount of harmful ingredients still in popular products today.

Let’s not forget the highly polluting glitter and shimmer make-up we adore coming into party season. In case you dont know, the shimmer effect is created from a naturally occuring substanced called mica. Although mica itself isn’t harmful to us or the environment, the way in which its aggressively mined certainly is. Worse still, it is estimated that a whopping 25% of mica comes from illegal mining. It’s difficult to overstate the number of children working in mica mines under horrendous conditions, many as slave labour. I doubt any of us would wear make-up containing mica if we saw how it was mined fortunately there is now an organization called Responsible Mica Initiative  where brands can source ethical mica. I will further check with any brand that doesn’t state on its website that the mica is ethically sourced. Although the crazy thing is, there’s a perfectly safe synthetic mica alternative that could easily replace all of it!

Moving forward I’ll only buy from brands that DO NOT use toxic ingredients or unethically mined mica. Finding organic make-up has never been easier but what about single-use plastic packaging and containers?

Take a look in your bathroom cabinet, your make-up bag and your dressing table. How many items are contained in plastic, sold wrapped in plastic and were sealed with plastic? How many even came with little plastic applicators? Wahhh!

As I begin to eliminate single-use plastic from my kitchen and move into the bathroom onto personal hygiene other areas of my routine jump into focus. Items such as toothpaste tubes, shampoo and conditioner bottles, liquid hand soap are all obvious offenders and rather easy to substitute. Moving on to my make-up kit, however, I’m suddenly quite concerned. Oh no my mascara! My make-up kit is absolutely chock full of little plastic containers, tubes and bottles. Unfortunately, these are items that really can’t be sold solid or package free. It wasn’t until I remembered the history of modern make-up that I realized how simple the solution could be.

I give credit to Coco Chanel for bringing make-up to the female masses in the 1920s. Her pigment-rich red lipstick, 99 Pirate, was coveted by women everywhere, no small thing when you consider there was no internet. Although Maybelline invented the first mascara five years earlier it wasn’t yet globally popular. Also sometime during the 1920s, Max Factor came up with the word make-up and introduced it to the general public through the glamour of moving pictures. By the 1930s Max Factor began marketing his pancake base that arguably catapulted the make-up industry to the stratospheric popularity we know today. As “normal” women began copying the make-up looks of Hollywood movie stars, the make-up industry flourished. Is there any woman out there who has never ever worn a scrap of make-up?

Of course, plastic containers weren’t invented yet so make-up sold in tins and glass jars which makes perfect sense to me now. In fact, I carried cake mascara in my professional make-up kit as it was more hygienic to use on multiple people and easily cleaned. I wonder does cake mascara still exists fifteen years later and if not why? Substituting plastic with glass and tin is the simple answer to our packaging dilemma for make-up and what’s more we know it works because we already did it!

I entered a simple search of cake mascara on the world wide web and ta-dah there it was! Funnily enough, this particular search must have jolted the SEO algorithm because I was inundated with zero-waste beauty results which is how I found dozens of fabulous sustainable make-up brands.

BASE, CONCEALER AND POWDER

The re-fillable compact and eyeshadow palette has been around since the beginning but for some unfathomable reason, which no doubt comes down to profit, it has almost completely disappeared. Let’s at least go back to buying refills from brands like M.A.C, that still offer this plastic saving option. Unfortunately when it comes to our liquid products it’s not quite as simple so here are four brilliant brands with an alternative to plastic packaging.

1. PERRICONE MD

As you may already know I’m a big fan of Perricone MD in general, not the least of which is this incredible base. The No Make-up make-up base thankfully comes in a glass bottle with a glass and rubber pipette so I can happily continue using it. Feather-light like a BB cream but with the full coverage of a foundation this make-up doubles as skincare. A serum containing daisy flower extract that helps reduce pigmentation. I love the wide range of colours and that it’s cruelty-free and 100% Vegan. Unfortunately, it loses a point for the plastic cap but it does come in a cardboard box. You can read more about Perricone MD in my post here.

2. RMS BEAUTY

Another “skincare with colour” make-up brand RMS was created by a Make-up Artist ten years ago. Rose Marie Swift formulated her eponymous make-up using raw, food-grade organic ingredients in their natural state. This is a company that not only cares passionately about natural ingredients but also protecting the environment they come from. RMS packaging is minimal, reusable or recyclable. Un Cover-Up, the concealer pictured above comes in a glass pot, gets rave reviews and I cannot wait to try it! Obviously, I have to wait until mine is finished but that won’t be much longer so I’ll let you know what it’s like soon.

3. KJAER WEIS

With an easy online refill system, KJAER WEIS is setting the standard high for other luxe brands. Danish Make-up Artist Kirsten Kjaer Weis created a luxury organic and sustainable product in beautifully designed packaging. As you would expect, this finely milled plant-based powder is certified organic, cruelty-free and Vegan. I love the look of this practical brush pouch too.

EYESHADOW, EYELINER AND MASCARA

Here we arrive at the dilemma of mascara. What I initially thought would be difficult to replace has actually opened my eyes to more possibilities (see what I did there?)

Mascara and eyeliner in cake form is a terrific way to do zero waste although it must come in a tin so you can recycle it at the end of its life. Better still a refillable tin that just keeps on giving, however, cake mascara isn’t right for everyone. Fortunately, there are also other clever options where the tube is made from a sustainable material that can be recycled such as bamboo. Moreover, now that smart brands are using newly formulated plant-based materials in their logistics chain, it’s proving stable enough for packaging the products themselves.

Enter clever and cute Mad Hippie, that uses sugar cane bio-resin tubes to contain its mascara. Although unfortunately this one is currently sold out. Never fear there is definitely more plant-based packaging on the horizon so it won’t be long before we begin to see popular brands using this future-proof material. Companies that care about the environment are keen to create compostible packaging the likes of which are already in use by some up to date fashion houses. Maggie Marilyn, Kitx and Spell are just a few that already successfully use compostible delivery bags.

Anyway, apologies I’m slightly off-topic. I just love all the new plant-based man-made materials emerging at the moment. There’s nothing more exciting to me than witnessing genius innovation in such a critical time for the human race. Honestly I could talk about this stuff for hours heeheehee…

1. ANTONYM

Beautiful pigment-rich shadows made with natural and certified organic ingredients. This eyeshadow palette contains mica that is ethically sourced and the packaging is sustainable bamboo. With such high-quality ingredients and packaging, Antonym is surprisingly affordable. This four colour palette is a very reasonable $39.

2. CLEAN-FACED COSMETICS

As you probably already know Etsy is a treasure trove of talented artists in small businesses. It won’t surprise you to learn that natural, organic and Vegan make-up is big on Etsy which is where I found Clean-Faced Cosmetics. This boutique brand has a lovely collection of zero waste products at an incredibly low price point. Let me tell you, there isn’t another black cake mascara in the world for $12 and remember, it doubles as an eyeliner!

3. KJAER WEIS

Another great zero waste option from Kjaer Weis. This time in the form of a refillable mascara where the inner tube is recyclable. I have been using this one since my last mascara ran out and I can confirm that it is indeed lash lengthening. See the below image for details of how the replacement inner works.

4. ELATE

Another mascara with a recyclable plastic inner tube although this one isn’t refillable. However, the outer casing is made from compostible bamboo as is the entire product range. Elate is also Vegan and 100% cruelty-free. Importantly, Elate promotes the use of refills for its pretty paletted products. What’s more, they come wrapped minimally in a seeded paper envelope that you can plant to grow beautiful wildflowers. Isn’t that just the most wonderful thing?

LIPSTICK, LIP BALM AND CHEEK STAIN

1. BEAUTY AND THE BEES

I discovered Beauty and the Bees when I switched to solid shampoo and conditioner. This is the conditioner brand my daughters and I now use and we absolutely love it. Consequently, there’s absolutely no doubt in my mind that the lipstick is everything it claims to be. Unsurprisingly, Beauty and the Bees is 100% plastic free and cruelty-free. So to the zero waste credentials of the lipstick –  refillable metal container that works like any ordinary lipstick., perfect! Sadly with only two colours to choose from the range is rather minimal which is a downside. Hopefully they’ll add more shades at some point.

2. AXIOLOGY

Axiology had me at its war cry “100% Evil-Free Lipstick” For now at least, this brand only sells lipstick and crayons. Founder, Ericka Rodriguez couldn’t find the lipstick she wanted so she created it herself. Axiology is lipstick that delivers on quality, is cruelty-free, organic and Vegan and contains only ten ingredients. Without doubt, this is the cleanest make-up on the planet. In terms of zero waste the cardboard box is compostible and the metal tube is recyclable. I’d love to see this brand make a refillable option too although as yet it doesn’t. I have a couple of the crayons and they’re the creamiest I’ve ever worn. The cute crayons are truly minimal packaging but be warned, they do appear small. This is in fact the normal size sans casing, which gives the impression of more product.

3. MAD HIPPY

Glass pots with bamboo lids, what’s not to love about this lip and cheek stain? I mentioned Mad Hippy earlier for its innovative use of plant-based packaging of mascara which is sadly sold out. Luckily there are other terrific products that fit our purposes here such as this gorgeous and versatile stain. Mad Hippy’s dedication to sustainability goes further still by offering its customers a tailored recycling program specifically for the tricky components we usually toss in the trash. Items include pumps, plastic seals, sprayers and caps.

I hope you find this helpful and please have a good look through the other products that these brands offer. They really do a great range of make-up but more than that, it’s important to support brands that are actively changing the way we do things in order to protect Earth.

*Disclosure – Both dresses are borrowed from Armoire Style rental site