7 Ways to Make Your Skin Care Routine More Sustainable

A major part of our daily lives is our skincare routine. Here are a few simple ways to make your sustainable beauty routine kinder to the planet.

1. Pay attention to the ingredients

Being conscious about the natural skincare products we use will contribute to a greener and safer environment for you and future generations. Skin care ingredients can have an impact on the environment.

Botanical ingredients in Pure Fiji's plant-based products use a blend of wild-harvested nut oils, which means we select the nuts from trees that grow in their natural habitat. This reduces our requirement for energy, dependent irrigation, and fertilization methods thus limiting our carbon impact.

Seed oils are cold-pressed, coconut oil is used to power cars and generators in rural communities, and a tree-planting program is in place.

2. Don't waste water

When washing your face, turn off the water tap when you're touching your face. It's a no-brainer thing to do but it makes a big difference to water wastage.

3. Shop from brands that give back to planet earth

When buying natural skincare products, try and shop from brands that give back to the planet.

At Pure Fiji, we are acutely aware of our carbon footprint and the need to utilize Fiji's environmental resources appropriately and sustainably. We make every effort to minimize and where appropriate, enhance Fiji's unique ecosystem. Pure Fiji continues to research and implement programs that reflect good conservation measures while reducing and helping negate our carbon footprint.

At the Pure Fiji complex in Suva, gardens and buildings alike have been designed to maximize insulation and reduce the factory's dependence on air conditioning.

By-products from the processing of our raw ingredients are recycled as fertilizer and mulch for factory gardens - and a massive vegetable plot supplies factory staff with a constant stream of organic produce.

4. Choose cleansing balm over face wipes

With our busy schedules, those face wipes can seem like the perfect go-to makeup remover. But what you may not realize is that they are just not horrible for your skin but they're certainly not doing the environment any good. Lots of makeup wipes strip the skin of its natural oils and imbalance the skin's PH levels because most contain alcohol, worse they also take up to 100 years to break down in landfills.

Instead of using face wipes, switch to a cleansing balm. This will remove all traces of makeup whilst nourishing your skin, and once you're done you can simply wash your flannel.

5. Recycle or re-use your product containers

Before you recycle anything make sure it's empty. Cut into tubes to remove the excess product or use a spatula to scoop out remaining creams and gels. Don't forget to thoroughly rinse the container before you toss it as any remnants will contaminate other recyclables. Flip-top lids, trigger heads, or pumps also need to be removed.

6. Use reusable cotton pads and brushes

Reusable products are a well-known way to make your lifestyle eco-friendlier. From glass straws to stainless steel water bottles, avoiding single-use or disposable products significantly cuts back on waste.

You can also reuse and wash your makeup brushes instead of using disposable sponges and applicators. Reusable cotton pads are an eco-friendlier swap for single-use cotton balls. Your beauty routine won't notice the difference, but the planet certainly will.

7. Choose metal razors vs disposables

Every year, billions of disposable razors end up in a landfill. Sure, the blades can be recycled but not the plastic handle. Instead, the blade alone is replaceable and doesn't require you to throw the whole head away. A metal safety razor is a much more sustainable choice that serves the same purpose.

Summary

Making your skincare routine truly "zero-waste" can be challenging so don't feel pressured by the unattainable goal of perfection. Take baby steps if you need to. When you've finished your natural skin product, do your best to recycle it. It's easy to make small tweaks to your skin, hair, and makeup habits in the name of sustainability.