4 tips for a more sustainable beauty travel routine
By Green Salon Collective | 07 October 2022 | Expert Advice, Feature, Sustainability & the environment
Green Salon Collective (GSC) was founded in 2020 by environmental experts, campaigners and beauty professionals, with an aim to help member salons in the UK and Ireland to responsibly dispose of their waste. For this blog, guest writer, Jackie Edwards – who formally worked in environmental health, details how to make your beauty travel habits more green.
Travelling light is always a priority. But often this leads to purchasing duplicate products in travel size. While convenient, this drastically increases the amount of waste you generate. As consumers, we should take advantage of products that have sustainability in mind and change our travel habits for the better. Here’s how.
Readjust old habits
If you’ve not travelled in some time, you may have forgotten the habits you picked up while travelling. Have you ever bought a travel-sized product, used it for your trip and then forgotten about it when you came home? Only to find it a year after its expiration date, leaving you with no choice but to bin it? Don’t worry; everyone has done it. There’s no shame in it, but you can learn from your mistakes and break bad habits.
Make use of what’s available
My number one sustainability tip is to use what you already have. It’s easy to get excited by a zero-waste lifestyle and jump to buying a whole new routine. But this can cause you to forget about your unused products and not use them in their entirety. If you are using a product at home that is housed in large plastic packaging unfit for travelling, you can always decant it into a smaller container. It would be best to buy travel containers that don’t utilise plastic, such as small glass jars.
Utilise a wide range of options
Zero-waste or eco-friendly packaging has become an extremely popular option in the beauty community. There are many brands offering zero-waste options in a variety of travel size containers. There really is no excuse anymore! Another option to consider and that’s proven to be a popular choice for travel is multi-purpose products. The fewer items you have to pack, the less space you need. You’ll find body wash that doubles up as shampoo, two-in-one shampoo and conditioner, sunscreen with a tint that doubles as a light foundation and a myriad of other beauty products that have dual or more purposes.
Waste-free is the way to go
Have you ever heard the saying “you’re paying for the packaging” and felt immensely frustrated? Well, it’s true. Companies tend to spend 10-40% of a product’s retail price on packaging. If you’re travelling, you don’t need fancy packaging and you certainly don’t need anything that comes with extra waste. So, why not go down the cost-effective route and save the environment while you’re at it?