Several Areas of Your Life Where You Can Go Plastic-Free

One of our missions here at Zao is to help reduce plastic waste whenever possible this why many of our packages use bamboo. We are happy if our products help you use less plastic in the beauty area of your life. Here is a list of simple ideas for reducing plastic usage in other areas. There is no need to ditch all plastic at once to make a difference. It is good if you can, but every small step counts.

1) Tea
It is lovely to chat over a cuppa with a friend or cosy up at home with a warm mug on a cold evening. But teabags release millions of micro-plastic particles into your drink. They also create more waste after you use them. Fortunately, there are other options. Loose leaf tea is even tastier than the tea from teabags, a healthier and more environmentally-friendly choice. Moreover, if you are using a beautiful teapot to brew the loose leaves instead of just popping the teabag into a cup, the whole experience turns into a calming ritual.

2) Shaving
If you shave, have you considered using safety razors? Not only does it help to reduce plastic waste, but it is ultimately more wallet-friendly too. A stainless-steel safety razor costs £15-20 and will last for years. A package of blades is also quite affordable and lasts for long. There are different designs and colours to suit every taste, which would look good on your bathroom shelf. However, caution is advised, as it is easier to cut yourself accidentally while using a safety razor than the commonly used plastic ones.

3) Household activities
Sadly, plastic is the most popular packaging option for household cleaning products such as wash-up liquid, laundry detergent, and surface cleaner. However, even a plastic bottle can be okay here if you participate in a refill scheme. Some shops across the country already have these schemes running. Shops participating have refill stations inside them, where you can get your empty plastic or glass bottle refilled with the needed product. And you only pay for the actual detergent in this case and not the packaging. It is more of a hustle to refill rather than just buy new, but it could also be more budget-friendly depending on the brand. In addition to it, consider switching to biodegradable sponges such as coconut fibre sponges or loofah sponges.

4) Shower Gel and Shampoo
Like household items, many body and hair-care products come in plastic bottles. As with the household items, you can participate in the refill schemes. Having beautifully designed glass bottles in your bathroom creates a better, more stylish atmosphere if you have the budget. But of course, reusing plastic bottles works too.
If refilling is not an option for you, you could try using solid shampoo bars and a hair conditioner instead. Many local UK-made brands are making them right now. There is a variety of aromas and ingredients to choose from. And there are solid shampoos for your cats and dogs too!

4) Hygiene Products
Disposable hygiene products like nappy pants and the moon cycle products contain a lot of plastic and will take hundreds of years to degrade. Not to mention that some of them contain elements which could contribute to the development of such diseases as endometriosis.

Fortunately, now there are many alternatives.
Firstly, there are biodegradable and organic disposable hygiene products. These solutions do cost a bit more, but they provide convenience while being better for the environment. Secondly, there are reusable hygiene products. Some of these could be more troublesome, as you need to wash and dry them. But with a washing machine, it does not take too much time. However, they are usually not recommended to machine dry, and it takes quite a while to dry naturally. You would also need to boil them for sanitation regularly. Menstrual cups are a good choice here, as they are simple to wash and clean, and you do make a considerable saving in the long-run. 

Hopefully, you found some of these ideas interesting and implementable in your life.