Cosmetic recycling, the instructions for use
Whether it is to preserve natural resources, limit one’s environmental impact, or simply to avoid waste: there are countless good reasons to sort our recyclables.
But while many households have adopted selective sorting in the kitchen for food and household waste, many find themselves lost once in the bathroom.
Can cosmetics and beauty products be recycled, and if so, how? Follow our guide for a more eco-friendly beauty routine!
What do we recycle in the bathroom?
1) Cardboard, paper, steel, and aluminum
We all agree: the best packaging is the one that does not exist! The first step to limit waste production, unsurprisingly, is to avoid overpackaging. But often, boxes are necessary to protect bottles (especially glass ones) during transport and delivery. All these cardboard boxes, as well as the paper instructions they contain, can go straight into the yellow bin.
For aluminum packaging, such as aerosols, head to the yellow bin as well! So we send all our spray products there: hairspray, dry shampoo, or deodorant.
Still in this same bin, we sort all plastic bottles and their caps. So that’s where we put our shower gels, shampoos, hair masks, and body lotions once finished. Be careful, if these have a pump, remember to remove it beforehand and throw it in the household waste bin.
2) Glass packaging
Foundations, serums, day creams: many beauty and wellness products come in beautiful glass bottles. Good news, all these containers can be 100% recycled and given a new use. For a perfect job, remember to remove all lids if they are not glass, as well as plastic pumps or seals: all these accessories go to the household waste bin.
3) Tips to make sorting easier (and life too!)
When doing less means better results, we love it! Three tips to keep in mind for even easier selective sorting:
– No need to wash packaging before recycling, just empty them well. A quick wipe inside your empty cream jar, and you’re done! This way, no water is wasted.
– For plastic bottles: you can leave the cap on! Easier for you, and cleaner in the sorting container at the same time.
– Finally, leaving all packaging loose without nesting them will make their separation easier, and thus their sorting and reuse. No need to overdo it!
Note: These sorting instructions may vary locally! To learn more about your town or a particular product, feel free to consult https://www.consignesdetri.fr/.
Some exceptions: these cosmetics we do not recycle:
Unfortunately, not all cosmetic products can yet be recycled and given a new life, such as:
• Nail polishes
• Makeup (powders and eyeshadows, lipstick, lip balm, gloss…)
• Stick deodorant
• Plastic jars and tubes (for the latter, here is a waste-saving tip: remember to cut off the end before throwing them away to recover all the product!)
Upcycling trend: why recycle when you can reuse?
For products that cannot be recycled, or to give a new life to a finished product, the goal is upcycling! We wholeheartedly adopt this meaningful trend that consists of reusing our products and giving them a new purpose. For example:
– A dry mascara well cleaned = An eyebrow brush for a well-defined look!
– A glass jar with lid = an ideal container for small pins or earrings when traveling!
– An empty nail polish bottle filled with sweet almond oil = a nail and cuticle treatment!
– A finished scented candle: a pretty decorative pot to hold hairpins, ear cleaners, or small makeup brushes.
Do you have other upcycling tips? Feel free to share them with us in the comments! And to go further in your zero-waste approach, do not hesitate to check out our 5 steps to adopt for an eco-friendly beauty routine!
And on our side, what do we do for the planet?
If you follow us on social media, you know that reducing our carbon footprint is a constant priority. With this in mind, we have designed 100% biodegradable eco-packs for our range intended for hotels, whose packaging is made from sugarcane. To go further, we commit that all Omnisens packaging will also be biodegradable by 2025.
