Olivia for the Ocean

Last Updated January 29, 2022

How many shampoo bottles do you think you use a year? If you’ve made the switch to a plastic-free option, awesome! If you haven’t, I’d estimate that I used to use four bottles of shampoo a year. While four shampoo bottles might not seem like a lot, add in conditioner and body wash and now it’s 12 bottles a year being thrown out. Over a lifetime, that’s nearly 1,000 bottles. Can you imagine what that would look like in your bathroom? The United States has a little over 329 million people. That’s almost 4 billion shower-related bottles thrown out each year…just in the US.

So, what’s the solution? Here are a few options:

1. Shampoo, Conditioner, and Soap Bars
2. Refill Stores
3. Baking Soda and Apple Cider Vinegar

Let’s dive in!

Shampoo, Conditioner, and Soap Bars:

One of the subjects I am asked about the most is shampoo bars. Where do I get them? How do they work? etc.

I get my shampoo bars from LUSH. Luckily, I work close to a LUSH store, so I hop over during my lunch break with my own container.

I love the Honey I Washed My Hair Shampoo Bar. It smells like heaven.

To use it, I wet my hands and the bar, then rub the bar in my hands. You don’t need to lather too much because the little bit on your hands continues to lather as you rub it in your hair. I don’t rub the bar directly on my head because I feel like this gets too much of it in my hair and is wasteful.

If you switch directly from commercial shampoos, you might need a few washes to get used to the bar. It will leave your hair feeling (and sounding) squeaky clean. You’ll understand after the first wash.

For conditioner, I use the BIG conditioner bar:

I wet the bar and run it along my hair. Nothing too complicated here.

For body wash, I use bar soap from the GoodSoap Company. Whole Foods sells them unpackaged near the check-out stand.

If I need a little extra moisture, I use the LUSH Scrubee Body Butter Bar:

This bar exfoliates and moisturizes and leaves my skin feeling silky smooth. It also smells like heaven or a fancy French dessert.

Refill Stores:

Refill stores like, Fill Good in Berkeley, The Refill Shoppe in Ventura, and the Good Fill in Nashville, have been growing in popularity recently. You bring your own containers, or purchase glass ones there, and fill up on liquids you need. It’s essentially bulk shopping for liquids!

Baking Soda & Apple Cider Vinegar:

I have not tried this but I know people swear by it. Here’s how it works:

1. Measure two tablespoons of baking soda and dissolve in a pint of water.
2. Pour over head and rub into hair.
3. Rinse the mixture out of your hair.
4. Measure two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar and mix with a pint of water.
5. Pour over head and rub into hair.
6. Rinse the mixture out of your hair.

Accessories:

I love these soap rests made from coconut fiber. They keep my shampoo, conditioner, and soap bars from sticking to my shower shelf.

When I travel I put my shampoo, conditioner, and soap bars into these LUSH tins. They’re also great for jewelry or other loose items when traveling.

Unintended Benefits:

Something I didn’t expect when I started going plastic-free was the visual aspect of minimizing and reducing waste. The aesthetics of my shower have completely changed. It’s estimated that we see 5,000 ads a day. That’s a lot of noise. After ridding my shower of branded bottles, I realized that I had gotten rid of the brands constantly screaming at my eyes. My shower feels, looks, and dare I say, sounds calm and this has been the best unintended benefit of going plastic-free–a simplified and unbranded environment.

Do you use any of these plastic-free showering options? If not, which one are you considering? If you try any of them out, let me know what you think!

For related and random posts, check out:

• 4 Tips for a “No Poo” Hair Routine
• My Hair Loss & Regrowth Journey