We are two friends living on opposite coasts (Brooklyn, New York and Santa Monica, California) that share a passion for living a minimal, zero waste lifestyle and on a mission to help others do the same.
Harper. Lives in Brooklyn with a +1. Sassy pup. Matcha. Wine. Whiskey. Cheese. Proscuitto.
Charley. Lives in Los Angeles with a +1. Doofy pup. Coffee. Wine. Whiskey. Cheese. Pasta.
Overall, of all the products we tried in the EC30 Home Care bundle, the all-purpose surface cleaner is the most affordable. Overall we loved the product and experience, but a bit baffled by the fact that we need to dispose of the unused solution after 48 hours - seems like a waste!
EC30’s zero waste hand wash is INSANELY expensive. It’s smells great, foams and lathers up great, but it will literally break your bank. We cannot recommend for everyday use — but perhaps it can be used for travel.
We cannot recommend EC30’s toilet bowl cleaner. Super cool product, smells great, love the foaming action, but the price is outrageously high. We’re talking 5-10x the cost of other toilet bowl cleaners, and not with any real added convenience. We don’t understand.
NOT a buy. The floss itself is fine. But given that it’s not easy to spin off or load the spool, plus given how expensive it is, the byHumankind floss is a pass for us.
NOT a buy. The Seventh Generation Zero Complete Bundle for home cleaning includes the hand washing powder, toilet bowl cleaner powder, laundry tablets, dishwasher tablets, kitchen cleaner powder and bathroom cleaner powder. For a lower price, the whole home bundle omits the hand washing powder, which we like.
The ingredients are non-toxic and the canisters are made of steel — the world’s most recycblable material. However, as an example, with dishwasher powder, we prefer Seventh Gen’s old school powder in a cardboard box, which is already pretty zero waste.
BUY. We love Seventh Generation as a company and love many of their great products — especially the toilet cleaning powder. It is not the cheapest option, but we think may last longer than 2x liquid cleaners. Also, we look forward to Seventh Generation’s upcoming refills for their products since the price will probably come down even further, while keeping the same canister.
The Cheeky Panda’s bamboo toilet paper is the most cost effective option we have tried so far — and we have tried many (read all about it in our Big Bamboo Toilet Paper Roundup Review) , but the size of roll leaves a bit to be desired. As with most bamboo toilet paper options, it’s also not the softest — but if you want bamboo TP at a great price, The Cheeky Panda is a solid option!
While we were excited to try bamboo paper towels, we can’t recommend The Cheeky Panda’s kitchen rolls. They are too pricey for a product that is significantly worse — we will stick with our reusable swedish dishcloths and recycled paper towels for now.
Because of potentially cheaper options, we do NOT recommend the Seventh Generation Bathroom Cleaning Powder. We could be wrong though: we think the powder is 4x concentrated (1oz powder = 4oz of spray). If the powder lasts 5x-7x instead, then it competes with Blueland and Public Goods on price. Additionally, we hope with Seventh Generation’s upcoming refills for the bathroom cleaner, the price will come down (and we can keep the canister!).
The powder is made of only 5 non-toxic ingredients, unlike other powders cleaners that contain bleach among other chemicals. Seventh Generation also employed waterless technology so that the powder will not cake.
BUY. We like Seventh Generation’s Kitchen Cleaner Powder. We think it does a good job and does it at a good price. The ingredients are pretty minimal and the packaging is zero plastic. Additionally, we look forwrd with Seventh Generation’s upcoming refills for the kitchen cleaner, the price will come down even more, and we would reuse the steel canister.
We love, love, love Seventh Generation as a company and think they make fabulous products. We are a hesitantly NOT a buy. Here is our reason: Seventh Generation Laundry Detergent Tablets only offers a tin of just 36 tablets, making it really expensive. For comparison, Dropps give you a bulk of 800 pods for a price cut of ~30-60%. The other issue: the tablet may not dissolve completely in delicate loads.
For homes with smaller storage space; Seventh Generation fans; and/or a preference to tablets/pods versus powder, we see this as a good option. Reason: non-toxic, fragrance-free, dye-free, plastic-free, greywater-safe, sulfate-free, Leaping Bunny Certified, B-Corporation.
We have tried a number of eco-friendly, plastic-free or low-waste laundry options — including pods, packs, sheets, and powders — including Meliora, Cleancult, Dropps, Sheets Laundry Club, Grove Collaborative and more. We took a look at cost per load and estimated annual cost assuming that a typical family of four probably generates between 8 and 10 loads of laundry per week.
It’s a BUY. Ok Marrick’s Fly Away Bug Spray is not cheap, but it smells oh so nice. We found ourselves spraying more on just because we loved the scent so much! And it works - we spent an afternoon in a mosquito-ridden garden and emerged unscathed (zero bites!). A rarity as mosquitoes love me!
Marrick’s lip balm is a strong buy! We love the reasonable price (less expensive than Burt’s Bees) for a plastic-free lip balm that smells amazing and works incredibly well!
Maybe BUY. Lush is one of the pioneers of solid and no waste personal products. You have possibly smelled their strongly fragranced stores in a local mall — and that’s exactly why we are a maybe. Cruelty-free and mostly natural ingredients, with no plastic packaging, and pretty easy on the wallet compared to other solid lotions: we like Lush’s lotion bar in Pansy for these reasons. Personally, we like products with a little bit less scent, so for those sensitive noses, maybe this one is not for you.
BUY. The Lush Conditioner Bar is a great addition to your shower if zero-waste, plastic-free, or cruelty-free is your goal. We love that it has argan oil. Plus, on a cost basis, it is in line with both other conditioner bars on the market as well as conditioner bottles. The only issue we see here is if fragrance-free or 100% natural is your goal, then we would recommend a more natural option.
MIXED. Honestly, we are torn. We loved the way it worked on our hair, knowing that SLS was part of the trick. If going plastic-free is your goal, then Lush’s shampoo bars are not much more than drugstore brands like Pantene Pro-V when it comes to cost per year — and your hair will come out looking great. However, if you are looking for SLS-free and more natural shampoo bar that does not use fragrance, skip the Lush Shampoo Bar.
We like Grove’s mission of being a b-corporation and its curation of eco-friendly, zero-waste and natural brands —we are going to use it like our online convenience store.
Based on the money report, the fact that Grove Collaborative is a b-corp, we feel comfortable suggesting the VIP membership if recurring items are in your basket. Otherwise, there is no necessary commitment to support your favorite green brands by purchasing through Grove Collaborative — you would just need to hit the threshold for free shipping; otherwise shipping is $4.99.
Pubic Goods has incredibly clean packaging and an admirable mission of making sustainable and earth friendly products available on one site. Unfortunately, we barely break even when considering the cost of membership against the products we tried and would actually continue to order.
Neither are really a buy for us. However, if you buy simplehuman, make the switch for cheaper, and greener into Grove Collaborative’s recycled garbage bags.
