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.
It’s ok. Puracy Natural Baby Shampoo and Body Wash is a decent refill option. The scent is derived from essential oil and very light. As a body wash, it works ok and the ingredients do not contain sulfates, parabens, or SLS. However, it’s a little knotty-feeling as an adult shampoo. Price wise it is on the expensive side but another pro is the reduction in plastic with the refill bag.
Safely Universal Cleaner is a great, easy to use product that smells and cleans wonderfully. Better yet, the price is very reasonable. Our only complaints — there are some ingredients that may cause some concern according to EWG, and the liquid formula is heavy to ship, meaning a higher carbon footprint.
It’s not a buy for us. Safely Glass Cleaner is a great, easy to use product that smells and cleans wonderfully - no streaks. But we have a few issues — there are some ingredients that may cause some concern according to EWG, and the liquid formula is heavy to ship, meaning a higher carbon footprint. On top of all of all of that, the pricing is quite high, highest among the other glass cleaners out there.
It’s a DEFINITE BUY. Nantucket Bug Repellent smells great and is chemical-free and DEET-free. We found ourselves spraying more on just because we loved the scent so much! And it works - we sat on the beach through sunset (when mosquitoes usually come out) and emerged unscathed (zero bites!).
For #4 user and/or no access to compost and space savers: Grove Collaborative Reusable Organic Cotton Coffee Filters are a BUY. It is the more affordable option.
For our basket filter users: basket filters are a touch cheaper. For our composters, given that you may have to use an organic cotton filter >450x, they may not make sense unless we know that they can last you a very, very long time.
Unfortunately Safely Everyday Laundry Detergent is not a buy. While we love the beautiful packaging, there were a number of issues for us: the heavy, floral scent (which some may like), the high price point, difficult to use bottle, and the not so zero-waste product (not biodegradable, refills come in plastic packaging, liquid means heavier transport).
MIXED - if you can afford the extra cost (about $100 per year, per person), then the WELdental Chewtab Toothpaste with Whitening and nHap are great. Like with other zero waste toothpaste like Bite and Chomp, the hurdle is how expensive the toothpaste tablets are. All of the pros are: a fluoride alternative (NHAP), cruelty-free (not tested on animals), whitening, and zero-waste (cardboard, paper and glass packaging). Quality wise, we like WELdental Chewtabs (we just may try peppermint next time instead of cinnamon 🙃).
Even though it is pretty and very earth-friendly, the glass bottle is on the heavy side, so the Grove Collaborative Glass Cleaner Set is NOT a buy for us.
ITS A BUY! If you are in the market for an eco-friendly liquid body soap that smells AMAZING and reasonably priced, Bathing Culture’s Mind & Body Wash checks all the boxes! While still more expensive than most bar soap options (and heavier to ship), we appreciate that it is a concentrated formula that comes in a refillable, 100% recycled plastic bottle (no new plastic is used). We also love that Bathing Culture is a carbon neutral brand!
No. We just cannot. While we think it’s a clever option for traveling, and the technology of the dissolvable sachet is super cool, Plus Body Wash is a no for us. The product requires using dry (!) hands to open up the sachet as well as a high price point. Leaping Bunny certified, paraben-free, phthalate-free, and sulfate-free, this zero-waste body, very eco-conscious wash also has a nice scent. Maybe it’s a good travel option?
We love these soaps, they are beautiful, zero-waste and smell heavenly. However, Splendor’s sandlewood rose coconut oil soaps are definitely on the more expensive side — but we think it’s worth it to use for the relaxing scent and the palm oil free status! Keep in mind though, that the most expensive bar of soap is still cheaper than bottled liquid soap — and plastic free.
MIXED - if you can afford the extra cost (about $120 per year, per person — almost 5X more expensive versus drugstore brands), then the Chomp products are great. Lie with Bite, our only issue with Chomp is how expensive the products are — particularly the toothpaste bits. All of the pros are: a fluoride alternative (NHAP), cruelty-free (not tested on animals), zero-waste (cardboard, paper and glass packaging), and a soft, compostable bamboo toothbrush. From a quality standpoint, Chomp is a great product. We especially like that in addition to NHAP, Chomp is whitening and contains no xylitol.
While the pricing is very reasonable for the size of candle you get with EcoAroma, we were very disappointed with all the plastic in the packaging! The candle itself seemed to burn cleanly and smelled nice, but the packaging defeats the whole purpose of our going for a pillar candle to be low-waste!
MAYBE a buy. We really loved the experience of using Puracy’s natural liquid dish soap. We liked that the consistency wasn’t too thick (easy to refill) and that the scent is relatively light. Most importantly, we appreciate that this is a sulfate free soap that is naturally derived and biodegradable. The packaging is also generally great — large refill bag means less shipments (less carbon footprint) and the very small spout makes refilling super simple (no mess!). Our two complaints - the plastic pouch isn’t really recyclable (more on this below) and the price is pretty darn high 😔
Its a buy! We really loved the experience of using Puracy’s natural liquid gel hand soap. We liked that the consistency wasn’t too thick (easy to refill) and that the scent is relatively light. Most importantly, we appreciate that this is a sulfate free soap that is naturally derived and biodegradable. The packaging is also generally great — large refill bag means less shipments (less carbon footprint) and the very small spout makes refilling super simple (no mess!). Our biggest complaint - the plastic pouch isn’t really recyclable as it is labeled at a “7” 😔
Maybe… if you want the cute retro looking tin. We think Nellie’s dishwasher powder works just fine as far as cleaning goes. We like that it’s Leaping Bunny Certified, phosphate free, hypoallergenic, and only uses a little bit of plastic for packaging. Unfortunately, there are 100% plastic-free options available and other dishwasher detergents at a MUCH lower cost.
BUY Gelo Hand Soaps. On a price comparison basis, it is cheaper than drugstore brands. The plastic bottle is ok, maybe you have your own bottle - that’s ok too. The Gelo refills offer a more earth-friendly option that minimizes plastic and emissions by using lightweight pods that make foaming hand soap refills. The ingredients are cruelty-free, phthalate-free, SLS-free and paraben-free. Note: unless getting the Clear, Clean, and Dye free option, the Gelo soaps do contain essential oil fragrance. Additionally, the pods are wrapped in PVOH, which dissolves in water but we are optimistically cautious - as we haven’t seen strong impartial research on this. Finally, the scent is lovely, but contains essential oil fragrance unless you go for the clean, clear option which is both fragrance-free and dye-free.
We like Mochi’s Paws compostable dog waste bags because they are truly biodegradable, and at a reasonable price. Bags are easy to open as well. However, the bags are a bit on the smaller side — fine for our 18lb pooch, but may not be enough for larger dogs out there.
Sadly, NOT a buy, only based on price. The ingredients are good and ease of using Forgo is fabulous. The scent is light, which we would have appreciated a little bit more of. We love the glass bottle and we are glad we bought it — we just know it was a bit of a splurge.
