Day 22
So as i'm going plastic free, you may have read a previous blog of mine being a tad peeved at Lush having a lot of their products produced in plastic pots, which I did refuse to buy on the principle that they were in plastic... However, after more research into the matter, i have found Lush to be a much better company than I previously had thought.
It turns out that the black plastic pots that Lush make to sell their products in, can actually be returned to the shop for recycling back at their factories. The tops of the pots state if you return 5 full size black pots into Lush, then you receive a free fresh face mask, which is great, but they don't only recycle the large black pots. Even though you will not receive anything in return, you can take back all pots, even the small pots, clear or different coloured pots used for toothpaste powders or moisturisers etc, they accept the lids to their makeup and the small sample pots back too. You do have to ensure that they are 100% clean before returning, but this a small thing to do to ensure you can have a closed loop system back with the supplier and therefore not just throwing it in the bin or recycling at home. Lush have a fantastic video which shows you exactly what they do with their pots, which includes grinding them up, sometimes dying them black, reheating them and then remoulding back into new pots. So for me, this is a fantastic idea, because it means I can actually buy moisturiser for my face, without worrying that the pot might end up in landfill. I can take all of my pots back and be assured they will then end up back as more pots in the future for me to then purchase again. Truly I take hat off to you guys as more companies should be caring enough to offer this service! So since the plastic will not be thrown away, I would consider these Lush products as something safe for me to buy, as I know they will be responsibly handled once I return them.
So anyone out here, if you buy from Lush, please return your pots!
If anyone is interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUmfeOqVXVg
SLS free products, so in my search for plastic free shampoo I previously found the shampoo bars from Lush, which are sold like a bar of soap and then they get wrapped in paper which was excellent. However, I have a very sensitive scalp, which dries out very easily and gets all flaky (which is caused by psoriasis) and for years of using standard shampoos and conditioners, it's rarely helped the situation. I have been trialing the shampoo/conditioner bars from Lush in the past few weeks, however I have found my scalp to actually be a bit drier and more itchy, and so I decided to look into what might be good for my scalp. It appears that a lot of shampoos contain SLS chemical, which is Sodium Lauryl Sulphate, which has been tested and can sometimes affect people with very sensitives scalps. Unfortunately Lush products do contain SLS (although just to mention that most people shouldn't be affected by these, unless you plan on leaving the shampoo on your head for hours but my scalp is a tad more sensitive). Apparently the SLS does not help the PH of your hair/skin, so can create dryness. So i've been investigating into SLS free alternatives and found that there are some people selling SLS free shampoo bars, which can be used for sensitive skin. However most places suggesting using these call it the "No poo" formula for hair, meaning the ingredients are much more natural and apparently better for your hair. So they also recommend that when using these, you at first wash your hair only 2-3 times a week, and then rinse with a vinegar rinse (which helps soften the hair and balance out the natural PH). They say using the shop bought shampoos that have chemicals in it, will strip your hair of their natural oils, and then recoat them with silicates within the shampoo to make them soft. This means your hair then gets greasier quicker as your head attempts to regenerate your natural oils and restore the balance. So you notice your hair is greasy, then wash it again and the cycle continues. They have recommended when switching over to this method to only wash a few times a week to allow your hair/scalp time to get used to not being stripped down by chemicals. The vinegar rinse recommends you use 2-4 tablespoons of unrefined apple cider vinegar in 250ml of warm water, which you then throw over your hair after shampooing and leave for a few minutes to work it's magic. I have tried this, and I mixed in a few drops of grapefruit essential oils and a few drops of vitamin e oil to help nourish my hair and to help it not smell of vinegar. I have only used this method once so far, and my hair is still getting used to routine. My hair did not smell like vinegar at all once I dried it, which was incredible, as i thought i'd be walking around stinking of the stuff, but all was fine. I'll let you guys know in a few weeks when i update on how it's going (i'm determined to try it out). You can get the suppliers to send you products in no plastic, which is great and the cider vinegar will come in glass bottles, so there's no issues there.
It's interesting because I never realised where not using plastic might take me, and it's got me to try a load of different things which I never knew existed.
Anyhow, until next time.
Thanks for reading.
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