HOW TO CREATE A SPRING READY BATHROOM
It’s spring cleaning time, and I’m sure our household is not the only one with the desire to get their bathroom smelling clean, decluttered and looking fresh. We have been trying to be less materialistic this year and more mindful with our purchases. If you are feeling the same, then check out my suggestions below on how to create a spring-ready bathroom and keep it simple, healthy, clean and chemical-free too.
I know that I probably won’t ever be able to say I am ‘zero waste’, but I am keen to have a low impact on the environment and do my best with what is available (price dependent). When starting your journey into zero waste, plastic-free living or simply a low impact lifestyle like myself, it can be rather daunting. It is amazing when you start to look around your home, suddenly you notice that almost everything you use in your bathroom is disposable and made of plastic or came wrapped in plastic. While they can be useful, they have become an everyday part of my single-use and convenience-based lifestyle, and I’m just not happy with that.
That said I haven’t just found all of the plastic in my bathroom and thrown it out to replace it with more eco options as that would be even more wasteful. As I have used up and started to replace things in my bathroom over time, I have been able to find reusable, plastic-free or nearly plastic-free versions of almost everything I use such as sanitary products, face cloths, soaps, exfoliators, face brushes, deodorant, shampoo, and cleaning supplies. Instead of replacing I have also repaired, such as fixing my leaking shower with a shower door seal from Byretech.
My jam-packed bathroom has slowly but surely become less cluttered by following the mantra of quality over quantity. Disposable plastic items tend to be cheaper but are often lower quality or replaced more regularly. Choosing quality over quantity is less expensive in the long-term as you will buy it less often. Buying less and buying higher quality helps to facilitate a low waste lifestyle. After assessing how many products I had in my bathroom, I realised that I need all that many. For those items that I determined that I still needed I have found that there is almost always a plastic-free or reusable alternative for everything I used!
Great places to look out for these items are at zero waste shops – I am lucky that I can access the new zero waste shop in Leeds market. There I can get my package free, cruelty-free, natural, vegan soap, body exfoliator, shampoo bar and this super soft face brush. I found my natural crystal deodorant in Holland and Barrett; a 100% natural non-sticky vegan crystal deodorant and it is going to last me a very long time. Lush is also a firm favourite for me as their products are often well designed and they have wonderful ethics regarding fair trade.
Multitask products such as Dr Bronners castile soaps are becoming household favourites. These soaps are made with organic and certified fair trade ingredients, packaged in a 100% post-consumer recycled bottle and need diluting so a little goes a very long way. We love the hemp peppermint scent that can be used for cleaning everything from your face, body and hair to pets and cleaning your house.
Natural products are also being used more often in our home. Baking soda is a great, super cheap scrub for in the bathroom, whether you are cleaning the tub, toilet and sink. Save leftover orange peels and leave them in vinegar for two weeks to make a perfect citrus cleaner. Olive Oil doubles as an ideal shaving cream and Organic Coconut Oil has so many beauty uses – it’s not just a kitchen ingredient!
Having less in my bathroom is bringing far more value to the items I have and giving me a cleaner more relaxing space. I love not having ugly advertising and logos looking at me from every angle of my bathroom too!
What steps are you taking for creating a spring-ready bathroom?
