Please read the following post for important information on how I’ve chosen my recommendations:
TLDR: Get good ingredients ‘cause this stuff is getting absorbed into your skin. And keep it sustainable!
Why you should care: Lotion gets absorbed into your body. Plus, the bottles are a waste of plastic, which takes resources to make and then lives in our landfills and oceans. Gross.
What you should buy: https://www.shopetee.com/products/lotion-bar or less expensive option would be to make your own
I hate lotion that’s too thick, but I also hate lotion that’s too thin. I want the Goldilocks of lotion, dangit! I’ve tried this one https://www.plaineproducts.com/shop/#hairbodycare and found I was constantly reapplying. I actually really liked Ethique https://ethique.com/blogs/ethique-products/why-should-you-switch-to-a-solid-moisturiser but it’s made in New Zealand and some ingredients are sourced from Samoa, and the carbon footprint is too high for me.
There are also a lot of sustainable options that come in glass jars. I keep lotion all over the house, and I know I’m going to knock one over or a pet will so that won’t work for me either. I need something in aluminum or cardboard.
I decided that cardboard was the most eco-friendly. And I went with a vegan option that didn’t use beeswax since I have a lot of questions about the sustainability of beehives from my honey research and potential glyphosate in beeswax. I can attest that the bars actually do last a long time so you only need a small amount.
Beeswax, which is used in lots of cosmetics, also contains harmful chemicals.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0278691523002089 and https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969719353045
Additional Reading:
https://ecoroots.us/products/yay-for-earth-zero-waste-lotion
https://www.glam.com/1222963/best-solid-body-lotion-bars-for-sustainable-moisturization/https://www.sustainablejungle.com/lotion-bars/
https://ecoroots.us/products/lotion-bar
https://attitudeliving.com/products/body-butter-leaves-bar
Photo Credit: Romina Farías