As we live in a van, it is even more important for us to produce as less waste as possible. We already sort paper and glass from the rest and pay attention to the recycling rules in each country as much as we can.
We noticed that a lot of our waste, that is difficult to recycle, comes from our beauty products (shampoo, period stuff,…).We already heard about new products that are slowly growing on the market, like shampoo bars and period cups.
The last months we were busy finding out which other things we could use and how we could have a better feeling by using those products. We thought about toothbrushes and -tabs, shampoo, soap, make-up and care products. Well mission accomplished. This is what we found and now use on a daily basis:
- Period cups from „OrganiCup“ from Denmark.
- Shampoo bars, soap and care soap from „Friendly Soap“ from England, even shaving and detox bars!
- Toothbrushes from „Planet-Bamboo“ from Germany.
Already 2 years ago we decided to buy the period cup and it has changed our lives a lot! No more „oh no, we are out of tampons!“ and being scared of the TSS (toxic shock syndrome). We bought them from OrganiCup because they are very attentive and help when you have struggles. Apart from the brand, using a cup is so much easier! We just put them in cooking water for a few minutes at the start and end of our period and we’re ready to go. When we started using them, it took a few months (periods) to get used to and apply them properly. But wasn’t it the same the first time using tampons or sanitary pads?
In comparison it’s cheaper too! We don’t need to buy a new pack every month. We paid € 20,- for our cups. We calculated the differences by using the cup or tampons, sanitary pads and bags. We now save around € 33 each year per person and about 50 kg of waste!
Since 2 weeks, we are using soap and shampoo bars to shower. Both of them felt kind of dry when we applied them to our hair and skin. The shower soap is the same kind of soap you use for your hands. But once we washed it off, our skin felt good and our hair wasn’t dry at all! Quite the contrary, our hair feels a little greasy but it isn’t at all. We only use a little bit from the bar to shower because you have to put the bar on your skin/hair and then use your hands to wash. We bought 3 small boxes to transport them, in different colours, so that we know which is the shampoo, soap or shaving bar. We always shave while we shower, so we have not felt a big difference.
Oh and did we mention that every bar from Friendly Soap is skin, animal and earth friendly. The soap is without parabenen, palm oil, plastic and it wasn’t tested on animals!
Here the price difference is around € 7 each year per person (compared to Alverde Bio Products) and 7 shampoo bottles.
Now the toothbrushes. We use them since 4 weeks and our teeth are still beautiful. They feel clean after every brush and the brushes are neither too hard nor too soft for us. The only disadvantage is that they look worn off after the first time, but they still work well. Now in the winter, we just put them in the oven, when they are broken, and keep us warm. Second use: check! We haven’t had the chance yet to test them with dental tabs because we haven’t bought any yet. If anyone can recommend a brand, we will be happy to hear about them!
The bamboo from Planet Bamboo toothbrushes are unfortunately more expensive, they cost € 7 more each year per person (if you use 4/year as it is recommended) but we save 4 plastic toothbrushes!
All together, these products work very well and are simple to use. They all help us to produce less waste and make us save money at the same time. What also matters, especially to us, most of the products need less space and take a long time before they are used up. We paid attention that the products have a short delivery travel, that’s why we looked for companies from Europe and save emission gases!
