Shampoo article in Summer 2018 Challenge Magazine
How many plastic bottles are there in your bathroom? I have three daughters. Two have moved out but they still keep their favourite shampoos in the bathroom! A couple of months ago, between the five members of the family, we had 57 plastic bottles in the family bathroom. Yes, I counted. Shower gels, mouthwash, bubble baths, conditioners, and shampoos ... For greasy hair, straight hair, problem hair, frizzy hair, fly away hair, coloured hair, dandruff ... There's even one for ... dirty hair. A dozen different flavours: apple, mango, raspberry, fraise (for those who don't like the sound of strawberries), henna, jojoba and lime ... It was doing my nut. How can we reduce our use of plastic when there is no alternative to shampoo bottles? But there is. I took the plunge. Solid shampoo bars. You mean like soap? Well, yes and no. You buy it like a bar of soap but it lathers like shampoo. The minute you use it and it lathers up in your hand you realise that a humdrum corner of Plasticland has disappeared forever. Hurrah!
We are down to just over thirty bottles now. There are still a bunch of bottles to use up, but it's work in progress. And it's not just shampoo. There are solid conditioners too. We are still experimenting with these, trying to find best one. They don't lather up and you have to leave them in your hair for a few minutes. It's a matter of getting used to something different. And we are all now on a mission. Where can I find solid shampoo? There are a number of shops you can visit, online and on the high street. On the High Street there is Lush. I know. Their soaps look like wedding cakes and ice-cream, the shops smell like a hippy fruit salad, and you need to wear sunglasses because of all the colours and bright lights. But they are helping to create a more sustainable future in the bathroom. A bar of solid shampoo cost £6.50 We have had one for ten weeks now. Four or five of us have been washing our hair with it once or twice a week and there is still a quarter of a bar left in the metal tin. Online you can find the Funky Soap Shop, Anythingbutplastic, Friendlysoap, and a range of other suppliers. Some bars are cheaper, some not. In my house we're still using up the old shampoo bottles. It is great to learn that there are alternatives as we all embark on the journey to ditch our plastic habit.
Goodbye to all this ...
