Cosmetics Alternative ways to recycle Hazardous Waste The Ideal Disposal Method for Makeup? Use It Up Cosmetics tend to contain a lot of chemicals, so it’s better to use them up than to send them to landfills. If you do need to throw your makeup out, it’s important to keep chemicals out of waterways, so do not dump it down the drain or flush it down the toilet. Alternative Ways to Recycle Burt's Bees Recycle On Us You can send in Burt’s Bees-branded personal care, lip care, and beauty care packaging to the Burt’s Bees Recycle On Us program, which is a free recycling program through TerraCycle. Find out how to mail in this product packaging. Lush's Pot Return Program Bring five empty black or clear Lush pots to any of their shops, and they will give you a free fresh face mask. Lush sends your old pots to their supplier to regrind and remold them into a whole new batch of pots. Find out more. Ways to Reduce Choose Eco-Friendly Makeup Brands Some cosmetics brands are more earth-friendly than others. They use recycled packaging, soy-based inks, and operate on the basis of sustainability. Some green beauty brands include Josie Maran cosmetics, Stella McCartney’s Care, Physicians Formula Organic Wear, and Go Natural. Ways to Reuse Use Eye and Lip Pencils as Regular Pencils Old eye and lip pencils make great regular pencils for sketching or for marking things if you’re doing home renovations. Reuse the Mascara Spoolie as a Brush Wash off the spoolie of an expired mascara with dish soap and turn it into a brow or lash brush. Use a Makeup Compact for Storage An old makeup compact doesn’t need to be thrown out. It’s perfect for storing earrings, coins, mints, and other small items. Turn Dry Eyeshadow Into Nail Polish You might not be able to put it on your eyelids anymore, but dry, flaky eyeshadow can be mixed with clear nail polish to create a new nail color. Did You Know? The Story of Cosmetics This animated video helps you evaluate what cosmetics you’re putting on your body, including shampoo and body wash, which are used by both men and women. Less than 20 percent of these cosmetics have been inspected for adverse chemical effects, and words such as “herbal” and “natural” have no legal meaning. Major Ecosystem Contaminant According to EPA estimates, more than three million tons of personal care chemicals are dumped into waterways each year, adversely impacting our ecosystems.
