Among the little steps you can take towards a more sustainable lifestyle, there is using bamboo pads instead of cotton pads to remove your makeup.
Why you should quit cotton pads
I know, most of us have used conventional cotton pads for most of their life, but it’s not too late to get into a new good habit!
Unfortunately, cotton (≠ organic cotton) is grown with pesticides and a large amount of water. According to WWF, the amount of water needed to produce 1 kg of cotton, equivalent to a single basic white t-shirt, is 20’000 litres.
Think about that: we use from 2 to 4 pads each day to remove makeup and apply the toner, and then we throw them away. Imagine the waste!
Bamboo pads
A great alternative is buying a set of bamboo pads which can be washed and used multiple times. I can only find bamboo pads made of a maximum of 80% bamboo fibres and 20% cotton.
There are two kinds of on the market:
- soft > eyes + face
- uneven > face
Shape and size are normal (approx. 8 cm/3.15 inch diameters) and they are finely stitched all around.
How to use
Just wet them with warm water. Personally, I take a scoop of the Grace & Stella cleansing balm and massage it onto my face, melting the makeup.
When I look like a panda, with my eyes still closed (lol) I try to grab a bamboo pad, I wet it and remove everything. Otherwise, I use MyCleanUp, a soft cloth that removes makeup only with water.
How to wash
I gather my used dirty bamboo pads and put them in the mesh bag. In fact, most brands include a small laundry bag that you can use in the washing mashing, so you can’t lose them!
Wash between 40°C and 60°C or hand wash with Marseille soap. Mines do not come out perfectly white, they are a bit stained but cleaned! This is all that matters.
Price
Luckily, they are affordable! The price range varies from 9€ to 16€ depending on the brand and the number of pads in the set.
Also, since they are reusable, you spend around 10€ once and you’re good for months.
My bamboo pads
I bought the set you see in the pictures above on Amazon, but I won’t recommend it.
- It came with two plastic bags
- I don’t think the laundry mesh bag is eco-friendly (I should have thought about that sooner!)
- There aren’t both kind of pads, only the uneven ones.
I still like them, they do their job, however, if I had to buy another set, I’ll probably go for this one.
