Because you really need to stop using makeup remover wipes

Updated article, originally published January 7, 2022

Nomadic products par excellence, make-up remover wipes disposables are acclaimed for their ease of use and the promise of a 2-in-1 action that eliminates shadows and cleanses the skin.

Appearing in the 1990s, they quickly made their way into travel bags but also replaced the classic cotton and cleansing milk combination in many bathrooms, much to the desperation of dermatologists who find them too. aggressive for the delicate skin of the face and around the eyes.

But it’s not just the skin that irritates make-up remover wipes: the planet also has a toll. What if we say goodbye forever?

Disposable make-up remover wipes, a disaster for the environment

Make-up remover wipes, like checkout bags and plastic straws, have a negative impact on the environment. Depending on the model, they are made of polyester, polypropylene, cotton, wood pulp or even rayon, materials that are not always biodegradable. Most wipes therefore end their lives in landfills, where they never really disappear..

Well that’s when they don’t get flushed down the toilet (but who does?)! Make-up remover wipes (but also their disinfectant, detergent, tanning cousins, etc.) are the scourge of purification plants because, unlike toilet paper, they do not decompose in water.

They therefore end up creating a clogging which, in addition to hindering the treatment of waste water, can be responsible for a too full of domestic hot water in the natural environmentand some pollution of aquatic environments.

And again, here we talk about textiles, but we must not forget that the wipes are impregnated with a solution that is not always composed only of rose water and sweet almond oil, which adds more chemicals to landfills and the domestic wastewater system if flushed down the toilet.

The case of compostable and biodegradable make-up remover wipes

In an effort to be more eco-responsible, some brands have launched so-called * compostable and / or biodegradable products (remember that a compostable product is biodegradable, but the opposite is not necessarily true). At first glance, the idea seems interesting but, in reality, it is more complicated.

As green lifestyle expert Ashlee Piper explains to InStyle magazine:

” If you don’t have a compost bin at home or in your neighborhood and put a compostable wipe in the trash, it won’t rot. And it is the same thing if a biodegradable wipe ends up in a landfill, because not all conditions will be met to allow it to decompose. ”

But what do we do then? Good, let’s stop buying wipes, even compostable (unless you want to raise a colony of earthworms on your balcony) and experiment with new ways to remove make-up that, in addition to being more respectful of the planet, will also be gentler on the skin.

What can I replace the make-up remover wipes with?

To adopt a more eco-responsible make-up removal routine, and finally say “goodbye” to the wipe, we can draw inspiration from the principles of zero waste beauty using products that should only be massaged on the face to dissolve make-up and impurities, or gloves or water-based make-up remover wipes, washable and reusable.

Depending on your tastes, you can opt for a conditioner, an oil, a cream or even a cleansing milk (for the latter, if you do not want to rinse it with clean water, a washable make-up remover disc will remove the long product with the residues of trick).

So yeah, it takes longer than rubbing a disposable washcloth on your face. Yes, it is less practical to carry on weekends. But no one said switching to a more eco-friendly beauty routine was easy! And then you know what they say: “Victory loves effort”.

Shopping to abandon disposable wipes

Front page image credit: New Africa Study