Top 5 Ways to Go Green and Save Money in Your Shower

If you read my article, Top 5 Ways to Go Green and Save Money in Your Bathroom, you’ll know I’m a big fan of Top 5 lists. In fact, here are my Top 5 reasons why I love making Top 5 lists

1. They’re between 40-60% shorter than a Top 10 list making it quicker to read on the can so your legs don’t go numb.
2. They’re filled with just enough info yet not too much to make you eco-overwhelmed
3. Our attention spans aren’t what they used to be. I could go into more detail but you’ll skip right past it.
4. This makes me prioritize the things I don’t want you to miss out on. It keeps me from dumping a decade of knowledge into your unsuspecting lap yet still look super professional.
5. You can literally skip around and read what you want. It’s not like each of the 5 has a DON’T SKIP ME label on it, because that would be a dick move.

So anyway let’s get down to it…here are my Top 5 ways to to go green and save money in your shower.

DON’T SKIP ME #1
Rethink your shampoo and conditioner: You ever been at the bar late at night in your 20s when someone yells “Last Call!” You look around the bar and see a guy who looks 8 months pregnant with perkier boobs than you, there’s some guy randomly crying, a guy wearing an FBI shirt that says Federal Boob Inspector, and the 70 year old lothario who tells people he’s a fireman because “he knows how to turn the hoes on”.

Oddly specific? Sure.
Is it real or hypothetical? No comment (and shocker, turns out he was an accountant and not a fireman)
What does it have to do with the Top 5 list? Nothing but it’s a funny story.

But seriously, my point is if you want more options then you need to put in some effort.  If you run to the pharmacy 10 minutes before they close, then you’re going to end up with haircare products that do the job but aren’t exactly your first choice. That’s how you wake up with someone who is probably not REALLY in the FBI.

To make your lives easier I did the research for you (and I don’t even know how to turn the hoes on).

Option #1 is a shampoo or conditioner bar which seems weird at first. It’s usually smaller than a standard bar of soap and you have to lather it up in your hands before you put it on your head, but after using it a few times you’re hooked. You realize the bottle of shampoo was all water anyway so why waste space in your shower and all that packaging. I liked the Badger Shampoo Bar.

Option #2 is a subscription service that sends you shampoo and conditioner in environmentally friendly bottles. We love Plaine Products. It’s so easy and because it’s a subscription I never run out. Order your first bottle (with pump top) and by the time that runs out your replacement bottle will have arrived. Swap out the pump top and return the empty original bottle with a prepaid label and the box it came in. Not a fan of subscriptions? You can manually just order a replacement when you’re running low and follow the same return instructions. Rinse and Repeat, it’s that simple.

Option #3 is to find a zero-waste store that offers refills. WHAT? Did I just blow your mind? Yup, they exist. They’re bulk stores for personal care products. You bring your own container and you fill it up. Brilliant right?

Option #4 is for my DIY people. There are a ton of recipes to make your own. Skip the conditioner and make your own apple cider vinegar rinse (just google that one too). Or you can always reach out to me as I’ve done a lot of the work already. I’d be happy to share some of the recipes that have worked out for me (as well as some that haven’t)

 

DON’T SKIP ME #2
Drop your Soap: I haven’t bought soap from a store since 2016! I have a soap dealer, yes you read that right. Years ago I was at a farmer’s market and came across a vendor selling homemade soap. This person was not the creator, just the seller. I had just had a conversation with my husband who swore he’d never leave his favorite green St. Patrick’s Day-themed brand of Leprechaun lather.  Long story short, we never purchased green soap again (that’s a whole other story that you can read about here). Now as much as we loved our new soap it was expensive so I took out the middle man. I contacted the creator directly and we made a deal. We meet up (I’m dressed like Carmen Sandiego with dark glasses and I carry a briefcase, she dresses normal), I buy her soap in bulk and she gives me a discount. There’s no chemicals, it’s locally made, no shipping charges and lowers my impact on the environment. Biggest bonus…I’m supporting a local business and I know what’s in it. But if you can’t seem to find your own soap dealer there are tons of toxic free options on Etsy. Just be careful. My soap dealer says to make sure you read the ingredients (if they don’t list them then don’t buy it).

 

DON’T SKIP ME #3
Trade in your Razor Burn for a Safety Dance: Our shower caddy used to have at least 2-3 plastic razors in it, pink for me and blue for him. It looked like a goth gender reveal party and it was really just a lot of crappy plastic that we were paying for. Over the years we dumped the disposables and opted for buying the razor handles with the detachable heads, we were on the right track but still a lot of wasted material. Fortunately there is an even eco-friendlier option regaining some popularity. When I was a kid medicine cabinets had razor blade slots where you would toss used blades into an abyss. This was really just a hole in the wall where they would pile up. I’m not saying this is an excellent idea, especially for the contractor who finds the surprise when redoing your 1960s bathroom, BUT the old fashioned safety razor is making a comeback. It’s plastic free, sturdy (seriously this might be the one and only razor you use for the rest of your life), has steel recyclable blades and is WAY better for the environment. I have a test subject in mind (let’s call him husband) so be on the lookout for an article about that experience in the near future.

Bonus option…if you’re an eco-loving, hairy crazy woman like me you can ditch the razors and shaving cream forever and go for laser hair removal. Warning – it’s EXPENSIVE but seriously it’s the best. I shave maybe once or twice a year. I figured with waxing, buying razors and shaving cream I’ll end up saving money over my lifetime.

 

DON’T SKIP ME #4
Low Flow is Good to Go: I’ve been talking about this for at least 7 years. When low flow shower heads first came out all I heard was you’ll lose all your water pressure. Not sure what changed but they’ve come a long way and I have zero complaints about my shower and my 50+ husband is a little jealous of the stream strength. Honestly, I don’t have a prostate but I don’t think I would want the water pressure any stronger than it is now. I like to refer to the handheld shower head as “Mommy’s fun spray” and it gets the job done (am I right ladies?). My hubby loves all the different spray modes (hopefully for different reasons) and the best part is they’re super easy to install and saves water and you money. Here’s one of my picks to get you started

Bonus idea…you can get a Berkey shower filter to attach to make sure you’re bathing with clean, chemical free water.

 

DON’T SKIP ME #5
A better option than Paper or Plastic: I first learned about soap bags when I cheated on my soap lady and ordered this bar of soap. It came with a soap bag. I thought it was just for packaging, but turns out it’s great for exfoliation and foaming up. It dries in between showers keeping it from disintegrating which also saves you money. When your soap bar gets super small it won’t matter because it’s in the bag and won’t keep falling out of your hands (that’s less bending over in the shower, sorry hubby). So if you don’t want to be feeling around on the wet shower floor with your eyes squinted shut like Velma looking for her glasses (Scooby Dooby Doo!) then you should definitely check these out. They sell tons of them on Etsy and Amazon (like this one) and if you buy a good one, you can wash it and use it for a really, really, really long time.

 

I should point out, my husband made his own Top 5 Shower list for me. It went about as you’d expect.

1. Save water and shower with your husband
2. Skip the dermatologist and go on a mole hunt together in the shower…with your husband
3. Shower with your husband and pick up the soap for him if he drops it.
4. Golden Showers…no water wasted on flushing
5. If we do it in the shower then there’s no reason to wash the bed sheets…less laundry to do.
6. 2 words…Soapy Frontal Massage

At least he’s predictable, even if he can’t count. That’s not bad for a Federal Boob Inspector