We are two friends living on opposite coasts (Brooklyn, New York and Santa Monica, California) that share a passion for living a minimal, zero waste lifestyle and on a mission to help others do the same.
Harper. Lives in Brooklyn with a +1. Sassy pup. Matcha. Wine. Whiskey. Cheese. Proscuitto.
Charley. Lives in Los Angeles with a +1. Doofy pup. Coffee. Wine. Whiskey. Cheese. Pasta.
All in Hand & Body Soaps
OK Buy. Meliora’s Bath and Body Soap is a great addition to the shower routine. The bars smell light and lovely and leave skin feeling soft, not dry. On top of that, they are Leaping Bunny Certified and contain good ingredients. Overall, the soap was not the cheapest in the sample, but the Meliora bars were cheaper than any liquid body wash. Plus, the bars ship in either recyclable paper boxes or package free in a paper envelope.
GREAT buy, particularly for infant and toddler aged kids! Our kids LOVED Bubbsi Shampoo & Wash’s animal shaped bottles, which are made of a soft food-grade silicone, and it has become an extra bath toy for us. We love the clean ingredients and very light coconut scent. While it is a bit pricier, it feels like we’re paying a bit extra for a bath toy and soap in one, and it does get more affordable when you buy the refill pouch!
: ITS A BUY (if you highly prefer liquid body soap over bar soaps). We love Blueland’s commitment to zero plastic and it stays consistent with their Body Wash— no plastic in packaging, no PVAs in the formula, no harmful ingredients. We also loved the scent and experience — the powder, when combined with water, becomes a creamy consistency, which was a lovely surprise. We like the scent and the ‘forever’ bottle that comes with the first purchase that we can reuse over and over again. Of course, the powder format also reduces carbon footprint from shipping — liquid is just so much heavier.
Its a STRONG BUY! We really loved the experience of using Evolved by Nature’s Hand Soap. It smelled incredible, felt amazing on our hands (they really do feel more moisturized after!) and you really can’t beat this price. This product is really a win-win in almost every regard. This will likely be our go-to non-foaming hand soap from now on!
We really like using Meliora’s foaming refillable hand soap - it’s a buy from us! The soap is super concentrated, light-weight and comes in unscented as well as a few scented options like Lavender, Lemongrass, and Tea Tree. The packaging is plastic-free and the soap is also palm oil-free. We have loved Meliora’s Laundry detergent ❤️ in the past and now we can buy the hand soap concentrate all in the same shipment! Plus, it is made in the USA.
Ethique, as a company, is pretty great - a b-corporation with zero plastic packaging who plants trees and donates portions of their sales. Additionally, their ingredients tend to be limited, with mostly natural and those that have low impact on the environment. We loved their solid shampoo and solid face cleanser. We liked their solid conditioner bar and their zero waste deodorant. If we’re using them at night, we don’t mind the solid face and body moisturizers, but the thickness of them are just a bit much for daytime.
NOT a haul we recommend. The recycled loofah was a highlight, but unfortunately not enough for the whole haul. We liked using almost everything in this haul (zero waste dish soap, natural sponges, laundry sheets, laundry sheet), but we were confused at the hand soap sheets. Moreover, many items were on the pricey side - the biggest reason for our overall no recommendation
BUY. Soap Sense Foaming Soap Tablets are easy to use and smell great, thanks to essential oils. Made with limited ingredients, they drastically reduce the amount of plastic due to their compact size. Additionally, they are cruelty-free and paraben-free, and big plus for carbon emissions: made in the USA. Lastly, Soap Sense is one of the cheapest hand soaps when bought in subscription or bulk (the packages are super tiny, about 5” high!)
BUY: While Habitat Botanicals has the Buy One, Get One Free Daily Essentials kit, we recommend a BUY on the set! This way, you would get to try out all of the individual products and get a flavor for what you like! If you want to go down the individual route, we would recommend the zero waste shampoo, conditioner, and vegan deodorant. While the body wash was nice to use, it’s a bit pricy (not as pricey as liquid body wash though), as is the lip balm.
It’s ok. Puracy Natural Baby Shampoo and Body Wash is a decent refill option. The scent is derived from essential oil and very light. As a body wash, it works ok and the ingredients do not contain sulfates, parabens, or SLS. However, it’s a little knotty-feeling as an adult shampoo. Price wise it is on the expensive side but another pro is the reduction in plastic with the refill bag.
ITS A BUY! If you are in the market for an eco-friendly liquid body soap that smells AMAZING and reasonably priced, Bathing Culture’s Mind & Body Wash checks all the boxes! While still more expensive than most bar soap options (and heavier to ship), we appreciate that it is a concentrated formula that comes in a refillable, 100% recycled plastic bottle (no new plastic is used). We also love that Bathing Culture is a carbon neutral brand!
No. We just cannot. While we think it’s a clever option for traveling, and the technology of the dissolvable sachet is super cool, Plus Body Wash is a no for us. The product requires using dry (!) hands to open up the sachet as well as a high price point. Leaping Bunny certified, paraben-free, phthalate-free, and sulfate-free, this zero-waste body, very eco-conscious wash also has a nice scent. Maybe it’s a good travel option?
We love these soaps, they are beautiful, zero-waste and smell heavenly. However, Splendor’s sandlewood rose coconut oil soaps are definitely on the more expensive side — but we think it’s worth it to use for the relaxing scent and the palm oil free status! Keep in mind though, that the most expensive bar of soap is still cheaper than bottled liquid soap — and plastic free.
Its a buy! We really loved the experience of using Puracy’s natural liquid gel hand soap. We liked that the consistency wasn’t too thick (easy to refill) and that the scent is relatively light. Most importantly, we appreciate that this is a sulfate free soap that is naturally derived and biodegradable. The packaging is also generally great — large refill bag means less shipments (less carbon footprint) and the very small spout makes refilling super simple (no mess!). Our biggest complaint - the plastic pouch isn’t really recyclable as it is labeled at a “7” 😔
BUY Gelo Hand Soaps. On a price comparison basis, it is cheaper than drugstore brands. The plastic bottle is ok, maybe you have your own bottle - that’s ok too. The Gelo refills offer a more earth-friendly option that minimizes plastic and emissions by using lightweight pods that make foaming hand soap refills. The ingredients are cruelty-free, phthalate-free, SLS-free and paraben-free. Note: unless getting the Clear, Clean, and Dye free option, the Gelo soaps do contain essential oil fragrance. Additionally, the pods are wrapped in PVOH, which dissolves in water but we are optimistically cautious - as we haven’t seen strong impartial research on this. Finally, the scent is lovely, but contains essential oil fragrance unless you go for the clean, clear option which is both fragrance-free and dye-free.
Sadly, NOT a buy, only based on price. The ingredients are good and ease of using Forgo is fabulous. The scent is light, which we would have appreciated a little bit more of. We love the glass bottle and we are glad we bought it — we just know it was a bit of a splurge.
It’s a buy! Overall we have had great experience with Simplici’s Lemongrass & Calendula Bar Soap — it smells INCREDIBLE, and we appreciate that the bars are on the larger and longer-lasting side. Not to mention, it’s palm-oil free, which can be hard to find. It’s ever so slightly more expensive than other bars, but it’s not significant enough to detract us from repurchasing! Plus, we love that it comes in a pack of 6.
NOT a buy. Petal’s Zero Waste Hand Soap cost is a bit too high for hand soap. We really like that it is zero waste and truly eliminates a lot of carbon emissions by being so lightweight. Additionally, we enjoy the light scent that relies on natural essential oil.
Verdict: Maybe. If you want to subscribe to the brand/really like byHumankind, then the Blood Orange Bergamot Body Wash bar is a good option. Overall, we like the byHumankind’s mission of reducing plastic waste and limiting ingredients. Unfortunately, at $15 per bar, this is the most expensive body wash bar we’ve reviewed thus far — but even then, byHumankind is cheaper than the cheapest liquid body wash when you calculate it on an annual basis.
BUY. We love Seventh Generation as a company and love many of their great products — including the powdered hand wash. We like that it doesn’t dry out hands and you only need a little sprinkle to get clean. The one drawback is that you need both hands to use the canister, unlike soap pumps (we may be spoiled here). We look forward to Seventh Generation’s upcoming refills for their products since the price will come down even further, while keeping the same canister.
