This is a topic I’ve been thinking about for a while, but has certainly been more prominent in my mind since isolation began and I can’t get a haircut. Finding eco-friendly hair accessories is just not that easy. Even if you want to put your hair up into a simple pony tail you’ll struggle to find hair ties that don’t contain plastic in some form. Standard hair grips, also known as kirby grips or bobby pins, are normally made of metal but often have a plastic coating over the metal, meaning they’re not that great for the environment. However, I’ve been on a search and have found some eco-friendly hair accessories that can be used to improve our isolation hairstyles.
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Eco-Friendly Hair Accessories To Buy (or make)
Plastic Free Hair Ties
Hair ties, or bobbles, are incredibly useful! I use them every single day, but they seem to disappear into thin air after a while which is not great if they contain plastic. For wildlife, discarded hair ties can look like food, and they also won’t biodegrade very quickly.
There are very few companies selling plastic free hair ties and the ones that are for sale are a little pricey. It can be argued that the extra expense is worth it when you’re trying to reduce the plastic in your life.
Kooshoo sell organic plastic free hair ties in a variety of different colours. For example you can buy a set of just black or brown, a set of really colourful ones, or a mixture.
They look thicker than usual hair ties but they’re made from organic cotton and natural rubber – both 100% biodegradable – and come with 100% plastic free packaging as well.
Alternatively you can buy ‘Nobbles‘, that are plastic free hair ties handmade entirely from GOTS certified organic cotton & natural rubber.
Scrunchies
Be honest, did you think scrunchies were a still a thing? Maybe I’m just old but I haven’t seen anyone wearing a scrunchie for years. Are they fashionable again?
Nevertheless if you do like to use scrunchies then Kooshoo sell plastic free ones made from organic cotton and natural rubber. Like their hair ties the packaging is also 100% plastic free.
Again, they’re a little pricey and you have less choice available to you in the colour department than you do with their hair ties; I do like the muted colours they sell though.
Plastic Free Hair Grips
As far as I can tell plastic free hair grips don’t currently exist, unless these vintage 1940’s kirby grips are plastic free (which they appear to be). If they exist elsewhere then google is not yet aware of them. If you know of any company that sells plastic free hair grips please let me know and they’ll be added here.
Hair Slides / Clips
There are lots of hair slides and hair clips around which appear to be plastic free, however I’m not yet 100% sure that they are. I’ve contacted both Boots and Superdrug to ask whether their metal hair clips have a plastic coating, Superdrug didn’t know and Boots haven’t yet got back to me. As soon as I can get into one of the shops to check the packaging I’ll hopefully be able to confirm that.
But check out these metal hair clips and slides that I’ve found on Etsy. There are loads of different styles to check out, I particularly love the vintage flower grips pictured below.
Headbands
Whether you use headbands to keep your hair away from your face while you wash it, or you wear them for fashion, it’s not easy to buy an eco-friendly version. Most shop bought headbands will contain elastic, which will not always be eco-friendly, or be made from materials that are not environmentally friendly.
If you want a headband, the best option is to make one. The easiest way to make an eco-friendly headband is to use a piece of material that you already own and tie it at the back. Or get a few pieces of leftover materials and braid them as shown in the picture from Etsy. Get creative, use different kinds of materials, dig out your sewing kit and make something awesome!
To be fair it is possible to buy eco-friendly elastic and that might be one of the best things to purchase if you want to make your own headband and are a little skilled at being crafty.
I’ve also found some patterns for crocheted headbands. I’ll be honest, most of them I wouldn’t even consider making as they’re really not me, but there are so many patterns included that if you know how to crochet you’re bound to find one you like.
Other Eco-Friendly Hair Accessories & Things
You can’t really talk about hair without talking about hairbrushes. I thought I’d find it hard to find plastic free hairbrushes as I assumed all the bristles were likely to be nylon; I was wrong! Both &Keep and the Ethical Superstore have 100% wooden hairbrushes for sale. Yes even the pins (not bristles) are made from wood. Wooden combs are extremely easy to find in loads of zero waste shops.
Make sure to check out Eco-Friendly Hair Care for a range of eco-friendly hair dyes, shampoos, hair brushes and hairsprays.
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