I’ve written about eco-friendly hair accessories before but there are so many zero waste hair care options available these days that I thought it was about time we discussed how to keep your pride and joy looking great without causing damage to you, to animals or to the planet. I’ll discuss all aspects of eco-friendly hair care, from shampoos and conditioners, to hair brushes and hair dyes.
Anything mentioned in this article is cruelty free and mostly vegan (a few products might contain honey). I’ve also tried to avoid products with palm oil, although certified sustainable palm oil might be present.
Please note that this article contains affiliate links. I might earn a small amount of commission, at no extra cost to you, if you purchase something. This helps towards the running costs of the website.
Eco-Friendly Hair Care
Zero Waste Shampoo
Up until very recently the only option for plastic free or zero waste shampoo was to buy a shampoo bar. I’m ok with that, I like using shampoo bars but I know some people struggle with them. Fortunately there are more products now on the market that come in glass or aluminium bottles. If you request a pump then it won’t be entirely plastic free, but you’re often given the option of whether you want the pump or not.
Eco-friendly shampoos and conditioners vary greatly in price, but I feel like shampoo bars last a bit longer than bottled shampoo so don’t let a potentially high price put you off trying them out.
Shampoo Bars
Available from &Keep from £2 to £9.95
Available from The Ethical Superstore from £2.60 to £9.50
Wearth sells shampoo bars from £5.99 to £12.50
Lush sells a variety of shampoo bars for £8.00
Plastic Free Bottled Shampoo
I use shampoo bars, but it took me a while to find one I liked. Some people just don’t like them, so here are some plastic free bottled shampoos and powders you can now buy. For the glass bottles below you can choose to have a plastic pump or not. The shampoo powder is a great new product, you just add water to create a lather.
Zero Waste Shampoo
£6.95
Refillable, aluminium bottle
Organic Shampoo
£11.95
Glass bottle, aluminium cap
Shampoo Powder
£12.85
Shampoo Powder, Aluminium Bottle
Miracle Shampoo
£22
Glass bottle, aluminium cap
Vegan Shampoo
£28
Refillable, aluminium bottles
Zero Waste Conditioner
You can also buy conditioning bars and plastic free conditioners from &Keep, Wearth London and The Ethical Superstore. If you’re just looking for cruelty free, vegan shampoos and conditioners you can check out Green People and The Body Shop. Hopefully both these companies will move away from using so much plastic in the future.
Eco-Friendly Hair Dye
Every now and then I stop dyeing my hair, then the amount of grey showing freaks me out. It’s actually very difficult to find non-toxic, vegan-friendly hair dyes on the high street, but there are some out there. What you will find is they’re often semi-permanent hair dyes rather than permanent and they are normally a couple of quid more expensive as well. However, if it’s eco-friendly and it’s really not an essential item, paying a little extra doesn’t bother me.
It’s extremely unlikely that you’ll find many plastic free hair dyes (I have found one!). For a start every box contains disposable gloves, and I can’t see the plastic bottles being replaced any time soon. However these are some of the better options currently available. I’m sure more will be on the market soon.
Home Hair Dyes
Clairol Natural Instincts Semi-Permanent Hair Dye
I won’t lie, this product is not perfect, but it’s vegan and it’s made from 80% naturally derived ingredients. There is no ammonia and no added parabens. It’s not completely non-toxic but it’s far better than ordinary hair dyes.
Herbatint Permanent Hair Dye
This is much better than Clairol and it’s even a permanent hair dye. It’s been voted as ‘the least toxic hair colourant’ on the market. It’s vegan, cruelty free, has no ammonia and parabens and doesn’t contain palm oil.
Naturtint Permanent Hair Dye
Naturtint Hair Dyes are vegan, cruelty free and contain no parabens or ammonia. It doesn’t explicitly state it’s palm oil free.
Zero Waste Hair Dye
Lush actually sell hair dye bricks. These are henna hair dyes, so they’re completely natural.
What is Henna?
“Henna (Mehndi) is a dye prepared from the plant Lawsonia inermis, also known as the henna tree, the mignonette tree, and the Egyptian privet, the sole species of the genus Lawsonia.
Henna can also refer to the temporary body art resulting from the staining of the skin from the dyes. After henna stains reach their peak color, they hold for a few days, then gradually wear off by way of exfoliation, typically within one to three weeks.” – wikipedia
Vibrant Hair Dyes
if you’re brave enough to dye your hair vibrant, crazy colours – I wish I was, these companies sell some great options.
- Good Dye Young
- Arctic Fox
- Manic Panic
Salon Hair Dyes
If you’re heading to the salon there are some professional hair dye products you should ask about.
- Aveda – 93% natural ingredients.
- Paul Mitchell – 100% vegan and cruelty free.
Hair Styling
Styling my hair has never really been something I do. I wash it, let it dry naturally, sometimes comb it and then end up putting it in a ponytail. This has pretty much been my haircare routine for 46 years! I tell you this because I can’t offer any personal opinions on the styling products mentioned below.
Eco-Friendly Hair Brushes & Combs
This is definitely one of the things that I wouldn’t buy if you already own plastic based hair brushes or combs. There’s no point buying something just because it’s natural if you already own something that still does the job it was designed to do. All you’re doing is contributing more waste. However, when your hairbrush or comb needs to be replaced, that’s when to look into the plastic free options available.
- Hair Brush – Beech wood – completely wooden, even the bristles. FSC certified.
- Hair Brush – Bamboo – completely plastic free.
- Comb – Beech wood – FSC certified.
- Comb – Bamboo – completely plastic free.
As you can see it’s entirely plausible to have a zero waste hair care routine. Admittedly it’s much easier to use a little bit of plastic here and there, but if you want to be entirely plastic free you can be! Don’t forget to check out these eco-friendly hair accessories.
If you like what I do and want to support this website, you can buy me a ‘coffee’ which helps with the running costs of the website. Alternatively come and say hello on facebook, twitter or pinterest.
PIN ME
You can also use apple cider vinegar as hair conditioner (I use a couple of tablespoons in a small jug of water). I’ve been using it for roughly three years and often get comments on the how nice my hair looks, though I don’t use it every time I wash my hair as it doesn’t need it.
It takes a little getting used to smelling like salad when you get out of the shower, but once it dries it doesn’t smell at all and your hair is silky smooth.
Have you tried Naturigin hair dye? It’s a Danish brand available in the UK. They’re nice dyes and contain a lot less chemicals than other products. Hope that’s helpful! Xx
https://www.naturigin.com/
People have no idea that fast hair growth amino scalp therapy shampoos (of course with no sulfates, no parabens, no DEA) exist. We are now able to possess longer hair and have more possibilities. Undoubtedly worth checking out.
If you’re dealing with hair loss, damaged hair, preventing scalp disorders, hair growth, hair and scalp care at large, very similar ideas actualize.
Generally, you should try to avoid hair products and treatments that include chemicals like parabens, DEA and sulfates.
What’s beneficial for your hair is healthy for your skin also.
Obviously your content above is so accurate for multiple reasons. It steers away from the accustomed errors and mistakes so many fall into- using ineffective alternatives. Keep up the great content!