Plastic-free: Shampoo

They call me the Queen of Denial. Because this year is all about giving up some of my favourite things in the quest to live plastic-free for 2007. It’s like a lent-induced abstinence - for 365 days.

Case in point - my favorite shampoo of all time is Freeman Botanicals. I’m a long-time die-hard fan. I’ve even lived through three total product rebrands and one episode where it magically disappeared Jimmy-Hoffa style from the shelves for over a year. So now, when I find it, I buy it in bulk. That is, until Jan 2007, when I swore off buying anything packaged in or containing plastic.

I now live in Freeman-Denial.

Because, Freeman Botanicals, like ALL the other shampoos and conditioners in the haircare aisle comes packaged in plastic.

Sad, but true – shampoo+plastic=unholy union.

Fortunately way back in December 2006, when this no-new-plastic pledge was just a simmering thought in my higher enviro-brain, I realized I’d no longer be showering with my Freeman friend – so a non-plastic shampoo replacement was one of the first things I hunted for way back in January.

I found a non-plastic variety at LUSH, wrapped lovingly in wax-paper. LUSHGirl told me they didn’t have a conditioner though, but the particular Trichomania I picked had conditioner mixed right in. It’s steep at $11 bucks a chunk (I could buy a whole year’s supply of Freeman for that price) and from what I can tell it will probably only last a month or two. Fortunately it has performed much better than LUSH’s deodorant (which was lousy with a capital L).

On the plus-side LUSH’s shampoo produces a nice lather and leaves my hair clean.

On the minus side – towel-dried hair is like a tangled mess of straw which abandons ship when I comb it out - even with a hair pic. I may be bald by 2008. Another minus - it leaves my hair quite ‘fly-away’…and we’re not talking in a sexy kinda a way either.

Fortunately, when I dropped by the LUSH booth at the EPIC Sustainable Living Expo this weekend, I asked if they had a non-plastic conditioner (sometimes you know, it pays to ‘Ask again’) I struck LUSH gold once again. Because LUSHGirl#2 introduced me to their Jungle Hair Conditioner.

I haven’t tried it yet, but if it works as well as the shampoo, I’ll be a happy, plastic-free camper. Added bonus – it’s also entirely cruelty-free.

Gotta love the LUSH.

So here’s how things add up:

Category: Shampoo
SAINT: LUSH
Trichomania Shampoo bar
Convenience: 8/10
Price: Expensive. But mom-nature is worth it
Quality: Not as good as Freeman, but surprisingly, not bad…not bad at all
SINNER: Too numerous to mention….let’s just say ALL the shampoos and conditioners in the haircare aisle.

Lessons learned:

• Don’t take NO for an answer. They say ‘Ask and ye shall receive’ but if the first time you ask and you don’t receive…ask again.


• Eco-friendly goes hand in hand with eco-expensive. But at least in 50 years when we are all hunkering down in our eco-bunkers to get out of the tornadoes and floods, and soaring heat you can say ‘hey, it wasn’t me…’