When it comes to recycling our makeup and cosmetics, many of us are falling short. It’s all too easy to chuck those broken compacts, clumpy mascaras and half-empty lipstick tubes straight into the bin.

• Mac Lipstick Sale
• Mac Cosmetics Recycling Program

MAC Cosmetics takes great pride in producing the finest quality prestige makeup products. Consumers can be assured that by shopping at one of our authorised retail partners, they are purchasing genuine MAC products. Please call 1800 613 828 if you have further questions. Buy skin care, makeup and cosmetics from MAC Cosmetics. Shop our full line of custom-fit skin care, makeup & fragrance products. Great skin can be created. 100% Fragrance Free. MAC Select shoppers can use the Back to MAC Tracker, which tallies every item they return. They can bring a single empty eye shadow pot one day, three dry primer bottles the next time. Once they hit six, they score the free reward. It’s just slightly discounted, to a lipstick, gloss, or eye shadow that’s $17 in value.

Every cent of the selling price of VIVA GLAM Lipstick is donated to the MAC VIVA GLAM Fund to support the health and rights of people of All Ages, All Races and All Genders. Over 25 years, MAC VIVA GLAM has raised more than $500,000,000 globally. When you’re done with six products, bring them Back-To-MAC. We recycle, you get a.

But when you consider how many cosmetic products are being sold just in the US alone – the beauty industry made over $93 billion in revenue in 2019 – that’s a lot of non-biodegradable packaging ending up in landfill. On top of this, many chemicals in cosmetics have a disastrous environmental effect when they accumulate in waterways.

Note (April 2020): Amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, many shopfronts and centres are closed to the public and may not be accepting makeup and cosmetics for recycling. However, now is a great time to do a clean out while so many of us are stuck at home! Why not put aside everything that you need to get rid of in a box or bag, and keep an eye out on the initiatives mentioned below (or any others in your local area), ready to be shipped or dropped off on the other side of the crisis?

So, what can we do about it?

While there are some brands like Lush and MAC who offer rewards for recycling their products, it’s unclear exactly where the waste ends up and how effective these programs actually are.

If you want to be sure that your old cosmetics won’t create waste, look to TerraCycle. Tom Szaky, a Princeton dropout with a passion for sustainability, founded the company in 2001. He’s managed to grow his fledgling enterprise into an innovative global recycling company! Operating in over 20 countries, TerraCycle collects and repurposes almost any kind of waste product for free.

TerraCycle has now partnered with Garnier to create a recycling program specifically for beauty products in the USA. The program is currently accepting haircare, skincare and cosmetics packaging, including shampoo and conditioner bottles and caps, hairspray caps, lotion dispensers, gel tubes, lipstick cases, mascara tubes, compacts, palettes, foundation bottles, concealer tubes and eyeliner pencils.

How does it work?

All you have to do is collect all your unwanted beauty packaging in a postage box (it doesn’t have to be clean, just make sure any excess product is removed), sign up to TerraCycle in your respective country, download and print off a shipping label for your box, then post it for free to your local recycling depot.

For donations of 10 lbs or more, each piece of waste earns two TerraCycle Points. You can redeem your points and convert them into a donation to one of TerraCycle’s nominated charities or they can go toward a non-profit organization, school or charity of your choice. So not only will you be reducing your environmental footprint, you’ll be giving back to organizations making real, positive change in the world. Sign me up!

The minimal look

At Good On You, we support initiatives looking to reduce the amount of waste ending up in landfill. However, we also believe that less is more, which is an important idea to keep in mind when shopping for cosmetics.We recommend going for quality over quantity when it comes to cosmetics. You can start by creating a shortlist of your favourite cruelty-free products. Also, keep an eye out for products that have been independently certified as fair trade or organic, and use minimal packaging. Then, purchase only what you need!

Also wondering what to do with your old clothes ?

Here’s how to get more mileage out of your clothing.

Editor's note

Mac Lipstick Sale

Feature image via Unsplash. This article was first published in May 2017, and updated in March 2020. Good On You publishes the world’s most comprehensive ratings of fashion brands’ impact on people, the planet and animals. Use our Directory to search more than 2,000 brands. We may earn a commission on sales made using our offer codes or affiliate links.

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Recyclebank

Lifestyle Reusing or recycling leftover lipstick and lipstick tubes prevents them from ending up in landfills and reduces the need for additional raw materials to manufacturer new lipsticks.

How to reuse leftover lipstick and lipstick tubes

Use your lipstick to the max by ensuring you consume every last smudge of color with these easy use-up tips:

Mac Cosmetics Recycling Program

• When your lipstick runs low, scrape out the tube and put leftover lipstick in a small container with Vaseline to create a tinted lip gloss. Add honey or vanilla for a natural and appealing fragrance!
• Scrape out several old lipstick tubes and mix them for your own custom color.
• Give used (nearly empty) lipsticks to kids for dress-up or save for Halloween makeup.
• When lipstick accidentally melts in the car or the sun, place in the freezer for a few minutes instead of throwing it away and it will reform.

And don't forget to take care of the tubes and containers! Here are some handy uses for old lipstick tubes:

• Wash and save empty lipstick cases and use as containers for pills, matches, pins, and band-aids.
• Use an empty lipstick case to carry a mini sewing kit, complete with a needle and thread, button, and pin.

Find it! Lipstick companies with eco-friendly packaging and recycling programs

Avoid the worry of what to do with old lipstick tubes by purchasing products from companies that do the recycling for you! Several cosmetics companies now accept used lipstick containers, often in exchange for free cosmetics. Others offer biodegradable eco-packaging. So, keep your lips pretty and minimize the amount of landfill waste you generate by purchasing lipsticks from these companies:

• MAC Cosmetics: This company recycles used containers for all of its cosmetic products via its Back to MAC recycling program. It offers one free MAC Lipstick for any six of its cosmetics containers returned through the mail or to any MAC Cosmetics retailer.
• CARGO Cosmetics: The company's Plant Love lipsticks not only come in biodegradable tubes, but the paper packaging is sprinkled with wildflower seeds that blossom when planted and watered.
• Lip-Ink International: Offers free lipsticks and free shipping for every four empty Lip Ink Lip Color vials returned for recycling.

Reusing and recycling leftover lipstick and lipstick tubes helps you go green because…

• It reduces the resources used for manufacturing, transporting, and producing new lipsticks.
• It minimizes the amount of lipstick that ends up in landfills or incinerators.

Every single minute, 1,484 tubes of lipstick are sold in the United States, ultimately resulting in mountains of discarded lipstick tubes that contribute to the 12 percent of solid waste that is plastic.Etcoff, Nancy (2000) Survival of the Prettiest: The Science of Beauty. Anchor: 102 Of the nearly 29 million tons of discarded plastic, only 5.7 percent is eventually recycled, compared to nearly 50 percent of paper and 22 percent of glass and aluminum that is recovered and recycled.[1]
Lipstick waste is also detrimental to the environment as most conventional brands contain petrochemicals, which deplete the earth of a nonrenewable resource, as well as pollute the environment upon disposal. Many lipsticks also contain pigments such as lead acetates and coal-tar dyes that can seep into the water and soil and alter the chemical makeup of ecosystems. Even natural or organic non-petroleum-based lipsticks create additional waste when they end up in landfills after disposal.

Glossary

• lead acetates: Highly hazardous metal compounds used in lipsticks, hair dyes, and other hair styling products, that are known carcinogenic toxins affecting human reproduction and development, the nervous system, and respiration.
• petrochemicals: Chemicals made from petroleum-based materials that are used in cosmetics products, plastics, pesticides, and foods.

External links

Footnotes

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