The Multiple Benefits of Swapping Out Single-Use Cotton Pads

I don’t like to wash my face in the sink - the water runs down my arms and then either drips on the floor or on me, and I have to rinse off my face SO MANY times before it feels like all the cleanser is off. I like to wash my face in the shower, and I honestly just stick my face in the shower spray to rinse - easy! But I don’t shower in the morning, and I put on all kinds of potions at bedtime, so starting the day with a clean face is a must. I started swiping some Bioderma all over my face each morning, and it was the perfect solution. I got my face clean, and I didn’t soak myself or my bathroom in the process. But I was using a disposable cotton round every day, sometimes more than one a day, and it seemed like a wasteful act that I could easily cut out. (I wrote about this already in Wear, Watch, Want #91, if this story seems familiar.)

That light coming in from the corner is God, telling me she’s proud of my reduced consumption.

This is the part where I remind you that you should be conscious of your consumption, but you should pick your battles. I use disposable things! But my cotton round consumption was something I could end with very little effort. By the way, I used to work for an environmental NGO and would get in trouble for telling people it was PERFECTLY FINE to only make the changes in their consumption that worked for them. Listen: Some messes you really want to just clean up with paper towels and then THROW OUT. It’s fine. (I have SO MANY opinions about how many activist causes put the burden on the lowest rung of the consumption ladder but that’s for ANOTHER TIME.)

The point is, I bought reusable cotton rounds. A search of Amazon will bring up thousands of options, but I bought these ones. It’s called a 16 pack plus a laundry bag and I still don’t know if that means there are 16 cotton rounds plus a bag or 16 rounds and an added wash bag. I could count them, but I don’t care that much. The main point is that you can use one a day for two weeks before you need to wash them. I also don’t use them to remove makeup, so I don’t know if old foundation and mascara will wash off completely. How ‘bout we focus on what I DO know?

I had a little container in my medicine cabinet to hold disposable cotton rounds and I was worried these reusable ones wouldn’t fit, because they are slightly larger than disposable rounds. They fit fine, but they do have to be kind of scrunched up. I also use the Bioderma with a pump, and I find that I do have to use more pumps than with disposable cotton rounds. What I wasn’t expecting was the exfoliating quality these reusable cotton pads have. They have the texture of a very gentle terry cloth or a baby washcloth, and it’s perfect for getting any rogue flakes off, or, in my case, scraping off old vaseline and flakes from my lips in the morning. I used to use my toothbrush to get my lips looking normal in the morning, but these are a much better solution.

I put a little Command hook on the inside of my bathroom cupboard and I hang the wash bag there. I just fill it up with the used cotton rounds and then when I do a wash load of clothes I toss the bag in. (I wash all my clothes on the delicate/cold cycle). I think you can dry these, but I lay them out on my fancy schmancy drying rack. Then stack them all up and put them in the container for another round!

I thought I would switch to reusable cotton pads just to limit the amount of trash I produce every day, but it turns out I like them so much more than the Target brand disposable cotton rounds I was using. They exfoliate! They don’t disintegrate and eave cotton flakes on my face! They make me feel ever so slightly better about my consumption! They’re amazing.