Plastic packaging from toiletry products to cosmetics are among the many items that are choking the oceans and piling up on landfills. About 552 million shampoo bottles are thrown away annually, and only one in five people consistently recycle items from their bathroom. Fortunately, many eco-conscious designers are working on developing new alternatives to synthetic containers to contribute in reducing the plastic footprint. Such a person who fights the good fight against plastic waste is Mi Zhou, a student at Central Saint Martins Material Futures master’s degree program. She’s smartly created bottles and jars made of soap called Soapack.
Her Soapack collection is cast from vegetable oil-based soap that melts away once they’re no longer needed. A thin layer of beeswax is used to line the bottles to make them waterproof, preventing the liquid contents from leaking.
This sustainable product is a genius, zero-waste solution to plastic packaging. Furthermore, the collection looks sophisticated and stylish. Featuring glass-like patterns and delicate stoppers, each translucent bottle is based on the shapes of classic perfume bottles.
Other than their elegant shapes, each Soapack container has been dyed using pigments from plants, flowers, and minerals resulting in soft shades of pastel gradients.
Zhou hopes that her solution will help consumers rethink how they buy their beauty products. Read more about Zhou’s project on the Central Saint Martins Material Futures catalog.
Image credits: Mi Zhou
COMMENTS