I Gave Earthlove's Ethical + Eco-friendly Subscription Box A Try
Earthlove is the ideal subscription box for someone voyaging into a more eco-conscious, ethical lifestyle. Each box is filled with six or so items with an emphasis on zero-waste packaging, fair-trade products and organic offerings. An eco-focused book also comes as an added bonus. Your Earthlove subscription gives back via 1% for the Planet and through a seasonly-selected environmental nonprofit (like Nature Bridge and The Coral Reef Alliance).
What we love: Inside each curated box, you’ll find a guide with some refreshingly positive eco-friendly tips from Dr. Serina Patterson (the founder) who also happens to be a regenerative farmer and beekeeper. You’ll also get access to a bustling facebook community of other Earthlove box subscribers.
The Earthlove box itself is made from 100% post-consumer, biodegradable cardboard. It’s printed with environmentally-friendly algae-based inks and some nifty Eco Enclose crinkle-filler.
I had a chance to interview the uplifting Dr. Patterson for more details about her beekeeping, farming lifestyle + more. The interview should be posting soon!
Not sure about your subscription? Delve into this season’s box with me to see if it’s fit for you.
Glow Juice Refining Enzyme Mask: Earth Harbor
Oh la la, I love this lavender gel! This mask is handmade in small batches by Aili, a treehouse-living, beach-loving, herbalist. I use this gel more as a spot-treatment (rather than as a full facial mask) since Earth Harbors products are hyper-concentrated (plus, this mask does have alcohol in it which tends to be a bit drying to my skin). Anyways, I dab Glow Juice as a preemptive approach to blemishes (right after washing my face) each night. It smells oh-so-aloey. This fruit enzyme mask is fair trade, ph-optimized, vegan and cruelty-free. The ingredients are 100% non-gmo. If you aren’t a fan of anything skin product with alcohol in it, you might opt for Earth Habor’s Blue Nami mask instead.
Whale Beach Tote: Gallant
This tote is both hefty and huge. Made from 100% GOTS cotton, this Earthlove + Gallant colab helps you support thrice-certified fair trade farms in India. I especially love this bag’s gussets—they are large enough to fill it with plenty of fresh produce. Hello, new grocery bag!
The Animal Lover’s Guide to Change the World: Stephanie Feldstein
This book is a breath of fresh air. Its honest, yet optimistic. No depressing doomsayer here! Fieldstein (the director of the Center for Biological Diversity) starts each chapter with an animal-focused portrait and ends it with three oh-so-doable “action alerts.” I haven’t finished the book yet (I only get a bit of reading time each night after snuggling “R” to sleep) but it’s been a fun read so far.
Moisturizing Shampoo Bar: HiBar
Vouched by TrendHunter, Forbes, and CBS, this solid shampoo bar skips plastic all together—every item of the packaging (including the tape) is compostable. It’s safe for color-treated hair (your beautiful balayage will thank you) and it’s made from 100% plant-based ingredients. Here’s how to use it: Lather the bar in your palms and then work the suds through your hair starting from the roots (blush, I had to look up instructions too, since I’m a solid shampoo newbie too). It does take a bit longer to clean your hair than typical shampoos, but IMO the Hibar will last twice as long as my typical bottled shampoo, making it worth the time-investment.
Organic Mint Tea Soda: Teatulia
This organic soda-tea is a certified B-Corp working to improve the health, education, and overall welfare of Bangladash women. Plus, Teatulia’s organic co-op garden (one of the largest in the country) was actually created from regenerated wasteland. The once-arid area is now a thriving, sacred space for some of Bangladash’s nearly-extinct animals. Each Teatulia aluminum can is recyclable. We also adore the Holi Festival-Inspired packaging. This sparkling tea is fizzy and fruity with just a subtle taste of mint.
Oatmeal Cocoa Chip Clean Cookie Bites: Sun & Swell
Made from five organic/vegan ingredients (dates, cashews, oats, cacao, cinnamon) and placed in a compostable bag. Sun & Swell’s cookies are truly delish. They remind me of some homemade date bars my sis-in-law always brings with her on roadtrips. I really should get a recipe from her and put it on the blog! Oh, anyways, the company is a Certified B Corp that also gives back 1% for the Planet.
Save our Seas Bowl Cover: Edgy Moose Designs
Curtail your clingwrap or aluminum waste with this lovely 100% unbleached GOTS organic cotton bowl cover. Designed, hand cut, and printed near the Kootenay Mountains in Canada by the lovely Rouve Humbling. Her artwork is gorgeous. I’m planning on this bowl cover to proof some spelt dough recipe, soak nuts/beans and cover sourdough starter. The cover has an elastic sewn-in that I tested on most of my medium-sized bowls. It fits 8” bowls perfectly and 10” bowls rather snugly.
Solar Eclipse Single Eye Shadow: Aether Beauty
Fair trade, organic and made from ethically sourced + certified child labor-free ingredients, this quartz-infused eyeshadow is a delight. My skin has yellowish-undertones, making the warm peachy color of the eyshadow perfectly subtle across my lid. It’s a single-color, simple eye-makeup alternative. Aether Beauty’s eyeshadow packaging (the fsc paper, soy ink and aluminum tin) is fully recyclable making it zero waste. The company was started by Tiila Abbitt (a sculpturer, fashion designer and recent head of Sephora’s product development team). Abbitt left Sephora to start her own clean + sustainable beauty line. If you have some spare time, visit Aether Beauty’s blog, each post’s corresponding artwork is stunning. The one tricky part of this eyeshadow is that I’ll probably have depot the color since I don’t currently own one of Aether’s eco friendly palettes.
Lemongrass Wearable Aromatherapy: Warm Human
I’d actually never heard of a scent balm that you can use in your hair before. It’s intriguing. Warm Human’s lemongrass essential oil balm is vegan made from candelilla wax, coconut oil, and sweet almond oil. I like that it comes in a handy slide-case and comes with instructions for blending your balm to customize your personal scent. I took a visit to Lisa’s website and I think it’s neat how she guides you selecting scents based on emotions, your chakra-needs or by note.
Waves of Change Ring: Earthlove
This stainless steel is oh-so-adjustable and wave-inspired. It’s an Earthlove original that donates 10% to the Coral Reef Alliance. It comes in a gray-ish eco-friendly bag that you can repurpose too.
Love this subscription box’s curated selection? I did too! Nothing in this box feels scrimped, it’s all oh-so-lovingly put together. Each box also comes with a beautiful mini-magazine and a card with a description of why Dr. Patterson picked each item.
Here’s a link to Earthlove’s site where you can choose from beegan or vegan offerings too.
XOXO,
Lemon
