9 Beauty Tips + Life Hacks from Eco Goddess Sophia Bush

1. Swap out plastic food wraps and containers for more sustainable options.

Plastic wraps and containers are another big environmental “don’t,” Kellogg says. Instead, opt for reusable beeswax wraps to preserve your food and invest in reusable, plastic-free containers and silicone bags instead of plastic ones to store food.

This especially comes into play during meal prep when you’re packing lunches, Kellogg adds, which is often the most wasteful meal of the day when it comes to using disposables.

2. Be a beauty product minimalist.

Kellogg is a proponent of keeping a “capsule collection” of versatile staple beauty products, and she employs a “one in, one out” rule with all of her makeup and other products, so everything gets used to capacity before she buys something new. If she decides she isn’t a fan of a certain shade or type of product, she gifts it to a friend to try out rather than pitching it.

3. Reduce the number of items used in your beauty routine.

It’s important to keep down the number of disposables you’re using in your skincare and beauty routine. “Put toner in a spray jar, and spray it on your face that way instead of using a cotton pad,” suggests Kellogg as one example. “It doubles the life of your toner, too.”

There are also easy opportunities for upcycling used beauty products, such as cleaning off and donating old mascara wands to help care for wildlife. Another great hack for reducing beauty disposables is opting for bars of soap rather than bottled products. Brands like Lush, Kitsch, and Brixycarry shampoo bars, conditioner bars, and body wash bars that omit plastic containers for eco-friendly, recyclable packaging.

4. Make your toilet into a bidet.

“The number one thing I can recommend in your bathroom is getting a bidet attachment for your toilet," Kellogg says. "They help cut down on how much toilet paper you’re wasting, which for the average American is about three rolls a week.”

Getting the attachment is a financial and environmental investment, but it can even be more sanitary than toilet paper. If you do want to supplement with toilet paper, make sure you buy rolls made from recycled content or cardboard-less rolls.

5. Rethink your menstrual products.

You can’t stop your period from coming, but you can make more eco-friendly choices in dealing with it. Some people choose a menstrual cup, reusable cloth pads, or period underwear, but another solid option is a reusable tampon applicator and organic cotton tampons (not the standard kind, which contains other materials like rayon), which can actually be composted!

6. Always buy lonely bananas.

Did you know that many grocery stores and markets throw away single bananas detached from a bunch at the end of each night? This is a huge environmental bummer, and it massively contributes to food waste and food insecurity.

“Bananas have a high carbon footprint, because many of them aren’t grown in the US,” Kellogg explains. There’s nothing at all wrong with a single banana, so you should buy them instead of letting them go to waste, she says. And when you do pick up produce, bring your own mesh produce bags or canvas totes to eliminate the need for single-use plastic grocery bags.

7. Brew your own tea.

Tea bags are one of those surprising items that actually contain microplastics, which then gets in our tea, and then in our bodies, Kellogg says. Brewing your own loose-leaf tea with reusable infusers is healthier for you and for the planet — and with the option to perfectly customize the blend, it can be even tastier, too.

8. Find creative ways to cook with food scraps.

Ideally, we should waste no part of the ingredients that we’re cooking with, especially if they’re plants (many leaves, stems, and greens of fruits and vegetables are edible and can be incorporated into recipes — though there are a few notable exceptions, so be sure to Google first). To make a flavorful vegetable stock in your slow cooker, Kellogg recommends using the skins of onion and garlic.

9. Enforce a 30-day clothing buy delay on yourself.

“Put a 30-day hold on anything you’re eyeing and feel like you want to buy — separate yourself from the feeling of wanting the item,” advises Kellogg. Marketers can really trap us and get us to spend money in stores or on their sites, but fast fashion and its processes, in particular, are hugely detrimental to the environment.

“If you feel like the piece is an investment for your closet, that you’ll get many wears out of, then purchase it,” Kellogg says. If not, shop secondhand at the thrift store, make use of clothing rental sites like, or swap clothes with friends!

10. Rethink your trash.

If you aren't in a great position to compost, but still want to do more than just throw your food scraps away, check out Mill. Every member receives a Mill kitchen bin that dries and grinds kitchen scraps overnight to turn your banana peels, pizza crusts, and egg shells into food grounds, which can be sent back to farms instead of going into the landfill. The best part is that it can take the meat and dairy your compost bin can't, you only have to empty it every couple of weeks, and you don't have to deal with stinky trash anymore!

11. Donate your clothes and household items to charities.

Once you’ve decided what does and doesn’t spark joy in your home, think twice before dumping bags off at a large donation center or thrift shop – where you don’t exactly know what will be done with the items, Kellogg says.

Be especially wary of curbside collection boxes, which often belong to for-profit organizations that ship the clothes overseas, where they flood the market, reducing demand for local craftspeople. These shipped textiles often end up in the ocean, too, harming the environment.

Reselling your clothes is a smart option, plus Kellogg suggests that you “try to find a specific charity for the specific pieces you have,” such as an organization that collects gently used prom dresses or interview-appropriate clothing for those in need.

30 Sustainability Challenges For April

• Use stainless steel straws: Instead of throwing away plastic straws, invest in a set of stainless steel straws. That way, you can use, wash, and repeat!
• Shop with a reusable bag: Bring your own tote bag to the grocery store instead of taking home a paper or plastic bag.
• Text yourself receipts: At coffee shops and boutiques, pick the "text me" option to prevent yourself from throwing away a paper receipt.
• Read a sustainability book by a WOC: Learn about sustainability from an expert or someone who lives a zero-waste lifestyle.
• Wash on the cold water cycle: Cold water in the washing machine uses up less energy, and it's actually better for delicates and dark colors than hot water.
• Shop second-hand: Grabbing something another person has already used prevents those items from ending up in a landfill *and* cuts down on fast fashion production. Check out our Beginner's Guide To Thrift Stores for more inspo!

• Choose sustainable fashion: If you do want to grab something new, instead of shopping from fast fashion retailers, purchase any items you may need from a sustainable fashion brand like Sézane, Reformation, MATE the Label, Marine Layer, Girlfriend Collective, or others.
• Buy seasonal produce: Buying produce in season means you're cutting down on the energy costs of long-distance shipping. There's a good chance it'll be cheaper *and* you'll be supporting local farmers.
• Get a reusable water bottle: Ditch the single-use plastic bottles in favor of a reusable bottle that will last you at least a few years.
• DIY oat milk in a glass bottle: Oat milk is surprisingly simple to make. DIY it yourself and store it in a glass bottle to cut down on your trash.
• Follow a sustainability activist: If you're active on social media, find a sustainability activist that will offer some inspo and tips + tricks every time you get on your phone.
• Buy a menstrual cup/reusable period products: There are tons of reusable period products to pick from, from menstrual cups to period underwear. In addition to being kinder to your body, they're more sustainable and way cheaper in the long run.

• DIY beauty products: Make DIY face mask or sprinkle a mix of cocoa powder and corn starch on your roots in lieu of dry shampoo.
• Shop in store: While online shopping from the comfort of your couch is easy, head to the store to save yourself from dealing with the paper, tape, and cardboard boxes your shipments will come in.
• Upcycle out-of-style clothing: Cut the ankles of your skinny jeans and add printed fabric for one-of-a-kind upcycled wide-leg pants. Embroider a top to make it feel more you, or make a quilt out of all the old camp shirts you don't wear but can't part with.
• Go on an experience date: Instead of getting takeout or grabbing coffee, go on a walk or browse a museum with one of our Affordable Date Ideas.
• Grocery shop in bulk: Products like nuts, frozen foods, and canned goods can be bought in bulk, which is both cheaper in the long run and less wasteful than a bunch of pre-packaged bags.
• Turn off the A/C and cool your home passively: Cut down on your electric bill by using passive methods to cool a room. All you have to is close your curtains during hours of bright sunlight to avoid heating the air inside your space. Then open up your windows at night to let the cool air in!

You'll Love These Sustainability Hacks For 2024

• Use empty candle jars as decor: Candles these days are so cute — turn the jars into decor to store your makeup brushes or even Hershey kisses!
• Turn the lights off: When you leave a room, turn the lights off to prevent unnecessary waste. You can also try and keep the lights off until the sun sets. Your wallet will thank you!
• Carpool: Hop in the car with a friend or family member to save gas money, take up less room in a parking lot, and cut down on gas emissions.
• Use reusable utensils: Besides the fact that reusable utensils cut down on waste, you can also get them in super cute colors. That's a win-win in our book.
• Bike or walk around town: If you're able, ditch your car entirely and bike or walk all over town instead! Work out and run errands at the same time.
• Compost food scraps: Everyone can compost, even if you live in a tiny apartment! Compost egg shells, banana peels, and coffee grounds. They'll breakdown naturally instead of sitting in landfill and they make for a great addition to garden soil. If you live in a big city, chances are there's a composting service you can sign up for to take away your scraps at the end of each week.

• Use Tupperware/silicone baggies: With alternatives like glass storage containers and silicone bags, you'll never need to throw away a plastic bag again.
• Sew worn-out clothes: Just because your toe is peeking through your sock or you have a hole in your shirt doesn't mean you have to get rid of it! Check out our online sewing class or Google a few beginner's tips to fix them yourself.
• Get a library card: Instead of ordering books from Amazon, get a library card! Plus, you won't have to find a place to keep all your books.
• Go vegetarian/vegan: A vegan or vegetarian diet uses up a lot less water than a meat-eating diet. Even making two vegan recipes a week can help the environment, and might just have a positive effect on your health too!
• Save all your errands for one drive: Instead of driving out multiple times in a few days, figure out all of the places you need to go, figure out the best route, and do it in one go.
• Get shampoo bars:Shampoo bars are a way to cut down on shampoo plastic bottles while still keeping your hair clean.

What is Maybelline Superstay Matte Ink used for?

Anyone can say that their lipstick is THE BEST, but that's not always true. So, what's the tea on the Super Stay Matte Ink formula? According to the brand's notes on Amazon, here's what you can expect to this lipstick to do:

• Glide on easily because of the "unique arrow application"
• Provide a "perfectly matte" finish
• Remain "smudge-free" for up to "16 hours"

It sounds like a lot of fluff if you've never tried the formula before, so I scrolled through the comment section to see what other customers think.

What are other customers saying about it?

Most of the customer reviews I read through on Amazon are extremely thorough so here are the ones that stood out the most:

• "I am really hooked on this lipstick! It's very long wearing and it's super gentle on my lips...Let me address some common complaints among other reviewers and why I think they're wrong...Oil takes this stuff off quite easily, so do some makeup wipes...Secondly, I do agree that this product is very sticky. I have found that I can put my Mac lipgloss on over top and now it's not sticky anymore!"
• "I’ve purchased this longevity wand type lipstick a few times and I like the texture and staying power. Sometimes I put another glossy lipstick over if it seems drying however it stays very nicely for the day."
• "This is my first time purchasing this brand. When I say it last all day, it doesn't come off until you take it off! Some might see this as bothersome, but having it stay on until I need it off is the greatest thing."
• My Favorite Review: "I put it on at around 3:30 pm and fell asleep with it on cause it was a busy night, it was still on the next morning. I had to use multiple makeup remover wipes and wash my face with a good makeup remover to get it off."

My Review For Maybelline Superstay Matte Ink Lipstick

I used to be terrified of wearing 'nude' lip colors because I thought they would be too much of a contrast against my complexion, but watching a few YouTube tutorials nipped my fear in the bud. I make the 'Seductress' shade work for me by lining my lips with a dark brown liner. Once I did that, I immediately fell for the way it looks on me. It's to the point where I actually can't stop wearing lip combo — it's so easy to apply and takes less than two minutes to set!

How long does Maybelline Superstay Matte Ink Lipstick last?

Before I started applying gloss over my nude lip combo, I wanted to test two very important things:

1. If this matte lipstick could pass the smudge-proof test. I've tried other brands, and they haven't always stayed in place — especially when eating or drinking something — so I was skeptical.
2. How long it actually lasts, smudge-proof or not. I mean, who among us hasn't gotten home after an evening out to find their lipstick basically nonexistent?

Like one of the customer reviews suggests, this lipstick has come off a little while eating things like pasta or pizza, so it's not 100% "smudge-free." Given that, I only had to reapply this lipstick once throughout an 8-hour day — which isn't a huge deal to me because it takes less than 30 seconds to reapply it. The best way I get it to stay put is by applying lip gloss and a teeny amount of setting spray over it.

Maybelline Super Stay Matte Ink Lipstick

Lately, I've even been adding the Maybelline Lifter Gloss in the shade 'Stone' as a way to truly lock in the color. It highlights the 'Seductress' shade of the Maybelline Super Stay Matte Ink Lipstick which is a huge plus for me.

For less than $12, I think it's absolutely worth buying multiple times!

More Best Drugstore Lipsticks

The Lip Bar Vegan Matte Liquid Lipstick

When I'm in the mood for a universal red lipstick that has the best color payoff, I always turn to The Lip Bar's 'Bawse Lady.' She's a gorgeous blue-red that highlights all undertones without making anyone looked washed out.

Revlon Colorstay Limitless Matte Lipstick

I discovered Revlon's Colorstay formula while browsing for a deeper lipstick for fall and it does not disappoint! It's another vegan product that has triple hyaluronic acid and upcycled cranberry extract in it so it literally feels like you're not wearing anything on your lips!

Milani Color Fetish Matte Lipstick

The word 'Fetish' may be off-putting, but don't write this lipstick off because of the name — ha! I typically wear this when I don't want to wait for a liquid lipstick to dry. It's super velvety and also contains hyaluronic acid in it to help keep lips moisturized.

Nyx Professional Makeup Smooth Whip Matte Lip Cream

Last but not least, Nyx has never let me down in the lip department before. If I'm truly shopping on a budget, I'll reach for the Smooth Whip Matte Lip Cream because it glides on my lips like butter. That's not to say I know what it feels like to rub butter all over my lips, but you get what I mean! It's soft and has a gorgeous color payoff that makes me feel like it's comparable to the best lipstick I swear by.