Organic to Green: ReThink Beauty, ReUse Glass
Organic to Green is taking a new approach to environmental responsibility. This line of organic skincare products has put aside the conventional mass produced plastic cosmetic packaging and has chosen a more eco-friendly option.
Rianna Loving, creator of Organic to GreenTM, has been busy! The time and hard work she’s put into developing her line is obvious. Not only are the products a delicate balance of her high quality organic ingredients but she’s put her creativity to use on her product’s packaging as well. She’s reusing glass bottles. The idea of using glass bottles isn’t new but she’s not just using glass, she’s ReUsing it.
While researching options for how to package her products, Rianna found that there were few “green” options available. This started her thinking and she began looking into alternative forms of packaging. That’s when she began the community program, ReUse Glass Bottles. This program takes donations of common glass bottles and then cleans, sanitizes, and sterilizes them so they are able to be reused.
Let’s take a moment to clarify. What is the difference between reusing and recycling? Though recycling comes in many forms, when most of us use the word “recycle” we think of taking one item and breaking it down to make another item. It’s a broad use of the word and is sort of like when you refer to all soda as Coke or all tissue as Kleenex. Recycling comes in various forms and though the previously mentioned process that begins with us putting our trash into the blue bin rather than the trash is very important, this form of recycling uses a certain amount of energy to complete this process.
Reusing just takes human energy, good old elbow grease. Reusing takes items, such as glass bottles in this case, and gives them new life. www.ReUseGlassBottles.com was established to encourage others to reuse as well. Various businesses and restaurants have shown interest in reusing this glass for their own products just as Rianna has done with Organic to Green and the proceeds from this program go toward various well-established environmental charities or organizations.
Aside from being eco-friendly, this reused glass packaging offers a very unique look for the Organic to Green line. Your standard, boring soap pump will be replaced by a brightly labeled beer bottle. It also offers variety since the packaging will depend on what has been donated to the program. Though they try to keep products in similar bottles if possible, mainly to avoid consumer confusion, it is possible that you will see the same product on the shelf in two or three different bottles, the label on the outside and the products on the inside being the common denominators.
The company also reuses when it comes to shipping their products. Whenever possible, boxes are reused from other shipments, the “filler” that wraps and protects the products inside is mainly from shredded paper donated by a local office, and they try to use minimal packaging with each order. In short, they are doing all they can to supply you with quality products while keeping “green.”
Rianna’s unique idea is starting to generate some local buzz around the hip and “green” west coast. She will no doubt soon be finding herself with a long line of top boutiques knocking at her door.
To see a the full line of Organic to Green products, visit their website at www.organictogreen.com where you will see ANOTHER green option, refills! These allow you to extend the life of your bottles even further and also reduce packaging for shipping. And, if you’re in the Venice, California area and are interested in donating to the ReUseGlassBottles program, or you’d like to learn more about it, go to www.reuseglassbottles.com.