The Planet just got Super Weird… Let’s Make it Shine
Taking the litter out of glitter.
Photo via: @bioglitz
Glitter…one of our all time favorite products is part of the long-list of things that seriously pollute the planet. It may seem innocently fabulous, but its composition of petroleum-derived micro-plastics has been acting as a silent pollutant; mainly because it is found everywhere: makeup, fashion, toys, furniture, cars, sporting goods, etc. There is no industry that hasn’t used this chemical in at least one of its products.
Fortunately for us — glitter lovers, Saba Gray and Rebecca Richards have a brilliant solution. In 2015 they founded BioGlitz, a plant-based biodegradable glitter company that takes the litter out of glitter. We reached out to this sparkly duo to know more about their fearless sustainable approach against this global issue.
Rebecca, we admire that from a very young age, you and Saba got interested in sustainability. Can you tell us more about your background, fellowships and what led you here?
Thank you! Well, I grew up shopping in thrift stores and at flea markets, so pretty much everything I have ever owned is secondhand. However, it wasn’t necessarily because I was thinking about sustainability but I just really loved being surrounded by unique objects with their own sense of history. When I met Saba in New York in 2014 she was working in sustainable fashion, and through our friendship she helped me realize how much of what I believed about the preciousness of objects and the importance of living in a diverse and varied landscape, as opposed to the monotonous one of mass consumption, were in fact very aligned with sustainability ethics and theories.
With that in mind, what learnings and experiences have you implemented while creating Bioglitz?
We have learned a lot from creating BioGlitz. From small things, like how difficult it is to find truly sustainable cosmetic packaging, to big things, like learning to constantly push ourselves and find creative solutions to problems that arise, so we can create the colorful & shiny future of our dreams.
Why did you choose glitter?
We are very self expressive people, always playing with fashion and decorating ourselves extravagantly. So of course, glitter is a staple in our looks. We would also bring fanny packs full of glitter to share with everyone we met, a surefire way to make new friends.
The more glitter we shared, the more we realized its power. With the help of shine, people begin to let their guard down, open up, and allow themselves to live in the present moment.
Just as we began to realize the beauty of this substance, we also realized the danger in it as traditional glitter is made of micro-particles of plastic, which are extremely harmful to our environment. I vividly remember one day being on the dance floor at a silent disco with Saba and she looked at me, her eyes wide and bright, and said “I know what I need to do with the rest of my life. I need to make biodegradable glitter.” It was the best idea I had ever heard, and I knew then I was in for a fun ride. Thus BioGlitz was born!
What is the process behind every shiny bottle?
BioGlitz is biodegradable glitter, derived from plants, so it can do no harm to our planet. While regular glitter is derived from petroleum-based plastic, Glitz is derived from eucalyptus plant cellulose pressed into a thin film. Natural cosmetic pigments as well as 0.1% aluminum are added for the color and for the shine. The film is then cut precisely into various particle sizes, thus creating our cosmetic-grade collection of Glitz. We offer an eco-friendly, waste-free solution to the seemingly harmless shiny micro- plastics that are in reality deteriorating our planet. We are here to encourage a shining future, free of plastic.
We put so much love into every little Glitz pot! Our team spends hours playing with every color, creating unique blends until we find the perfect ratio.
How has it been for you two to get involved and put your spark in an industry that can be perceived as boring or flat?
It has been such a gift to share Glitz with the world and see how it makes people excited to talk about sustainability, as well as confident to be unapologetically themselves. The world of sustainable cosmetics and fashion tends to be very neutral, earth toned, and doesn’t necessarily allow for creative self-expression. We live to change that and to keep exciting our customers, bringing positive energy to their days through shine, as well as inspiring them to take action in their daily life to combat climate change in new and innovative ways.
We know some brands use greenwashing to attract consumers. What are the challenges you’ve faced during the creation of a really sustainable brand?
Greenwashing is extremely unfortunate because it takes advantage of people’s very earnest desire to live more sustainably. There is so much complexity that goes into creating a truly sustainable product, from the materials used in packaging, shipping, manufacturing, as well as ethical labor practices.
To expect every single customer to do exhaustive research on every aspect of a company and ensure they are doing due diligence is not very practical, so oftentimes customers rely on the companies they buy from to be honest when they claim to be sustainable, which we know is often not the case.
We have even been told by employees of a prominent glitter brand that they are trained to say their glitter is “degradable”, which confuses customers who do not know the very important difference between “degradable” and “biodegradable” (all plastic is technically “degradable”). So, for us it is a constant challenge to communicate these important differences to our customers, but we feel it is necessary to help educate so that we can all be less fooled by greenwashing.
We know glitter is used in many different industries. Are you planning to expand the use of your eco-glitter in other ones besides beauty?
Yes, we just launched our new Textile Glitz for glitter application onto clothing which we are very excited about. There is so much plastic glitter being printed onto textiles throughout the fashion industry, so offering a sustainable alternative we hope will lead to a significant decrease in micro-plastic pollution.
Your plans include creating more biodegradable beauty products? Which ones?
Yes, we plan to keep experimenting and working with cosmetic labs to create the best and shiniest sustainable products. One product we recently created is a Glitz Glu, an algae-based application gel for Glitz.
We can see you’ve had so much fun in your glitter experiences! Can you tell us your favorite one?
It is so hard to pick just one, BioGlitz has taken us to amazing events all over the world. I will say that walking in the Pride parade in New York City was a moment that we will never forget. It was amazing to be covered in Glitz, surrounded by beautiful loving rainbow humans just dancing their hearts out. It was the dream, really.
What are the glitter-trends you can see in your consumers all around the world?
Well, we started BioGlitz by mostly doing full-body Glitz editorials because we are maximalists, so it sorts of became our signature look. We see more and more of our customers wanting to recreate that, which we love! Everyone should cover their entire body in Glitz at least once in their life.
If you could make the collaboration of your dreams, how would it be like? Great question! It would be a dream come true to collaborate with my favorite designers on making really avant-garde, sustainable, shiny clothes, like Vivienne Westwood and Rei Kawakubo.
In this ever-changing world, full of e-commerce, online experiences and long-distance partnerships, what do you think sustainable brands (and of course Bioglitz) can do to keep connected and relevant to their consumers?
To be honest, it has been a bit challenging for us to find ways to stay connected to our customers in the age of COVID-19 because so much of what we do happens in person, hosting Glitz Activations at events. Though we feel very lucky to have the digital sphere to stay connected during these very isolating times. Since this will be our new normal for a while, I think all sustainable brands need to get creative about their digital communication. For us, we are looking forward to creating editorials and short films to share with our customers.
How do you see Bioglitz changing the way things work in the years to come?
We hope to inspire change by being a model of sustainability in every aspect. The beauty and fashion industries have remained stagnant for too long. Marketing targets consumers by pressuring them to believe that they need certain products to be adequate and fit in according to societal standards, and such products are often made of toxic chemicals, tested on animals, and produced by exploited workers.
BioGlitz stands in opposition to this entire system. We call attention to how this devaluation of the earth is inextricably linked to the oppression of humans, especially women, people of color, and queer communities.
By using Glitz as our tool for empowerment and social change, we strive to inspire fundamental change within the fabric of society so that we can collectively start to view life, our planet, and each other as sacred, deserving of protection and celebration!
Photo via: @bioglitz
Since their journey began, success has been shining alongside them. After Saba’s first casual post on Facebook they reached 40K hits on Shopify and the rest became history. In just 5 years they have been dazzling stages of music festivals, decorating Malibu parties, they have been a part of the “Glitz Activations” in LA, collaborating with Red Bull for Pride and exhibiting at the Copenhagen Fashion Summit. Within the Earth conscious communities even parents are choosing this product above regular store-bought glitter for their kids.
Their whole ethos revolves around creating magical playful experiences without harming the Planet. There is no doubt that glitter brings people together and we are thrilled to know there is a glittery colorful duo out there inviting us to be a part of their eco-glitter gang.