The Refill Shoppe- A Vixen Encounter

10/9/2018

I sat down with Michelle Stevens, the owner of The Refill Shoppe to talk all things eco-friendly living. Here are her tips, tricks and even ideas for the holidays! PS- Ain't she sweet as sugar?!

I'm constantly trying to live a more eco-friendly, less toxic lifestyle. Specifically, I'm looking to reduce my footprint on our precious Mother Earth by eliminating single use plastic products from my life. It's a challenge guys cause guess what, single use plastic is SUPER CONVENIENT, it's absolutely everywhere. It's also no secret that plastic severely harming our environment, our oceans and our precious animals. Did you know that not ONE single piece of plastic that have ever been manufactured has completely biodegraded?! Plastic in the ocean turns into micro-plastic and sea creatures eat it and (if they survive being poisoned) vis-a-vis, we eat it too. YUCK.

I've been feeling myself slipping in my efforts a bit so I thought it would it be fun to collaborate with The Refill Shoppe. I wanted to get re-inspired and learn. We've got some JUICY tips from the expert, entrepreneur and VIXEN herself, Michelle! Here are a few things you should know before we get to the tips:

Michelle has owned and operated the Refill Shoppe in Ventura, CA for 8 years and fell in love with Mama Earth when she was a young girl at conservancy camp in the Everglades!
She advocates for an eco-friendly, SUP (single use plastic) free lifestyle. Not necessarily all plastic free because she believes in reusing everything! Single use is where we get into trouble, it's just too wasteful!
She wants to remind us to NEVER EAT ESSENTIAL OILS! Thy are volatile compounds and you get enough of a dose on your skin.
She has a beautiful online store if you're into shopping online.
One of the highlights of my visit was when she me my own CUSTOM SCENTED, VIXEN body lotion blend (photos below)! I even got to pick out my own essential oils (spicy of course!) and the amount of food-grade glitter (which was of course LOTS of glitter). I've been using the Trader Joe's body butter and it's FULL of toxic shit. Upgrade complete!
The holidays are coming up. Michelle is a WHIZ at creating thoughtful, custom gifts like salt scrubs and perfumes! The cutest thing ever- go in the shop and buy an empty, vintage perfume bottle for a friend. It has a little note that says this is your gift certificate and they can then head into the store to create their very own, customized scent!

Michelle's Tips:

Start small. Little changes make a big difference! Think about the SUP products you use MOST frequently and investigate a swaperoo. Is it plastic food wrap? Produce bags at the grocery store?Daily Starbucks cup with a plastic lid? Water bottles? Plastic straws? Ziplock bags? Just choose one and commit to swap it out with a better alternative. Fun fact, if you took this info to Michelle at her store, she would 1000% percent have a more eco-friendly swap for you! Also, nothing a quick google search can't help you solve!
Coffee & water. Speaking to the two BIG areas of single use plastic I mentioned above, water bottles and plastic coffee containers are not only items we use almost every day, they also make a huge impact environmentally. Simply stop buying these items, invest in a beautiful, glass water bottle (tastes so much better too!) and travel coffee mug you love! Like she mentioned above, just start with one though, until it becomes a habit.
Use up what you have. You don't have to start running around dumping all the SUP products into the trash. Use up what you have and prepare for your swap when the time comes. You can even bring your old plastic shampoo bottles, laundry detergent containers etc. to The Refill Shoppe and she'll fill them up, turning the SUP item into a reused one! Also, if you're a creature of habit and use certain household/beauty products religiously, stop in the shop and have Michelle make you custom scented dish soap, laundry detergent, dishwasher soap, bubble bath, shampoo, conditioner etc! Cleaning and beautifying will smell oh-so-sweet!
Reduce, reuse, refill, recycle- IN THAT ORDER. Did you know that only 5% of what you put into your recycle bin actually gets recycled?! Recycling, or pitching the item should be at the bottom of the list!
BYO food containers. Have you ever left a restaurant with like 3 styrofoam containers, plastic cutlery, plastic lids all wrapped in a plastic bag? I have! Michelle brings her own little bento box containers to the restaurant when she's dining out. Brilliant! She has the cutest little stainless steel ones at the store. Find something that fits into your purse and ask the server if they'd be willing to send off the leftovers in your own container.
Reduce- napkins. Most of the time, napkins aren't SUP items but they are wasteful. Invest in a set of your own washable, cloth napkins. This is especially useful when you bring your lunch to work! See? Less waste.
Body first. Our skin is out biggest organ and what we put ON it is just as important as what we put IN it. If you're not sure where to start, is there ONE part of your beauty regimen that can be naturalized? Maybe a natural shampoo bar instead of your precious Pureology?!