At the end of a long day, when it’s time to remove that smeared mascara off your face, who wants raccoon eyes from toxic single-use cotton rounds?
Not us!
We prefer to save face and save the planet (at the same time) with sustainable cotton rounds that are a key skincare tool among our sustainable beauty products.
Making the switch from single-use cotton balls to organic cotton reusable pads not only saves money, but also the environment and your youthful glow.
Disposable cotton rounds are filled with toxins, pesticides, and chemicals.
Plus they require thousands of liters of water to harvest, and have a dismal landfill-bound end of life after just one use.
By choosing to make your makeup remover pads reusable, you’re also removing waste from the process of removing makeup and exfoliating sensitive skin—preventing irritation of the planet in doing so!
Now let’s get to those rounds, shall we?!
We independently research all featured brands and we ask them to confirm their claims. In many cases we personally review recommended products. This post contains affiliate links which means we may earn a commission if you buy something. Learn more here.
Reusable Cotton Face Pads To Wipe Our Faces (& Landfills) Clean
Greenify your beauty routine with ZWS Essentials’ colorful set of cotton facial pads, which are 100% OEKO-TEX and GOTS-certified organic cotton—not to mention carbon neutral. They’re our go-to for all sorts of things, from exfoliating to removing nail polish.
Plantish Future offers both cotton and bamboo rounds which won’t shrink in the wash and feature a handy pocket for your fingers. We tried both and found the bamboo rounds softer, more absorptive, and excellent in tandem with zero waste makeup remover.
Index: Eco-Friendly Cotton Pads & Rounds
- ZWS Essentials Jump to section
- Plantish Future Jump to section
- SuperBee Jump to section
- Marley’s Monsters Jump to section
- Activist Skincare Jump to section
- LastObject Jump to section
- Creekside Kid Jump to section
ZWS Essentials
ZWS Essentials’ Cotton Rounds
Price Range: $20 / 20
Substitute the single-use cotton rounds of your daily skincare routine with ZWS Essentials’ rainbow of sustainable cotton rounds.
The 2-ply organic cotton flannel is gentle enough for sensitive skin., and we’re (sk)into the fact that it’s dyed with low-impact dyes and has both GOTS and OEKO-TEX certification.
If you need more exfoliating power, they also offer 100% natural Loofah Facial Discs.
Curious about how to wash reusable cotton rounds?
Hand-wash with warm water after each use, and simply toss in your washing machine once per week. You can tumble dry on low, but we prefer to lay ours flat to dry.
About ZWS Essentials
ZWS Essentials is the in-house brand of one of the most popular zero waste online stores, aptly titled ZeroWasteStore.com.
ZeroWasteStore.com features a thorough selection of handy zero waste products, ranging from shampoo bars to cleaning supplies—from both their in-house label and other sustainable brands.
All products are compostable and/or reusable, as well as cruelty-free, palm oil-free, plastic-free, and mostly vegan.
They’re also Climate Neutral and donate to numerous environmental causes through 1% For the Planet.
My Personal Review of ZeroWasteStore.com’s Facial Rounds:
“After trying this stack of rainbow-hued reusable rounds myself, I agree with reviews that they’re the best tool for removing stubborn eye makeup, cleansing dirt and grime, and applying skincare products. I don’t wear makeup all that often, but these cotton rounds are super useful for a bunch of things around the house, like cleaning up cuts or taking off nail polish.”
Review by Amber McDaniel, SJ’s Head of Content
Plantish Future
Plantish Future’s Round Cotton Facial Pads
Price Range: $8 CAD / 4
Plantish Future provides a bright future with their pre-shrunk cotton rounds—with pockets!
They also sell organic bamboo charcoal rounds.
Both kinds stay soft, don’t shrink in the wash, and are 100% compostable when they’ve run their eco-beauty-course.
They also come with a cute, GOTS-certified organic cotton mesh bag for wash and travel.
About Plantish Future
Plantish Future is a small, first-generation Canadian, BIPOC, queer, and woman-owned business committed to a plant-rich future for all by selling a variety of reusables to replace drugstore disposables.
Inspired by the natural eco-friendliness of the small village where she lived as a child, owner Lydia is committed to sharing inter-generational plastic-free wisdom.
To date, their certified vegan and cruelty-free products have saved the earth from more than half a million paper towel rolls, 20,000 cotton rounds, 30,000 plastic bottles, and 10,000 plastic sponges.
Plantish Future supports a variety of initiatives, like the Vancouver Black Library and the Global Conservation Force.
My Personal Review of Plantish Future’s Reusable Cotton Rounds:
“I’ve tried these out and love how the little pockets make it easy to keep a good grip without wasting product by getting it all over my fingers. Because of how smooth they are, I personally find them to be the best reusable cotton rounds for removing eye makeup since the skin there is quite sensitive. They also sell organic bamboo charcoal rounds, which are even softer. Both kinds stay soft and don’t shrink in the wash, though I tend to hand wash just because it’s easier than fishing them out of the rest of my laundry.”
Review by Amber McDaniel, SJ’s Head of Content
SuperBee
SuperBee’s Cotton Pads
Price Range: $8–$18 / 3–6
Green up your skincare routine with SuperBee’s set of ultra soft compostable face pads, which are made of 100% GOTS-certified organic cotton.
To use, simply apply your product to a round, and gently dab it across your face.
Toss them in with your normal laundry load to wash, and these adorably designed cotton rounds will come out all clean and set to save both you and the planet from single-use cotton pads.
They’re suitable for all skin types—including sensitive skin and delicate baby’s skin—and entirely compostable.
About SuperBee
Thailand-based SuperBee is committed to sustainability and ethical business practices, and uses only natural and organic ingredients in their products—which includes beeswax wraps, reusable bags, paper towels, bamboo straws, and more.
Everything comes packaged plastic-free, reusable, and recyclable.
Bee-yond that, SuperBee is also a Certified B Corp that functions as a social enterprise, by empowering local communities in Thailand through training and employment opportunities at very above-average local wages.
They also support local volunteer fire crews in Thailand to procure needed supplies.
Marley’s Monsters
Marley’s Monsters Organic Facial Rounds
Price Range: $20 / 20
Another cotton ball bites the dust thanks to Marley’s Monsters’ 100% organic cotton flannel facial rounds.
These cotton facial pads are handmade in the US with organic cotton, so you can rest assured that only the softest, chemical-free materials are touching your sensitive skin.
Use these cotton pads for face, nail, and body use. They’re especially effective at removing impurities and makeup gently with micellar waters and natural makeup removers.
After use, simply toss in the wash and reuse, or compost them (along with the paper sleeve packaging) when they wear out.
About Marley’s Monsters
A focus on reusability defines all of Oregon-based Marley’s Monsters’ products.
With goods for home and living, baby and mama, kitchen and dining, and bath and beauty and beyond, they’re a one-stop-shop for your zero waste wipes, towels, eco-friendly sponges, cloths, dusters, and even zero waste toilet paper.
They feature entirely plastic-free shipping materials and donate any textile waste to recycling nonprofits.
To date, Marley’s Monsters estimates that they have diverted more than three million single-use disposable rounds from landfills and waterways, thanks to their facial cotton pads.
Activist Skincare
Activist Skincare’s Cotton Pads
Price Range: $14–$24 / 1–4
Take an active stance against single-use items with Activist Skincare, who provide more of a facial cloth than a facial round as the perfect addition to your facial cleansing and makeup removal routine.
These organic reusable cotton rounds are made with the softest velour fabric. They’re ideal for sensitive skin because of the fiber’s gentle and antimicrobial properties.
Every face round is hand-sewn by Activist Skincare founder Jennifer in her Michigan home studio.
All cloths are unbleached GOTS and OEKO-TEX-certified with eco-friendly black dyes to hide stains after removing eye makeup from the delicate eye area.
Being larger than your average reusable cotton ball, these full cloths are approximately 9″ x 9″ prior to laundering, for which hand-washing comes recommended with occasional machine washing.
About Activist Skincare
We love Activist Skincare for driving positive change in the beauty industry with products like natural face serums, sunscreen, and more to keep our pores and the planet nice and clean.
The California-based brand is also woman-owned, and their vegan, and cruelty-free, organic skincare is refillable with pouches of products available that can be recycled through Terracycle.
All ingredients and materials are sourced from sustainable-minded suppliers and, when possible, women and people of color.
As members of 1% for the Planet, the brand supports Rainforest Trust, Earthjustice, and the Environmental Defense Fund.
LastObject
LastObject’s Cotton Facial Pads
Price Range: $16 / 7 (+ case)
How many times can you use reusable cotton rounds?
LastObject offers LastRounds, which are reusable, sustainable, and sanitary cotton rounds lab tested to last more than 1750 times.
The soft, lightly textured, sustainable rounds are made of 30% cotton fibers that are too short for use in the textile industry and 70% wood cellulose from North American conifers.
They come in a stylish refillable case made of recycled ocean bound plastic with refills sold separately.
To clean, simply toss in a mesh laundry bag in your eco-friendly washing machine (of course), knowing they’re specifically engineered to not shed any lint, fluff, or cotton particles.
They’re vegan, packaged in cardboard from responsibly managed forests, and free from animal testing, parabens, SLS, phthalates, phosphates, triclosan, palm oil, and GMOs.
About LastObject
Certified B Corp and mom-owned LastObject is passionate about making the last objects of single-use items we need—like cotton swabs, pads, and rounds.
They pay close attention to the science behind their products, and their rounds are lab proven to reduce the carbon footprint by 90%, water consumption by 92%, and land use by 99%.
After 34 uses, they become carbon-neutral compared to buying disposables.
For every order, LastObject removes a pound of plastic from our oceans through Plastic For Change.
To date, the brand has stopped 3.5 million+ single use items and 500,000+ pounds of plastic from entering waterways.
Creekside Kid
Creekside Kid’s Washable Cotton Rounds
Price Range: $10–$30 / 10–30
A baby’s bottom isn’t the only thing you can wipe up with Creekside Kid.
Joining their biodegradable baby wipes, their makeup remover pads come in a variety of sizes, colors, and fabrics—like 100% organic cotton, 100% organic French Terry, hemp fleece, and bamboo.
Every type of reusable rounds they sell is soft, gentle on the skin, machine washable, and feature serged edges to help them last.
Many options of sizes and patterns and styles are available, including cute patterned ones for kids and blackbamboo cotton rounds that are for better concealing mascara stains.
About Creekside Kid
With more than twenty thousand five-star sales, Creekside Kid is your go-to Etsy shop for ethically-made-and-priced reusable household goods and organic baby products.
Started by mother and craftswoman Claudia, Creekside Kid makes it easier for families to incorporate low-waste living choices into their everyday lives.
DIY Reusable Makeup Remover Pads
For a sustainable skincare routine that also saves you cash, we recommend making your own reusable facial rounds out of old clothing or fabric.
Because you’ll be reusing these regularly on the delicate skin of your face, the most important thing we can recommend is soft, natural fibers to sew your rounds from.
You’ll need:
- Soft cotton t-shirt (or another natural fabric)
- Needle and thread (sewing machine optional)
- Sharp or fabric scissors
- A class, cookie cutter, lid, or paper circle in the size you want
You can follow along with a tutorial video, or follow these steps for how to make reusable cotton rounds:
- Lay out your t-shirt on an even surface, and press down firmly on the fabric with your circle shape, creating an indentation so you know where to cut.
- Cut out as many circle shapes as you want. For thicker cotton rounds, double up on fabric.
- If you don’t want to do any sewing, you can end here and use your new cotton rounds like so. Just wash on delicate in a mesh laundry bag to prevent fraying edges.
- To sew, stack your cotton round fabrics in pairs of two or three.
- Sew (by hand or with machine) the two or three pieces of fabric together along the edges to prevent fraying. We recommend a mock serger stitch or a medium zigzag stitch to stitch all around the edge.
