Organic Cotton, Plastic-Free Hair Ties
I'm really can't explain how excited I am that Kooshoo exists. I was getting frustrated with how many hair ties I was using, how short they lasted, and just how disposable they were. And even though I think some of the other zero waste options are awesome (like hair pins and headbands) I still definitely need hair ties in my life. I was verging on the point of trying to make my own when I came across Kooshoo. They make the only ethically made, biodegradable hair ties on the market. Here's why they're awesome:
Made with natural materials
No synthetics, no pesticide-heavy cottons. 75% Organic Cotton, 25% Natural Rubber.
Made in the USA
Los Angeles, specifically. The company designs and samples out of Canada. The actual production (weaving, dying, cutting, sewing and distribution) happens in L.A. No fuel intensive overseas shipping, no outsourcing.
Renewable production methods
Kooshoo hand dyes their products in a solar powered dye house. They pack and ship products in 100% recycled(able) and/or biodegradable packaging.
Ethical operation
Kooshoo works with small Los Angeles based businesses and donate product and profit to charity.
High Quality Product
They claim their hair ties will last significantly longer than any other on the market, about a year (as long as you don't lose it!). I am interested to see if this holds true, and will update if I can manage to not loose a hair tie in that amount of time
Great, whats the price point?
Ok, I'll level with you. Since these are made in the US with all natural materials they are significantly more expensive than your average hair tie. I ordered this pack for 18.95 off of Amazon. That means each one costs about $3.79. While this is way more than you're normal hair tie, if the product lasts as long as it should, I think it will be totally worth it.
update 6/2018
Ok, so just a few days ago I lost the last of my pack of kooshoo hair ties. So the whole pack lasted my boyfriend and I one year.
So a few things. If it was just me using this pack, it probably would have lasted at least 6 months longer. My partner has long hair and uses hair ties, but seems to have a pre-disposition to misplacing them. My theory is that since he didn't grow up with long hair he didn't learn the critical skill-set of placing hair ties in memorable locations.
I will also say, though the Kooshoo hair ties did stretch out, I wouldn't say they stretched out any faster, or slower than standard, plastic ones. But, because the rubber inside held up way better than normal hair ties, they never snapped, but stretched big enough to fall off of my wrist, which is how I inevitable lost a few.
So after a year with our pack of Kooshoo hair ties, I would absolutely still recommend them, especially if your less comfortable with other zero waste alternatives, like picking hair ties up off the street.