Makeup wearer shares ingenious way to reuse old mascara wands: 'I love this'

Oct 16, 2024

"This is incredible."

Photo Credit: iStock

One Redditor shared their favorite way to recycle their mascara in r/Upcycling.

The photo shows a postcard with a photo of the cutest baby opossum being brushed on the belly with a mascara wand from the Appalachian Wildlife Refuge as a thank you for the donation to Wands for Wildlife.

"They send an adorable postcard every time you donate," the original poster wrote in the caption.

The second photo showed the backside of the postcard, which thanks you on behalf of the rescue animals and offers more information on how to help.

Unfortunately, as mentioned in the comments, Wands for Wildlife is no longer accepting wands. However, they offer other upcycling ideas for your wands such as cleaning tools, pet care, and art materials.

These are great examples of fun and unique ways to repurpose or donate items you no longer need. Especially mascara wands, which are so specific and typically sold in plastic tubes that break down into microplastics, winding up everywhere from our lungs to the deepest part of the ocean.

When decluttering, you can rest at ease knowing you're helping by not contributing to overcrowded landfills that are releasing toxic gases like methane that are responsible for warming our planet.

Switching to eco-friendly makeup products and beauty routines can save you up to $300 a year. Avoid single-use products and invest in brands that use clean ingredients with zero-waste packaging.

If you're looking for other organizations that take very specific items for a good cause, you can send in old Halloween costumes to Halloween Helpers or Ween Dream, both of which are nonprofits that provide costumes to underprivileged children in America.

The mascara wand upcycle was a big hit.

Free the Girls is a charity that takes in donated bras for resale and employs survivors of sex trafficking to help them earn money and get back on their feet.

"I love this!" one Redditor commented.

"I usually recycle my beauty products at a beauty store. But they will never get another mascara wand again, cuz they'll be going to the baby critters!" exclaimed another.

Someone else added: "Absolutely precious. I've been saving some up for exactly this purpose."

"This is incredible," wrote a third.

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