Let’s get into your bathroom and talk about cotton swabs, shall we?

Cotton swabs are, thankfully, one of those items I can file under “Things I Don’t Buy Anymore”.

In the grand scheme of things, depending on the brand you are buying, cotton swabs may not be high on your list of swaps. After all, you can purchase ones that are made of paper and cotton and both of those are biodegradable, right?

Then again, that doesn’t prevent them for ending up in places they shouldn’t.

Traditional cotton swabs are made of a spindle, usually a heavy paper or plastic, and absorbent ends, usually made of cotton and/or rayon. Traditional, non-organic cotton is one of the dirtiest crops globally, requiring both fertilizers and pesticides. These absorb into the ground and run off into local waterways. Additionally, cotton requires huge amounts of water, leading to inefficient water management in developing areas.

It’s just not the greatest crop and to have that big of an environmental impact just so you can swab out your ears for a few seconds and then toss it seems like a huge waste! At least with something like a t-shirt, you will hopefully get a lot of use out of it.

So to help me minimize my trash and eliminate one more things I have to run to Target to replace, I swapped my cottons swabs with a reusable swab. Specifically, Lastswab.

LastSwab Basic, which is the one I have, does what a conventional cotton swab is meant to do: It cleans your ears. Plain and simple. It’s the same shape as a conventional cotton swab so you do need to be careful when using it in your ear but I found it just as gentle as a traditional swab.

I don’t like the feel of water in my ears so I usually use this after my shower. It removes the water and ear wax in your ears thanks to the tiny textured bumps. It doesn’t absorb in the same way as a conventional cotton swab but it does still remove water.

It’s also incredibly easy to clean. I suds up my hands like I do when I wash them, then I just clean the Swab with my hands. I found this to be the easiest, gentlest method. I’ve also used a wash cloth with soap as well.

I have noticed that the white ends do get stained a bit after some use. You can see in the above picture that the purple one is more stained than the blue one. Honestly, though, that doesn’t impact their usefulness and I didn’t even realize it until I compared them side by side. I was keeping the blue one in my gym bag for post-work out showers, back when working out at the gym was a thing we could do!

Lastswabs are also super lightweight and great for traveling so you don’t have to stuff a bunch of cotton swabs in your bag.

One swab goes for $12, which is essentially 4 boxes of Q-tips, but can be used over 1000 times if properly cared for.

LastObject also sells LastSwab beauty, a swab for your makeup; LastTissue, 6 hankerchiefs in a sleek case with a divide for your clean tissues and your dirty; and LastRound, reusable cotton rounds with a case. I haven’t tried any of these but the company is clearly on a mission to eliminate disposable, single-use objects, which is excellent.

But, how do you dispose of it when your done with it? Package Free Shop, which is where I picked mine up, states that the case is 100% backyard compostable and the swab is backyard compostable once incinerated.

What are some questions you have regarding LastSwab and reusable swabs? Is this something you would add to your reusable routine?

**(as usual, this post is not sponsored)**