Preserve

It was about six months ago when I first picked up one of Recycline’s Preserve Toothbrushes at the always-packed Trader Joe’s in Manhattan. At that time, it was more a matter of necessity than environmental-conciousness; my current toothbrush had fallen into the toilet that morning and considering I’d used a rubber glove to fish it out, there’s no way I would be putting that thing anywhere near my mouth again. Standing in line, I saw the toothbrush, remembering I needed a replacement and not wanting to stop anywhere else– I grabbed it and checked out.

I was intrigued, though, reading the information accompanying the ergonomically-designed toothbrush. Made of 100% recycled plastic, Recycline not only offers a subscription service (great for those of you who forget your toothbrush needs to be replaced on a regular basis) but it offers a recycling program as well. When you’re done with your brush, you just use the mailer provided in-store (alternatively, you can order one from the company) and they’ll turn it into plastic lumber or recycled store displays. This also goes for the rest of their product line, which includes razors and plastic tableware. They’ve also teamed up with Stonyfield Farms for the past five years, whose yogurt cups account for 25-60% of the Preserve razors and toothbrushes.

Functionally, the toothbrush is hands-down the best I’ve ever used. And however small it may be, it’s quite possibly the most perfect example of guilt-free consumerism in my life to date.