Apila
14 Weeks | Spring 2024 | Sustainability, LCA, & Research | Individual Project
Reimagining solid toiletries as a more enticing option than liquid toiletries.
The Challange
Bathrooms are filled with toiletries to the brim, 80% - 90% of them are water and packaged in plastic.
How might we…
Reimagine self-care through a circular economy from production to product
Analzing the Benchmark Product
I researched by taking apart a current product that claims to be targeting the same problem I was focusing on, and learned from it and it's components.
Types of Solid Toiletries…
Solid Soap
Vs
Sheet Soap
They are more resistant than you think 💪
I did an experiment and left them exposed in the bathroom for 4 weeks and they were fine. They only activate when big droplets of water hit them.
What can we Sheetify?
Any toiletry that can be turned into a solid, Real world examples:
And so I chose to continue ideating on soap sheets,
But a few weeks into the project I found that…
There’s A Big Problem in the Industry...
and it's name is
PVA
The soap sheet industry is extremely GREEN WASHED!!!
I found very controversial information, so I spoke to an expert…
Interview
Tania Hernandez, Chemical Engineer specialized in sustainability
Even though I continued the project with this concept I kept asking myself…
How Can We Make Soap Sheets Better?
PVA Free
Bonded with PVA
By Using Alternative Binders
Here are a few ways on how we can improve soap sheets.
Visualizing The Concept
User Testing
Testing out some of the concepts to create better versions of them.
Final Concept
Apila aims to…
Progressive
Facilitates transition to solid toiletries
Bye Plastics
Limits the use of plastics
Protects
Prevents sheets from sticking together.
Adaptable
Widely adaptable to many toiletry types
How it's Used
Aesthetic Inspiration
100% ready to be Recycled
No extra labels to remove, just recycle it like you would a glass bottle.
APILA Impact Assessment
I didn't have the resources to analyze the content's of each product, therefore this assessment is purely packaging related.
Next Steps & Takeaways
I would like to investigate further alternative binders for PVA in soap sheets
I want to explore alternative materials other than glass so that.
Create a seal for the product so that moisture doesn't get in.
Analyze the contents of the products.