Since having my second child, I’ve been reminded how exhausting it is to buy the wrong thing. The trials of sippy vs straw cup, the wrong size sun hat, a diaper that seemed like it would work and absolutely did not. That small, cumulative waste adds up quickly. By the time my oldest was two, I had developed a quiet, almost feral loyalty to anything that worked. The straw cup she kept reaching for, we had backups. The shoes that fit, I made sure I could always get them again. The body wash her skin tolerates is on subscription refills. When something earns its place, I hold onto it.
When something works, you keep it. With Brush On Block, there’s no need to replace the brush.
The thing I keep reaching for
That same mindset carried with me when I started working at Brush On Block. The first product I used was the SPF 30 mineral powder brush. I started using it because, honestly, I saw it as my job to know our products and as a work perk that helped me reapply SPF throughout the day. I wasn’t thinking deeply about its design at the time, just the experience. It went over makeup, no white cast, didn’t spill in my bag or leave me with sticky hands. Boxes checked.
Before I knew it, I found myself attached to the ritual. I was a new mom when I started at Brush On Block, so in the middle of learning our brand I was re-learning myself. The brush slipped right into that same loyalty to what works. A touch of self-care as I rushed out of the office for daycare pickup. The satisfying little click of the cap. I kept them everywhere I already was, my desk, my car, the diaper bag.
But when the powder inside ran out, I didn’t want a new brush. I wanted more powder to refill the brushes that lived in their designated spots.
Designed to be refilled, not replaced
The Brush On Block powder brush is refillable by design. Once empty, you twist off the bottom cap, swap in a new aluminum pod, and keep going with the tool you already like. I bring the refill where the brush is so it stays where I keep it, and the habit stays in the flow. The only thing that changes is the part that was always going to run out anyway.
I choose refills because I don’t want to start over. I like my brush, and the refill means I can keep using what already works without replacing it every few months to stay protected. The added benefit is a more planet-friendly approach, with less plastic, a smaller pod, and packaging designed to be used more than once. It’s a simple system that’s easy to stick with, and that’s what makes the difference over time.
Swap the refill, keep the brush. Editor’s note: refill day is also a great time to wash your brush.
Sustainability Built Into the Product
We think the most meaningful sustainability choices are the ones that fit naturally into what you’re already doing. For us, that means designing products that are meant to last and to be used again and again. Our brushes are part of that thinking. Instead of replacing the whole product, you simply swap the refill and keep going with what you already like.
It’s a more thoughtful approach to how sunscreen is made, used, and replaced over time. By focusing on design that extends the life of the product, we’re able to reduce waste while making it easier to stay consistent. It’s not about being perfect. It’s about making better choices that add up, starting with products designed to be refilled, not replaced.
The brush that stays with you. In the car, in your bag. No need to start over. Just keep going.
Keep what works
I've grown into the autopilot of refills and subscriptions. It goes against my nature in that I like shiny new things, but it leans into some evolving version of myself I seem to be becoming. The version that notices what's already working and stops looking for something better.
If there's a small thing I'd invite you to do this month, it's to take stock of what you already reach for. The sunscreen that lives in your bag, the one you grab on the way out the door, and ask whether it's refillable.
If it is, that's a small, excellent choice you've already made. If it isn't, you might find that the version that is refillable is also, not coincidentally, the version that's easier to keep using.
Either way, the good news is you don't have to start over. You just have to keep going.
Trish is Brush On Block's resident parent of two young kids, which mostly means she writes about what really happens when you're negotiating with growing, opinionated humans.
