Glossier’s New Bubblewrap Eye + Lip Cream Is Not Actual Bubble Wrap, So It’s Fine

Glossier wants to fill the world with Bubblewrap.

Glossier wants to fill the world with Bubblewrap.

No, not that bubble wrap. Bubblewrap: the cult-favorite beauty brand’s new “ultra-hydrating eye and lip cream,” which launches today and is definitely not actual bubble wrap.

Its name is simply a nod to the Glossier pink pouch, a candy-colored bubble wrap bag that comes with every order. You know, the Insta-famous #pinkpouch, oft photographed in #airplanewindow pics. The one that Glossier customers and brand reps alike are kind of getting sick of. The one that people are begging the company to make optional at check-out in order to cut down on plastic waste. That one. But anyway! Bubblewrap is a skin-care product, not a plastic bag, so it’s fine!

“Bubblewrap creates an extra layer of protective cushion — think of it like its trusty packing material namesake, now in skin-care form,” Glossier explains in a press release. Well, don’t think of it exactly like its trusty packing material namesake. That stuff actually contributes to the 300 million tons of plastic waste produced globally each year. Specifically, packing materials like bubble wrap make up 40 percent of that waste — only 2 percent of which gets recycled into good quality plastic. But I digress.

Courtesy of Glossier

Glossier says Bubblewrap is a “fast-absorbing, water-in-oil emulsion” that “starts as a rich cream, then breaks down into a light-as-silk texture.” Which, really, is just so clever. Get it? Because bubble wrap itself doesn’t break down? Plastic that ends up in a landfill can take up to 500 years to decompose (impressive!) and leaks pollutants into the soil and water supply that whole time. Or, plastic might make its way to the ocean, where it’s consumed by marine life and funneled into the human food chain. Plastic particles are even in the air now!

Here’s the bad news, though: All that plastic waste can affect your face. Ugh. Pollution causes collagen to break down (again with the “break down” juxtaposition, love it) resulting in stuff like fine lines, sagging skin, and age spots. Luckily, you have Bubblewrap now! The cream is infused with blueberry fruit extract, a great source of antioxidants — aka, compounds that help neutralize the aging effects of those pesky pollution particles.

Bubblewrap, also featuring hydrating hyaluronic acid and a plumping peptide complex, can be used on both eyes and lips to deliver much-needed moisture. Because, as Glossier says, these areas are delicate and “deserve special attention.” Granted, not the kind of special attention the planet deserves — it’s predicted that if major manufacturing changes aren’t implemented soon, humans will need two planets’ worth of natural resources by 2030 to sustain current levels of consumption — but special attention, nonetheless.

Courtesy of Glossier

The best thing about Bubblewrap? This stuff works. 82 percent of clinical trial participants said their eye area looked smoother within two hours of using Bubblewrap. (Almost as high as the percentage of tap water samples contaminated by plastic across the world — a whopping 83 percent.) And it’s only $26! When you consider that an estimated $90 billion is spent on plastic packaging per year, like the bubble wrap pink pouches that Bubblewrap is shipped in, that kind of feels like a steal, right?

Available today — serendipitously catching the tail-end of Earth Month — Bubblewrap can be found on Glossier.com.

Courtesy of Glossier

All statistics provided by Susan Stevens, CEO and founder of Made With Respect.