Mama & Hapa's Zero Waste Shop — Local services in Milwaukie

I love the concept, but in practice there were a few issues. Some of the liquid dispensers were very rapid and difficult to control, causing overflow (thus waste). Also, we couldn’t tell till much later, but the product in our containers which appeared full in store settled a great deal after we got home, too; this was for the liquid laundry detergent that we dispensed into opaque containers we brought from home (the high flow rate maybe caused air bubbles?). We liked the idea of refilling a larger capacity laundry detergent bottle we had that we brought from home, but unfortunately that made it harder to see how full it was 一 after other dispensers caused rapid overflow, we wanted to prevent such overflow mess & waste again. We instead got an incredibly expensive yet under filled bottle of detergent. I’m still not sure if there was a calibration problem affecting accurate measurement of outflow resulting in the high price or what.

At the spigot, the readout tells the amount dispensed while you dispense it and the price per oz. It’s unclear whether that is fluid ounces or weight. It would be nice if the price of the dispensed amount was also immediately obvious, but the machines don't calculate that at the spigot for you, despite being digital. It would be fabulous if they could program those digital displays so they could tell you the quantity dispensed and the running total cost of the product, as you dispensed the product. It would be very good to be clear about whether the fluid product "ounces" were "fluid ounces" or regular ounces.

The prices really weren’t less and in some cases were much higher than I would pay for similar items on sale at local stores. But the worst part were the dispensers on machines that too forcefully put out liquids.

The store attendant was calm but also unapologetic and seemed somewhat indifferent, never mind that it happened at more than one machine, we obviously were paying for product that we did not capture, and there was nothing to clean up with (even after asking we were just handed a single dry rag and left unassisted, though it was not possible to clean our bottle, our hands, and the spilled product effectively with the single dry rag).

It was our third visit and had thought that we’d know what to expect by then, but it didn’t go better.

Maybe we might go back for non liquid products at some point. We do like the powdered auto dishwasher detergent: it doesn’t clump, works well, isn’t mixed with unnecessary fillers, etc., so a tiny scoop is all that’s needed for the whole load.

The liquid laundry detergent and hand soap was completely not worth the dispensing issues, and even without those issues, not worth the prices which were higher than comparable "eco friendly" commercial products, I’m sorry to say.

We will probably eventually try again and avoid the liquid products! Powders are more efficient anyway, for shipping, storage, and ease of handling. The concept of this store is wonderful so I hope the glitches are worked out and it becomes...

Such a great place for bathroom and kitchen essentials and more! They've got all sorts of shampoos, cleaners, oils, detergents, etc. "on tap" so you can fill your own containers or their free donated ones, and solid bars of package -free soap. They also have natural and eco friendly beauty products like eyeshadow, lipstick, fragrance balms, eye creams, reusable cotton rounds. They have a variety of toothpaste tablets, metal straws, bamboo hair and dish brushes, beautiful razors with refillable blades and so much more. I believe all or most of their products are available to be ordered online through their website which is fantastic! And best of all, the shop smelled super good and their prices are really reasonable. Their bamboo hair brushes are $6 for instance. Employees are knowledgeable and kind, they don't "hover" at all. Overall definitely recommend. Great...

Love this shop so much and have been impressed with the quality of every product we’ve tried. A couple faves…The bulk powdered laundry detergent (rotating scent tea tree blend) and the cleaning vinegar (2x strength) for fabric softener leave clothes and the washer smelling so clean, I can hardly believe it’s the same washer as I had before. The tea tree sulfate-free shampoo and the citrus conditioner are really moisturizing and smell wonderful - no frizz even when I let my hair air dry. I feel so lucky to have this place in my neighborhood and I hope they...