A prototype of a reusable cotton swab designed by a trio of Danish entrepreneurs.

(Courtesy of LastSwab)

At a Glance

Danish entrepreneurs have designed a reusable cotton swab.More than 1.5 billion cotton swabs are used each day.The swabs are another example of polluting single use plastics.

A trio of Danish entrepreneurs have designed a reusable cotton swab in an effort to help eliminate single-use plastic.

While the idea of a reusable cotton bud for your ears may seem revolting to some, there are thousands of people ready to back the project in the name of saving the environment. (Note: Doctors recommend you don't put cotton swabs in your ears to begin with)

Nicolas Aagaard, 34, his sister Isabel Aagaard, 28, and Kare Frandsen, 39, all of Copenhagen, Denmark, launched their Kickstarter campaign nine days ago and have already U.S. dollars and are backed by more than 14,000 people.

The trio's Kickstarter site notes that more than 1.5 billion cotton swabs are used each day, a "huge source of marine pollution."

"About one and a half years ago we read that 550 billion cotton swabs are produced every year, many of which are polluting, spoiling and killing our oceans and beaches, this is why we created LastSwab," the entrepreneurs wrote.

Isabel Aagaard demonstrating a prototype for a reusable makeup swab.

(Courtesy LastSwab)

The trio plans to release two versions of the cotton swab: a standard swab and one for applying makeup. The swab is made of medical silicon and can be cleaned with soap and water before reuse. Each swab comes in its own biodegradable case and in a variety of colors.

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"We have worked with product design for many years and have seen the resource waste and pollution related to single-use products. Some corporations will pay for their climate sins to go away by donating to charities rather than completely rethinking their products, but instead of trying to make products more friendly towards the environment or donating to charities, we believe in actually — by making long lasting reusable products to replace disposable ones," Nicolas Aagaard said in a press release.

Production of the swabs will begin in June, with shipments expected to go out in August.