Hope your first week of the plastic free challenge went well. If you haven't started on your plastic free journey, there is no time like the present. Not too late to start this week. If a 30 day plastic free challenge seems overwhelming, try a week or two. The important thing is to start somewhere.
Here are some tips that might help.
In the Bathroom
1. Use bar soap instead of liquid soap that comes in plastic bottles. Bar soap is an easy and cheap switch to make. There are many different brands, most come in paper wrappers, or some are even sold without any wrapping.
2. Use a shampoo bar instead of liquid shampoo. They are a variety of different shampoo bars available online, or at several retail stores.
3. Buy toilet paper that is wrapped in paper not plastic, and go a step further and buy toilet paper that is made from recycled paper or bamboo. There is a company that will even ship the toilet paper to you in a cardboard recyclable box and gives a portion of their profit to nonprofit organizations that build toilet facilities in places where they are needed. The company is called “Who Gives A Crap”. If you prefer to buy your supply from local stores, look for those brands that are wrapped in paper
4. Cleaning products. There are a multitude of bathroom cleaning products on the market. Most, if not all, come in plastic bottles, and contain harmful and toxic ingredients. Using vinegar and baking soda is a great alternative. It is cheap, readily available and non toxic for you and the planet. Just mix a 50/50 ratio of water and vinegar and use it to clean glass, mirrors, sinks, etc. Sprinkle a little baking soda in the shower or tub and sink and it does a fantastic job.
5. Use a cloth instead of plastic sponge to clean. Again, a cheap and easy way to reduce plastic consumption. Sponges are now made of plastic, and need to be replaced often. Old towels cut up, or any washcloths, or any washable rag is free and lasts a long time. There are also Swedish dish cloths that can be purchased and they are machine washable. I use mine for well over a year before they need to be replaced. And you can compost them when their life is finished.
6. Bamboo toothbrushes. When you are finished using them as a personal toothbrush, they can be used as cleaning brushes for those hard to reach places, such as around faucets etc. Many of the bamboo toothbrushes are compostable, and even if you aren’t able to compost them, they are not made of plastic and are less toxic when trashed
In the Kitchen
7. Last week a couple of the tips were about using alternatives to plastic wrap and baggies, such as wax wraps, silicone baggies, and silicone bowl toppers, using glass and metal containers etc. Here is another tip for storage, the old fashioned plate method. Why not cover leftovers you put in the fridge with a plate?
8. Another use for the Swedish dish cloths is cleaning around the kitchen and doing the dishes.
9. Bar dish soap instead of liquid dish soap in plastic bottle. Cuts down on plastic and works really well for cleaning dishes and pots and pans.
10. Buying in bulk. Many food items, i.e., beans, flours, oils, nuts, dried fruit, etc, etc. can be purchased in the bulk section of grocery stores as well as from zero waste stores. When you bring your own jars, or produce bags and containers you can ditch the plastic bag offered in the bulk sections. You can save so much plastic by buying in bulk and you can buy just the amount you want.
11. Produce. Look for produce that is not wrapped in plastic or in the infamous clamshell (which is not recyclable). Remember to bring your produce bags.
12. Speaking of produce, look into joining a CSA, Community Supported Agriculture program. There are several around. You buy locally from the farmer who is producing the item, it is fresher, travels a much shorter distance than across the country and often the produce is not wrapped in plastic. More about CSA’s and alternative shopping next week
Hope you try some of the these tips. If you have any questions, please contact me at [email protected]
Have a great week.
Helene
