Let’s look at a few steps we can take to create less waste where we live. Whether it’s in the kitchen, cleaning closet, laundry room or bathroom there are plenty of natural and sustainable products and practices you can use.
CLEANING
- Paper towels
- Use dish towels to mop up a spill ,or,
- Bamboo paper towels which are washable and reusable. Twenty sheets replace 60 rolls of regular paper towels. Or ,
- Go to unbleached, recycled paper towels.
- A baby step is to use a “pick-a-size-sheet” type of regular paper towels.
- Dish soap – Use biodegradable & plant derived products.
- Sponges – Reusable ones save waste.
- Cleaning Products – You can make your own & put them in glass spray bottles.
- Trash bags- Recycled degradable ones degrade within 5 years.
- Laundry detergent – use concentrated types preferable dye-free.
- Organic Wool dryer balls – instead of single-use dryer sheets. (Plus they reduce drying time).
FOOD PREP & STORAGE
- Say ta-ta to Tupperware! Hello glass storage containers – you can store & reheat leftovers – saving dishes to wash (and time!)
- Say so long to Saran Wrap! Hello Beeswax wrap. You can store any foods with this stuff. Warm a beeswax sheet in your hands and it forms a seal as it cools.
- Forget about Foil! Start using silicone covers from France, the ones shaped like different flowers. They keep things hot up to 450 degrees in the oven or cold in your fridge.
BATHROOM
- Low Flow is the best option as you replace your fixtures and water heater.
- In addition to using greener cleaning products, switch up your beauty products also. There’s a fabulous new makeup eraser cloth that is super for replacing disposable makeup remover sheets.
- Recycle. It’s easy just to toss all that cosmetics packaging into your recycle bin instead of in bathroom garbage.
- Buy a bamboo toothbrush the next time you replace your current one.
- Towels should be organic cotton.
- Use recycled paper toilet paper. There are good quality soft options now.
It is so simple, yet so important to Go Green in our homes.