Although I recycle consistently, my goal this year is to make some easy sustainability swaps on items I use regularly around our home. I mentioned this goal in a recent blog post about my resolutions that I plan to stick to this year.
2020 was spent mostly at home. Although it wasn’t by choice most of the time, my eyes were opened to how much more we were emptying our trash cans, and what was going in them. And I realized how much of that waste was due to products we all buy that make our lives easier. But are they really better? What could I swap that would take less space in our small home and be a better environmental choice?
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Paper Sustainability Swaps
A great example is paper waste. Let’s look at paper towels. They were nowhere when we were in lockdown; completely obliterated from shelves. In Ohio, they are still somewhat scarce. Costco has them in bulk, but then you have to store all those rolls somewhere. I remember my mom using paper towels sometimes, but honestly, most of the time, big spills were picked up by old kitchen towels or washcloths and thrown in the laundry. That was a practice that will be good for me to revert back to, along with using European dishcloths and microfiber cloths I buy on Grove.com.
Same with parchment paper. I love it and use it for baking all the time. I have no intention of throwing out what I have left, but once I’ve used it all up, I’ll be switching to a Silpat liner. They’re easy to clean and can be reused over and over again.
Plastic Sustainability Swaps
Now let’s talk about plastic. I’ve already quit drinking water from single-use bottles from the grocery store. Instead, Matt and I have a few Swell bottles that we constantly refill when we’re working outside in the garden, or when we’re working on remodeling projects. If we’re going on a short road trip, we fill them up and take them with us on the go. Growing up, bottled water you purchased was not a thing, but my mind is boggled by the crazy amount of waste those empty bottles create. I also quit buying those single-use plastic bathroom soap dispensers and switched to glass versions from Grove. They’re refillable and they look much prettier on my sink.
My glass cleaner, multi-purpose cleaner, and bathroom cleaner all come in a box of tiny glass bottles that you empty into Grove’s glass spray bottles.
So much less waste and I love the color coded silicone sleeves. They make it easy to tell my glass cleaner from my multi-purpose cleaner. Grove also has sustainable choices for laundry supplies that are refillable. Those plastic laundry detergent bottles use a huge amount of plastic! Another change I’ll be making with plastic is moving away from plastic wrap to these silicone covers that are microwaveable, made in the USA, and BPA free. They’ll save me drawer space and are much less wasteful.
Other Sustainability Swaps
From a cardboard standpoint, when possible, we’re also opting to pick up in-store vs. having things shipped to us whenever possible. That will cut down significantly on cardboard waste, and I am taking reusable tote bags with me when I go grocery shopping.
Finally, I used to use those disposable dusters you could put on a wand. Now, I have this one I also purchased from Grove.
Since I no longer use toxic cleaning supplies, the removable head can just be tossed into the washer and dryer. There are honestly endless swaps you can make around your house that are easy and much better for the environment. Here are a few more easy sustainability swaps for your consideration:
- Wool dryer balls instead of dryer sheets.
- Stasher reusable food storage bags instead of single-use.
- Compostable cleaning wipes instead of those you have to throw away in your trash.
I love my Grove membership. It’s made the search for sustainable options so much easier. Plus, they’re always coming up with new products and brands getting on board with their mission. If you’re interested in making some changes in your lifestyle to be more environmentally friendly, you can receive a Grove Glass Sustainability Concentrates Set for FREE with your 1st purchase of $30+ by clicking on the link.
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What are some of the sustainability swaps you’ve made in your home? I’d love to hear about them.
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