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How to Reduce Waste with Minimal Effort

June 14, 2018 by Erika

Welcome to part two in my reducing waste series!  If you haven't read part one, you can visit it here.  In this series, I'm only sharing ways that we have personally been reducing our own waste over the last couple of years.  I have separated each action into "effort" categories....these are based on how much effort I feel that they require in my day and life.

Alright, here we go!

Bring Your Own Bags

While bringing your own bags takes VERY little effort, it does require you to develop the habit of remembering them.  I try to keep one or two in my van and then keep the majority in my market basket that hangs on a hook by the door so I can grab them all and go as I head out the door.

I love the cotton canvas totes from Grove Collaborative.  Throughout the entire month of June, when you sign up for Grove you can get a set of FREE wool dryer balls!  Dryer balls was one of my super easy steps in part one!

Buy a Bread Maker and Use It!

I'll be the first to admit that I thought a bread make was one of those appliances that just took up too much room and would never get used.  It wasn't until I decided that I wanted to start making homemade bread and realized that I was having the hardest time making soft sandwich that I even considered owning one.  When my grandma offered us hers, I accepted and we haven't bought a loaf of store bread since.

In less time than it takes to watch a football game, I have fresh homemade bread.  All I have to do is add the ingredients and turn it on.  No kneading on my part.  Now, I do still make homemade French baguettes and things by hand, but it is SO NICE to be able to have homemade bread even during busy weeks when I can't stand around and time and knead.

You can even apply the buy secondhand principle from my first post here.  I see bread makers at secondhand stores ALL. THE. TIME!

Make Your Own

One of the very first places I started reducing waste was by making our own spice mixes.  Now I don't buy taco seasoning packets or chili seasoning packets.  I just mix my own.

These are my favorites:

  • Chili Seasoning
  • Taco Seasoning

The reason this works is because spices can easily be bought in glass instead of plastic.  Glass is infinitely recyclable whereas plastic is not.  Or you can take your own containers to the nearest store with a bulk section.

We also make our our mayonnaise, coffee creamer, chocolate syrup, and sour cream.  I hope to share more of our recipes for these soon!

Making your own does take a bit of time, but its also nice because you don't have to run to the store as often.  As long as you keep your base ingredients stocked in your pantry, you can easily make whatever you need!

Say No to Plastic Straws

Plastic straws are a real problem for our oceans and marine life.  You can learn more from the Ocean Conservancy.   The great news is that there are SO MANY alternatives!

You can:

  • Skip using a straw altogether
  • Silicone straws
  • Stainless steel straws
  • Glass straws
  • Bamboo straws

We have small silicone straws at home for the kids and I use stainless steel.  I even have this stainless steel straw carrying kit from Marley's Monsters that I keep in my bag for when we're out and about.

Pay Attention to the Fabric

When buying clothes pay attention to the fabric material.  Microfibers from synthetic materials end up breaking off of our clothes when we wash them and make their way to our oceans, so even when buying secondhand, you want to make sure to avoid synthetics.

What are some of these fibers?

  • Polyester
  • Nylon
  • Lycra
  • Viscose Rayon

And while cotton is a natural fiber, regular cotton requires A LOT of pesticides and water.  Try to choose organic cotton if possible or look for clothes made with flax linen or bamboo, which are much more eco-friendly.

If you already have a few favorite items made with synthetics, there is a product to help when washing.  The Guppyfriend washing bag keeps the fibers from entering the water.  I personally, do not have one of these so I can't say how well it works.

Plan The Night Before

So many times, if I don't plan for a trip out the night before, we forget most of our reusables or I don't end up having time to pack them.  (hashtag life with three kids)

I try to prepare and pack our drinks, napkins, straws, utensils and reusable bags the night before so that I can easily grab them in the rush out the door.  This makes saying "no, thank you," to single-use disposable items MUCH easier when we're out.

 

Like my market basket? Click on the pic and use code ERIKA20 for 20% until July!

 

Well, that's it for part two.  What do you think?  Anything from part one or this post that you're excited to try?  What ways are you reducing waste that I haven't mentioned?  I'd love to hear from you in the comment section below!

Erika
Influence Network
Food Lovers Devotional

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Filed Under: My Full Life Tagged With: reduce waste, simple living, The Grove Collaborative, waste free, wasteless, zero waste

Virtually Effortless Ways to Reduce Your Waste

June 7, 2018 by Erika

A week or so ago I placed a poll on my Facebook page asking what you all would like to see next here on Full & Simple and you overwhelmingly choose "how to reduce your waste."

As I started thinking of all of the ways we've been working towards reducing our plastic use and waste, I found that this post will be the first in a series of at least three.  I'm categorizing the habits and swaps we're using currently into different effort categories.  All of the suggestions in this post are things that I think you can start today and maintain with as little as 5-10 minutes a day of effort.

But before we get started, here is my disclaimer: I AM NOT PERFECT.  We still have plastic in our house.  We are not zero waste by any means.  There are days when my desire for a gas station fountain pop outweighs my desire for zero waste (but then its usually followed with guilt).  I truly believe that any move in the direction of less waste is better than saying, "I can't do zero waste perfectly, so I won't do it at all."

Ok, with that out there, here we go!

Just Say No to Produce Bags

While I'm guilty as the next person to think that I need super cute "bring your own" produce bags like these, really all you need to do is skip the bag.  You don't HAVE to bring your own.  Yes, people may look at you strangely when you put four loose lemons on the checkout belt, but I got over those looks long ago when we started using the Dave Ramsey envelope system.  And I've never had a cashier tell me that I had to get a bag before she'd sell me the lemons.

Pay Attention to Packaging

So you need some more (insert product here)?  Pay attention to the packaging.  When you are shopping try to avoid plastic packaging as much as possible.  I used to be the person that said, "It's ok.  I recycle," but as I've started this waste reduction journey, I've found that recycling isn't good enough anymore.

Why?  Plastic can only be recycled so many times before it can no longer be recycled, at which point it just becomes trash.  Plus, with China's ban on taking recycling from the U.S. and other countries, many stateside recycling companies are no longer taking plastics, OR they're taking them but then shipping them to a landfill anyway.  Here is a great article from the NY Times on the problem we're facing.

For the purposes of this post and for when you first start your waste reduction journey, remember that when buying the grocery items you need, choose the product in metal or glass packaging--which can be recycled infinitely--over the same item in plastic.  I'll talk more about avoiding plastic while shopping later in this post series.

Shop Secondhand

Confession: while I aspire to minimalism and zero waste I still LOVE to shop!  Life seems so much more exciting when I know I have a package on the way...even if it's just mundane household items.  I get giddy placing a new item in its place in my home.  Now when I get the shopping bug, I usually try to look for secondhand first (again, I'm not perfect).

Shopping secondhand not only allows you to save financial resources, but it also allows you to save natural resources which have already been expended to make said item.  And with online sites like ThredUP, eBay, and all of the Facebook selling groups, shopping secondhand first is easier than ever.

Use this link to get a $10 coupon on your first ThredUP order and give me a $10 coupon for referring you!

I love Goodwill baskets!

Cloth Napkins

Buy and use cloth napkins.  They are not as hard to maintain as many of us believe.  Here are a few tips that I have found to make them virtually effortless.

  1. Buy them in a dark color to hide stains.
  2. Use one napkin for the whole day (unless you get it super messy) and just drape it over the back of your chair between meals.
  3. Kids get wash cloths because they can be wetted down easily and kids are messy.  My kids have color-coded wash rags so they know which one is theirs to use all day.
  4. Hang them to dry to avoid most wrinkles, but we're not a five-star restaurant so some wrinkles are OK!  Don't mess with ironing.
  5. Throw them in with clothes you're already washing.  You do not need to do a separate load.

Beeswax Wraps

Use beeswax wraps to replace plastic wrap.  They really only need a good rinse between uses unless you get them very dirty.  I've even sealed a bowl with the beeswax wraps while baking bread and the dough rose just as well as if I'd sealed it with plastic wrap.

You can make your own, buy them online or see if any local beekeepers have made some with their own beeswax.

Bar Soap Over Body Wash

I get that bar soap can seem gross to some. Heck, I used to be one of the some and still sort of am.  I don't use bar soap for everyone to use while washing their hands...partly because of the sharing germs thing that I'm still mentally not able to get passed and partly because I'm not sure a three year old won't be dropping it all over the place.  However, I have replaced my plastic bottle of body wash with bar soap.  Don't want to share bar soap with others?  Give everyone their own bar and you'll still be reducing plastic and waste!  You get extra points if you find a local soap-maker!

I have these bamboo holders, which are compostable, to keep my bar soap from just sitting in a pool of water in the shower.

Buy Compostable

When replacing items like loofahs, tooth brushes, and dish brushes, replace them with compostable items.  Brushes made with natural fibers and wooden handles can easily be composted.

Now here is another disclaimer: We don't compost.

I tried creating a compost pile, but my chickens and cats eat all of the scraps and spread it out to the point of things not actually composting.  So until I can build some sort of containment system, the chickens and cats take care of our food waste...which is still a good system in my opinion.

HOWEVER, we have a woods near us that I can toss that wooden handle into along with all of the other fallen trees and sticks and it will eventually break down.  Whereas packing it into a landfill will not allow it to break down.  So if you are going to buy compostable items figure out a way to get it back to nature when it's served its purpose and don't throw it in your regular trash.

My favorite sources for wooden cleaning tools are:

  • Freckled Hen Farmhouse 
    • Use code ERIKA20 at checkout until July 1, 2018 to get 20% off your entire order!
  • The Laundress
    • Use the link above for 10% off!
  • Amazon

Get a Reusable Coffee Filter

Yes, we still use a coffee maker.  No, we aren't cool hipsters that have a French press or Chemex.

Buying a reusable filter really added no extra time for us.  We were already hand-washing the pot and insert anyway.  Cleaning the filter literally takes less than 2 minutes.  The grounds usually get added to the food scraps or I'll dump them by a plant or bush, like our blueberries, that like acidic soil.

Reusable Nursing Pads

Reusable nursing pads are probably one of my favorite changes so far to reducing our waste.  I wish I had known about them three kids ago!  I would have saved at least $80-$100!

I purchased my pack of 10 from Marley's Monsters on Etsy and customized them to be mostly white.  Now I just toss them in a lingerie bag and wash them any time I'm doing a load of towels or light colored clothes.  There is no extra worrying because I'm already doing the laundry anyway.  And I found a really cute basket at Goodwill to store them in.

Wool Dryer Balls

Stop using fabric softener sheets and get some wool dryer balls.  A clothesline would be best, but the weather doesn't always permit outside drying and a lot of the time we still use our dryer.

Wool dryer balls do speed up drying time which saves energy plus they reduce the waste of the dryer sheet...which contain nasty chemicals.  I leave mine in the dryer so I don't even have to think about adding them in each time.  If you still want to have a fresh scent when your clothes are done, experiment with adding drops of essential oils to your dryer balls.  I personally love lavender on mine.

And for the month of June you can get a FREE set of dryer balls when you sign up for Grove Collaborative!!!  Just use this link to find out more about this offer!  And if you want to hear why I love Grove, visit this post.

Slow Down

My last piece of advice in this post is to simply slow down.

Do less.  Be less busy.  Commit to less.

Living a busy and frantic lifestyle makes it much easier to choose the disposable items over reusable or the prepackaged, processed food over whole foods.

Do all of your errands on one day instead of constantly running out of the house to do this or that.  Resign from clubs, committees or roles that don't fulfill you or that no longer align with your life goals.  People grow and change, it is okay to move on to make room for who you are now or want to become.

Well, that's it for today.  I hope that you can find one or two options here that you want to start implementing today or this week.  The next post in this series will include habits and suggestions that may take slightly more effort to implement, but that are still easily doable for anyone trying to live more eco-conscious.  I hope you'll come back and read that post as well!

Find Post Two Here!

 

Disclaimer:  The above post does contain referral and affiliate links.  This means that I may be compensated if you purchase using this link at no additional cost to your self.  This compensation allows me to pay for the maintenance of running Full & Simple. 

Erika Bault is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

Erika
Influence Network
Food Lovers Devotional

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