2019 is here! What would you say if I told you I have a super easy, money & calorie saving resolution for you? What better way to ring in the new year than doing something better for your health, the environment, and your wallet? It would be a no brainer, right? Well I know some people may have a big head today, so I’ll keep this short and sweet so you aren’t staring a bright screen too long. 😉
5 Ways To Reduce Plastic (& Save Money)
Bring a refillable water bottle wherever you go. There are some great non plastic options out there like metal or glass. We love our hydroflasks and even the girls each have one. I feel like they’re perfect because they are lead free, keep our water cold all day, & have been abused but keep chugging along. I know they are initially pricey, but they are worth it. I had a glass water bottle with a silicone sleeve I use to take everywhere with me, but it was tragically broken on a walk where Justin somehow flipped it off of the stroller onto the one part of the bridge where there wasn’t a wire blocking the road and it shattered. I was devastated. You will be surprised how many places will fill up your water bottle for free, saving you money and possibly calories! We have even dumped them out outside of the airport, took them through security, then had someone fill them up in the airport.
This is a HUGE pet peeve of mine. There is no excuse for not bringing a bag or basket to the store. Why? Because how can you forget a cloth bag when they’re folded up under your seat or in the trunk of your car? 🙂 It’s so simple! Not only are you taking a suffocation hazard out of your house for your pets and children, but you’re saving another creature from getting caught into it or it breaking off and becoming microplastics into the ocean for your food to eat. They are purely for convenience and unnecessary. If you use them for trash bags, why not ask for paper bags at check out and put them in your cans? Or buy some inexpensive paper bags. We put our compost into them since they’re biodegradable and the worms didn’t mind.
We also avoid the many plastic bags that come with toilet paper and (for grease messes) paper towels in our home by buying them wrapped in paper. This is a win for us because the girls will color and paint on them, saving us from buying paper specifically for that, and I don’t find myself needed an emergency store run and buying things I really don’t need there because it’s delivered to our door. I will post a referral link for you to save $10 on your first order below.
Think that you’re using a paper cup when you order that to go latte? I use to too, I would even skip the plastic lid thinking I was being green! I even fell for a certain water company’s scam about buying water bottled in ‘paper’. What they leave out is that the paper is coated in plastic! I was not impressed when we moved to Germany and the paper milk cartons went into the plastic recycling. Not only are you using plastic, but you’re putting a hot liquid in plastic which leeches chemicals into what you’re consuming. Another great point to make is, many places will give you a discount for bringing your own cup (yes, some gas stations too) AND your cup will probably only be a small/tall or medium/grande size. This will save you money and calories.
I’m a nerd, but this is one of my favorites! I bring my own bento and cloth bags to the store to stuff smaller produce like nuts or spinach into. I don’t mind my apples or lemons hanging out in my grocery bags. I feel like I am hearing nails on a chalkboard when I see someone putting a bunch of bananas in one of those since those bananas definitely aren’t going anywhere and that bags provides no protection for them. If you’re interested in reusable bento bags, bowl covers (to replace saran wrap), flannel sandwich bags, or metal and bamboo straws with a straw pouch, I will post a referral link to Marley’s Monsters, where I have bought all of mine below.
If you eat lunch to go or need that smoothie, a great way to avoid the plastic cutlery or straw is to bring your own! Many camping sections or stores will have great metal options. I pack around some bamboo ones from Marley’s Monsters. You can even buy a bag to carry the clean things in and it’s waterproof to carry the dirty back home in without making a mess. I keep them in my car or kavu bag so that I have them when I need them. Most places on post only serve plastic utensils so I just use my own instead.
So there you have it! Five small steps to reducing your plastic & saving money for the new year. If these seem too much or you don’t have the money to do them all at once, start with pick one per month to tackle! Although I listed five, there are many ways within each of these you can reduce your plastic. I hope you enjoyed this and thank you so much for reading!
Please, share with me your tips and tricks for the new year! Also, here is the link for Marley’s Monsters! Then here is the toilet paper referral.
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