1. Clean your home with natural ingredients. I stopped buying those Clorax disposable cleaning wipes I used to use all the time. However, I don't make my own cleaning products yet. Instead I rely almost exclusively on Bon Ami. It is non-toxic, doesn't scratch, and comes in a cardboard and tin round container, all recyclable. I don't see why that is more wasteful than buying boxes of baking soda and big glass bottles of vinegar which I then would have to make myself. Since I am not much of a housewife, I still have a couple of half filled bottles of Windex for cleaning windows and mirrors (both of which I do not clean nearly enough). So I'll finish those up before I resort to the vinegar mix, which I have actually used in the past. I have an old bottle of Old English furniture polish that I use maybe once a year. Ok, I'm a slob! I do also have a big jug of Bona for our wood floors though often we just spit clean the spots on the floor with some plan water. For my dishes, occasionally I'll break down and buy Seventh Generation dishwashing liquid, but mostly I just used Kirk's unscented Castille cake soap. I don't even do Dr. Bronner's because it comes in plastic and he's so self-righteous lecturing you on how to live better over every tiny space on his plastic bottle! Kirk's unscented works pretty well on dishes. Occasionally, if they feel too greasy (which can happen especially when cooking a lot with coconut oil) I let them soak in vinegar-water which helps a lot. The other thing I use a lot are Brillo pads (whatever brand - doesn't have to be Brillo). These come in cardboard boxes and are compostable after the soap in them is completely used up. For my laundry I have been using Tangie which is great and I sometimes add white vinegar as a rinse. I did a big no no though and bought bounce dryer sheets and realized they are made from some kind of synthetic material. So I'll go back to 7th Generation's wax paper dryer sheets. I know I should use those wool dryer balls but I lost them and don't feel they are worth re-buying. I can't hang my clothes on a line outside. Rick has forbidden this! But I could get a good indoor drying rack and use that a lot more, thus reducing my use of the dryer. That's something I need to work on.
2. Swap bathroom bottles for soap bars. I have stopped buying soap in bottles and just use cake soap. I grew up like this and never got totally on board with the bottles of hand soap anyway, so this wasn't a big deal for me. I use Lush's shampoo now which I love and actually when I occasionally need to resort to bottled shampoo I really find it to be an inferior product. However, R is addicted to his Head and Shoulders and J and S love their Axe or whatever it is that is an all in one body/hair shampoo. B and V also use Lush products too though. So I've only managed to convince the women who live here to switch. I have been using Trader Joe's hand lotion which comes in a tin tube with a plastic cap. I really like this lotion so I haven't switched over to something in better packaging. I haven't kept track of the others in the house on this issue. I know for Christmas I gave everyone Burt's Bees salve or something like that, in little tins, but I don't know if people have used them. I also have little control over toothpaste. I myself use Tom's and recycle the tubes at Mom's Organic Groceries. But R insists on his Crest (this is what happens when you let your kids watch too much commercial TV in their formative years! He is completely brainwashed on certain brand products!). I haven't moved to the making my own toothpaste thing yet. That kind of stuff overwhelms me for some reason.
3. Use natural oils to clean and moisturize. I am absolutely not here yet. In fact, I didn't even know you could clean with natural oils.
4. Ladies, discover the moon cup. Well, I am past menopause so this isn't an issue for me. I also am nervous about promoting the moon cup as I've heard it does increase your chances of contracting toxic shock syndrome. I do try to buy sanitary napkins for those in my household who need them that are organic and natural. Both Whole Foods and Harris Teeter carry brands like this. The ladies could get reusable cotton ones but I haven't even broached the topic with them. Honestly, not sure it is my place to. Also, I think priority-wise this comes way after a ton of other frivolous stuff. Let's deal with those first before we go whole hog on this one.
5. Invest in a stainless steel razor - My sons and husband use electric razors. I've been using this type of razor from before deciding to use less plastic. I'm so old, this is how I learned to shave my legs. I remember I was in a senior in college before I bought my first disposable razor. But actually I don't know what B or V use in this regard. So maybe I should check on that. That could actually be a gift to B for her birthday. She's pretty environmentally conscientious so she might appreciate it.
6. Choose plastic free natural deodorant. I've tried and tried over the years and nothing works for me but Secret (maybe the Sure brand as well?). However, since I don't go through much deodorant, (maybe 2 or 3 sticks a year?) I really don't see this as much of a pressing change as other items. I even wrote Secret and asked them to make their containers in something recyclable, but got no response. B has a very hard time with deodorant and is constantly breaking out from it. So I guess this goes into the need to work on this category. I tried making my own deodorant a couple different times and I broke out into a very painful and long lasting rash that I had to deal with for weeks.
7.. Brush with bamboo. I do this now! I got everyone bamboo toothbrushes for Christmas. I have no idea though if they are using them or still using the plastic ones or what. I'm bad at keeping track of other people's personal hygiene, apparently! And I just discovered that Harris Teeter is selling bamboo toothbrushes. I can't even find them at Mom's Organic or Whole Foods which are supposed to be groovy, environmentally friendly stores. So shout out to Harris Teeter. Of the all the regular mainstream grocery stores, I really do like them the best. Now their bristles are plastic, so you have to take them out with pliers before you put the bamboo in your compost, but I think terracycle takes the bristles (if I am remembering correctly).
8. Avoid buying synthetic clothes that shed microfibers. I'm getting better at this. I've been trying to buy natural fiber at thrift stores. But I do need to figure out how to wash the microfiber clothes I do own. I think there was a kickstarter somewhere for this. Another area I need to work on.
9. Buy local and request plastic free packaging. I tried to get my CSA to not package certain things in plastic bags, like mixed greens and such. They tried but they lost so much produce because the stuff kept falling on the floor. Their bins are built on an angle so it just wasn't practical. They need to build new bins or add in barriers at the front that keep the produce from falling as the person fills up their own bag or container. Otherwise, buying local often means buying in plastic. I can't get locally raised chicken or meat that isn't already wrapped in plastic. I think it has to do with health regulations. I can get local milk in glass milk bottles and eggs in cardboard cartons, but other than that, I don't even know how to get around this. I am hoping by reducing my meat intake somewhat and buying local so that transportation issues aren't creating problems, I am somehow offsetting buying things wrapped in plastic. Another area to improve in.
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