Happy 2019!

It’s the beginning of another year, and as usual it’s got me thinking about this past trip around the sun.

I’ve always thought of resolutions as wishy washy – statements promising to change your life in some grand way that seem to disappear as quickly as they’re formed – but in the past couple of years I’ve warmed up to them.  I like the idea of using the day as an excuse to step back and think: where am I now, where do I want to be, and how do I get there?

Of course, I could do this on any given day during the year: January 1st is just as arbitrary as any other day.  But there IS something about the first day of the year, a day that is marked, fixed, and completely reliable – every 365.25 days it’s here again – that gives you that extra push to say, “This year, I will finally do it,” whatever “it” may be.  And hey, if you want July 18th to be your annual day of regulated self-reflection, go right ahead!

Sometimes the most important part about thinking about how you’re going to reach this “it” in the future is to reflect on the past, especially if “it” is a goal that is going to take some time.

For me, one of my long term goals is to waste less – of time, of food, of materials, of everything.  Last year I wrote a post about how I broadly want to do this (Waste Free in JP), and although my location has changed (goodbye for now peaceful, quirky JP) the goal remains the same…and I’m pleased to report that I’ve made a lot of progress!

These past few years, the idea of waste has made itself a permanent home in my brain. It seems I can’t do anything without thinking “Is (blah and blah) really necessary?”, whether it’s during a trip to the grocery store, buying something that I’ll maybe use only once, or thinking about something for too long, because wasting mental energy is a real thing, too.

And although this awareness is extremely beneficial in pointing out targeted areas where waste exists, it can also leave me feeling frustrated and defeated when I feel I don’t have a way of counteracting it.

And so I’ve realized transitioning into a waste-free lifestyle takes a lot of patience: I’ve accepted that it’s going to take time, and that I can’t make the transition all at once, as satisfying as that would be.

I can, however, swiftly knock out several wasteful habits with some simple changes, especially with the aid of a few zero waste products to hold my hand along the way.

This past year it’s been so exciting to see more and more zero waste products popping up, and at first glance, I want them ALL.  Like any new trend (that this has become a trend at all makes me very, very happy), marketers have quickly picked up on what works best, and when I see the buzzwords “zero waste” or “waste-free” I’m instantly drawn in.

But this reminds me of a funny phrase my cousin used the other day to describe our other cousin: “He’s a maximalist minimalist,” i.e. he wants to live like a minimalist, and so he keeps buying all these minimalist products that will help him “achieve” minimalism.  It’s completely counterintuitive!

It’s important to remember that, in this way, buying zero waste products can also be wasteful.  Again, I always go back to that question, “Is it really necessary?”  I may like that reusable set of wooden utensils, but why buy it when I already have a perfectly good spoon, fork, and knife at home?  They’re pretty and have a natural ~earthy~ look, but for me they’re also completely unnecessary.  Buying products based solely on the “zero waste” label without attention to what you already have wastes not only materials, but also money.

But every once in a while you come across one of the good ones, a product that integrates easily into your lifestyle specifically, one that is worth buying, and that can really have a huge impact on the amount of waste you’re generating.

Over the past year I’ve acquired a few of these products that I’ve come to really love, and I wanted to share them with you all, and also get your ideas for some things I’ve been looking for!  This is a list that is personalized to my habits, so you may have no need for some of these.  All items are either reusable substitutes for single-use products, or products made from recycled materials.

One last note: if you’re currently finishing up using a non-reusable product (still have some shampoo left in that bottle, or some plastic wrap on the roll), don’t use this as an excuse to ditch them and run: that just results in more waste!  Finish using them first, then when it comes time to replace, try to do so with a zero waste product.  It can be easy to get excited about making these changes all at once, but it’s worth the wait.

Zero Waste Products I Love

Toiletries 

Shampoo, conditioner, and soap: Lush bars

Lush has an entire “Naked” line, featuring products that are package-free.  Like everything at Lush, they’re free of harsh chemicals, they smell AMAZING, and I have the strange urge to eat them…don’t tell me you’ve never thought their wedges of soap look like cheese!

At $11.95/bar they’re more expensive than a bottle of shampoo, but these will last you much, much longer.  A friend gave me my first set for my birthday this past June, and 6 months later I JUST finally had to buy a new shampoo bar.  I still have about half of the conditioner bar left.  Part of the reason they’ve lasted so long is that I don’t get them directly wet – they recommend getting your hands wet first, and then using them to create a lather.  They’ll last even longer if you dry them off after.

I love the “Honey I Washed My Hair” and “Avocado” scents, but it’s best to go into the store and find which one speaks to you 😉  If you don’t already have something to store bars in, I recommend getting some of their reusable tins.  I relied on these for the past 3 months traveling abroad and what’s even BETTER is that they’re bars – not liquids – so you can bring them in your carry-on!

My hair has gotten so much softer (and their scents last much longer in my hair) with these, AND I completely cut out at least 4 plastic bottles a year.  It’s a win win…win: for me, the environment, and Lush, since I’m now a lifetime buyer.

Toothbrush: The Giving Brush

I’ll admit it, this purchase is a result of an ad on Facebook – they know what I want!  If you don’t mind the plant-based bristles being bright rainbow colors, you can actually get one of their compostable bamboo toothbrushes completely free (the more ~classy~ colors are available in sets of 3 for $6.99, still way cheaper than your conventional plastic toothbrush).  Alternatively, you can sign up for their subscription program where you can get 6, 8, or 12 brushes a year – enough for the whole fam!

This is a quick fix to eliminate a triannual plastic purchase (yes, I had to look up what the dentists recommend), and it’s especially important considering “North America alone wastes over 1 billion toothbrushes” (Foreo).  Click here for more information on the harmful effects of conventional toothbrushes.

Face mask: Franklin & Whitman

Skin care is always a frustrating topic for me, as my family is “blessed” with a lovely history of reoccurring acne.  As a result a lot of the products and prescriptions I’m forced to use to manage breakouts are not waste-free, so when I do come across something that works, and is sustainable, I get really excited.

Franklin & Whitman have this incredible recycling program for their bottles: once they’re empty, just ship them back to them and they’ll give you a discount code for your next purchase!  The more bottles you return at once, the higher the discount you get.

What I found even cooler is that they use packing peanuts that dissolve when under warm running water!  That’s huge, given that the styrofoam normally used to ship fragile goods is non-reusable, and is proven to have devastating long term effects on our health and the environment.

Awkward footage of the dissolving peanut, too cool not to share!

These factors alone are enough to support a company like Franklin & Whitman, but it helps that their products are also effective.   While I’m unable to use solely their line of skin care products to completely manage my stubborn acne, here I’m recommending one of their products that has offered me EXTREME relief: their Oak Lane Face Mask.  I specifically recommend this for anyone suffering from painful, inflamed acne: it offers me immediate comfort and visibly cuts down on redness and swelling in a way that nothing else I have tried has.  Their masks come in powder form, so I recommend also purchasing their reusable Mask Bowl Kit if you don’t have something similar already.

I use this mask at least once a week and it’s incredibly relaxing. You paint it on your face with a brush and it slowly hardens, leaving you looking like a monster but with smooth refreshed skin just 15 minutes later!  If you don’t suffer from acne, they have many other types of masks to fit your skin type.  Like Lush, I think I’m hooked on this one.

Kitchen

Coffee Cup: KeepCup

I have gotten more compliments on my adorable little coffee mug than any article of clothing…or any aspect of my personality, for that matter.  People love it, I love it, it’s great.  I don’t drink a lot of coffee quantity-wise, so I got the smallest size possible 1) because it’s adorable and 2) I’ll be forced to order a small coffee every time and save money on caffeine I probably didn’t need in the first place.

We’re all aware that single-use cups are extremely wasteful, and if you’re a regular coffee or tea drinker, this is such an easy way to cut back on the one million disposable cups that are used and discarded every minute around the world (KeepCup).

KeepCup sizes are barista-approved, so there’s no frustration at the bar about having to adjust the milk or coffee quantities…and you can completely customize your mug down to the size and lid, bottle, and grip color and material.  Mine is small enough to carry around with me constantly so I never have to worry about having to use a single-use cup.  And again, it’s just so dang cute…

Countertop Compost Bin

If you’re not already composting, start there first 😉 My family signed up for City Compost this past year and every week our bucket is picked up and replaced with a new one.  We keep their large bucket in the garage and instead keep this smaller one in the kitchen.  It’s right next to the sink, so even my father (as much as he doesn’t want to admit he’s doing something good for the environment) cannot escape its stare.  Small bits of leftovers on dirty plates and veggie peels made while making dinner are easily scraped in, and once its full we add it to the garage bucket.  It makes it incredibly convenient and it doesn’t even smell!

Flexible food storage: Bee’s Wrap

This photo shows just how flexible Bee’s Wrap is – there’s an irregular-shaped loaf of bread inside, and the wrap stores it nice and tight.  Like styrofoam, plastic wrap is extremely hard to dispose of: it doesn’t degrade, and when it inevitably ends up in the natural environment it is often ingested by birds or sea life whom mistake it for food, bringing the toxic chemicals inside with it.  Read more information about the negative environmental impact of plastic wrap here.

Bee’s Wrap is handcrafted in Vermont and is made from organic cotton, beeswax, organic jojoba oil, and tree resin.  Not only are they available in a variety of beautiful prints and shapes customized for bread, cheese, small snacks, and more, they’re also washable, reusable, AND compostable.  They even have a slight honey smell to them!  Plus, Bees Wrap will never stick to you like that pesky plastic wrap 😉

Favorite Zero Waste Kitchen Tool: Immersion Blender

If it wasn’t already obvious that my friend Becca and I are just a wee bit similar, the fact that an immersion blender was on both our Christmas lists says it all.   I’ve only used it once so far, but I’m already in love.  It has the power to turn anything into creamy, velvety goodness, and it’s the perfect way to use those leftover veggie scraps.

It got its debut with a mixture of butternut squash, a few potatoes, a knob of ginger, onion, asparagus stems leftover from Christmas dinner, and some cinnamon, salt, and rosemary.  I roasted the butternut squash first, boiled the potatoes and asparagus, and then combined everything in a large soup pot with the softened onions and seasonings.  After adding some water to thin it out a bit, I whipped out the trusty immersion blender and it became a thick, smooth soup in a matter of seconds.  You would never know that all those veggies snuck in there.  With some olive oil drizzled on top, it’s like I was back in Italy.  They just do soup so well…

I’m most excited about using this for soups like this, but you can also make smoothies, ice cream, shakes…basically anything you would make with a blender, but you’re not restricted to that small bowl.  And if you don’t already have a blender, this is far more versatile!

Napkins: Cloth napkins & markers

This is more of a “creative solution” rather than a specific product I can link.  It was something I came across while living with a family in Sicily, and it’s incredibly simple: replace paper napkins with cloth napkins, and use clothespins (or wooden rings) to mark whose is whose.  If you’re okay with not washing them every single day (how dirty do they really get?), just snap on the clothespin and put aside for your next meal.  The family I stayed with drew cute little designs on the clothespins and washed them every couple of days.  It saves countless paper napkins every single meal, and if you have family members who grab a handful of the disposable ones each time they really only need just one, this will make a big difference.

Accessories

Phone case: Pela Case

I don’t normally go through a lot of phone cases, but when it was time to replace my grimy old one of 4 years, I figured why not replace it with one that is eco-friendly?  Pela Cases are made with plant-based materials and are completely compostable.  They have beautiful colors and get the job done, which is all I really care about with a phone case!

Calendar: Maria Schoettler Seasonal Produce Calendar

This is included here because 1) Maria Schoettler’s illustrations are absolutely beautiful, and 2) she uses recycled paper and compostable plastic to package her art.  I came across this calendar the other day and had to have it: each month has vibrant seasonal fruits and veggies – it’s more a piece of art than a calendar, so I’ll be keeping it for much longer than just this year!

…

While I’ve made great progress replacing single-use products with less wasteful or zero waste options, and have learned about many amazing sustainable brands, I’m on the hunt for more.  These are a few products I’m having trouble finding waste-free or sustainable replacements for, and I would love any suggestions:

• Deodorant
• Toothpaste
• Makeup – coverup and mascara
• Reusable planner (there are a few erasable ones out there, but I haven’t found one I’m that excited about)
• Any other sustainable brands you love!

So if you’re like me and trying to waste less these days, I highly recommend starting a similar way: mentally go through your day and jot down any sources of waste along the way.  Although it’s important to point out the small things, focus more on the big things –  things you continuously use or use a lot of – and do some research to see if there’s a way to replace them.

When I do this mental exercise, the list gets smaller and smaller as time goes on, which is very encouraging.  The efforts I’m making to waste less are working, and with this goal always in mind tangible effects keep my motivation up. This year I’d like to work on being more sustainable in my clothing purchases, choosing to buy from companies that use recycled materials or visiting more second-hand stores.

Small changes, one at a time, in our own households are what can make the biggest differences.  Let’s hope this is a trend that lasts, because our planet needs it!

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Are you also trying to waste less?  What challenges and/or successes are you experiencing?  Do you have any favorite sustainable brands?  What products are you having the hardest time replacing with a sustainable alternative?