6 zero waste swaps that are not worth the hype
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- Опубліковано 4 чер 2024
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Sounds morbid but when my grandparents died I cleared dozens of clean good condition handkerchiefs from their house and washed them and I use them now
This is not gross at all…it’ s very practical. Handkerchiefs beat scratchy tissues any day, and I think that using their handkerchiefs is a very good way to remember your grandparents. 💦🌎Ⓜ️ary🇨🇦
Where did you get that something sweet like that is morbid. :)
The stainless steel lunch boxes (that or lunch wrapped in banana leaves) have been a staple for most people here in India and they are definitely not meant for heating up or refrigerating. We don't warm up packed lunches here, so these lunch boxes are never subjected to sharp temperature changes and they can last several years. I actually got my retired aunt's lunch box once I started working. My mom still has a long multitiered stainless lunch carrier that she inherited from her uncle. That thing is ancient.
Keep those lunch boxes away from sharp temperature changes and you might even get a quirky heirloom
I do have one hint for minimalism and saving money. ....use every thing up completely before buying anything new.
That last few drops of dish soap, the last bit of lunchmeat or cheese, down to your last tea bag etc..Then take your list and shop. You'll know exactly what you need or don't. 😉
I always have a fork with me that I once found on the street and cleaned up, that works pretty well for me 😄
Also I never bought a hankerchief, but I basically inherited them from my partner's grandpa. The family is so happy everytime they see me blowing my nose, it's a cute way of remembering.
Loved your video!
My biggest issue or annoyance with a lot of sustainable or zero waste videos here on yt is that you are often told to buy this or buy that sustainable product. Almost no one talks about how you can be sustainable by simply using the stuff you already have. Like a lot of parents, mine have a whole drawer full of tupperware boxes. All shapes and sizes. They might not be the fancy steel lunch boxes and they might be plastic, but some of these are 30 years old and still in top shape. I’ve never had to buy a new lunchbox in my life 👏🏻
Some (possibly many) U.S. government buildings with safety screenings won’t let you bring in metal utensils, so bamboo or plastic are necessary.
I worked in a building like this.
Thank you for this video!
I've been into sustainability for like 12 years and especially for the past 7 or so, and I've always been VERY skeptical of the whole "top 10 zero waste items you need to start your sustainability journey!" thing and own barely any of the swaps myself. It so obviously varies depending on your lifestyle and I see a lot of people buying stuff they're realistically never going to use just because it was on the list, which defeats the purpose entirely. I've literally never even owned a proper reusable water bottle until a couple of days ago when I found a brand new stainless steel one dumpster diving, because for my needs, a reused plastic bottle works just as well and I can't be spending $30 to buy something new when I already have a free option that works, nor would I want to. We can't consume our way out of a climate catastrophy when capitalism is the cause of it.
That last sentence is BEAUTIFUL. Truth, alliteration, ah **chef's kiss**
Non-religious Amen!!!
@@lesanimaux4416 ditto!! Might screengrab the comment just for that sentence.
True! I’m a fan of glass for water bottles personally since it doesn’t leave any off taste in the water. For years I would just buy a drink that came in a glass container and reuse it for a super long time.
Oh i once made toothpaste out of rapeseed oil (because i haven't had any coconut oil), baking soda and curcuma and i guess back then i invented a new way to make you feel nauseous in a really short amount of time.
I never use the wax wraps as a wrap. I always use them as a container topper. So if I made food in a bowl that doesn’t already have a lid, sometimes instead of transferring the leftovers to a container with a lid I just top it with the wax wrap.
Same here! The only time I reach for mine is to cover a large bowl or baking dish. I just have trouble getting mine to “seal” enough to act as a container on its own. Plus I find them more annoying to clean than a glass jar!
Same here. That way they don't get as dirty and are easier to clean. I mostly eat out of bowls, so it's the perfect thing to keep leftovers. But if I have half an avocado I just keep it in a container with a lid instead.
i only have bowls with lids. except for 2 cereal bowls and i top them with a small plate.
Same! For covering smaller jars, I’ll also using a rubber band to keep it secured.
I agree with you Gittemary , I find the wax food wraps are not really user friendly , so i use glass jars , pyrex containers with lids that Ive had for years , and brown paper bags that are repurposed ( bakery bags , etc )
Plus there’s a lot of limitations to them - can’t be used in a microwave, fridge, or freezer. At that point, I’d rather just use another plate or something to cover the food
@@Rosie-xm7ry yes its great to be able to use all those odd china saucers upturned on plates - works brilliantly I find : ) and no need to buy any " new eco saving" gimmicky items
I agree, although sometimes if I don’t have a lid for a jar, I’ll use one of the wax wraps with a rubber band as the lid. Or if I have a partial can left of something, instead of dumping it into another container, I’ll use the max wrap with a rubber band as a makeshift lid. Ultimate laziness for the win lol
Nooooo! My wax wraps are a staple for me. I made them last year and they get better with time 😉
I don't find myself watching a ton of zero waste/low impact videos anymore, but even when I did, I feel like I didn't hear a lot about hankies. I have allergies every day, so for me the swap has saved me a ton of money and waste, and my skin is also thanking me (I quickly notice the difference when I have to use paper products, I get so chapped). I thrifted mine and I'll never go back haha buut, when I started I just used some squares of old t-shirt and it worked just fine and was soft enough, so I would absolutely recommend that to someone who would like to have some on hand but doesn't need them multiple times per day.
How do you manage the dirty ones? Especially at work, I wouldn’t know what to do with the snotty hankie. I’m an allergy sufferer too, and I’d really like to stop buying/using so many single waste tissues (even bamboo ones)
@@katiejoshank If I'm out and about, I might keep two with me, but they just go back into my pocket or bag. Once you fold over a part that you blew into, it can sometimes stick to itself quite well as it dries, keeping your used section folded & leaving unused portions still soft. I think they're totally worth it as someone with allergies.
I cycle through 8 or so. Usually keep one at my desk, one at my bed, and one in my bag or pocket. I wash them with my clothes and never had any problem there.
@@katiejoshank it's hard to explain, but I fold mine into a square that you can open in multiple parts, so you have for every blow a different section. In bad allergy times I have two to three with me, and tbh I let them dry sometimes to use them again, ! if ! they are not too snotty.
@@katiejoshank if you’re worried about bacteria or something you could reuse a plastic bag for the used ones when you’re out and about. I do that with my used face masks, I just use an old ziploc bag that is airtight and put them in the wash when I get home.
But I know plenty of allergy sufferers who put their paper tissues back in their pocket after blowing their nose and reuse it several times, so I’d assume you can do the same with a handkerchief.
@@katiejoshank just put them wherever you would put your paper ones until you use it up. The difference is, that paper ones go to the bin afterwards and cloth ones go home and into the laundry bin. I wash them with towels / bedding so that they be cleaned in 95 degrees rather than my normal wash of 40 degrees.
It’s better to use all the plastic utensils we already have, keep using them until they literally fall apart. Don’t go out and buy the ‘sustainable’ bamboo cutlery. Everybody wants utensils to take with them so companies will just keep making them which just defeats the purpose. Plastic gets a lot crap which is fair in a way, but I’d rather keep using my old plastic containers, utensils tools etc than go out and buy new things from Amazon or support deceptive production processes. TLDR Just use what u have in all things 👍✌️🙏❤️
Even if they do start falling apart, you can still reuse them as planters. Not just plastic, every glass and ceramics. If they are not completely broken apart, but has cracks and chips that can hurt you, then you can plant succulents in them.
@@aleenaprasannan2146 yes absolutely 👍✌️🙏
I have been using solid dish soap for 2 years now, and I love it. I think the key is to find a soap dish that will grip the soap so you don't have to hold the soap when you use it. I have a scrub brush and rub it on the top. It's actually more convenient then handling the liquid soap bottle for me.
Can you link the soap and soap dish that you use?
Me too! I just wet it and stick it to the drying rack. Also it works a lot better with my wooden dishbrushes than with a normal plastic dish brush.
What soap and brush do you use? I keep seeing a ton around online but not many people I know use them
Yes, PLEASE share with us the solid dish soap you use!! I have tried 3 brands for solid and a couple more DIY formulas, all with no luck. The end result is just TERRIBLE. It either takes 2 to 3 rinses to take off the smell on the dish and once the glass/plate dries, it's left with all the streaks in the world.
I had best luck with Malin in Ratan which is essentially a glycerin soap.
As for dishwasher brush redecker is a good brand.
I also prefer to use old glass jars for any selftover food. I always see what’s inside and nothing happens to be overlooked or forgotten in the back of the fridge :D
Just like the tissue you talked about, have you seen the “reusable” paper towels?? They are absurd in my opinion. They look very aesthetic before use because they come in a roll like normal paper towels. But then once you rip on towel off and use it, it just because a low quality and ugly rag! It can’t go back on the roll of course. You can wash it and reuse it but all of the aesthetics are gone so it would’ve been more sustainable (and easier and cheaper and better looking) to just use rags or dish towels. A friend of mine was raving about this for a while and I just nodded and smiled.
In Denmark, and all of Scandinavia actually, we have used reusable and washable dishcloths for decades - my family wouldn’t dream of using a paper towel to wipe the kitchen table, so from my point of view that is what is absurd 😅 We have knitted cloths that we use over and over and that last for years 👏 ours don’t come on a roll tho, we just hang it on a hook next to the sink - I think the roll of reusable towels might be marketed towards Americans 😅
@@Gittemary yes, they are definitely marketed to Americans! I’m American and many people I know would never think to use a dish towel to wipe down the counters or wipe up a spill. The default is a paper towel. Same with napkins during dinner at home- I grew up setting the table either with a paper napkin or a paper towel under the fork. It’s always crazy to have reminders like this of the extreme capitalistic culture in the US compared to other countries. I even grew up with kids who had paper/plastic dishes/cutlery for all meals at home because the parents felt they didn’t have time to do dishes so chose a more “convenient” option for everyday use!
I move around a lot and I usually can’t take metal knives and don’t want to carry a slightly heavier and loud item like metal so I use my bamboo cutlery set with the fabric wrap all the time! Since I don’t own any actual cutlery since I live a little like a nomad, this works for me but I totally agree with everything you said! Great vid!
If you’re new to zw you probably have some plastic silverware from take out orders somewhere in your home. You can just wash and reuse the disposable plastic set until they break apart.
I agree with the dish soap. I’ve swapped over to my bulk liquid dish soap and my kitchen is now actually clean 95% of the time because it is so easy and quick to clean things. They don’t get left in the sink anymore.
I am not a lover of solid shampoo bars. I have a scalp condition and none of the shampoo bars help.
I also have never bought into the bamboo cutlery idea. My husband bought an expensive boxed cutlery set way back in 1997. I'm still using it daily. My already owned cutlery set is much prettier and will not break like bamboo can.
I used to make my own laundry detergent about 15 years ago. They are terrible for cleaning my husband's work clothes, he's a diesel mechanic, and it was equally bad for my son's clothes, working in a kitchen. Home made never cleaned all the stains nor removed the smells. What I do now is buy a laundry detergent which I know works, but buy in bulk in packaging which is recyclable.
I should add that we are reduced wasters, not zero wasters, but I love watching zero wasters for ideas.
Reduced wasters. Yes, that's it, exactly. Thank you for saying that because I have been struggling with these same issues and I'm a caregiver for A dementia patient. I just don't have time to keep futzing with these things over and over. Plus it's a giant waste of water if you have to keep rewashing the clothes because they still smell
I absolutely love dish soap blocks. Especially if you use a brush, I find it so easy to just rub the brush against the block which has a permanent place on my bench. I also use it to clean down my benches and it smells so good! I find it easier than liquid soap!
It has to be a good soap tho. Some of them can leave a nasty residue or are just to alkaline to remove water stains 😌
PLEASE share with us the solid dish soap you use!! I have tried 3 brands for solid and a couple more liquid DIY formulas, all with no luck. The end result is just TERRIBLE. It either takes 2 to 3 rinses to take off the smell on the dish and once the glass/plate dries, it's left with so much residue and streaks.
I find a lot of used handkerchiefs in second hand stores, they are like 5 sek (50¢) and I always keep a clean one in a little old candy tin in my bag. I sometimes have nosebleeds and if I'm out and about it's good to have one in case. But they are also great instead of napkins at fast food joints.
I remember my grandfather used them all the time and I think that's why there are so many in thrift shops - it's one of those things people used to bring with them all the time.
Do you have advice on how to best clean a handkerchief after a nosebleed? I sometimes get them and they wash out well when I'm at home and rinse them right away but if I'm out and it dries I found it hard to get out the blood stains 😕
@@Bairinde oof, yeah, blood stains are tricky. Wash in cold water! Because if you use warm water something happens to the proteins of the blood and it is iiiiiin there! True story 😅
Rinse with cold water as soon as you can and I use "galltvål" - directly translates to 'bile-soap'. It's a bio friendly alternative to stain removal. I soak the handkerchiefs in there and once the stains are gone I can disenfect them by putting them in a pot of boiling water.
I just went back to solid dish soap after switching to a refillable one because in the last year or so the refillable one suddenly got super watery and less effective. I really do believe the station I was getting my soap from started watering it down, probably to try to cut costs because of the effects of the pandemic. It just sucked as a dish soap, though. So I've gone back and it's definitely better! A different experience to be sure. For me, I soak dishes if necessary in hot water without any soap and then when I go to wash I use very little water in the actual dish itself. I need to SEE the suds or it doesn't work, especially for anything with grease. Tap the brush on the soap, swipe around inside the dish with all those cute little suds, then rinse. It works very well in that way. I agree I miss being able to just do a little squirt into the water, but actually for certain things I feel I'm using far less water now because if it doesn't need to soak, I just need enough for a glaze in the dish and I wet the brush, then it works well. Anyway, it all takes adjustment. I was so happy when I found my refillable station locally but then it made me sad LOL. I do wonder, though, about the hidden waste of the refill station. Just how big are the containers they're using to refill the pump bottles used by the public? I wonder if the bar soap is still more sustainable, like, without having to be held in a container even before it gets to the place it's sold. It's so hard to navigate what the best decisions are, but I'm certainly grateful to you for helping us do it.
For handkerchiefs, you would probably have less of an impact if you went to a thrift store and found a nice table runner/sheet, and washed it thoroughly, cut out the squares, and found a cute jar than buying new cotton ones. I’m obsessed about natural fibers and it isn’t terribly hard to find what most fabrics are made of.
Agree! Just because you are going 'zero waste' does not mean you should go out and buy new 'sustainable' items to replace your current ones. The most sustainable product is the one already in your cupboard/closet!
There are some DIY that are very easy to do, take almost no time to do and are very economic. These are the one I do. I tried to do my deodorant before and it really wasn't worth it for me. But I do my own all purpose cleaner and toilet cleaner and these take litterally seconds to do and they work really well.
Regarding the dish soap… this is a bit laborious, but I’ve found I really like the result, in terms of both convenience to use and cleaning performance. I’ve been taking my solid dish soap bars, cutting them up into small chunks, and then grinding them up in a food processor with baking soda. The resulting powder cleanser is great for a host of cleaning applications, from dishes to sinks and bathtub surfaces. Just sprinkle some powder and add a bit of water or a very wet washcloth.
My fave “zero waste” cutlery is my camping spork which I just carry around all the time.
Beeswax wraps I use to wrap a “wet” sauce sandwich in my lunchbox so it stays together.
Metal lunchbox is aesthetically pleasing but my old SISTEMA BPA free plastic sandwich box is better and seals properly. Also they’re a cheap option and do last ages as you can get them in the school shopping section
I mean this in the sweetest way. Your nose crunches up like crunchy cat from tiktok and it's so adorable 😭😍
I'm not a fan of cloth hankerchiefs when I'm sick. Collecting them in a jar just cringes me out because of bacteria/ virus growth on moist surfaces and honestly, I don't want to do laundry when I'm so sick that hankerchiefs are in order. But otherwise, I agree. If you don't have a sewing machine, you can borrow pinking shears to cut them with zig zags holding the corners up. No sew.
I never bought the to go cutlery because my first thought was “I’ll just use my regular cutlery”. I also went back to liquid dish soap and was reminded of how much easier it was. I don’t have bulk but I buy the gallon of Dr. bronner’s sal suds and it lasts so long.
Looove my sal suds so much
I agree liquid dish soap lasts a long time if you don’t overuse it. My husband and I have had literally the same Costco sized jug of Dawn for the whole time we’ve lived together so far and we moved in together in like 2017. We are just now getting to the bottom of that jug and I’m deciding what I want to get for our next dish soap.
I also use liquid dish soap that we bought in a huge container. I mix 2/3 dish soap and 1/3 water in a small glass bottle with a pouring spout that we keep at the sink. This mix is very effective at cleaning and it takes a lot less water to rinse the soap from the dishes. My big bottle of soap lasts a very long time, and the next time I need to purchase dish soap I will try to do so from the local Refillery.
I agree with the solid soap. In the town where I live there is very hard water (?), and the dish soap I had didn't go well with it. I use regular liquid soap again.
Also agree on the cotton napkins. I made mine once from old t-shirts, all off them are kind of worn out, so now I use dish clothes. Maybe I will make some napkins again out of some of the douens of tote bags I have.
Handkerchiefs are pretty easy and inexpensive to get in antique or vintage stores secondhand. I think it would be kind of obnoxious if you don't have an easy access washing machine, but it's pretty easy if you do, and there are thousands (if not millions) of handkerchiefs already in circulation.
Agree on tissues - I just cut up old t-shirts. I used them as baby wipes for my daughter; we use them as napkins, tissues, etc.
Another idea in the use, reuse, and use again school of thought... We wash and reuse ALL of the clear plastic produce bags that seem to find a way into our home. We slide plates or bowls of leftovers or loaves of homemade bread into the bags, find they work better than cling wrap and they last a long time. Also great for travel to pack shoes, use as packing cubes, store dirty clothes... I also save and reuse the liner bags from boxes of cold cereal and crackers, which are similar to the old fashioned waxed paper on rolls my mom used to buy. They great for storing leftovers in the fridge.
I personally love toothpaste tabs! So easy to use and travel with! Definitely a slight learning curve and adjustment when first starting to use them. I also like that they still have tabs with fluoride for people that feel that they should still be using fluoride
Tabs is so good! They are good for travelling (no liquids) also they have fluoride added (I wish I found with xylitol as well). Homemade "tootpaste" trend drives me crazy. Teeth need fluoride to remineralise and not using toothpaste with fluoride is so so harmful (unless you are under 3 yo or have some specific condition when you cannot use fluoride but the majority of the population can and should use toothpaste with fluoride).
i have such a trouble with biting on them. they usually taste so sharply of mint and the crumbly texture makes me gag 🤢
@@BlondeQtie I hate crumbly texture too. But I tried different brands and found THE ONE. They really are very different (taste and texture wise) depending on the brand... For example, I did not like Benn&Anna (too "crunchy" with small bits that did not dissolve). But I really like ECOLIVING - smooth and not too minty.
The charity thrift shop where I volunteer always have a wide selection of beautiful cloth napkins and handkerchiefs for cheap. Older Ladies used to have drawers full of them and estates often donate them to us. They often arrive at our shop new or barely used along with beautiful bed linens, comforters etc..i keep a box of tissues and paper napkins for guests if they prefer them. But I seldom buy any paper products except for toilet paper.
The wraps... Love them. As a household with daily lunchbox-making, wraps have been amazing. We don't buy lunchpaper anymore and hardly any tinfoil (the brand we do use, for ex hot things, are sustainable). They are easily cleaned and to store. One of my favorite swaps.
Agree with the first zero waste option Bamboo cutlery seems pointless when you can just use the cutlery you have at home. Haven't tried a dish soap. Love 🥰 the video and love 💕 Gittemary.
I agree with you about the cutlery sets and the beeswax wraps. I never bought a cutlery set because I already have so many metal utensils that I dont even see a point in buying more, I just grab one from the utensil drawer and put it in my lunchbox if I need it. The beeswax wraps don't stick very well. I found that I like the silicone bowl covers a lot more, they work so much better, and they are easier to clean than wax wraps. The solid dish soap seems like more of a hassle to switch to for me, I guess it really depends on soap preference.
I love the metal sandwich box I bought, Ive had it for a year and its still holding up super well. I use it all the time for my lunch at work.
For me, toothpaste tabs have always been my least favorite swap and I still dont understand how so many people like them. They dont work for me, I hate them. It feels like I'm biting down on chalk and they dont clean my teeth enough, I feel like I need to use like 3 of them at a time just to get them to work.
Just a recommendation, I have struggled to use menstrual cups for ages and just found out last year about menstrual discs. They don't need suction to work which helped me very much. I love the brands Lumma and Nixit.
You can buy menstrual underpants now. The brand is called WUKA. It's a good option if you don't like the cups🙂 I wish i had all these options when i was still on the monthlys😁
I struggeled as well, made my cramps worse:( I use menstrual underware and don't look back:)
Yeah the cups didn’t work for me. The underwear doesn’t work for me on heavy days but I love using them the rest of the time
@@basil33 oh yeah, a friend has the same problem:( maybe the disk that was suggested may help? I never tried it tho.
@@basil33 I tried the underwear too, I have really heavy periods and the underwear leaked several times. For the discs: Lumma is very beginner friendly because it has different sizings and a draw string to make it easier to get out. Nixit is a bit softer and the material feels lux up it's a little hard to insert because it's softer. Cups always gave me cramps and leaked. I tried three different ones and non worked for me.
For the solid versus liquid dish soap, If you are unable to find recyclable packaging, or compostable packaging for liquid dish soap, there are ways to simply boil a bar of soap and turn it into liquid to refill your hand pumps. Obviously google/YT it but this could be the alternative. Not sure if everyone wants to boil soap, but it is a zero waste packaging option!
I fell for the final tissue thing :/ I do use it bc I love having tissues on the go but I really should've used something I already had like you said. I also don't like using reusable tissues when I'm sick bc I wash most things on cold water and I worry the germs won't die. And I totally agree with the dish soap but I also feel that way about shampoo and conditioner. We used bars for years and then tried Plain and holy cow! I forgot how much I love liquid shampoo! 😆
I feel you on the bars, I tried some shampoos that were pretty bad and I finally found an amazing one from Lush. The conditioner however - it takes forever to use it up and I can't seem to find one that works well.
@@nbk_97 yeah, I don't like how conditioner bars make my hair feel at all. I know Sustainable Vegan has one she likes but I heard about Plain from Shelbizleee and really like it. It's a refillable option.
Hear me out. Good old handkerchiefs that are made from proper material are a good purchase. Even better if you find some deep in your grandma's closet.
I've bought some handkerchiefs from a polish company and they are way softer and delicate that regular paper ones (the ones from my grandma as well) BUT I've also bought this well advertised "last tissue" and they are terrible. Material is thick and hard, and they sandpaper my nose as much (if not more) than cheap paper ones.
I have allergies so i have to use tissues daily and I've always had irritated nose area. Since I use this GOOD reusable ones nothings wrong with my skin. Highly recommend.
I completely agree with you on the “reusable tissues” being overrated. Like, any literal piece of cloth or something as simple as a paper restaurant napkin or paper towel that you have used to dry your hands can be a tissue or handkerchief
My house is almost completely paper free (no paper towels, tissues, q-tips, napkins, cotton balls, etc) EXCEPT baby wipes. I hate using toilet paper when i go to the bathroom so i dont buy rolls of tp, BUT i prefer using baby wipes. Sometimes i find the ones made from recycled paper, but its the one bit of "waste" im going to hang on to. And period products.
I didn't even know that solid dish soap was a thing! I use bulk liquid for hand soap and dish soap *and* dispense it from foaming containers. It lasts twice as long and suds beautifully. I'm actually thinking of turning my solid shampoo bar into something similar... somehow.
And I completely agree with the tissues! I bought and received a ton of baby washcloths when my son was born; I ended up not liking them for their intended purpose (reusable baby wipes) but I still use them to this day for handkerchiefs! They've been in rotation for four years now and you can't tell...except for the occasional ink stain. 😅 Thank you for this video, it was wonderful and informative, as usual! ❤️
I just have this old kids cuttlery for my backpack. I put them in a little bag and carry them around. Got some weird looks but who cares.
Wax wraps-I tried hard to like them but since you can't wash them well I don't feel like it is safe to use over and over
I love my solid dish wash bar. I hated them at first but found that what works well for me is one that is surfactant based and not a traditional soap. Soap didnt work well with my hard water and left grime in my sink and a film on the dishes. But the one I use now leaves everything clean! I hang it against the wall right above my sink and just brush my dish brush over it once in a while as I'm doing the dishes. This way I dont need an extra hand and all the water that drips from it just drips into the sink. And afterwards it properly dries.
I find it easier and I need only two bars per year for a two person household with no dishwasher.
What brand do you use?
@@supernova622 I use the Afwaszeep from De Tuinen. It's sold in the Dutch Holland and Barrets.
I don't see the need for wax wraps, special lunch utensils and boxes etc. I do pack a lunch often when I travel but my drinks go in my old metal thermos and my food in covered glass containers and I pop it all in one of my many totes.
As for DIYing deodorant, toothpaste, face cream, shampoo etc I'm not sure I'd save a lot of money doing that. I use basic, inexpensive items and I usually get them on sale and use things sparingly so they last me a long time. I buy a large bottle of liquid dish soap, water it down a bit and use it for dishes and various cleaning and laundry projects. I actually prefer bar soap to body wash but I'm.not picky.
An example for single use items being more sustainable than a reusable alternative might be the little cotton pads for nursing moms you put in your bra (I don’t know what they’re called in English). In my personal experience and what I know from friends, you only really need them in the beginning, so even if you breastfeed for two to three years, you don’t use those for the entire time but only the first two to three months. I didn’t really need them at all. And because they are meant to absorb breast milk from your breast that your new born baby who doesn’t have an immune system yet drinks from you need to change them super regularly, so you would need a bunch of reusable ones. I didn’t even use up the one package I bought and gave the left over ones to an expecting friend. Unless you plan on having and breast feeding five children or you can find them second hand, I would advise against getting reusable nursing shields or whatever they’re called.
I'm so glad you do these videos. As someone who is learning about and trying to practice sustainability, sometimes it is not always easy to conceptualize the impacts of sustainable swaps vs the practicality of reconfiguring/upcycling things you already have.
I fundamentally agree with you about most of the things in this video (I have also given up solid dish soap and DIY Deodorant!), but I will say, as someone with neck and back issues, the lightness of the bamboo cutlery is very helpful. My stainless steel stuff from home is much heavier. But you're right, finding a set that's actually sustainable isn't the easiest! Mine claim to be compostable, but since they're still working fine, I haven't tried it yet. And yes to the new tissues/handkerchiefs. Second-hand ones are available in most antique, junk, and thrift stores for almost nothing, and they're often quite lovely as well!
Totally agree on the DIY beauty product stuff. I’m just really not into that type of DIY at all and already have too many chores to do, so it would just be really stressful to add another thing like that to my plate.
Beeswax wraps are not that great, you're right. I love silicone lids and bowl covers for things for the fridge though.
I have completely stopped using the reusable wax wraps and now I just put everything into glass whether it be a jar or a container. We also take just a regular cutlery with us and a reusable napkin when we are in the need of a meal on the goal. Thank you for all the inspiration, I just love all your videos💕
Metal/stainless steel lunchboxes are very common products in India and the broken edges after using them for many years are extremely common if the quality of the product isn't great. But the good thing is we can exchange old metal utensils in the stores and buy new ones ( at least in my city where I live). I wouldn't completely rule off stainless steel lunchboxes. They are extremely eco-friendly and handy.
I would love to see a video about products you thought were unnecessary and then after a period of time you started to love them.
Also, sewing person here. My reusable tissues are all scraps from projects and I use them allll the time. But I wouldn't buy new ones either.
I love this video, i agree with most of these thing especially the solid dishsoap.. I'm having mega trouble with doing dishes, and when i saw you could buy solid dishsoap without any packaging i bought 2 of them right away. I also found some special dried grass that u could make a ball off and use that as plasticfree dish brush thing. Both things sounds great for the earth but they work so much worse than liquid soap and a brush on wood stick and they made my ''dishing problem'' even worse.. Untill you experience these old things again you notice how much better they are.
Good video! Thank you.
I live very frugally - at least I think this of me - and try to not buy new things. If I do, I wait a long time considering, if I need it.
Last time I really wanted something and gave in within two weeks or so, was metal straws with the brush included for 2,50€ in 2021. Then some weeks after they were a freebie at the Bipa box I get for my loyalty card points for free. Damn!
NEver bought any other swaps before, because I ALWAYS wait until it comes along or reuse something from my home.
It's also the only item I ever bought specifically and tbh I don't regret it. I never thought, I get so much out of them. Especially when we all got covid is was such a blessing because I could drink hot teas from bed and not rise, because I was so weak.
I totally agree with your advice. Because when I bought my first swap, I then realized that I had other alternatives. So we should be patient before buying something new. 😊
I love these videos! I will say I agree w everything other than the tissues - I agree w taking the tissues as old fabric before buying, but I love the reusable tissue holder from the final products company. I find it impossible to keep track of my used tissues without a receptacle and I like that they also have a separation for the used tissues and a way to get out the clean ones easily. I keep them with me everywhere and as a neurodivergent with allergies it’s the best i can do to reduce waste and still keep an organized life 💛 I also think the wax paper can get old really quick. I love getting to be critical of the consumerism around sustainability. Thanks for sharing!
Wasn’t here for a long time and need to say the new Intro is fire 🔥
love seeing, that you criticise these thing, because I feel a lot of eco content nowadays is about buying alternatives, because the influencers need to make money in some way. So it’s nice to see a different approach on this.
And one thing about solid soap we need to remind ourself about is, that in some cases it’s not as sustainable as we think. Unless it Is real soap you need tons of energy to dehydrate the liquid into a solid bar. Yes you save up the packaging but if you don’t use green energy to dehydrate the liquid into a solid bar it’s not that environments friendly 😉
Love this, agree with so many! I have a metal lunchbox with a floopy-ish plastic lid and it works so well, doesn't ever come open or leak or anything. my partner has an elephant box with metal lid and he isnt such a fan of that. Although mine has a plastic lid, it works better and i think will be long term more sustainable
Thank you once again for an amazing video. Could you do a video on ways to save more energy when you still (have! to!) use gas? And how much money we can save by doing / not doing certain things when it comes to energy?
Thank you so much for sharing your insights! I’m very new to the sustainability world and it all can be a little overwhelming and expensive! I hate waste and that includes making wasteful purchases and your videos have already been helping me be smart about the transition!
Welcome! 😊
I have a pile of old thrifted hankies - they are usually not that hard to find, and they are usually super cheap, and they look really nice! Also - the hemmed edges, they make them easy to wash without fraying. So for cloth hankies, absolutely go thrifting! For metal lunch boxes - here in Sweden, they are the traditional lunch boxes, they are very sturdy, they last a lifetime, you can also often find them at thriftstores. They aren't made to be used in a conventional oven, but in a special little lunch box heating oven - I suppose they aren't as hot as you would set the oven, because at work, people put their boxes in the heating oven when they arrive in the morning, so they are hot when it's time for lunch.
Wax wraps are good for fruits, if you have a half open lime, or bringing an Apple/banana and don't want it to be loose in your bag... also for covering jars, but I do find a simple piece of plastic (that you can pick from an old food package and maybe sew it with cloth on one side so it looks pretty) and an elastic, a better option
Oh yes... most of these I can totally relate to. Only thing that really doesn't work for me are the tooth paste tab things, I went back to regular tooth paste. Dish soap in bulk (sustainable brand) as well and I also use it for cleaning. I use tissues from my grandmother, I guess they are from the 1950s or 60s. I cut up old T-shirts and such if I need make up remover pads, a shoe cleaning cloth etc. I would really like to own one of these lunchboxes, but I still have plastic ones that are perfectly fine that I use, they were given to me and why would I throw these out and buy something new. I don't have a reusable straw or the Bamboo cutlery, I never felt I needed that anyway. The wax wraps I own, but never use, wouldn't buy that again, it's just unnecessary. There are more kitchen items I bought that I thought would be sustainable - but I never use it, they don't work that well and I wouldn't recommend these: a mechanical hand mixer, a food mill ("Flotte Lotte" in German) and cotton dishcloths (you can just cut up an old towel... works the same).
Oh and diy cleaning products! Most are so meh, now I use Blueland and Dropps and they're so amazing!
Would you do an updated version of your DIY body butter? The old one isn't very specific.
Yeeeeah I should probably update that recipe 😅
I use bulk dish soap for soaking heavily soiled dishes and bar dish soap for quick washes :)
I couldn't use solid dish soap. I had an impression it doesn't take out the fat form the dishes and I was using much more warm water. So I came back to liquid soap and I am using less water, usually just cold and I save time!
blueland has a powder dish soap and i love it tbh!
I can't wash wax wraps or silicone bags, so instead, I buy compostible bags and parchment paper from If You Care. They work better for kid lunches and storing awkwardly-shaped foods like sliced peppers, and I can freeze my meats safely with biodegradable materials instead of plastics.
I understand not buying cloth tissues/unpaper towels, but my current fabric stash is being used to make yarn for a dog bed, they were on sale for 40c per, and the kids were excited to be "superheroes" by cleaning with "rainbow power" wipes instead of paper towels. With the cost of buying fabric what it is today, $8 to get my kids on board with both cleaning AND eco-friendly living was a steal.
I'm looking into getting PUL material so I can make lids for my glassware whose lids disappeared. It's still made of synthetic material, but I'll use my glassware more if I have lids.
I use wax wraps often but mainly when i open a can of beans and dont use them all as a lid in the fridge or if i am taking porridge to work I usually use a lunchbox but use the wrap to make it more secure to avoid spillage. I have never tried to use it to wrap a sandwich like you show i think i would find the feel of it offputting 😄
I hav a set of collapsible plastic cutlery that my mom bought me in middle school that I use as my on-the-go cutlery and I use a hair tye to hold my reusable straw to them (the straw was free from my work)
This is a great video, I have a very limited budget and often end up not making ZW swaps in case I end up not liking/needing them. I’ve thought about getting the wax wraps for probably 6 months, but I think I’ll skip it because of the fluctuating quality. I tend to favor containers of any kind before foils and wraps, I have a roll of cling wrap that have lasted me maybe 8 years?? So I think even high quality wax wraps would turn out pretty useless in my house 😅
In india mainly in kerala we use cotton handkerchief instead of tissue.
And for toothpaste there are various alternatives that produced from natural products(Ayurveda) which are not sticky either you can look for it if u are interested.
My husband wears over the calf white socks. I cut off the feet from his old ones and use the part from the ankle area to where the stretching ribbed part as handkerchiefs. I have severe allergies like 2 separate allergy pulls upwards of 6 times a day and still have a runny nose. They work great. Absorbent, easy to bleach, quick drying and soft on my face.
What do you think about cloth coffee filters vs single use? Living in drought, I felt rinsing the reusable ones took quite a bit of water, but I imagine there’s trees and water involved on the back end with the single use ones…..
Not related to this post, but I love that pop of orange!
Dr bronners liquid soap is what I use for dishes.
Our household tried the reusable paper towels and it went horribly. They moulded before I could wash them and had to be thrown out after the first time. Due to my bacteria obsession, using reusable handkerchiefs and toilet paper isn’t an option. It’d be about the same environmental damage me cleaning them with bleach/chemicals as buying single use.
So glad I'm not the only one !
i hear you on the wax wraps sista but they are soo pretty i wished they worked better
I never had good results with the wax wrap. Mine got hard and were hard to mold.
CONDITIONER BARS. My hair type requires a lot of conditioner and I can never get enough off of a bar and it’s just not an easy or good experience
I don't think steel lunchboxes would work for me. I usually have to make my lunch the night before and keep it in the refrigerator during the night, so I need to re-heat my lunch at lunchtime. In my case, a microwave-safe container is required.
The world is chock full of pretty vintage handkerchiefs, by the way.
I've wondered about the wax wraps and solid dish soaps for a while, but i could never quite bring myself to buying them to find out. Plant milks I havent been able to make in a way that the texture doesnt gross me out. Ive tried different nuts and oats but I've decided thats just something I'll buy
I totally agree on the plant milks. I don't drink them that often anyway, so going through the hassle of finding a way to make them better at home is too much for me. Also most store bought versions are fortified and I find that very important
Agrer on a lot.
You should try the Swedish Malin i Ratan dish soap, though, if you can find it. Lathers so nice, and cleans well. I stick it on my drying rack so it dries out and stays still. Just to
swivel my brush across it and clean stuff. Not inconvenient at all and rinses clean. Before I came across that one I really disliked solid dish soap.
Honestly switching to 'sustainable' options in itself can be a bad mindset to have, as many of the things someone already has and could continue to use work just as well as something they may purchase new to feel like they are being sustainable.
If you already have plastic tupperware and ziplocks, it is not a bad thing at all to use them to their fullest, it is more wasteful to switch everything you use to glass and metal then to use the things you already have until they can no longer be used, then replace things as they break with second hand goods, then looking for new sustainable alternatives if nothing funtional is available second hand.
Use, reuse, then find a reused replacement, and at the very end of possibilities buy new.
hi, great video, thanks. 😊 i was wondering, I saw you used cream deodorant and it didn't work well for you. Have you tried natural deodorant in spray? I love my deodorant (based on alum dissolved in water) and it's like you are wearing nothing, you can add essential oils based on your preferences/alergies so it smells nice. I personally use it without oils because I am not a big fan of strong scents but everyone have their own liked and dislikes.
Anyway, the question is - is deodorant based on alum chunks really sustainable? 🧐 It never occured to me to think about it, but now I wonder... 😅 Just trying to ask in case you know more about it than me 😅😊 I tried one based on baking soda but my skin is really sensitive so alum stick it is..
I bought second hand cutlery for work. It’s there in case I forget to bring from home.
Maybe overrated but a swap that bombed fantastically in my house was bamboo toilet paper-including the much-touted Who Gives a Crap. My husband literally sent me a picture of bloody toilet paper it was so harsh for him. Still stuck using Charmin, but I try to buy in as large a package as possible. Also looking to add in bidets once I’ve saved up enough.
The wax wraps are new to me but working out ok so far. Agree on the bamboo cutlery. I just stole a set of my roommate’s utensils and keep them at work. (He damaged many of mine, so I feel it’s fair.) I’ve never tried block dish soap (still a baby zero-waster), but Grove dish soap is doing well for me so far. Just need a soap pump bottle for more measured use.
I like collecting old hankies. They are so beautiful and already out in the world so not bought new. (Obviously clean WELL before hand)
I am trying my best to throw away less garbage overall and buy less things. The whole reason behind throwing away less things is due to the INSANE amount of plastic (medical waste) one time use products I use due to medical needs. I'm not on board with using wooden cutlery beyond using a wooden spoon when cooking in my easily scratched cookware. I use liquid soap but a 32oz bottle of concentrated dish soap lasts about 6 months. I use bar soap for washing my body. As for hair care I try to get the largest size bottles/containers that I can afford. I do have legitimate needs for paper towels but with the way I stretch a roll, one roll will last at least a month if not two. I'm not on board with using metal bottles short of my Pura Kika bottles that I can use either the wide neck no drip Nubby baby bottle nipples or the Pura Kika toddler silicone sipper spouts as these are also no drip. I use the Pura Kika bottles with the specific nipples/spouts because I have a habit of dropping things, particularly cups. I am however, reusing a plastic 20oz Gatorade bottle that I use to make Gatorade out of the Gatorade powder and water. I've been using this one bottle for at least 5 months almost. For excess food storage I use the Rubbermaid plastic containers and lids that are quite heavy duty. I also refill the Arizona gallon jugs, the Motts apple juice gallon jugs and the Juicy Juice gallon jugs with water from my nearby water dispenser (.25 cents a gallon for refilling gallon jugs). I use old t-shirts to make reusable bags or the t-shirts get used for handkerchiefs or rags that I then try to reuse. As I don't have teeth, I have no use for toothpaste short of using a tiny amount mixed with water as a mouthwash/rinse (teeth had to go because I couldn't afford to get them properly fixed in addition to being a less expensive route).
More zero waste swaps that are not worth the hype (in my opinion, no particular order): Recycled plastic trash bags (usually fake, and people think whatever they throw inside will decompose for some reason eg. food); Bamboo toothbrushes - started getting rot in 2 weeks of use; electrical tabletop composter machines (at least the current versions on the market)
Think with bought hankies is the fact you can wash them for 60° or 90°. I have them for quite a while, some inherited from my grandma etc.
Biodegradable cling film (at least, the one I tried) is quite a bummer to me. It just doesn't stick well to stuff and it costs a lot!
Definitely better to stick to jars.
Meget informativt! 🙏🏻
Oh no! I love solid dish soap 🙈 because it last longer