| |
instead of this: |
try this: |
gifts |
wrapping paper |
scarves, aprons, towels, pillowcases, sheets, used paper, cloth gift bags
(Lilywrap, Bag-all)
or cloth wrapping (furoshiki/bojagi, BOBO scarves) |
| greeting cards and envelopes |
reusable greeting cards or
edible gingerbread greeting cards
|
| disposable batteries |
rechargeable batteries |
kitchen |
paper towels |
"unpaper" cloth towels
(City Threads,
Birdseye Unpaper Towels,
Unpaper Towels, or
make your own),
Bambooee bamboo unpaper towels,
or biodegradable Skoy Cloth |
| single-use grocery bags |
reusable grocery bags
(ChicoBag,
Baggu,
EarthSaks,
Joey Totes) |
| single-use plastic produce bags |
reusable cloth produce bags
(Ecobags,
Simple Ecology) |
| disposable plastic bulk food bags |
reusable cloth bulk food bags |
| plastic zipper bags (like Ziploc) |
Colibri bags
or other reusable cloth snack bags |
| plastic sandwich bags |
Wrap-N-Mat, Colibri bags,
Onya sandwich wrap, handmade sandwich wrap,
Foldable Napkin,
or cloth sandwich bag |
| foil, plastic/saran wrap, wax paper, etc. |
reusable silicone lid, glass storage containers,
Wrappa vegan reusable food wraps,
Wegreeco,
Wrap-N-Mat,
or other sandwich wrap |
disposable takeout containers and
disposable leftover containers |
stainless steel containers (New Wave Enviro,
LunchBots,
Thermos jars, Mason jars,
Cuisinart lidded bowls,
airtight stainless steel containers, etc.), powder coated camping eatery,
Greentainers,
glass/Pyrex containers,
or bento box
|
| paper plates |
reusable ceramic, glass, stainless steel, or powder coated camping plates |
| paper napkins |
reusable cloth napkins
(cotton dinner napkins,
Rawganique hemp napkins,
etc.) |
| disposable utensils (forks, spoons, knives) |
reusable metal or bamboo utensils, or utensil sets |
| disposable paper or plastic bags for lunch |
stainless steel lunch box (ECOlunchbox,
Ecozoi Leak Proof) or
reusable cloth bag
(Rebel Green,
Art of Lunch Insulated Neoprene,
I'm Organic,
terratote,
Milkdot,
etc.)
|
| disposable bags with ice packs for lunch |
plastic-free insulated lunch bag,
Art of Lunch Insulated Neoprene, or
other
insulated lunch bag |
| disposable straws |
glass straws (Glass Dharma,
Strawesome,
Straws by Carli,
Ecoglassstraws,
Glass Paradise,
etc.),
stainless steel straws, or
no straw |
| disposable plastic or paper tablecloths |
handmade reusable cloth tablecloth or
other
reusable cloth tablecloth |
| disposable placemats |
handmade cloth placemats
or
other reusable cloth placemats |
| single-use plastic water bottles |
reusable stainless steel bottle |
| disposable coffee or tea cup |
stainless steel travel mug |
| single-use cardboard coffee sleeve |
reusable silicone coffee sleeve,
neoprene coffee sleeve,
felt coffee sleeve,
or cloth or knitted coffee sleeve |
| disposable coffee filters |
reusable cloth coffee filter or
cold brew stainless steel filter |
| disposable tea bags |
loose leaf tea and a
Tea Straw or
Health Tea Wand, or a
glass teapot with glass or metal infuser |
| paper or plastic bags to carry wine bottles |
padded wine tote or
reusable wine carrier |
| plastic bag to wrap bread |
bread box or reusable cloth bread bag |
| single-use paper baking cups |
reusable silicone baking cups |
| disposable hot pack |
microwavable flax-filled bag or
hot water bottle |
| plastic bag filled with ice |
reusable ice bag or flax-filled bag stored in the freezer |
| styrofoam cooler |
metal cooler or insulated thermal bag |
laundry |
plastic bags for wet or dirty clothes |
reusable wet bag |
| dryer sheets |
reusable fiber dryer balls,
reusable wool dryer balls, or air dry your clothes |
| detergent |
soapnuts,
etc.
(can be re-used several times until the shells start to become soft and grey; then compost them) |
cleaning |
traditional sponges |
zero waste compostable sponges or
Twist plant-based sponges |
| vacuum bags |
bagless vacuum |
| disposable sweeper sheets (like Swiffer) |
reusable cloths inserts for Swiffer sweepers
or a broom and dustpan |
| disposable mopping (like Swiffer WetJet) |
reusable cloths inserts for Swiffer WetJet or
a regular mop |
| disposable dusting cloths (like Pledge) |
microfiber dusting cloths or rags |
| disposable sheet lint rollers |
washable sticky lint roller |
office |
plastic trash can/bin liners |
reusable trash bin/can liner or pillow case
← favorite
|
| staples |
staple-free stapler
← favorite
|
| traditional pens |
refillable carbon-offset bamboo pen |
baby |
disposable and/or plastic baby utensils |
metal silverwear,
bamboo utensils, or
handmade wood utensils |
| disposable baby cups (like Take & Toss) |
stainless steel sippy cup, Thermos Foogo straw bottle, or stainless steel kids' sports bottle |
| disposable baby food containers |
stainless steel containers (Mighty Hippo minis,
sidekicks,
or Thermos Foogo jar) |
| disposable wet wipes |
reusable,
biodegradeable, cloth Wysi Wipe tablets,
Marleys Monsters cloth wipes,
or other reusable wipes |
| disposable baby wipes |
cloth baby wipes or
washcloths (use only for urine for simpler cleaning) |
| disposable diapers |
cloth diapers,
Boingo diapers, or
gDiapers (reusables with flushable liners)
[see also the compostable diaper service in the San Francisco Bay Area] |
| disposable swim diapers |
reusable swim diapers |
| disposable post-partum pads |
cloth pads (Morxy bamboo pads,
Wegreeco bamboo pads,
Domino Pads, Glad Rags, Lunapads, Imse Vimse, or handmade cloth postpartum pads) or
postpartum undearwear |
bathroom |
single-use dental flossers |
dental water jet,
Eco-Dent GentleFloss (vegan and in
a plastic-free housing), reusable dental floss handle,
PerioTwist,
or
Wingbrush |
| toothbrush and toothpaste |
miswak, etc.
← newest addition
|
| disposable facial cleansing cloths or pads |
cloth wipes,
facial rounds,
cotton flannel facial scrubbers, or
reusable crocheted facial scrubbers |
| cotton balls |
cotton flannel facial scrubbers or
reusable crocheted facial scrubbers |
| tissues (like Kleenex) |
cloth handkerchiefs,
etc.,
etc. |
| toilet paper |
cloth wipes or
washcloths
(use only for urine for simpler cleaning) |
| sunscreen |
parasol |
| shampoo |
shampoo bars, Nohbo or
no shampoo |
| disposable razors |
safety razor,
straight razor,
electric razor, or
electric epilator (tweezer device) |
| chemical depilatories (like Nair) |
permanent hair remover
or electric epilator |
| disposable kits for hair removal at the root |
electric epilator, stripless waxing, sugaring (recipe or recipe), threading, or tweezing |
| cotton swabs and disposable make-up applicators |
washable silicone make-up sponge,
cosmetic Smudge Eye Sponge,
DIY from a Crayola Marker kit,
or no make-up |
| tampons |
silicone menstrual cup (FemmyCycle Cup, DivaCup, MoonCup, SckoonCup, Zen
Gina Cup, Lunette Cup, Lily Cup, Yuuki Cup, Lena Cup, Blossom Cup, or The Keeper) |
| single-use menstrual pads |
cloth pads (Domino Pads, Glad Rags, Morxy bamboo pads, Lunapads, Imse Vimse,
Tiktaks pads
New Moon Pads, or handmade cloth menstrual pads) or absorbant underwear
(Modi Bodi,
Thinx,
etc.) |
| disposable adult diapers |
reusable adult diapers |
| disposable plastic bags for dog droppings |
Skooperbox (not reusable but compostable and made from recycled material) |
