Lately I've been working on cutting down waste and reducing my footprint. Some ways are easier than others and will depend on your location and resources in the community. It's nearly impossible to be completely "green" unless you make/grow everything yourself and live off the land. These are some things I find work for me, do what works for you.
1) Start Gardening: I live in an apartment so I obviously am confined to a small patio space. Even so, I've been fairly successful with container gardening: tomatoes, peppers, and fresh herbs. I've even grown potatoes and onions with good results. Herbs are expensive to buy in the store, but I have been able to keep rosemary, thyme, and parsley growing in winter (okay my parsley died, but the others kept until December). I hang extra herbs to dry for long-term storage but you can use your oven on its lowest setting or a dehydrator if you have one.
2) Learn to Bake Bread: My gram and I have a weakness for bread, and I know a lot of people started baking bread with the pandemic (I had to get creative to find recipes without yeast!). It takes some time and effort, but it is well worth it and better for you without the preservatives (unless you like paying $5 for an organic loaf, go for it). I have an entire section of this blog dedicated to bread.
3) Hang your Laundry: Dryers can take up a lot of electricity, so I got a hanging rack and use it for everything except towels/linens. If you have a house with a yard, having a clothesline is also an option. Plus for me, it gives my cats a nice fort to play with!
4) Invest in Reusable Items: This one is a bit more costly to begin with, but over time can save money and reduce plastic waste. I have reusable "paper towels" made from cotton, beeswax food wraps to replace saran wrap, and reusable silicon bags. Yes, I still buy paper towels and disposable plastic bags at times but not nearly as much as I used to.
Links (Not a promotion, just products that I bought and like):
Paper Towels: Paperless paper Towels 12 10x14 1 Ply /moroccan Decor/ - Etsy Silicon Bags: Amazon.com: 9 Pack Reusable Sandwich Bags,Dishwasher Safe Reusable Food Storage Bags,Reusable Snack Bags Leakproof Silicone - Free Plastic BPA Free Lunch Bags for Food Travel (9 Pack- 5 Sandwich Bags 4 Gallon Bags) : Home & Kitchen
TIPS: The silicon bags say they're dishwasher safe, but the reviews are mixed on this. I just hand wash then place a glass inside the bag with the open part of the bag upside down to air dry. The beeswax wraps last up to 1 year, hand wash with cold water (or they will melt!). The wraps and towels are biodegradable
Some other ways to reuse items:
-Reuse plastic containers: takeout containers, use small/large yogurt containers for storage or seedlings if you're gardening -Bring your own shopping bags instead of using the grocery store plastic bags. Places like Aldi already encourage this, but you can do this anywhere. I just use regular tote bags and I keep a small cooler/freezer bag in my car.
-Buy a reusable coffee filter instead of the paper ones: I impulsively bought one when I was at the grocery store and it works wonderfully for about $5
5) Buy Local: Again, this depends on your budget, but buying local food/products when you can reduces your footprint and supports local businesses. In the summer there's often pop-up farmer's market stands in my area, and I found a local orchard to buy all my fruits/veg for canning.
6) Learn to Can: Canning sounds very daunting but I have actually found it rewarding. This is my first of year canning, and I will publish another post later on with some recipes and basic canning tips.
7) Make your own Broth: Store-bought broth comes in a container that (I don't think) can really be recycled and it usually contains a lot of sodium. I keep my vegetable scraps, herb scraps, and chicken bones in a bag in the freezer until it's full then I make bone broth with it (Recipe post for this coming soon!)
8) Learn to Knit and Sew: I've been hemming my own skirts and pants for years as I'm quite short. If you learn basic techniques to repair clothing, curtains, etc, you'll find they last longer. I've also taken to knitting hats and scarves through YouTube videos. My cat approves of this hunting scarf, is upset I won't let her eat the yarn.
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