It can feel overwhelming trying to pitch the plastics from our homes. And it might be unrealistic for families with young kids to eliminate every ounce of plastic from their lives. The busier we get, the more we tend to rely on convenience packaging, grab and go meals and water bottles for hydration. But there are ways to greatly reduce the amount of plastics we use on a daily basis, thereby reducing the amount of plastics in our water stream and landfills. And it can even save us some money.
If you try to eliminate plastic all at once, it can feel daunting. It might feel like too much change at once. But if you introduce one new habit at a time, or start with simple swaps, it will get easier in time. Once you have the hang of ditching plastics, you’ll discover you have an eye for earth friendly materials, and thinking about our environment will become second nature.
Here are my tips to families looking to purge the plastics from their lives:
START WITH ONE SIMPLE SWAP
For us, it was replacing our paper napkins and towels with cloth. This eliminates plastic wrappers that cannot be recycled. To make it more affordable, I shopped thrift stores for my collection of cloth napkins. We use them at every meal and toss into the laundry basket with our kitchen towels. To replace paper towels, I gathered up old hand towels and wash cloths (a great way to recycle baby bath cloths). I did purchase some Norwex cloths because they are absorbent and designed to last for years. It did take time to get everyone in my house in the habit of grabbing a cloth, or towel to wipe up spills instead of grabbing paper towels. Since we have a dog that makes some pretty gross messes, I do purchase a small number of paper towel rolls. I get paper made from bamboo and packaged in paper, not plastic. This feels like small change, but it will have added impact.
NEXT REPURPOSE, REUSE AND RELAX
Instead of cupboards filled with toppling towers of plastic cups, we only use glass. I know that just gave a lot of moms anxiety, but I use mason jars because the glass is more durable. For extra protection, I use a silicon sleeve for better gripping, and if my kid drops their glass it won’t shatter. If glass is still too much anxiety, you can use stainless steel cups which are quickly becoming a trend.
I reuse glass jars for pantry storage. I’ve already paid for a jar when I purchased my pasta sauce and pickles, why send them to the curb? My husband thought I was kind of crazy those few weeks I was obsessed with saving our glass jars, but it is worth it to revamp my pantry with a matching set of jars I didn’t have to pay extra for. And, if one breaks I won’t be heart broken, or have difficulty finding another matching jar. To make this truly zero waste and plastic free, I take my jars to the bulk bins and fill up in the store.
WHAT TO REPLACE
I went room by room and made a list of plastic products I want to replace. I focused on replacing things in one room before I moved on to the next room. This created new shopping habits and made the process much simpler and easy to manage.
In the kitchen, we replaced our plastic coated dish sponge with a net dish cloth. It was definitely an adjustment because I was convinced it was never going to work as well as a sponge. It actually works great! Plus, it lasts for 10 years, so I am saving my wallet and the earth in one step.
I stopped using plastic food containers or baggies for left overs. I use pint sized mason jars to store things like sauce, veggies, avocados, apple slices, lemon slices, canned goods, and more. The seal on the jar keeps things fresher longer than in plastic and with no chemicals leaching into my food. I also picked up a set of glass storage containers at the thrift store that were brand new. (My guess is they were a duplicate wedding gift). I can see what’s inside and toss right in the microwave and have hot food in minutes.
We made some big changes in the bathroom with our care products. Did you know that every plastic tooth brush manufactured since the 1940s, still lives in landfills today? As soon as I read that, I switched to bamboo tooth brushes. They work just as good as their plastic counterparts, but do less damage to our water ways. Bamboo is renewable and breaks down in your compost.
Instead of plastic floss containers, I use glass. This is such an easy, affordable swap. The glass container can be recycled or repurposed. I use this brand because it is produced with manmade fibers and not from silk moths.
Switching to toothpaste tabs was an adventure. My kids had zero problems with it, I think because it felt like chewing candy. It did take my husband and myself time to get used to crunching our tooth paste before we use it. Knowing the eco-impact of removing the most purchased piece of plastic helped us power through. The tabs come in glass jars, and you can subscribe to receive new tabs in paper packaging instead of buying a new jar each time, or simply purchase a new jar. Honestly, buying a jar to recycle or reuse is still avoiding significant plastics from entering our water stream.
Buying bars of soap without packaging is another super easy swap. My local grocery store carries a large assortment of package free soaps made from organic and natural ingredients. The price per bar is around the same as name brand soap. You can’t buy a mega sized, family pack. But, you can buy a few fresh scents and know there’s no garbage to toss later.
Lotion bars are a great way to eliminate plastic tubes that are rarely recycled. These bars are so easy to use and create less mess. I store my bars in a washable and reusable zipper pouch (I can toss right in with our weekly towel wash). The heat from my hands melts the lotion bar enough to apply to where I need it, but the bar stays solid.
HOW TO PITCH THE PLASTIC OUTSIDE THE HOME
We’ve stopped asking for plastic straws at the drive thru. We aren’t a family that needs to use plastic straws, so we carry a reusable and washable wet bag filled with metal straws. I keep it right in the glove box. When we are traveling, we use our plastic free utensils and put them back in the wet bag to take back home to clean.
We’ve stopped grabbing plastic water bottles at gas stations on our short trips. Instead, we bring water from home in our reusable stainless steal beverage containers. Plus, the double wall feature keeps beverages ice cold for 24 hours.
To avoid grabbing prepackaged foods, we often bring along our own snacks or meals in sustainable packaging, or seek out local family friendly spots who use eco-friendly containers. I have reusable snack bags that I use to fill from our larger container of snacks that I pack in our cooler bag. And I’ve swapped plastic containers for steal.
I bring reusable bags to the grocery store, and if I forget them, I request paper. Some areas charge to use the store bags, so by using my own I avoid the 5 cent per bag fee. Plus, my reusable bags are stronger and carry more in them, which means less trips from the car. I leave my bags in the trunk, so I don’t forget them.
It doesn’t have to cost a million dollars to pitch the plastic, and you don’t need to buy all new products for your home. Focus on your biggest priority for change, then when you have that down, move on to the next. It’s really easy once you get started and your kids will easily follow your lead. Convenience packaging and relying on the same products is easy, but true change takes a little extra thought and a new purchasing pattern.
How are you planning to pitch some plastic this month?
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Excellent post with so many great tips! Love all the links for easy reference as well as the free print out!
Thank you Sharon! <3
These are great suggestions! You’ve managed to do so many plastic free swaps. I’m really hesitant to have glass in the house with young kids but the silicone covers are a good idea.
My latest plastic free swaps are using shampoo bars (I love them!) as well as switching to period underwear.
I am really hoping to find a shampoo bar that I love! We have a few new refill stores nearby that I can’t wait to check out for more easy swaps. I get the hesitancy with glass! I’ve used glass with the silicone sleeves since my kids were toddlers. Now they don’t need the sippy top, but they still like to use them to identify their own cups.
Intetesting article! I didn’t even know there were bamboo tooth brushes and tooth paste tabs! We started with paper q-tips and reusable fabric shopping bags. It always got on my nerves that in the U.S., one gets a plastic bag for almost every single item one buys. Here in Germany, shopping bags are so expensive that one uses the same one for all groceries together.
Interesting how it is so different all over the world! I was using reusable shopping bags and produce bags for years before they made it a law in our state. It cut down on so much waste!
Amazing ideas! We’ve been trying to pitch the plastic for years and you’ve given me so many easy alternatives. I’ve never even heard of bamboo toothbrushes, so cool!
Yay! I love it! I hope you find these swaps easy to do! We still aren’t perfect at my house, but we are always looking for a new alternative that is affordable and easy to use.
These are great tips for small switches that can make a difference! As a family we have swapped many things, but I still have to get us to give up plastic silverware….
We stopped using plastic for parties or get togethers. Instead we use our regular flatware, or we pick up bamboo. Somethings are hard to give up!
These are really great tips! Starting out with going plastic free can feel so overwhelming, but these make it seem more manageable.
Awesome! I am glad it is helpful!
This is very helpful. I often look at things and say we could do better about this. But how to start??? Thank you for the ideas! We do a lot of travel snacking between all of my crew so we don’t have to buy things when we are out but items are usually in plastic baggies. Replacing these would be a great start!
So glad you find it helpful! I think focusing on one replacement at a time makes it easier for new habits to stick!
These are such great tips! I really want to continue my efforts to help our house waste less.
Brilliant post. I love how you talk about doing it in steps to take away the overwhelm
Thank you for reading along!
I love this! I have been so conscious of our family’s plastic waste lately, and I am always looking for ways to reduce, reuse and recycle. Thanks!