Earth Day Swaps

It's nearly Earth Day and in celebration I thought I'd share some of my favorite Earth Day sustainability swaps. Because, here's the thing: plastic sucks and we can all do better. Also, and I'll mention this a few times, when I first started talking about sustainability, the swaps were hard to find or at a much higher cost. Things are changing in this industry and sustainability is getting easier to find and less pricey. And more accepted. 

1. Laundry and dishwasher pods in cardboard packaging. These are now super-easy to find. I use Dropps but there's a few other brands out there that are just as good. And the cardboard box gets recycled. 

2. Toothpaste tabs. I've tried a few brands and really love the Hello tabs because they fizz up the best and leaves that minty fresh taste after using them. They're also packaged in a cute tin. I've tried mouthwash tabs, but haven't found the one I love yet.

3. Shampoo and Conditioner Bars. Another product that is getting a lot easier to find. My first attempt was with the LUSH brand a few years ago and didn't like them, for many reasons. Lately, I tried again with the Peach brand and really love them. They lather perfectly and don't leave a film. Spinster Sisters also makes hair care bars I want to test out next. 

4. Glass Hand Soap Dispensers. When we moved in, I slowly changed out all the plastic soap dispensers for "nice" glass ones. It's been almost a year and I haven't bought one new pump. I found aluminum-bottled soap refills from Grove.co now at Target. But I think the refill choices will just get better as more people do the same.

5. Glass Spray Bottles. This could be part 2 of soap dispensers, but I also replaced *most* of my spray cleaners with glass bottles and used Grove's concentrated glass refills when they run out. 

6. Reusable Shopping Bags. If you're not on this bandwagon yet, it's really time to hop on. Plastic shopping bags are abominable -- single-use monsters that are more destructive than you can imagine, mostly because of they're everywhere. Also, when I started using my own bags a decade ago, I got some odd looks. But now I pull out my little Chico bag at Walgreens and they don't bat an eye, they're so used to it. Some even say thanks for not making them use another plastic bag.  

7. Tree-less Products. I've mentioned this before, but I've found a bunch of 100% recycled material products, especially for toilet paper, tissues and paper towels. Why cut down another tree to wipe your but or your nose, when you can use recycled paper? The industry is slow to build, but hoping more people will join in and drive the prices further down. 

8. Reusable Water Bottles. Avoid buying bottled water no matter how much "easier" marketers would make you believe they are, reusable water bottles are EASY and better for your health.

Swap Talk:

A few things I consider on a daily basis, especially when I'm shopping: 

• Is there a glass container option? Food, cosmetics, soaps are always better in glass. 
• Can I clean this up with a cloth towel, instead of a paper towel? 
• Offer the kids cloth napkins instead of paper. 
• Do I really need that single-use item? Or, how many times can I reuse this plastic  product/item/container? 

Related Posts: 

Dig into more of my plans and thoughts about sustainability and living mostly plastic-free here.