Grocery, and produce and sandwich bags, OH MY!

A mom friend at school this morning asked me what she could use instead of plastic bags. I'm glad she asked! There are so many options. Be it for groceries, produce, packed lunches or shopping. Here is what I do.

Grocery bags: I've been using my reusable grocery bags for years. You can get them from your grocery store or heck, you probably already have bags you can use. A tote bag or anything with straps and that are easy to handle. This isn't meant to be a Trader Joe's add or anything, it's just these are the bags I use for groceries. They sometimes have a great cooler bag for transporting your refrigerator/freezer items, too. It's brilliant.

If you're handy with the sewing machine, you could even make your own grocery bags!

Produce bags: For fruits and veggies, I use a variety of things. I have mesh bags with drawstrings, but I also wash and re-use my plastic produce bags. If you have them already, use them. It's better than throwing them out. Just try avoiding bringing in or using newly acquired plastic bags. I've created a little "clothes line" with string tied between two kitchen cabinet knobs. I clip the cleaned bags upside down and inside out, with little clothes pins for them to dry 😊. These mesh bags can be found in lots of places, in stores or online.

Here is a bag drying rack you can even buy that sits on your counter. https://mightynest.com/shop/lunch-gear/snack-sandwich-bags/bag-drying-rack

Ziploc sandwich and storage bags: I don't use them. I've read recently that they are now recyclable, but it's not necessarily easy. Most curb side recycling from your home doesn't recycle. Some grocery stores have a bin inside you can turn them in. They are a form of what is called film plastic. We had a teacher who used them CONSTANTLY. Drove me nuts. I have them in the house because of this teacher. Grrr.

Here is a good article to read about it if you're interested about recycling Ziplocs. It also has links to figure out where to recycle them.
https://recyclenation.com/2014/10/recycle-ziploc-bags/

There are sooooooo many options out there to replacing using plastic baggies. I have storage containers I use for my son's lunches. He is very conscious of bringing them all home at the end of the school day, too! There are bees wax baggies, silicone storage bags, special fabric bags with Velcro or zippers, recycle unbleached paper bags. Here is a great site that sells all of these:

https://mightynest.com/shop/lunch-gear/snack-sandwich-bags  

Shopping bags: I've been using these for YEARS! I love them, envirosax. They roll up and are so easy to carry with you or in your purse.

I carry at least a couple of these in my purse. They are stylish and compact and you can use them to carry anything. There are many pretty patterns to choose from and even some solid color ones. They're for the gentlemen as well. Here is the link to their site:

https://envirosax.com/

This brand or even other similar bags can be found in some stores. DIASO sells a less expensive brand of their own. I'd say look on Amazon, but they would just send it to you in some big ol' plastic, puffy envelope, grrrr.

This is a big post! I really want to hear from people and what they use to replace plastic bags. If this was a helpful post, I want to hear about that too. Leave a comment if you can.

Thanks!
-Joy

"None of your bee's wax!"

I actually never understood that saying "None of your bee's wax." Is it just me?

Anyways, when I need an alternative to plastic wrap, I do have some of those bees wax sheets. When I first bought them, they worked great! Be sure you follow the care directions though. I think I used hot water on mine, which caused the wax to wear faster. Here are some that I like. Some additional nice things about them is they are made with organic fabric, from a small business (on Amazon), and super cute fabric pattern!

There are a lot of places that sell them. Trader Joe's is one. Probably Whole Foods. Online stores like https://zerowastecartel.com/ carry them, even though I think they are sold out currently on their site. I know you can make these yourself as well! I hope to try that some time.

Another alternative to plastic is aluminum foil. It's recyclable if you clean it after using it. I buy 100% recycled aluminum foil.

I think I found it at Target. Otherwise, just try and use glass storage containers when you can! I actually haven't used plastic wrap for YEARS, so I know it's possible.

Let me know if you've tried this sort of product, or what you use as an alternative to plastic wrap. I'd love to hear from you!

Thanks!

-Joy

More for the kitchen!

Here are a few more things I do in the kitchen to cut out plastic.

This is my kitchen sink. Anyone who knows me and has seen my kitchen, knows there are dishes piled up just outside of the camera lens here. HA!

One way I have "cleaned up my act" in the kitchen is that I found this dish soap bar! No more plastic bottle of liquid dish soap! This one I bought online at a site I really like called Zero Waste Cartel. Here is their website

https://zerowastecartel.com/collections/all

I also use bars of soap to wash hands. No more liquid soap that comes in plastic pouches to refill my soap dispensers! So, invest in good soap dishes. I recommend to minimize mess, ones that have a tray that collects the water underneath. That way you can empty whatever water and soap collected instead of having it all over your sink. Just use a small scrub brush once in a while to clean up the soap that collects on the ridges of the soap dish. I use a small nail brush.

EXTRA TIP for water conservation: I have that little watering can next to the sink to collect any un-drunken (un-drank ?) water that otherwise may end up down the drain. If there is water left in a glass that didn't get drunk, I pour it in there! Then use it to water plants.

Let us know if you've tried this product or another to replace dish soap from a plastic bottle. Please share ideas as well! Thanks!

-Joy Steuerwald

My first post! And it's about dishwasher detergent, YA!

I decided to do my first post on a dishwasher detergent I found and really like. It's from a company called Dropps. Here is their website:

https://www.dropps.com/

They are detergent pods that are completely non-toxic and come in a recycled cardboard box. I'm using the unscented version right now, but plan on trying the lemon scent next. I haven't had to use any rinse agent and dishes come out great! This is a keeper for sure. You can order a 10 count box to try them out, which I did first. Now I have a subscription. You can figure out how many loads you do a week and go from there as far as when they are delivered.

I keep them in my bottom kitchen drawer. They are nice and compact little boxes.

They're super easy to use. Just drop (punny, hehe) the little pod into the sliddy drawer of your dishwasher.

If you decide to try them out, you can use my name (Joy Steuerwald) as a referral and I think get 10% off! Once you sign up, you can refer people and earn points as well for discounts. Oh, did I mention they have free shipping?! Always a plus.

So, if you've tried these let everyone here know how you liked them. If you have another plastic free detergent you use and like, tell us about it in the comment section, too!