Wide Open Wallet
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Green Living: Shop Smart
Author: Ashley5 Aug
It’s Tuesday again, and that means we are going green. Just a reminder that this series has been inspired by David Bach’s latest book, Go Green, Live Rich. And you can enter to win this book by leaving a comment on Green Living days.
Reusable Shopping Bags: The first time I ever heard about reusable shopping bags I was not impressed. I thought “There’s no way I’m paying for shopping bags, first off. Secondly, it seems like such a hassle to have to bring bags with me when I go shopping.” But I have to admit, the kinda is starting to grow on me.
Environmentally, bringing your own shopping bags is huge. 30 billion plastic shopping bags make their way to the trash every year. And we’ve all heard that they aren’t biodegradable, which means they just keep piling up and up and up. But even worse is that they do photodegrade, which means they break down into tiny pieces and get eaten by animals looking for food. And believe it or not, paper bags aren’t any better. Paper bags take more energy and create more waste than plastic bags.
My husband bought an insulated shopping bag to put the cold foods in at the store and I’ve been using it. It does work to keep the ice cream from getting soft on the way home. And honestly, it’s not that much of a hassle. I just throw it in the cart when we get to the store, and give it to the cashier when we check out. It really isn’t a big deal. And I get to feel good about keeping one or two plastic bags out of the landfill every week.
Paper Products: Another change I’ve been thinking about making is switching to cloth napkins, rather than paper towels. I’ve been trying to use a dish towel when I wipe the kitchen down after dinner, rather than 4 or 5 paper towels. It’s actually easier because I don’t have to stop, throw away the dirty towel, and grab a new one. A dish towel just keeps on cleaning. But even so, I will still use paper towels. So a change we can all make is to buy recycled paper products. Seventh Generation says that if everyone in America replaced one 4 pack of toilet paper with 100% recycled toilet paper we would save 1,450,000 trees and 5,500 garbage trucks full of trash. Wow. Plus, recycled toilet paper is cheaper. So why wouldn’t you want to make the change?
Cleaning Supplies: I’ve always been intrigued by people who make their own cleaning supplies and I would like to give it a shot. David Bach states that the average household spends $600 a year on cleaning supplies and that for $20 you can make your own. Cheaper and better for the environment, how can you turn that down? Here are some recipes for making your own cleaning supplies.
So, do you have reusable shopping bags? Do you use cloth napkins? Do you make your own cleaning supplies? Do you think that stuff is just for crazy people? Leave a comment and get an entry to win David Bach’s latest book! ***Contest has ended***
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8 Responses for "Green Living: Shop Smart"
Bags: I’ve been using cloth bags for shopping since the 1990’s, including when I moved from Texas to England about 8 years ago. For a long time I got funny looks from the checkout person. but I’m glad to say that now it’s not seen as unusual at all here. More and more shops, as well, will ask if I need a bag; even if I don’t have a bag with me I try to avoid getting a plastic bag if it’s feasible.
Cleaning products: For more than a year I’ve been using a cleaner for my kitchen that’s vinegar, water, and a couple of drops of dishwashing liquid. It smells like vinegar for about 5 minutes then the smell goes away. I wouldn’t change back to a harsher cleaner for day-to-day kitchen cleaning.
Cloth napkins: I’ve been using these for years, as well — not for the environment, though, but because they’re just so much nicer. It does save on the paper towels, though (I try to save the paper towels for the really messy things, like oiling a dish or cleaning up cat barf!)
It’s nice that so many of these things that are good for the budget are good for the environment, too.
Bags - as a commuter who shops sporadically, I don’t use cloth bags as often as I would like. However, I have a nylon (tiny but durable) bag that I carry with me everywhere. I should make sure there are always cloth bags in the car - my partner never remembers to bring them when shopping.
Napkins - I hate paper napkins, and have never used them. I use cloth napkins, placemats and dishwashing cloths (easier to use than sponges), and they get thrown in the washing machine when dirty. We have paper towels, but they are also reserved for emergency spills and cat problems.
Cleaning products - vinegar… so cheap and easy! Used as a rinse aid in dishwasher, washing machine, and an all purpose cleaner. Methylated spirits for window cleaning (and I use a squeegee inside and out - it’s faster). I’m still slowly going through a stash of soap, so have no incentive to make my own yet!
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okay i have been thinking about the reusable bags but never reall thought about it much, Thanks for the insite.
I may have to buy the book before i can win it
I wanna win again! And yes I have a ton of reusable bags and I gave a bunch away to my family.
I mostly use reuseable bags…they are mostly only a dollar, so I can’t see how it wouldn’t be worth it because they will last for so long. I just picked one up at each store until I had enough (for me, that’s 4-5). On occasion, I’ll realize none of them are in my car or that I’m not in my car and I feel pretty bad about not having them.
I try to by the majority of my vegetables and fruit from the farmers market so they are local and I joined a fruit CSA and pick up a box of fruit every 2 weeks.
I use vinegar for some cleaning and in place liquid fabric softener. I”ll probably convert to mostly natural products once i use up my large stash of cleaning supplies that I got nearly free. I’ll probably use more natural brands (7th gen) for products that I don’t want to make myself.
We also replaced all (I think) of our bulbs with CFL’s.
Oh–and the one I’m most proud of is that I just cancelled my parking ($80/month, which is one of the cheapest) for work and now either walk the 2 miles or take the bus. The bus even drops me off closer than my parking lot, so I’ll appreciate that in the winter.
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I try to use my recyclable bags at the grocery store, but unfortunately I forget to bring them in half the time. And I confess, with two kids running around the store and a cart half full, I don’t bother to go back out to the car to grab them. We get .05 off our grocery bill for each reusable bag that we bring in though. It’s a nice incentive to do something good for the enviro.
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