Picture by Calico & Twine

New Year, new you, and why not start with a new lifestyle too? If you've been around for a while, you know how passionate I am about sustainable living, and zero waste for that matter (although I won't lie and say I live a completely zero waste life, but I'm working on it). As a new year begins, and so many resolutions have been made, I thought I'd give you a hand on the whole sustainability part, and if that's not one of your resolutions for this year, maybe this will inspire you to make it one. Reducing your plastic waste can be rough, especially when you don't know where or how to get started. With this series, I hope I'll help you learn everything you need to know for getting started on reducing your plastic waste!

Now, I'm not saying you should go around your house, find everything that even resembles plastic and just throw it all away, you shouldn't throw something away if it hasn't yet reached its end. If it's still usable, use it until you can't use it anymore, otherwise, you won't only be creating more trash and waste, but you'll also be wasting money. But, if you really really want to start fresh and get rid of it all, donate whatever you can, everything else just give it to your friends and family.

There are plenty of plastic-free and zero waste swaps you can make, but I thought I'd start out with the basics. Think of the things you use in your everyday life and start there. For me, the obvious choices were canvas bags for grocery shopping, a water bottle, straws, a toothbrush, a food container and a cutlery holder, basically all the things I needed to keep me going through a long day at university and, later, at work.

The first thing I bought, which I must admit was more of a "want" than a "need" item, was my string bag from Pegada Verde, which I had always wanted thanks to Monica Geller, but truth is, once I bought it, I took it everywhere, I would keep it in my bag just in case I had to buy something while I was out, I'd take it while clothes shopping so I could decline a plastic bag from each store, and I wore it proudly. To this day I still keep it in my bag and use it almost every single day, and this was pretty much the catalysis to everything that came afterwards. Having said that, if you're buying a bag with the sole purpose of using it to go grocery shopping, I would maybe recommend you go with something a bit sturdier like the Re-Sack Shopping Bag or the Re-Sack Canvas Bag, or the Organic Tote Bag which would be a lot more helpful when buying heavier items. If you'd rather buy from Etsy these are just a few of my favourite options: Star Constellation*; Coastal Cottages*; Heart Illustration*. Truth is, you probably don't even need to buy one, chances are you already have a few tote bags around your house, only when I started getting a bit more conscious about sustainable living did I realize how many tote bags I had, two from open days at different universities, another one that came with some random purchase, a smaller one I painted for my mum in kindergarten... Take a look around your place and I bet you'll find a bunch of things you already own and you won't need to buy anything. I'm actually making my own out of scraps of fabric I had, which makes it even better. 

Photo by Calico & Twine

The next thing I bought, although not exactly a necessity for anyone, was a stainless steel straw. No one really needs a straw, but I have this thing with drinking at public places, and so I can't drink out of cans or glasses without a straw, and given that my boyfriend and I have this little tradition of going out to eat every month, I thought it was about time I got a reusable one. And so enters the stainless steel straw, also from Pegada Verde (can you tell how much I love them?), they also make a pack with 5 straws and a cleaning brush which is great to share with your friends when you all go out. As I mentioned in a previous post (The Ultimate Sustainable Gift Guide) there are a few different options when it comes to reusable straws, not only regarding colour and shape, but also when it comes to materials. The Bam & Boo sell their own bamboo straws and cleaning brush, along with so many other amazing products, and shipping is free on purchases above €4.99, but the problem with bamboo is that eventually it needs to be discarded, not that it becomes waste, as you can just feed it to your plants or throw it in a compost bin, but you'll need to repurchase it. Another option is glass, glass straws are incredibly beautiful, these ones from Dandelion Essentials are an amazing option, you can choose the size, colour, and shape, and they're handmade by a family in Michigan and are supposed to be super durable. If you're looking for something that will last you forever, stainless steel is the way to go, if you're looking for something that will also look great, glass is the one, if you're looking for one that won't break like glass or heat up like stainless steel when you drink hot beverages, go with bamboo, it's up to you.

On a similar note, my next purchase was a water bottle. I always hated carrying around plastic bottles, they were noisy, the paper around them eventually would start looking disgusting, they got dented as soon as I placed them in my bag, and I knew they weren't great for the environment or my health. At one point I just stopped having water when I wasn't home because I just didn't want to deal with them and then, 24 Bottles came into my life. I've mentioned this brand a thousand times on my blog, and that's because I truly love it, I got their Candy Pink Urban Bottle from Pegada Verde, my one-stop store for all things sustainable, and I've used it everyday since. To be honest, if I knew then what I know now, I would have bought the Clima Bottle instead, as it holds both hot and cold drinks and keeps them that way. Another option I considered was the Binchotan Charcoal Carafe by Black + Blum, which includes an active charcoal filter (6 months life), to make your tap water taste great, it's also made of hand-blown glass so, no plastic in sight. While on the subject of drinkware, I should probably mention reusable cups, when I was still in university, I would go to Starbucks at least once a week, simply because it was the only place I could study in. The germaphobe in me would never allow me to ask for a mug instead of a to go cup, I wish I had known about Keep Cup at the time, I particularly love the brew cork one, and if you're on the look for a reusable cup for you or anyone else, this is the one to buy.

My next purchase, and actually a subscription, was a bamboo toothbrush, I got mine from The Bam and Boo, a Portuguese company trying to change the world, you can find more about them here. I now get a new bamboo toothbrush every 3 months (you can choose how many times a year you receive it) and when it's time to part with my old one, I recycle the bristles and just feed the the bamboo to my plants. They have two sizes, adult and kids, 5 different colours, soft and medium bristles, bamboo handle and nylon 6 BPA free bristles, they come in a recycled paper packaging and biodegradable PLA protection bag. Plus, at €4.99 they're super affordable, and their shipping is free worldwide. Plastic Freedom also sells a 90% bamboo toothbrush from Curanatura, which has approximately 90% bamboo and 10% nylon 4 bristles (Nylon 4 is a BPA and phthalate free, naturally biodegradable polyamide and is considered as one of the most tolerable plastics from a health point of view). I also made my own toothbrush pouch, along with a straw pouch for my reusable steel straw, instead of buying something else.

Next up, if you're always on the go and need to bring lunch with you, which is much better than buying some random sandwich at the corner shop, I have a few options for you. Myself, I use a glass container I already had, much like this one from Ikea so, if you have something like that, there's no need to buy something else. But, if you'd rather have something different, here are a few options: Food Flask & Sandwich Box, a stainless steel vacuum insulated food flask and sandwich box kit, which will keep your food hot for up to 6 hours or cold for up to 8 hours; Thermo Pot, a stainless steel food flask with a spoon which is magnetised to the side of the body; Monbento Box, with an award winning design, inspired by the Japanese culture; and a classic Camping Food Container, inspired by classic vintage designs. To go along with it, add a simple cutlery pouch, which you can make yourself or buy a beautiful handmade one by Made By Tyng, like this Natural* one, or this Grey Wrap Pouch*, where you can store your own cutlery (I don't think there's any need to buy bamboo ones when you already have a cutlery set at home) then, once you've eaten, just rinse them with water, dry, place in your pouch, and take them home to wash. 

I realize everyone has different needs, different things they use on a daily basis, but these are just some of the things I think should be part of everyone's zero waste "starter kit", so to speak. To prevent more waste, really pay attention to the things you use everyday, what can you replace with something more sustainable? What can you keep? Don't feel pressured to buy brand new everything, use what you already own and make what you can yourself, buy second-hand if you can, or ask if someone you know has duplicates of something you need and only then, buy something new if all else fails.

I hope this posts helps you make a change, every little bit helps. Let me know what's part of your zero waste everyday kit in the comments below.