Hi guys, welcome to the blog and thank you so much for stopping by today!! This post is focused on how you can start taking some small but very impactful tips on going green.
Before I get into this post I want to preface something. Even though this post is about going green, I am not in any way an expert on this subject. I only recently started making these household changes myself. Specifically these past few months.
I know some of you might have read this post and rolled your eyes or thought “Oh man, here goes another hippy”. Maybe not who knows? I always thought of myself as environmentally conscious but I never really was. I even rolled my eyes at those “Hippies” in the past.
Today I’m proud to say to you all I’m embracing my hippy side!! I hope you guys can embrace yours a little too!
The fact is though, that I don’t think recycling or living a more natural greener lifestyle should be seen as a “hippy” mindset.
In fact, the whole reason I’m writing this post is because of a few weeks ago. I was talking with a good friend of mine about how I had recently started to recycle. Immediately she said to me:
“I’ve been wanting to start going green, but it’s so confusing and I’m just not sure where to start!!”
I told her how that was my problem too at first and it took some research to get going. I think that’s really the problem for a lot of people. So I decided to dedicate today’s post on Going Green.
I even created a handy Recyclable Cheat Sheet Which you can get for FREE below.
[convertkit form=975444]The earth needs to be taken care of just like we do. Unfortunately, we as a species haven’t always done the best at taking care of it or ourselves.
The best part you can start taking steps to a greener household today!! So without further adu, lest’s get to the Top 5 Tips on Going Green.
#1. Recycle
This past weekend I realized the simple things I could do to change that situation even just a little bit. I wanted to share those simple lifestyle changes and tips with you guys too!
I spent a ton of time cleaning our pantry. Breaking down the cardboard boxes and other crap we had been throwing in there since we moved in.
Even though it’s just Tom and I, the pig and the dogs our home gets messy quick. Even quicker now that we live on a farm/ranch. Our pantry took on the role as a temporary storage room. Covered mostly with moving boxes and styrofoam from our move until we could toss them.
I don’t have any before photos. Honestly, I’m glad because I’d be embarrassed how bad I let that room get, but trust me it was bad.
I looked up the nearest recycling center and their list of what was accepted and separated it out so it was all ready.
Tom and I loaded up his car and took it down and tossed them in the right bins. Guess what it was all free!!
Looking at all the bins labeled with everything you can actually take to the recycling center for free amazed me. It made me sad I hadn’t done it all along.
I then went home, found separate trash cans and extra 5 gallon buckets laying around and made labels for them. Including a cheat sheet for each category so Tom could follow it too with little effort.
I found that a lot of people were confused about what could and couldn’t be composted. So I thought it would be helpful to share that with you all below!
[convertkit form=975444]#2. Compost
Obviously even after you recycle there are still things you cant recycle and the biggest thing would be our food. However, you can compost your food, boom.
I went online and did some pretty quick research on composting and what we could and couldn’t compost together. I didn’t put a cheat sheet together on this. With a quick Pinterest search, you’ll find tons of printable sheets.
I happened to have a compost bin already, this is the EXACT one I have. However, I really want to make a worm compost because the worms break everything down soooo much quicker. I should be making one of those soon. When I do I’ll be sharing a post with you all to show you how to easily make your own.
#3. Reduce Paper Waste
We go through a lot of paper towels and tissue in this house and it made me sad. So I decided to make some DIY Paperless Towels.
These guys are super easy to make even if you’re not super experienced at sewing. All you need are a few materials which you can find at most craft stores or online.
The great part about using Paperless towels is they can be used for a bunch of stuff. Dusting the house, wiping off countertops, cleaning up spills, blowing your nose, or as actual dinner napkins. Then when you’re all done just pop them into the washer and dryer and you’re ready to use them again.
Trust me the amount of paper waste you’ll reduce is incredible. Not to mention you’ll save a good chunk of change on paper towels and tissue as well.
#4. Green Cleaning
Every single time I would clean the house, Tom would complain about the chemical smell and tell me how bad inhaling all those chemicals were.
As I thought about it he was right. Although I might not be inhaling those chemicals every day for hours on end. The few hours I was cleaning with them would make me cough and that can’t be good.
Some cleaning products have that scary skull and bones warning graphic on the back. Just small enough to not notice it right away. That can’t be good for us or the environment right?!
So I moved to more green-friendly cleaning products. Including hand soaps and shampoos and conditioners because that stuff is actually being absorbed by our skin.
There are tons of green cleaning products out there and I’m still experimenting with them but I really like Myers.
This basic set comes with hand soap, dish soap, and multi-surface cleaner a perfect little kit to get you started.
I never tried switching over before because I assumed they were all really expensive. However, that really doesn’t seem to the case anymore. You can get a lot of healthy and organic products nowadays sometimes even cheaper than the chemical stuff.
#5. Reduce plastic waste
The last thing on the list is reducing your plastic bag waste. This means both grocery bags and the plastic baggies you probably use for leftovers or school lunches.
I replaced the plastic grocery bags with the reusable ones and reusing my plastic sandwich baggies by washing them. You’ll get more use out of them this way and when they eventually tear you can recycle them.
Here’s a little tip for drying them after you wash them. I put up a little clothesline in the window above my sink. After I wash the sandwich baggies I turn them inside out and hang them upside down with a clothespin. Crack the window to let them air dry.
I usually will just leave them hanging there until I’m ready to use them. That way they’re not tucked away in a drawer somewhere out of sight out of mind.
Alright, that’s it for today. There are a LOT more tips on going green but these are the easiest for someone to start off with.
I hope you guys enjoyed today’s post, thank you so much for stopping by!!!
THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AFFILIATE LINKS. PLEASE SEE MY FULL DISCLOSURE POLICY FOR DETAILS.
