6 sustainable changes you'll love making

If you’ve been around here for any length of time, you’ll have realised that I’m on a journey to creating a sustainable, handmade home. Sustainability is really difficult to achieve in the modern world. In recent years, society has been so much in favour of easy and disposable items that returning to a more sustainable way of living has proven tough!

That being said, there are a few changes which we’ve found so worthwhile in making, and others that we’re soon to make. Today I’d love to share more about how you can incorporate some of these too.

Coffee cups

This was the first change we made, and it’s definitely the easiest. Every time you get a coffee in a disposable cup, you add to the 8 trillion pieces of single use plastic that end up in the sea each year. Isn’t that mind-blowing? Switching to a reusable cup will get you a saving of up to 50p on your coffee. That means if you’re having at least one a week, you could save over £50 a year. What’s more, the sheer variety of styles and colours out there means you can have one which looks seriously beautiful. I have a Keep Cup with the cork trim and I absolutely love it. You can find it here.

Nappies

I’ve written a super detailed post here on the things you need to know before you get started with cloth nappies. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again - I promise it isn’t that hard! If you need more detailed help, The Nappy Gurus has a whole heap of advice available to answer your questions, including 10% off any cloth nappy purchases if you use the code ‘ABODERIE’. Alternatively, you can fill out the form here or contact me on Instagram for more personalised advice - I would love to help you get started!

Wipes

Wipes have been under a lot of media scrutiny recently, and rightly so. Few people know that baby wipes are often made (partly, at least) of plastic, thus contributing massively to the landfill burden. On top of this, so many people still flush them down the toilet, leading them to block sewers and sometimes end up in the water chain.

The alternative, reusable wipes, are so much easier to use than people think. Here are 4 reasons to switch:

They are so much more effective. Really, one wipe is enough most of the time, which is better for your purse and for little one’s skin.
You likely already use flannels and cloths around the house. Perhaps it’s not too much of a stretch to think of using wipes on a bottom too. (Though you may want to make sure you have designated bottom wipes!)
There isn’t actually much more washing. You’ll need to rinse off any solids, but after that you can just use a normal wash. You probably won’t use enough to notice a huge difference in the number of washes you’re doing.
The array of different kinds means you can choose a material which is best for your baby’s bottom. You can get synthetic options and natural options like bamboo. By keeping a spray bottle by your changing station, you can wet wipes as you go. You might even like to consider adding a (skin-friendly!) diluted essential oil blend suited to clean and treat little bottoms.

To help you get started, I have a whole post on reusable wipes here.

Tampons/sanitary towels

Ok, bear with me for a moment! I really didn’t think I could be sold on this. Sanitary towels and tampons are some of the biggest contributors to landfill. While the things themselves are often mostly biodegradable, they almost always come wrapped in plastic packaging or with plastic applicators. Instead, switching to a menstrual cup means no waste each month, massively reducing your waste footprint.

One of the biggest concerns women have about switching is how sanitary menstrual cups are. I understand where this is coming from, but having used one, I can now say that they feel so much more sanitary than other products. You can sterilise them by boiling them, so you know that they’re completely clean and sanitised for next use.

Personally, my main concern was how I would deal with using one in public toilets. The joy is that you don’t need to change a cup anywhere near as often as other products, so you can wait until you get back to the privacy of your own home!

There is a somewhat overwhelming array of menstrual cups to choose from, but the wonderful ladies at Put a Cup In It have a quiz (based on feedback from hundreds of women!) that recommends the perfect cup for you. I have been very pleased with my own purchase based on this quiz!

Cotton pads

I used to use several cotton pads to remove my make up on a daily basis. Making the switch to a reusable version has not only been good for the environment, I also find it much kinder on my skin, especially around the delicate eye area.

There’s a whole host of different options out there. I use the Baba+Boo rounds from The Nappy Gurus (and you can get 10% off with code ‘ABODERIE’!). There are some lovely handmade options on Etsy, or you could even consider crocheting your own if you’re handy with a crochet hook.

Tissues

Switching tissues for handkerchiefs is a change that I wish we’d made earlier. But first, let me tackle the question I know you’re thinking - isn’t this really unsanitary?! It all comes down to how you plan to use them. While theoretically disposable tissues are highly sanitary, how often do people actually throw a tissue straight in the bin after use? More often, they end up strewn about and reused. On the other hand, if you treat handkerchiefs like disposables, and don’t leave dirty ones lying about, they can be just as sanitary.

And we use them just like tissues. So I have a little pack of 5 or so in my bag, and a pretty bamboo box full of them in our kitchen. That way, people can take one as and when they need it, and just toss the used ones into a laundry basket, instead of the bin.

You can buy your handkerchiefs (try Etsy), but they’re super easy to make too. I have a post on how to make them here.

Straws

Thankfully, lots of restaurants and bars have begun ditching plastic straws in favour of paper ones, but have you noticed how soggy they get? Buying a reusable one for your bag is a better idea if you want to enjoy your drink! I love these ‘smoothie’ size ones, since you can drink anything with them! Other options include bamboo, metal or glass, so you can chose the kind that works best for you. Finally, I’m on the hunt for some cute reusable cocktail straws, so if you have any recommendations, let me know!

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