Being eco-friendly isn’t as difficult as you may think. With enough patience and dedication to stick to a few small tweaks in your daily habits, anyone can live a zero waste lifestyle. Here are some tips on how to be more eco-friendly in your day-to-day life, maybe in some ways you hadn’t thought of before.

Buy Only What You Will Use

The fewer products you buy, the more money you save and the less you will waste. Be wise about your spending. Before you head to the shops, write down a shopping list and commit to it. Ignore the urge to impulse purchase, and always research online products carefully before you place an order.

Donate Your Used Goods 

When living a zero waste lifestyle, you may not always be able to live completely zero waste. If you’re having a clear out, especially if you plan to move to another house, you may have some items that you can’t take with you. If you have books, clothing, dishes, or other durable items, don’t throw them away. Donate to relatives, neighbours, or charity shops. You may be surprised by how many products can find a new home.

Choose Local and Organic Foods

Most of the food stocked in supermarkets  has to travel a long way to reach your area. This applies especially to foods that must be washed, sorted, carefully packaged, and checked again, often stopping at several factories before it reaches your store. All this back and forth food transportation causes more pollution to be spewed in the air. By shopping locally and choosing organic products, you can easily support small businesses that produce less waste.

Decline or Replace Bags

There’s no need to take home paper or plastic bags that you won’t use. Some shops stock plastic bags that are biodegradable and may decompose, but most still offer plastic bags that won’t degrade for centuries. Instead of accepting plastic shopping bags from stores, use reusable bags made from organic material, such as cotton, which decomposes naturally and can be placed in a home composter. If you don’t have a reusable bag, consider purchasing one as you will get many years of use from it.

Replace Household Products With Plastic-Free Alternatives

It may be difficult to imagine living a zero waste lifestyle when you have grown up surrounded by products made of plastic. For example, can you go without toothpaste? Instead of abandoning toothpaste (and your dental health) entirely, look for plastic-free alternatives, such as zero waste toothpaste tablets that can replace standard tubes of toothpaste easily. You should also consider switching to a bamboo toothbrush instead of purchasing plastic ones. Crystal salt deodorant, solid perfumes, vegan sunscreen, and shampoo bars are just a few of the many examples of products that have been created in a different way to reduce the plastic waste in the world.

Replace Your Light Bulbs

Switch your light bulbs to a more eco-friendly brand, and don’t forget to shut off the lights in rooms you aren’t currently using. Over time, you’ll reduce your carbon footprint and the money you save will add up, too.

Consider Renting Over Buying Items You Won’t Use Often

Many items we buy are used very few times, and a lot of these items are owned by everyone in your street. Instead of buying, consider borrowing from neighbours or nearby relatives. Be courteous to others and understanding if they don’t want to share, but it doesn’t hurt to ask. Specialty rental businesses and home improvement shops sometimes allow you to rent tools as well. 

Buy Reusable Products; Recycle the Disposables

One of the most effective ways to go green is to stop buying disposable products, such as paper towels, napkins, and plastic utensils. Use cloth items and reusable water bottles. Consider an electric razor over several disposable ones. Buying extra blades is okay. The point of being eco-friendly is to be as eco-friendly as you can, even if it means you still need to buy some items.

If you already have disposable items in your home, there’s certainly no reason to throw them in the recycling bin just yet. You can use them for yourself one final time before you go green, or simply donate them to a friend or charity shop that could use them.

Unplug Your Electronics When Not In Use

Idle electronic devices consume a lot more power than you may realise. Many devices, when plugged in, will continue running even if the device itself is turned off. Unplugging devices that aren’t in use can save you money, and re-plugging them in when you need to should only add an extra second or two to your schedule. You can use extension cords and power strips to make unplugging easier.

Use a Clothesline

By drying clothes outside on a clothesline, you can save money on electricity and reduce carbon in the air… not to mention, you’ll save space in your house if you choose to remove your dryer entirely. Drying items on a clothesline can also reduce static cling in the fabric, making your clothing feel more comfortable to wear.

Use Alternative Transportation or Drive More Efficiently

Not everyone can go without a car. Depending on where you live and work, owning a car may be crucial to day-to-day life. However, you can still make plans to drive more efficiently. Don’t idle in your vehicle; always turn it off when not actively driving. When on the road, drive at roughly 50 miles per hour where possible. Driving faster than that does not allow your car to use resources efficiently. Alternatively, consider car-sharing, taking a bus, or riding a train to reduce the amount of carbon you produce.

Create Long-Lasting Designs In Your Home

Reduce, reuse, and recycle applies to more than handheld items you might use once before throwing away. If you intend to leave a zero-waste lifestyle, you should strive to never replace any piece of furniture in your home. Much of the furniture purchased today is wooden which requires trees. Creating timeless designs can reduce the amount of furniture you buy and transport to your home.

Don’t Overwhelm Yourself

When making a plan to become more eco-friendly, it is easy to feel overwhelmed or face regret that you can’t do more, or you can’t live a green life 100% of the time. Be kind to yourself! Every journey begins with a single step, and even small advancements towards a greener life can have a great impact on an eco-friendly future. Support climate positive companies, educate others, and live the eco-friendly life that is right for you.

We at Clearstone are an eco-friendly company. For every purchase you make, we pledge to either plant 5 trees or reduce 1 kg of waste from the ocean. Find a large variety of plastic-free and beautiful products on our website and start living your zero waste life today.