Hand Gathered Home

  • Our Home
    • Front Porch
    • Entryway
    • Living Room
    • Kitchen
    • Dining Room
    • Master Bedroom
    • Bathroom
    • Nursery
    • Kid Rooms
  • Shop Our Home
  • Shop My Favorite Things
  • Shop My Amazon Storefront
  • Virtual Design Services
    • Meet the Team
    • Portfolio
  • About
    • Disclosure and Privacy Policy
  • Videos

5 Easy Ways to be More Eco-Friendly this week

Kitchen

28 Jan
11 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet
Being eco-friendly is a trendy thing these days, but more importantly, it’s good for the environment and can also be easier on your budget. It also doesn’t have to be complicated or a long process. Check out these 5 easy ways to be more eco-friendly this week.
5 Easy Ways to be More Eco-Friendly this week

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

#1 Ditch the paper towels

This is one that I thought was going to be difficult, so I put it off for a while. Turns out, if you don’t have paper towels to grab, you grab other things instead. We stopped buying paper towels and had normal towels and rags readily available and it was so easy to stop using them.

If you think about paper towels, they really are wasteful in design. I know they serve a purpose, but only momentarily before being thrown away. Especially when we wash our hands, use a paper towel and throw it away. Couldn’t we have just used a towel?

Anyway, I’ll get off of my soapbox now, but really. It will save you money and help you leave a smaller environmental footprint. Instead, buy lots of absorbent hand towels and keep them available.

5 Easy Ways to be More Eco-Friendly this week

#2 Replace Ziplock bags

Ziplock bags are something that most people use a lot of. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t know anyone who reuses them. Therefore, they’re a one time use product and they end up in the trash.

I recently found these silicone “ziplock bags” and I’m a really big fan. They’re a matte finish so they aren’t clingy or sticky, which is a major plus. Sealing and opening them is really easy and they aren’t supposed to leak. They can even be frozen apparently. Basically, they are the perfect replacement for all ziplock needs that I can think of. The only downside that I’ve noticed so far is that they aren’t dishwasher safe. That hasn’t bothered me, since I really just have to rinse and let dry.

I got a 15 pack of these on Amazon for a really good price! You can find them here.

5 Easy Ways to be More Eco-Friendly this week

#3 Switch to Dropps

Switching to Dropps has been a breeze. We’ve always used clean/non-toxic detergent, but one thing I had never thought about before was the big plastic detergent container that we throw away (or maybe recycle) when we’re done.

The thing that drew me to Dropps was that they are so conscious of their footprint on the earth. The laundry pods ship in one cardboard box and the laundry pods are completely dissolvable, leaving nothing behind.

They don’t use any chemicals, which is such a beautiful thing. They have baby detergent, unscented (sensitive skin), scented (essential oils only), stain and odor, you name it. You simply set up your subscription based on how big your family is, how often you do laundry and then you set the frequency for it to ship. It’s a beautiful thing.

5 Easy Ways to be More Eco-Friendly this week

We’ve been getting the “clean” scent in the Stain and Odor laundry detergent. We currently get a shipment every 5 months. It’s super affordable and we have been really happy so far!

Another thing to add here, kind of a side note. We only use cold water for our laundry. Dropps actually encourages cold water laundry, since 70% of the energy used for laundry is to heat up the water. Switching to cold water is such an easy fix and saves energy — that’s a plus!

Click here to get $20 off your Dropps order.

#4 No more plastic wrap

I’ve heard that plastic wrap is one of the worst things for the environment that we use in our homes. Apparently it doesn’t decompose very well.

As I came into 2020, I knew that I wanted to make a few more changes in our kitchen, specifically to be even more eco-friendly and just overall more responsible with the earth that God has given us. I found these stretchy silicone lids and I thought, “why not give them a try?” They were also inexpensive, so there wasn’t much to lose.

While I haven’t used them much yet, I have to be honest and say that my main concern is that things will stick to them. They are a shiny, kind of sticky silicone and I’m just anticipating my hair, dog hair, fuzz, etc sticking to them and not coming off very easily. But we will see!

Otherwise, I love the idea of them and hope to use them often! You can even cover half of a watermelon with them, which is fancy. You can find them here.

5 Easy Ways to be More Eco-Friendly this week

#5 Switch to Glass

I wish all bottles were still glass and all bags were still paper. It’s become apparent to me throughout my life that I was definitely born in the wrong decade, quite possibly the wrong century. I’m an old soul 100% and I love the idea of a slower, simpler, make everything from scratch, way of living.

While I don’t know how to time travel, and really would have no intention of doing it even if I could, I do love the idea of bringing back simpler things. Glass is one of those things. Plastic is complicated. It has toxins that can leach into your food, it seems almost porous where food can stain it, I don’t know about you, but I even feel a little guilty when I throw plastic away, wasteful if you will… Basically, it’s lame, so why do we still use it? 😉 Let’s switch back to glass!

That’s my current goal in our kitchen and our house in general. Little to no plastic.

5 Easy Ways to be More Eco-Friendly this week

You can find the links to a few of my favorite glass kitchen staples below

Glass Tupperware with lids

32 oz Wide Mouth Mason Jars with lids

Amber Glass Spray Bottles

That, my friends, was a list of 5 easy ways you can be more eco-friendly this week. The beautiful thing about all of these solutions too, is that they save you money over time. Who doesn’t love that?

Thanks for reading! As always, “pin” for later below.

Pin for Later

5 Easy Ways to be More Eco-Friendly this week

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print

Leave a Comment

About Alleigh

« Cheap and Easy DIY Wooden Poster Hanger in 5 Simple Steps
How to Paint Your Kitchen Green »

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




So glad you’re here!

Hi! I’m Alleigh. I’m a mom to my two sweet little boys, and wife to a very supportive husband. I’m so glad you’re here! Join me and my little family as we get our hands dirty and add life & personality to our home to create a place that we love.

Find more about me here

Let’s Connect

  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

On Instagram

handgatheredhome

I was trying to post this with original audio of m I was trying to post this with original audio of me explaining each item and my thoughts on the price etc etc but apparently I don’t have that capability yet on IG… so, enjoy this reel and just know that I had a lot more to say. 😂
A little IG vs reality for ya. Swipe to see the mo A little IG vs reality for ya. Swipe to see the more realistic view (which is really not bad at all 😂).
I feel like my house is just constantly a mess, no matter how hard I try. Anyone else? It feels like I’m always behind, and to be honest, it bothers me a lot. It overwhelms me and stresses me out. It keeps me from being content and present. Between things constantly being broken (hello middle child) and just too much stuff in general.
Here’s what I’m working on to simplify and calm the chaos.
1. I’ve been removing all toys that don’t get played with often. We currently have magnatiles, Duplos, and race cars out. The rest have been moved to storage in the basement for the moment. We’ll see what we keep as my kids do sometimes notice toys they’re missing and ask for them.
2. I’ve been ruthlessly getting rid of stuff - whether donate or trash. If we don’t absolutely love it, or we have multiples, or no one touches it, or we have a huge pile of random papers and crafts. Gone. 😂 it’s so relieving.
3. I often have artwork and decor laying around because I don’t fully know where it’s going yet. I’ve been removing anything that doesn’t serve a purpose and have been putting it in basement storage. No point having it sit there and clutter. I’ll go get it when I’m ready to hang the picture or use the decor.
4. I’ve been re-assessing where we need more storage. I replaced a dresser that didn’t functional well with a $50 homeschool cabinet from FB marketplace and it’s been so much better.
5. As I remove things from our every day view, I’m noticing the ability to better enjoy the everyday messes and real life, because it isn’t so out of control and overwhelming.

I hope this is encouraging for mamas in the same boat ✨
Enjoying our last flower harvest of the season ✨ Enjoying our last flower harvest of the season ✨
My weekend project ✨ We spent a lot of time in o My weekend project ✨
We spent a lot of time in our front yard, but never really on our porch. I bought this porch paint months ago and finally got it done! Now our porch is a cozy place to sit ✨ Inspired by @mustardseedbeginnings super cute porch.
These frames have been sitting empty for a while n These frames have been sitting empty for a while now… I went to order some prints for them the other day, and I didn’t like the price. SO I decided I was going to make my own art for them. I found a fabric remnant at a local thrift store for $0.99 cents and voila. Took all of 5 mins ✨
Such a fun, special day 🤍 Notice the new toys s Such a fun, special day 🤍
Notice the new toys scattered everywhere 😂
Antiques all day long 🤍 Exciting changes happen Antiques all day long 🤍
Exciting changes happening here at Hand Gathered Home. More to come ✨
Since everyone is saying how social media is fake… here’s some real real life for ya 🙃

Copyright © 2025 · Refined theme by Restored 316

11 shares
 

Loading Comments...