Ok, so zero waste for me is primarily avoidance of buying into the consumer waste cycle and the older I get, the less I feel I need! My candle business began out of my desire to avoid throwing out things that were perfectly useful and that is something I continue to do.
However, aside from my business, I have also been trying to reduce waste in general and I have bought a few things which I hope will help with that, in the long term.
One of the first things I bought was these reusable cotton cleansing pads for removing make-up:
They are absolutely brilliant - I have had them for a while now and washed them many times and they are still going strong! They are gentle on the skin but can exfoliate slightly with the right cleanser. Available from The Little Green Shop which has loads of other great eco-friendly products.
Next favourite has to be my William Morris bamboo cup from The Coffee Lady
I mean, how gorgeous is this?! I actually have several keep cups on the go but this is the one I have in work and I love it so much.
My next purchase was a bargain - and hopefully a long lasting one! I had Bought the temporary plastic covered greenhouses in previous years but the plastic just disintegrates with any kind of bad weather so you just end up discarding it and buying another plastic cover which is not ideal.
So this wooden one from Aldi seemed perfect:
However, aside from my business, I have also been trying to reduce waste in general and I have bought a few things which I hope will help with that, in the long term.
One of the first things I bought was these reusable cotton cleansing pads for removing make-up:
| Photo courtesy of The Little Green Shop |
Next favourite has to be my William Morris bamboo cup from The Coffee Lady
| Photo Courtesy of The Coffee Lady |
My next purchase was a bargain - and hopefully a long lasting one! I had Bought the temporary plastic covered greenhouses in previous years but the plastic just disintegrates with any kind of bad weather so you just end up discarding it and buying another plastic cover which is not ideal.
So this wooden one from Aldi seemed perfect:
At the moment I have courgettes and chili plants in there, as well as lettuce started from seed.
Next up are my kilner style containers - I have quite a few of these now, bought over the years. They are sturdy and strong so last and last (you can buy the seals separately) and they are incredibly useful.
I use the large jars for making my kefir water. The medium jars are perfect for my home made granola (pictured) and for yoghurt, and I have smaller ones that I use for making single portion yoghurt with fruit compote.
Finally, I have ordered one of these! I'm seriously excited about using this :)
I'm planning on drying fruit for my granola, herbs, tomatoes and all sorts of things. This is definitely going to have an impact and reduce packaging waste because I'll be able to do a lot of stuff at home
I'm hoping that these purchases will help in my quest to reduce waste and I know that they have made an impact already. I've also been looking in charity shops for particular things I might need - they can be such great places to get clothes or household things.
I'm in a couple of #zerowaste groups on Facebook: One is A Sustainable Life With Jen Gale and the other main one is Zero Waste Ireland. The Sustainable Life group is by far my favourite, it has a nice atmosphere and lots of useful tips and general chat but is based in the UK. The Zero Waste group is Irish but I find it an unpleasant place to be quite a lot of the time, the posters can be extremely judgemental and critical and it probably isn't the best place to be if you just want to start making baby steps in the zero waste direction. It is handy as it is Irish though.
Anyway, I hope you have been a little bit inspired by my products (all purchased by myself) and I really believe that every little step we take is a step in the right direction.
You might like some of my other product review posts:
Oysho Sportswear Review
Baker Days Letterbox Cake Review
Top Three Dublin Sweet Treat Spots
I use the large jars for making my kefir water. The medium jars are perfect for my home made granola (pictured) and for yoghurt, and I have smaller ones that I use for making single portion yoghurt with fruit compote.
Finally, I have ordered one of these! I'm seriously excited about using this :)
I'm planning on drying fruit for my granola, herbs, tomatoes and all sorts of things. This is definitely going to have an impact and reduce packaging waste because I'll be able to do a lot of stuff at home
| Photo courtesy of Amazon |
I'm hoping that these purchases will help in my quest to reduce waste and I know that they have made an impact already. I've also been looking in charity shops for particular things I might need - they can be such great places to get clothes or household things.
I'm in a couple of #zerowaste groups on Facebook: One is A Sustainable Life With Jen Gale and the other main one is Zero Waste Ireland. The Sustainable Life group is by far my favourite, it has a nice atmosphere and lots of useful tips and general chat but is based in the UK. The Zero Waste group is Irish but I find it an unpleasant place to be quite a lot of the time, the posters can be extremely judgemental and critical and it probably isn't the best place to be if you just want to start making baby steps in the zero waste direction. It is handy as it is Irish though.
Anyway, I hope you have been a little bit inspired by my products (all purchased by myself) and I really believe that every little step we take is a step in the right direction.
You might like some of my other product review posts:
Oysho Sportswear Review
Baker Days Letterbox Cake Review
Top Three Dublin Sweet Treat Spots
This post first appeared on Purity Belle Irish Soy Candles And Lifestyle, please read the originial post: here
