Easy Ways to Reduce Clutter, Waste AND PLASTIC in Your Home
- Kendall
- Aug 6
- 4 min read
Looking to create a more sustainable, clutter free home? Making a few simple eco-friendly swaps can go a long way in reducing plastic use, cutting down on household waste and minimizing clutter. Here are a few eco swaps to get you started-- and they're all budget-friendly! Everything listed below is Kendall-tested and approved. I use them all in my own home!
If you want information on specific products, hop on over to My (green) Amazon Picks blog post.
Kitchen
Swedish Dish Cloths are reusable, super absorbent, long-lasting, machine-washable cloths made from cotton and cellulose (wood pulp). They're sold in multi-packs and come in an endless variety of colors and designs. I use Swedish dish cloths for cleaning up spills and washing dishes. They are inexpensive too. So ditch those nasty plastic sponges! No more wasting money every week on big bulky multi-packs, wrapped in even more plastic, that clutter up your kitchen cabinets.
Are you still using dishwasher pods? Switch to powder! Powder Dishwasher Detergent is an easy, inexpensive way to reduce plastic and still get your dishes clean. Companies pay a lot of money to make us think we need plastic dishwasher pods. It's a big lie. And those plastic pods break down into microplastics. The box of dishwasher powder I use lasts for months and barely takes any space under the kitchen sink. And best thing-- powder works! It was good enough for your grandmother!
Speaking of microplastics, imagine the amount of microplastics created using a plastic cutting board day after day. Invest in a Wood Cutting Board and you can slice and dice your produce without fear. Check for sales and discount home goods stores to find inexpensive, high quality cutting boards made of wood, often bamboo.
Repurposed Glass Jars are great for food storage. All those glass jars you buy at the grocery stores for sauces, salsa, pickles-- they can be repurposed to store leftovers and dry goods and your own homemade sauces and dressings. Mason jars are great too. Label them and line them up in your fridge or on your pantry shelves and you look like a pro! And the best thing about repurposed glass jars-- they're free! More plastic-free food storage options include Parchment Paper and Beeswax Wraps. Companies push the idea that plastic baggies and storage containers are convenient. But that "convenience" is killing our planet. And it's so unnecessary.
Composting is a great way to reduce our impact on the environment. One of the craziest-- and scariest-- statistics I ever read is that food waste contrbutes more greenhouse gas emissions than the entire airline industry. Here in California, the law requires residents and businesses to separate food waste into green bins for composting. If your area does not provide this service, consider composting at your home or organizing a neighborhood compost. Check online for easy to follow, how to videos and instructions-- and share your experience in the Comments below.
Wondering how a Home Organizer can help you? Read answers to the most frequently asked questions I receive from prospective clients.
Bathroom
How many plastic shampoo bottles do you think you've used in your lifetime? Many brands make Shampoo & Conditioner Bars that are high quality, affordable, are safe for colored hair and provide all the same benefits of bottled hair products and take up less space in your bathroom cabinets.
Switching to Bamboo Toothbrushes is another quick and easy way to reduce plastic in the bathroom.
Do you prefer liquid hand soap to bars? You can keep your liquid soap and ditch the plastic bottles with Liquid Hand Soap Tablets. Just drop a tablet in warm water and it dissolves in minutes. It's that easy. The tablets come in a variety of scents. They're inexpensive. And because the tablets are so small, you can buy a multi-pack and have a years worth-- or more-- of liquid hand soap in a small box-- less storage space!
Laundry
Here we go again with the plastic pods. When you watch the commercials for laundry pods, you'd swear they're greatest thing since sliced bread. They're not. They are creating an abundance of microplastics not to mention the excessively wasteful plastic packaging! And they don't work any better than good old fashioned Powder Laundry Detergent. Now, don't get me started on scent beads!
Wool Dryer Balls are a long-lasting, economical and environmental alternative to dryer sheets. They contain no plastic or toxins. And wool dryer balls last for years, reducing wrinkles and softening your clothes for about 1,000 loads. It would take a lot of boxes of dryer sheets cluttering your laundry room to do that many loads. Wool dryer balls come in an endless variety of designs and just plain white if you prefer.
Curious how Home Organizing sessions have helped others? Hear from my clients about their experience.
Shopping
You probably have a stash of reusable shopping bags in the trunk of your car but do you have any reusable produce bags? Try some Natural Fiber Reusable Produce Bags so you can avoid ever using the plastic bags they offer in stores.
Cleaning & Organizing
We create a lot of waste when we clean. Consider repurposing Old Towels and Washcloths for cleaning rags and then just toss them in the washer. And when organizing your closet or pantry, check out the many Plastic-Alternative Organizing Products. You can get beautiful bamboo baskets for clothes. Try wood hangers and drawer dividers, or wood organizing spinners and can organizers for the pantry. You can get and stay organized without plastic, I promise!
Thinking about hiring a Home Organizer? Reach out today for a free, no-obligation phone consultation.
About Kendall: My mission as a home organizer is to help families and communities take SMALL STEPS to organize and declutter at home in an eco-friendly way that starts to build BIG CHANGE in the world. Consider becoming an Official Declutter Buddy by joining my Email List. Fill out the Subscribe form below.
Oh I NEVER thought about plastic from the actual PODS! Well, already left the bottled detergent, so time to buy detergent the way we used to...powdered in a cardboard container!