Happy Earth Day! While every day is a good day to start enforcing zero/low waste living, today seems pretty perfect to jump back into this topic. And if you are going to start anywhere, let it be your kitchen. I should preface this by saying I am focusing on kitchens specifically as a place in the house, and not kitchens in relation to groceries. I'm saving grocery shopping for another post since it is a topic that has taken me more time to figure out and deserves its own spotlight. Plus, kitchens seem to be the main source of waste in just about every household, which is why when we first began zero waste I turned to ours. I was embarrassed by the waste I had created over the course of my life, specifically my consumption of single-use products, so I immediately began making changes. Paper towels were my go-to for cleaning, napkins, and drying my hands...again, I am so embarrassed and today cannot believe that I used them for nearly everything in my kitchen. It was the first thing that I knew I had to stop buying, supporting, and using if I was going to truly dedicate myself to living zero waste. And it was surprisingly easy to stop using them.
To replace my bad habit, I ripped up some old towels for cleaning, invested in some second-hand cloth napkins, and donated my single-use items to someone who could use them in a purposeful manner. I also went through every cupboard in my kitchen and donated items that I never used to thrift stores and collected all the paper plates, styrofoam cups (cringing), plastic utensils, and my beloved paper towels and donated them to a friend who is an art teacher. I figured that since the products were already bought, it would be better to use them somehow than to just recycle them. Plus, art teachers are always in need of supplies...but that's for another day. As for the items I donated, part of my zero waste practice has been only keeping things that are useful or, in true Marie Kondo form, spark joy. It really has made a difference in the way I look at and spend time in my home, everything serves a purpose and is appreciated.
As for cleaning our kitchen, there were a number of things I adopted and am still learning. We have never had a dishwasher, so everything is washed by hand and dried on a wooden rack I bought second-hand. We have a couple of reusable sponges, a loofah for tough scrubbing, and have stopped using liquid soap altogether. Liquid soap almost always comes in plastic bottles, and if you can find it in glass, the container still has a plastic pump. Plus, liquid soaps contain unnecessary ingredients and take a ridiculous amount of energy to produce compared to bar soap. Instead, we use the Big Block Kitchen Soap from Beehive Alchemy, which follows the traditional Savon De Marseille soaps. It is great for washing dishes and gentle on our hands since to be considered a Savon De Marseille soap it has to have at least 72% olive oil, the rest is coconut oil and essential oil. It is a 12-ounce block and lasts for months.
I also rid my house of all cleaning products, this was especially important to me with our baby on the way. Instead, I opted for vinegar to clean all surfaces in the kitchen, bathroom, floors, etc. I buy the vinegar in glass jars, which can be reused or recycled, dilute with water, pop on an old spray pump, and wipe clean with a rag. I know some people hate the smell, but it is a natural cleaner and deodorizer, plus the smell only last for a little while. If there are some tough areas to clean, I'll spray some on the surface and sprinkle baking soda on it-another natural cleaner-let it sit for a minute or so, and scrub. Recently, I've started adding a few drops of tea tree oil or a slice of lemon. The combination is the perfect all-purpose cleaner, without chemicals and without spending a small fortune on cleaning products that you really don't need. There are aisles of cleaners at the store, but they really are unnecessary and can even lower your immune system. While those products are designed to kill bad bacteria, they end up killing the good bacteria that is necessary to develop a strong and healthy immune system. Our homes are not hospitals, we are not meant to live in a sterile environment.
I should add, that all of these simple changes have resulted in us spending less time and money on things that are designed to end up in the landfills, or worse, our oceans. These simple changes have made us more purposeful and resourceful, hopefully habits that our daughter will pick up on. And I keep saying simple changes, rather than small, because any change to better the Earth is important! We may not be able to change the world just by ourselves, but our actions are influential and others really do pay attention. We need to remember that our Earth is precious and our time here should positively impact those around us.