Eco Beginnings

Thank you for all the positive feedback my first eco post received.  I’m really enjoying reading how others are making these changes in their lives as well.  It’s so positive to share these tips!   We have received a few new products which we will be testing out over the next few months, of which I will be sharing with you. For now we have found ways to make a difference just by making a few changes  and some more ways to become more informed.

First off I previously discussed my concerns over the lack of plastics actually being recycled by our local council.  With a bit of quick research I found out where you can recycle extra items and what precisely the council recycles on this website here Recycle Now  We were pleased to find out that our local Sainsbury’s takes plastic yoghurt pots and fruit trays that the council won’t take in our plastic bins.  So now we’re just filling up a big Ikea bag and making a trip to Sainsbury’s when needed.

Did you know you can find local Zero/Reduce waste Facebook groups, for some helpful advice and tips. They offer advice as to the best places to grab bulk bins for food, coffee shops who welcome using your own cups in the area and other useful tips.

I have also found info on Ecover cleaner/laundry refill stations across the UK, so if you haven’t got time to make your own cleaners check out if there are any in your area, unfortunately there are none in my area, yet!  ecover refill station

I have been using Bicarbonate of soda to clean more. It makes a great scouring paste when mixed with some water and a great cleaner for carpet, upholstery and fridges.  I’m going to be trying white distilled vinegar as well, so I will let you know how I get on cleaning with this.

In May we planted some fruit and flowers in the garden. I used to pop down slug pellets to keep them off my fruit etc.  I felt so bad last year doing this, as I was rally worried what affect this would have on the garden wildlife and the pellets are in a big plastic bottle. So I was really pleased to find out from a local NT place that we could use egg shells or sheeps wool as an alternative. We have popped down broken egg shells and they have really worked a treat at keeping the snails and slugs off them. I’m so glad I steered away from chemicals as we found that we have a little toad hiding out in there! (and he eats slugs too!)

Paper stemmed cotton buds. I found these in Sainsbury’s.

We don’t have any local independent shops in walking distance but I have found in a nearby large village some really lovely independent shops including a greengrocers and a baker.  What I love about the greengrocer is they can tell you where the produce is coming from and that they’re not selling too much fruit and vegetables surrounded in unnecessary food wrap.  I can also get trays of local eggs for a far cheaper price than the supermarket ones.  And this also means I can take back my cardboard egg tray for re-use.

I really recommend going to a local greengrocer as I managed to get so many berries for a fraction of a cost compared to my online Sainsbury’s fruit bill.  Also the bread from the bakers comes in a paper bag and is so fresh.  I will be making my way to this village once or twice a week when I’m needing to make a journey in that direction.

Making dual purpose out of things we have or would throw away in the home, for example we have been reusing the plastic food/bread bags that we had from the supermarket for storing food in rather than throwing them away. I also cleared out a heap of Teddy’s underwear which was fine but just didn’t fit him any longer.  Nursery were very pleased to have them for spares, I know they will eventually end up in landfill but for now they will be re-used.  If I have any old clothing not suitable for eBay or charity I will be looking at what old clothing can be used for cleaning cloths. Something I know would have been done years ago, so it’s funny how we lost these ways and are now coming back to them.

I know these are all small steps so far that we have made but I’m happy that each one will make a small difference going forward.

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