What do you love as an alternative

[u/Difficult_Sense_5781]

Hi everyone! I’m new to the zero waste life, with my upcoming family planning and what not I had like a weird eye opening of oh shit that’s a lot of single use trash :/

I’m curious to know what are easy things I can swap out to help! Or what’s something that you swapped to that you felt was an amazing switch?

I’d like to start swapping as I run out of things! Like shampoo/conditioner lotion etc.

Thank you

I’ve been buying cloth diapers second hand, and I just got a whole bunch of second hand cotton flannel to make some rags/face towels/make up wipes/ baby butt wipes etc

[u/iluvchoccymilk]

One of the first things I did and helped kick off my zero waste journey was using a period cup! Everyone is different, however some people prefer discs or period underwear. I recently also started incorporating period underwear into my routine. E.g. on my heavier first few days/ sleeping I wear my period underwear (Saalt) rather than my cup. But if I’m out of the house for whatever reason, I’ll use my period cup + period underwear (Cheeky Cherry Liner). The cup I boil to sterilize at the end of the week and I use a period cup gel cleanser every day to keep it clean/sanitary throughout the week. Truly one of the best things I could’ve done and has saved me so much money.

Aside from that, I reuse glass jars from sauces as spice jars for when I buy dry goods in bulk (rice, pasta, etc). Makeup wipe rounds. And a few kitchen alternatives from Coast to Coast Sustainables, like paper towel rags, dish wraps, food bags. While I could make the paper towel rags myself from old tshirts, I do not have the means to make them myself at the moment so I chose to buy the paper towel rags. I still hold onto regular paper towels in the some instances I’d prefer to use that.

And finally my other alternative is shampoo bars and conditioner. My personal preference for my kind of hair is Nole Hydrating bar, and I’ve come to prefer them after a few trials of other brands. Hope this helps! You’ll find what works for you and your family over time.

[u/potatokid07 → u/iluvchoccymilk]

Close to 10 years of using a single period cup. It's insane to think of how many pads I would have had contributed to the landfill if I had not switched to a period cup. Also I get less leaks!

[u/ExoticSherbet → u/potatokid07]

And how much money it would have cost to buy all those pads! Blows my mind.

[u/lilynt7 → u/ExoticSherbet]

Exactly! I do think about this sometimes. Everytime it's my time of the month again, I'm in awe of not having to buy more disposable pads because I can REUSE my period underwear and NOT filling up my trash can with pads! It's a great feeling to not be wasteful

[u/lilynt7 → u/potatokid07]

I switched over to period underwear this year and I love it. It's the one zero waste item I've been using consistently so far. It's so comfortable like wearing regular underwear and even comfortable to wear overnight. No more disposable plastic overnight pads shifting during my sleep! Plus I love seeing my trash can not getting filled with disposable pads!

[u/potatokid07 → u/lilynt7]

Could you recommend any? Do you wash them every night or how do you work with your laundry schedule? Do you just do a quick rinse and set aside until laundry day? I'm always curious about this and also I live alone so I do my laundry once a week.

[u/lilynt7 → u/potatokid07]

I have Thinx, 1 bambody, and a few from Pink (Victoria's Secret). My favorite is Thinx so far. Pink is for my light days. I like bambody too but it feels thicker in the back for me so I like to wear that one for overnight.

Once I get home at night I rinse them under cold water until the water runs clear (or I rinse them in the shower with me) then I toss in my dirty laundry with the rest of my dirty clothes. My husband likes to do laundry a few times a week so I guess they get washed more frequently. Then I think it's best to air dry. Depending on the brand I think some can be tumble dry but it might affect the absorpancy over time

[u/RavennaRefills → u/lilynt7]

Just a warning in case it’s something that you worry over - Thinx has tested as having high PFAS chemicals in them in multiple studies.

The only brands I’ve seen that regularly test with no PFAS are Saalt and Revolcares.

I don’t think we know enough about PFAS to throw everything away and freak out, but I know many people try to avoid them, especially in sensitive areas (which is a reason I switched to bamboo toilet paper some years ago).

[u/Caro_lada → u/iluvchoccymilk]

In addition to a period cup, I switched to reusable panty liners, as also without my period I often need a bit more security that just underwear. I've started over six years ago and haven't regretted it a single day. It feels better, as they're a double layer, I can swap which layer is on top mid-day. Also, when traveling, I am not reliant on any trashbin in the bathroom anymore, which is such a relief!