How to Reduce Your Plastic Use at Home During the Pandemic

COVID-19 changed life as we knew it. But did you know that the pandemic even changed the way we can recycle?

Many people don’t know this, but there are actually COVID-specific recycling rules put in place because of the pandemic, such as not recycling if anyone in your household has COVID-19. With so many people using disposable PPE like face masks and gloves, we’re creating more trash and recycling than ever — and since PPE is considered medical waste, we can’t even recycle all of our disposable items.

So how can we do our part to reduce plastic waste while at home? Keep reading to learn how you can minimize your environmental impact during the pandemic.

1. Bring Your Own Bags

While bringing your own bags to the store has been gaining popularity for a while now, many places aren’t allowing it to minimize germ spread. Instead of opting for disposable plastic bags when you get groceries, bring bags and keep them in the car. When you check out, you can put your items back in your basket and bag them once you get to your car. While it’s a little bit of extra work, it’s a small task that the earth will thank you for.

2. Reduce Single-Use PPE

Single-use PPE has become a staple of everyday life during the pandemic. Forgetting a mask nowadays is like forgetting to wear pants — you can’t! Since we use masks so consistently, we should be opting for CDC-approved reusable masks, so we can save the disposable masks for people who really need it (like frontline medical workers). Just be sure to get a CDC-approved mask with the proper protection so you know you’re staying safe while helping the environment.

3. Get a Reusable Bottle

Reusable water bottles are on the rise. Brands like Hydroflask and Swell have reusable options that can be customized to your individual style — and even keep your water cold longer! While reusable water bottles are a bit of an investment, clocking in at around $20 to $50, they can save you up to 167 plastic bottles each year (which would cost you $266!).

The pandemic (hopefully) isn’t something we’re stuck with our whole lives, but the environment is. While the pandemic will continue to change the way we live in the near future, we can make small changes that will make a big impact on the future of our environment. To learn more about how to recycle during the plastic pandemic, check out the infographic below. 

Guest Post - Cleaner Home and Cleaner Environment in 7 Easy Steps (Recycling Infographic)

Plastic waste is a massive issue at the moment affecting communities, oceans and the majority of our natural environment. We have a love hate relationship with plastic. It is extremely useful for everyday life but with an estimated 5 trillion pieces of plastic in the world’s oceans today, this is a huge issue which cannot be ignored. Luckily, we can all play a part in helping to solve this plastic crisis. In addition to cutting down on the amount of plastic we purchase, we can make sure that for that plastic we do use, we recycle as much of it as possible! By recycling more at home, this has the benefit of leading to a cleaner home and a cleaner environment!

BetterCleans is a premium house cleaning services company in Milwaukee and as recycling is a hot topic amongst our customers and with plastic waste being such a major issue; we wanted to help make things easier for people to have a cleaner home and a cleaner environment. Our new infographic looks at how you can recycle at home in just 7 steps and do your bit for the environment! 

The major takeaway here is that, if you learn more about your local recycling initiatives, and ensure you are recycling more effectively at home, you can have a major impact on the environment. When U.S recycling levels reach 75%, it will have the equivalent impact of removing 55 million cars from the roads each year!

Author bio: David Hardwicke is a Director at BetterCleans, a home cleaning services provider based in Milwaukee, WI.

Interview - American Flora

As professional organizers we see a lot of “stuff” in people’s homes. When determining what we should keep, one of the areas we focus on is, quality. We spoke with Mary Brewster from American Flora about her collection as an antidote to disposable consumption.

For the busy person, what is American Flora?

When looking for a beautiful and unique gift, American Flora provides accessories that are Sustainable and Made in America. Our website is user friendly to make shopping very easy.

What is your origin story, how did you start the company?

I started the company because I wanted to sell a sustainable line of dance and yoga wear. I’m a ballet dancer who grew tired of purchasing Leotards etc that were not comfortable. Ones that were made with inferior fabrics.When I found out about REPREVE (the fabric I use), I was certain it would be perfect for my line. I was also determined sew the US and use a sustainable fabric. As you can read on my website, REPREVE is made from recycled plastic bottles.After a few years I decided to pivot and created the Wraps then the bags.

What is the Giving section of American Flora?

I designed the LOVE bag to bring awareness to my audience. Awareness about how necessary and easy it is to give/spread love.I decided to donate 15% of the profits from the sale of the LOVE bag to a foundation called Circle of Health International. The Giving page on my website explains the work COHI does. American Flora has always donated to a cause that helps women. It used to be Breast Care at Hartford Hospital. I was very moved by the passion and dedication of the midwives who work for COHI. They work globally. I chose a project in Puerto Rico, where they are still struggling after the damage caused by Hurricane Maria.

Can you explain more about sustainable fashion?

Sustainable fashion focuses on avoiding waste. Another term for it is Slow Fashion vs the Fast Fashion craze that has been going on for at least ten years.

Fast fashion gained momentum when the prices of some brands of clothes went way down, along with the quality. It also perpetuated the hiring of children in factories, an abundant waste of water, bad working conditions and message that clothes were “throw away”. Why bother keeping them if you could buy something else for cheap.

I chose to create my line using a fabric that is made from recycled plastic bottles, which otherwise would remain on beaches, and land as litter.

In addition, I chose American factories and suppliers that adhere to a sustainable practice.

What are some of your most popular pieces or ones you enjoy making the most?

The bags have become the most popular. Initially the Buddha bag was purchased more. When I started the campaign with the LOVE bag, that rose to the top.

That said, the Pink Cactus and Red Cactus Wraps are very popular. I took the images when visiting a Botanical Cactus Garden in Majorca Spain. Those are special for me, and the reason I designed the Black Clutch with a Red and Pink accent.

Interview - HELPSY

At House to Home Organizing we are always looking for new resources to help our clients declutter and take back control of their space. We spoke to Rachel at Helpsy about clothing recycling.

For the busy person, what is Helpsy?

HELPSY is the easiest and most convenient way for you to recycle your clothes, shoes and accessories. We have over 1700 collection containers in the Northeast US and are starting at home pickup programs in our footprint.  

What is the organization's origin story, how did it start?

We started about a year ago and are trying to do things differently. Our name comes from the fact that we recently we merged with a company by the name of HELPSY that was formerly an online retailer for sustainable fashion. We want to educate the public about the environmental importance of recycling clothes, along with working with the fashion industry to get used clothes back into the fashion cycle. 

Why is it important to recycle clothing?

85% of our clothes are currently going to landfills when 95% of them can be reused, recycled and upcycled. 10% of landfills are textiles! There are certain frames of mind surrounding clothing end use that we want to change — for instance anything with holes or that's damaged can be given another life, whether they are converted to rags, carpet padding or insulation.

What does it mean to be a host?

You agree to let us keep one of our collection containers on or inside your property. We service it regularly to keep it clean. You do your part to keep clothes out of the trash and it can be a revenue stream for your business or institution.   

Can you share some success stories? 

We were able to give nearly 13,800 winter jackets to New York Cares this winter for home insecure individuals living in the city. We bought the jackets back from our sorting partners. This is a new way of working within our own industry, creates jobs, and supports our industry partners. It is a more effective and efficient than traditional clothing drives. We hope to do more of this large scale buy-back work to help those who need it.