Life With Less Plastic | 10 Tips for Living More Sustainably 

Are you looking to steer away from plastic? Well, you’ve arrived at the right place. 

Plastic can have huge environmental consequences on our environment. When you throw it out, it can end up in many places.

Worldwide, only 9% of plastic used is actually recycled (National Geographic) 

And the remaining 91%? Well, it’s either burned, sent to our landfills or makes its way into our oceans and natural environments - posing a massive threat to our ecosystems and wildlife.  

It’s up to us and our daily decisions to use less plastic, and help make our planet a sustainable place for future generations. 

Moving plastic out of your life is one of the best things you can do for our planet and environment. 

I hope you enjoy reading this post about my tips and hacks on living a life with less plastic. Remember, small steps lead to big change and together we can make a difference. 

1. Start drinking from reusable bottles 

Switching to reusable bottles is one of the easiest ways to reduce your plastic footprint. Purchase a reusable bottle, and embrace refill instead of tossing. 

2. (Always) carry reusable bags

It's safe to say that nearly 99.9% of my buys are impromptu. You go to the gym, and on your way back you realise you need some eggs. Luckily, you have your reusable bag on hand. 

Reusable bags are a really easy way to reduce your plastic waste. It’s best to always carry at least one on you at all times as you’ll just never know when you might need to drop into the shops. 

3. Say hello to bulk food stores

Doing a plastic free shop at supermarkets is really difficult. Pretty much everything is wrapped in single-use packaging. 

If you do your shopping at bulk food stores, you can bring your own produce bags, and reduce a significant amount of plastic waste.

Most bulk food stores offers a variety of nuts, rice, grains, pasta, honey, cleaning products and other commodities plastic free. 

4. Carry reusable drinking straws 

Alone in the U.S, it is estimated that nearly 500 million plastic straws are used every day. These cannot be recycled and therefore either end up in landfills or polluting our natural environments. 

When you get you are out, refuse the plastic straws and bring your own reusable straws. Bamboo straws are a sustainable alternative, made from 100% bamboo stems and compostable at the end of their lifespan - Mother Earth certainly approves.

5. Carry around a jar 

Love smoothies or fresh juices? Get yourself a (mason) jar to carry around. They are great for takeaway smoothies, juices or even coffees. 

6. Switch to eco friendly toiletries  

You may not realise but your morning routine may contain a lot of plastic. From washing your hair to brush your teeth, plastic is nearly, always present. 

Luckily, there are many sustainable, plastic free toiletries available. From bamboo toothbrushes to shampoo bars, you can easily reduce your plastic footprint. Try swapping to shampoo bars or safety razor instead of plastic razors.

7. Get some produce bags 

I love reusable produce bags. I use them at my local bakery for bread and at our local produce store for all my fruits and vegetables. By using produce bags you can help divert so many single-use plastic produce bags from our landfills.  

8. Swap plastic wrap for beeswax 

Say goodbye to plastic cling wrap and hello to beeswax. Beeswax is a great, sustainable alternative to storing your food. I use beeswax to store most of our leftovers. It keeps all our produce and leftovers fresh, and with zero plastic involved - yay!

9. Carry around reusable cutlery

Disposable plastic cutlery is terrible to eat with and poses a huge threat to our environment. Most plastic cutlery cannot be recycled, and as a result end up in our landfills or blown into our natural environments.

Reusable cutlery is a simple, plastic-free swap. I love reusable bamboo cutlery as it is lightweight, easy to travel with and durable. I carry mine around all the time as you never know when you'll grab an impromptu takeaway meal.

10. Grow your own produce

Starting a vegetable garden and growing your own produce is a great way to reduce your plastic and waste footprint. You'll reduce your dependence on supermarket produce (which is often wrapped in plastic).