Today I want to talk to you guys about how we can do better when it comes to saving the nature, fauna and climate as we know it. It’s one of the things that was prominent in my upbringing and it’s still a big passion of mine. The products I’m discussing I have all bought with my own money, so none of this is sponsored. I just wanted to give you some tips on reusable products that you might not have thought of yourself yet! Note: I’m not a scientist, nor perfect in my journey to living life with less waste, so these are just all the things I’ve seen coming by and wanted to try myself!

Let’s get on with the products! 👉🏼

---

1. Reusable to-go cups, bottles and lunchboxes

These were the first things that I bought. For a long time I used plastic bags to carry my bread in when I went to school/work, but those you only use once. So one week would mean 5-10 plastic bags (I was a nerd who used their plastic bag two to three times, but it still ended up in the garbage). I now switched to a box with different compartments, so that I can take both my bread and some fruit/cookies with me!

I currently work in a “to-go” shop at the train station and it shocks me how many to-go cups are used in a day, and they are only used once! Luckily I have noticed a shift in this and I now see more and more people using a reusable cup for their coffee and/or tea. And what’s extra nice is that you get a discount on your coffee when you use a reusable cup in a lot of stores nowadays 😏

Bottles are the same as these to-go cups and plastic lunch bags. Most people only use them once and throw them away once they’re finished. Again, every day I see how many plastic bottles are still sold and end up in the garbage, or even on the streets.

2. Reusable (metallic) straws

Last year I bought my first couple of reusable straws and I’m still very happy with them. I prefer the metallic ones, because the paper ones feel weird on my lips and are often a bit sticky. Most of these metallic straws can go in the dishwasher, but I also got a little brush included so you can wash them by hand.

3. Bamboo toothbrush

Recently I discovered the bamboo toothbrush and I immediately bought some. Bamboo is, of course, organic, so it’s biodegradable and doesn’t have an infinite lifespan like plastic. My toothbrushes from By Olive are made of a bamboo sort that grows about one meter a day and is CO2 neutral. *Plus* it’s a sort that’s not eaten by panda’s, so with these you won’t be robbing panda’s of their food!

4. Shampoo bar

Now that I am more serious about my ecological journey, the personal ads on instagram have also changed. I now get more ads on ecological products, like the natural products by Nunc8! The first product I’ve bought there is a coconut shampoo bar. These bars can be compared with four bottles of regular shampoo! Four bottles! It’s also really easy in use and it doesn’t contain harmful ingredients, like SLES.

5. Reusable teabags and loose leaf tea

I’ve always been a fan of the look of loose leaf tea. In these you can always see all the ingredients and sometimes a little flower here and there and it looks lovely 🥰 But besides the aesthetic, it’s also better for the environment to use loose leaf tea instead of teabags. Lots of teabags are made of plastic and are only used once. That’s why I also bought some reusable tea bags over at Sostrene Grene! You can fill them with loose leaf tea, wash them and use them over and over and over again.

Big plus: the loose leaf teas at Sostrene Grene are packaging free. Well, of course you take it home with you in a paper bag, because you don’t want to be traveling with all these loose tea leaves inside your books 💁🏻‍♂️ What I mean is that there are these boxes against the wall, filled with tea and you can scoop it yourself! And you get quite a big bag for less than 2 euros!

---

I think I’ll leave it with this for today, but I’m still looking for other stuff to replace with durable and ecological products, so tips and tricks are always welcome!