Good-bye, Paper Towels

One of the household items I could never see myself getting rid of was paper towels. I just always appreciated the pure convenience of them. Who doesn’t like to clean up something really messy and then throw it all in the trash?

My family always used paper towels for so many things- drying off freshly washed fruit, cleaning up messes, as napkins, etc. Paper towels have always been an essential part of my family’s dealings in the kitchen.

One day, while I was in the kitchen at my friend’s house, I asked her where the paper towels were. She responded that they didn’t have any. This was a totally new concept to me. People were capable of living without these handy items? We talked about them for a while and my friend told me how horrible she thought they were for the environment.

In all honesty, I had never even thought about this aspect of my paper towel use before. I just saw it as a necessary evil, something that modern humans just had to have. At the time I couldn’t quite fathom how my life without paper towels could be. (Silly, isn’t it???)

I have come a long way since then. We are a cloth diapering family going greener by the minute. We have been gradually weaning ourselves off the use of our trusty little paper towels, only going through a roll every six weeks or so. I couldn’t quite bring myself to completely cut the cord- what if a paper towel emergency presented itself and we had none available in our house?

However, they had to go. Our paper towel holder will remain empty from now on. In its place, we now have two neat little baskets- one for clean rags and one for dirty ones. We cut up some old t-shirts to use instead of the disposable paper towels. With this system, we will not only be a little kinder to the environment, we will also be saving money.

Aren’t they cute?

For the Convenience of It

I am becoming increasingly irritated with the carelessness of consumers nowadays. Judging by the products available on the market, people have gotten lazier and lazier. Even though our lives have been greatly improved by machines that wash dishes and clothes for us, heat our food without supervision being necessary, etc, somehow there seems to still be room for improvement.

When I looked through the coupons the other day, I saw a new product being advertised that immediately caught my eye. It’s a liner for your pans that is foil on one side and parchment paper on the other. The idea behind it is for you to line your baking dishes, casseroles, etc. with this foil to avoid the strenuous cleanup after cooking. Are these people serious? Have they heard about a little pollution problem that we’ve had on this planet in recent years?

I had been under the impression that people were increasingly looking for ways to be more green and avoid unnecessary waste. Clearly, I was mistaken. As it turns out, people are still looking to improve (?!?) their own lives by making everything just a tad more convenient.

Another ad I have seen a lot lately is one for disposable hand towels. Instead of using a regular towel, the ad suggests that you should just have the easy dispenser in your bathroom for your hand-drying needs. The ad implies that conventional hand towels are full of nasty germs and filth.

Here’s a little suggestion for the target audience of both the above products: WASH THE DAMN THINGS!!! If your dishes get dirty, wash them! If they’re really dirty, soak them for a little bit and then wash them. If you fear that your towel might be full of bacteria and grime, take it off the hook in your bathroom and wash it! You may even want to develop a towel-washing routine that will help you eliminate the risk of nasty towels altogether by taking the proactive approach of washing the towels regularly.

I am just in utter disbelief when it comes to ridiculous products like this. Why would anyone go from good, reusable, cost efficient products to disposable garbage that costs them additional money? Why are these companies and the consumers of these products indifferent when it comes to the obvious environmental concerns?

The answer has to be laziness. People are attracted to products that promise to save them a bit of time, even if it is only a few seconds. They don’t want to have to wash their dishes or their towels. They would rather have that extra time to spend in front of the computer or TV.

I am trying to go the opposite way- I am gradually changing as much as I can within our household from disposable to reusable. I want to save money, I want to be greener. I also don’t want to be completely lazy anymore…

A Slightly Greener Clean

I was first bothered by the chemicals in my household cleaners when I was pregnant. Suddenly, cleaning the bathroom with my regular products was unbearable- the smell was awful and I could feel the fumes in my nose and my lungs. I started looking for alternatives and have made some very good changes since then.

When we had our first child, I really started looking at all the toxins we had lying around the house. It made me so nervous to know that we had a large number of products that were capable of seriously harming or even killing my child. Child locks gave me some sense of security, but even the most expensive child proofing devices do not work 100% of the time. The only way I could put my mind at ease was to get rid of a lot of the potentially dangerous products. The fewer there are in our house, the less likely it is for one of my kids to come in contact with them.

Switching your household cleaning agents to greener, non-toxic products will not only benefit your children, it is better for everyone in your household, including your pets. Not only will your household be better off, the environment and everyone in it will be, too.

Bathroom and Household Cleaners:

We have switched out our harsh household cleaners and replaced them with products by Green Works® and method®. They are naturally derived cleaners without any harsh fumes or chemicals. Best of all: they work just as well as the other stuff!

If you would rather make your own cleaners, vinegar, baking soda, and lemon juice are cheap, non-toxic, all natural, and overall great for cleaning almost anything in your house.

Dishwashing Detergent

When we first started using utensils and cups for my daughter, we just stuck them in the dishwasher using our regular dishwasher tabs. Every time I emptied the dishwasher, I felt uncomfortable giving the cups, etc. back to my daughter without rinsing them out thoroughly because they smelled strongly of chemicals. method® once again came to our rescue with their all natural dishwasher tabs that are non-toxic. Not only do they get the dishes just as clean, they also smell fantastic!

With dish soap, it is really easy to find a great one that is made up of natural cleaning agents and is non-toxic. Most of them also smell really nice and refreshing.

Laundry Soap and Fabric Softeners

My daughter developed eczema, which made us switch to detergents and fabric softeners that were perfume and dye free. We found so many great options that not only fit the criteria, but were also plant based and naturally derived. Regular store brands we like include Arm & Hammer and Seventh Generation. There are a lot of specialty brands available- especially when it comes to laundering cloth diapers- that are all natural and non-toxic. If you’re feeling adventurous, you could even make your own laundry soap- I have never done so myself, but know a few ladies who make some on a regular basis.

Mopping Revised

My favorite green cleaning tip of them all is: buy a steam mop! They don’t cost much and will save you so much time, money, and hassle. All you do is fill it with water. The steamer heats the water to a high temperature and emits steam that not only cleans your floors beautifully without the use of any mopping solution, but also sanitizes them. Best of all, there is no bucket of water to lug around the house and no mess to clean up afterwards- just fill it up, plug it in, and go. Then, put it away again. My floors are cleaner than they have ever been!

Of course, for the extremely rough or disgusting cases, I still have disinfectants and harsh cleaners. For example when I rinse off chicken in the kitchen sink, I like to use a little something stronger to get it clean, just because I’m a bit of a germaphobe…

Please note that non-toxic cleaners can still poison your child if they are ingested in large quantities. They can also still irritate the eyes and skin, so keep them out of reach of your children and pets at all times!!!