There has been a lot of talk in the British press recently about reducing our waste, in particular single use plastics, something that we as upcyclers have been working on for a long time is finally becoming main stream (even the Queen is now on board). As always I believe that these changes should be made in the most stylish way we can afford to as we’re much more likely to stick to new habits if we enjoy them. Below are 4 seriously easy, affordable changes you can make to reduce your single use waste and it’s actually much more stylish too…a William Morris print travel mug or a standard costa take out cup!? I know which I prefer to use! I’ve also found making these changes has made me much more organised which in return seems to be saving me money.
The big shocker in recent news was the plastic content in tea bags, many large retailers have now said they’re going to tackle that but really loose tea is a much better option. It tastes so much fresher (having visited a tea plantation the tea in teabags is generally of poorer quality to the loose breakfast tea or black tea) and the little ritual of making your tea with a stylish tea strainer makes a normality feel special. This gold bunny tea strainer from Amara Living is currently my favourite.
Sticking with hot drinks, single use take away cups are a big issue and many of the large coffee shop chains are trying to tackle this with their own range of travel mugs (many even offer a discount from the cost of your drink when you take it with you) but the design of them is pretty bland and corporate. These bamboo fibre coffee cups from Ecoffee Cup look great and are 100% recyclable when you’re done with it…plus a William Morris print travel mug is every interior design addicts dream right?
The plastic water bottle issue is a tricky one, most of us agree that they’re a hugely wasteful item but struggle to find a reusable alternative that ticks all of the boxes…will it keep my water cool? I enjoy sparkling water, how will that work, glass bottles are more likely to get broken when thrown in my bag etc. I think I’ve managed to find the perfect solution Chilly’s bottles keep your drink cold for 24 hours (or warm for 12 hours if you fancy a hot chocolate on your travels) and they come in the most AMAZING range of designs, I absolutely love my abstract 90s design but could easily have one for every day of the week. I also have my eye on the Sodastream Fizzi machine to try and solve the issue of preferring sparkling water.
And finally (probably most importantly) is the issue of plastic straws…a major bugbear of mine and I see it everywhere, from high end hotels and restaurants (come on Cunard) to soft play centres there are just so many of these things around! You can use paper straws as an alternative (there are some really pretty designs around) or if you’re looking for something reusable to sip your Friday night cocktails through I think these glass straws from Amara Living are perfect. I thoroughly enjoyed drinking my G&T through one, they feel so stylish and sophisticated, they also come with a little brush to clean them with if you we’re worried about how to look after them (which looks great next to my natural wooden washing up brush by the sink).
What do you think? Are you planning to make some small changes to slow down our use of single use plastics or are you already pretty much there?
Thank you to Amara Living, Ecoffee Cup and Chilly’s for gifting me these ace products to feature in this post.
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