It may seem that living a more natural life is expensive, or only for some “elite” individuals. But, that’s not true at all! Actually, many of the choices you can make to become more earth friendly are also choices that are more friendly on your pocketbook!
Take a look at these examples to see what I mean.
Shop at Your Local Thrift Shop
Many people feel they just have to have new clothes. Many eco conscious people even buy organic cotton and hemp clothing because it’s better for the environment….which it is, but, nothing is better than re-using an item that’s already been produced.
This is what thrift store shopping lets you do, and not only with clothes, but usually, they sell housewares, books, and more. And, in many locations the local thrift shop actually supports a charity group, so, you’re doing two good things at once!!
Re-Use Your Plastic Bags
Plastic bags of all kinds are harmful to the environment both when they’re made and when they’re disposed of. They’re so convenient though and have a wide variety of uses So, finding ways to reuse them is important. And, it just so happens, that reusing them helps you save money too.
For sandwich bags and gallon bags, just wash them out and hang them to dry; there are even wooden drying racks available for this purpose. You could also make your own with some creativity, or as simply as some chopsticks in a glass jar. Or, you can just hang them on your dishes and such like I do!
Better yet, why not reuse things like the bags bread comes in, or the bags you get from your fruits and veggies at the market for bagging up snacks and sandwiches. They work just as well and you’re not buying anything new!
As far as grocery bags (if you aren’t using cloth yet, or when your forget your reusable shopping bags) they make great garbage bags for small trash cans, great pooper scooper bags for your dog or litter box cleaning bags for your cat, packing material, and so much more.
Use Less Energy
There are a lot of ways to use less energy, from turning your heat down and your lights off to driving less and making sure your driving efficiently. All of them help the earth, and all of them help you keep your wallet green! Some ideas include,
Use a digital, programmable thermostat.
Take public transportation, carpool, or use a bike.
If you do drive, don’t accelerate quickly and drive 55.
Turn off your lights, computer, and other electrical appliances when not in use.
Try and group your errands together so you’re only going out once or twice a week.
Work from home.
Switch to Cloth
Buying paper towels, tissues, diapers, napkins gets really expensive. You can solve this problem by switching to cloth. And, surprise, using reusable items instead of paper helps make the earth a greener place too!
To replace paper towels reuse old shirts and old towels. If you don’t have enough to get you started, ask your local thrift shop for some of the items they couldn’t put out due to stains, rips etc.
You can find cloth napkins pretty easily at your thrift shop, or, you can always buy new, but paper napkins are a big waste!
Handkerchiefs are definitely a greener way to go than tissues. You can find some beautiful vintage ones at rummage and tag sales, or, make your own. Simply cut up some flannel sheets; you can then add a hem around the outside if you like, or leave as is.
As far as cloth diapers – there are a lot of different vendors out there (my favorite is our local Maine Cloth Diaper Company) that sell quality cloth diapers. And they’re so much more affordable than diapering your baby with disposables – especially if you end up with multiple children! Check out this post for more info.
Don’t Buy New Books – Patronize Your Local Library
It can be run to accumulate a large personal library, but, do you really need to spend all that money, and use all that paper when there is, in most towns anyway, a good local library waiting to lend you all the books you could ever dream of.
Most libraries now, even the small town ones (like the ones we use!) have the option of finding books through interlibrary loan. Which means that even though your little library may not have every book you’d like, but, you can find it in your state and, the library system will get it to you, usually for free.
And, best of all, many libraries are online now. So, you can browse the collections from the comfort of your own home, and then head into the library to pick up the books you’ve reserved…again, usually for free.
Best of all, you get to read the books you want without having to have anything new be produced from the earth’s resources. And so do soooo many others!
Now, these are just a few ideas to get you started, but, as you can see, being green and being frugal really do go hand in hand. So get creative and find some ways to save money and the earth all at the same time!