Hey earth muffins! January is here, which means Veganuary starts! What is Veganuary, you might ask? It is a month-long challenge to push yourself to try a plant-based diet. If you aren’t sure what I mean by “plant-based”, check out this full guide on the different plant-based diets. š As a vegetarian, I love the idea of this challengeā¦ But I also know that starting a plant-based diet can be overwhelming at first. To make it easier for any of you interested in participating in this challenge, here are my top 10 tips on how to start a plant-based diet this January. I adapted this list from the official Veganuary guide, so sign up to participate in the challenge to get even more helpful hints!
1. Focus on planning before you start!
Changing your diet is going to take some preparation. You canāt just decide that you are going to be vegan one day and expect to be successful. It is going to take some planning! Iām a huge fan of journaling, so I suggest writing out a plan for yourself. Make lists for the grocery store (bonus, this prevents food waste too!), ideas for meals, and set goals to help ease yourself in. If you have a plan before you start, you increase the likelihood that you will stick to your new plant-based diet!
Hey earth muffins! I can’t believe 2021 is almost over. š This year has been full of a lot of life changes for me, from a new job to buying my very first home. I am excited to see what lies ahead in 2022! Last year, I shared all the reasons why you should go green in 2021. If that post didn’t convince you to start on an eco journey, I hope this post will do the trick! This is the season of making New Year’s Resolutions, so I challenge you all to add “be more eco-friendly” to your list. Here are 5 ways to be more sustainable in the new year!
*Evaluate your current eco journey!
The end of a year is the perfect time to reflect back on what areas you found success in your eco journey. I personally love to sit down with my journal before a new year and write out every success and failure. It is a great way to visually see a list of where you are struggling. Plus, you can look back on this list throughout 2022 to remind yourself as well. In order to be more eco-friendly in the new year, it is important to first evaluate how far you have come.
Hey earth muffins! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday full of family and fun – I know I sure did! Now that the gift giving is over, you might find yourself with things that aren’t exactly what you were hoping forā¦ š Maybe your grandma thinks you are three sizes smaller than you are or your mom bought you a set of mugs that you actually already bought a few weeks ago. There is ALWAYS an increase in returns after Christmas; and there is a huge environmental impact of returns because of this. To be a bit more eco-friendly this year, I suggest avoiding returns as much as possible. Instead, here’s what to do with those unwanted Christmas gifts!
What is the Environmental Impact of Returns?
About 30% of the items bought online are returned… And that doesn’t take into account products purchased at the store. Did you know that most companies just throw away returned items? Five BILLION pounds of returned goods end up in landfills around the US each year. š³ This is highly confusing to me, as there are plenty of secondhand places that could easily find new homes for these items. It’s also really upsetting that huge corporations don’t care to even TRY to re-distribute what they have already produced. It proves that they only care about producing more and more goods to make a profit. Instead of supporting the destruction of the planet by making returns this year, I suggest the following options instead:
Hey earth muffins! There is no denying that essential oils are awesome. Not only do they smell amazing, but they can be used for so many other uses as well. I have just recently been getting into essential oils more… And peppermint oil is perfect for the holiday season! āļø Thanks to a gift from Public Goods, I have been able to try out a new oil these past few weeks. In today’s post, I will be sharing 7 of my favorite uses of peppermint essential oil. Let’s jump right into the post!
1. Use peppermint oil in the diffuser
My boyfriend and I have an oil diffuser on our bedside table; I love to diffuse a few drops either in the morning or a couple of hours before bed… It makes the room smell heavenly! Peppermint oil wakes up your senses unlike other oils like lavender that are perfect for bed time. I suggest diffusing your peppermint essential oil in the morning to help your mind get alert for the upcoming day!
2. Prevents against bugs (and mice)
In our last apartment, we had GIGANTIC centipedes that were absolutely disgusting to look at when they crawled out of the floor… My favorite on this ‘uses of peppermint essential oil’ list is this – use it to prevent against bugs and mice in your home! Fill up a cup of water and mix in 4-5 drops of peppermint oil. Then, take a paintbrush and line the areas where the bugs are coming in (around floorboards, windows, etc.). Your house might smell like a peppermint forest for a few hours after, but it definitely does work!
Hey earth muffins! There is no doubt about it, December is the season of wrapping paper. š While pretty wrapped gifts are exciting and festive, they arenāt necessarily the most eco-friendly option. A lot of wrapping papers arenāt pure paper, which makes them non-recyclable. On top of that, many of them also have glitter and other 3-D effects that are definitely fit for the landfill only. To make your Christmas more sustainable this year, I want to share my top suggestions for sustainable wrapping paper alternatives ā letās jump right into it!
1. Old gift bags, wrapping paper, and tissue paper
Once you decide you want to live a more eco-friendly lifestyle, it is important to use up what is already in your house. That includes all that leftover wrapping paper! People tend to buy new rolls every holiday which results in a stack of half used rolls in the back of some dusty closet. Reuse all the old gift bags, tissue paper, and wrapping paper that is already in your home!
Hey earth muffins! I was recently asked by the amazing USB Lighter Company to write a post on their new blog. You might remember them from the review I did on their rechargeable USB Candle Lighter – such a great eco-friendly product! In the post on their blog, I shared five ways you can be more sustainable on a daily basis. I decided to continue with that theme and share five more ways to be sustainable on Life of an Earth Muffin. Letās jump right into it!
6. Reduce your overall consumption
While I mentioned in my guest post over on the USB Lighter Blog that it is important to know your local recycling rules, it is also important to remember that the saying is āReduce, Reuse, Recycleā for a reason! The best way to reduce your impact on the planet is to only consume what you actually need to. Once you do this, it is important to reuse and repair what you already have so that the waste you do create is at a minimum. At the end of an itemās life, hopefully you are able to recycle or compost it – but at least the amount of trash you create has now been reduced! Another great bonus of reducing your overall consumption is an increase in spending money – I personally suggest putting it into a savings account!
Hey earth muffins! On my journey towards living a low waste lifestyle, I was introduced to the sustainable fashion movement. It is pretty exciting that more people are opting out of fast fashion to explore other, more eco-friendly, options. I absolutely love sustainable fashion, so I wanted to share a post of all the ways you too can participate in the movement. Before we jump into examples of sustainable fashion, I thought it would be best to briefly explain the term “sustainable fashion“… Let’s jump right into it!
What Exactly is Sustainable Fashion?
According to the Internet, “sustainable fashion is a movement and process of fostering change to fashion products and the fashion system towards greater ecological integrity and social justice.” One of its main goals is to encourage the use of eco-friendly (possibly biodegradable) fabrics that have less of an impact on the environment. It isn’t just about the actual clothing though. The movement cares about the whole production process, who produces it, and the life span of the piece before it reaches the landfill. You don’t just have to buy from sustainable fashion brands to participate in the movement! There are many other great ways that I love to embrace it as well.
Hey earth muffins! Now that I have a few years of low waste living under my belt, I wanted to share a post about some of the easiest swaps I’ve made on my eco journey. Some people are turned off by eco-friendly living because it requires changing their ways… And they just don’t want to do that. But, I’m here to tell you that many sustainable swaps are super simple – which means you should have no excuse to not make them in your life! š Without further to do, here is my list of the 10 easiest sustainable swaps!
This is honestly the easiest swap to make! Most people have accumulated reusable bags even if they aren’t on an eco journey. So, time to start using them to avoid plastic bags! This is a great swap to make for the upcoming Plastic Free July as well. I personally like to store mine in my car, because then I never have to worry about forgetting them when I go shopping. I highly recommend getting some reusable produce bags too! Those flimsy plastic bags for fruits and vegetables are a pain to open and a pain to Mother Earth.
2. Reusable water bottle
Another swap that is super easy – a reusable water bottle! I have been using my Hydroflask for many years now, and it is still in great shape. When swapping to a reusable, I would select metal bottles over “BPA free” plastic ones… Plastic still degrades over time, so I wouldn’t trust it for long-term use.
3. Safety razor
If you have been following Life of an Earth Muffin for some time (which if you aren’t, you definitely should!), you will know that I love my safety razor! š This is one of the first swaps I ever made on my eco journey… And it is still one of my favorites. For only $15 on Amazon (affiliate link) you can buy a razor that will last you many years. Don’t be intimidated by a safety razor either – they are super easy to shave with and give me a much better shave than crappy plastic razors.
4. Reusable food storage
To make your kitchen a bit more eco-friendly, try using mason jars, metal containers, or other containers for food storage. When you are taking lunch to work or school, opt out of Ziploc bags for these reusables instead. I even have some reusable “Ziploc” bags, which are great for packing zero waste meals on the go!
5. Shampoo bars (& other bar products)
Bar products are obviously better than bottled products for many reasons. I personally also love how they look in my bathroom – much cleaner than hideous, brightly colored bottles. Making the switch to shampoo bars, conditioner bars, bar soap, etc. is super easy… And you get to try out some awesome new products! I’ve tried a bunch of different bar products before, so feel free to check out those reviews here.
6. Reusable straws
While I personally don’t use straws that often, it is one of the easiest sustainable swaps you can make! For those who get Starbucks every day, this will reduce a ton of waste. There are a bunch of reusable straw options from stainless steel to glass. I personally got a set of stainless steel straws from my company when I started working there last September. And then I invested in some metal boba straws as well (affiliate link), because I love to treat myself to bubble tea every once in awhile.
7. Zero waste period products!
For 50% of the population, periods create a lot of waste. A great swap is to use a menstrual cup, period panties, or reusable pads instead of the typical tampons or pads from the store. It also protects you from the harmful chemicals in these products too! I’ve tried a menstrual cup in the past and have plans to try out reusable pads in the future; but, there are a bunch of other ways to keep your period zero waste!
8. Secondhand clothes
Make an easy swap to secondhand clothes by shopping at thrift stores instead of the mall! One of my favorite parts of being on this eco journey is starting to shop secondhand – it is so much fun. š The hunt for unique pieces is thrilling, and my style has evolved to be exactly what I want it to be. No more fast fashion for me!
9. Reusable cotton pads & Q-tips
There are many single-use items in the bathroom that can easily be swapped for more sustainable options. Take cotton pads for instance – why throw them away each time when you can get reusable ones that just need to be thrown in the wash? Cost effective, and it just makes sense! The same goes for Q-tips. Brands like Last Object make reusable Q-tips that reduces the waste created in the bathroom.
10. Composting!
I wasn’t able to make this swap until last year, but it is super easy to do! There are many options to compost; for me, I have a composting service that picks up my compost bucket every two weeks. Once I move out of this apartment and into a house, I hope to have a composting bin in my backyard. Amazon has some really great options for under $90 (affiliate link)! Food waste is a huge problem in our world. Once you start to compost, you will be astonished at how much food you were tossing in the trash!
Final Thoughts on Easy Sustainable Swaps
It isn’t as hard as you’d think to start making sustainable changes to your life. For those who don’t know where to begin, this is a great list of places to start. From shampoo bars to cotton pads, swapping single-use products for reusables is going to 1) help the planet a ton and 2) simplify your life for the better. While there are hundreds of swaps that can be made, I hope this list of the easiest sustainable swaps is helpful! What are your favorite sustainable swaps you have made so far?
