I believe living a more eco-friendly lifestyle also means supporting companies whose mission is to reduce their carbon footprint. Anyone who has ever pledged to start cutting waste from their life knows how overwhelming it can be, and that it’s more than just vowing to stop buying bottled water and using plastic straws. Shopping and buying NEW products in general is adding to waste. That’s why it’s important to start shopping more consciously by repurposing items you already own, buying second hand or from a vendor that is more sustainably focused. It’s not reduce, reuse, recycle just because it flows well in that order, it’s because that’s the order in which you should follow them. First reduce, then reuse, and finally recycle.
One of my favorite sites to browse is Package Free Shop. With two locations in New York City, this company’s mission is to reduce waste and help other companies reduce their packaging waste as well. They have everything you need for a zero waste life from home to office to travel. One of the many great items they offer are their zero waste starter kits. These are perfect for anyone just getting started on their zero waste journey because they are broken down into categories like hygiene kit, cleaning kit or travel kit. I also recommend browsing through all of the products they offer because you will probably see products that you had never even thought of as something that creates a lot of waste. For me I was surprised to find biodegradable floss. This little statistic on the back of their packaging was shocking to me. It’s kind of crazy that even the smallest items can create so much waste.
Not a New Yorker? No worries, Package Free Shop offers shipping all over including international. All shipments are sent in upcycled or recyclable boxes.
Fun fact about this company: the founder, Lauren Singer, can fit all of her trash from the past five years in a mason jar.
Once I started doing more research about ways to live more sustainably I came across other companies offering a wide range of products and services designed to be less of a pollutant to our planet. For instance, I never really thought about how much of our clothing ends up in landfills or what happens to vinyl billboards when they are taken down and discarded. But guess what, someone else did and they decided to make a business out of those recycled materials! I want to share with you a short list of companies I’ve found that make products out of recycled water bottles, fishing nets, organic cotton, or bamboo to name a few.
Clothing, Active wear, and Underwear
Recover makes clothing from recycled water bottles.
Mate clothing made from organic cotton.
Girlfriend active wear made from recycled materials like water bottles and fishing nets.
DHVANI sustainable active wear made from bamboo and for each item purchased they plant a tree in Australia.
Manduka sustainably striving company offerings yoga apparel and mats.
Organic basics women’s and men’s underwear made from organic or recycled materials.
Harper Wilde when you purchase one of these bras it will arrive with a prepaid shipping label to send in your old bra to be recycled.
Shoes
Allbirds women’s and men’s shoes made from responsibly sourced materials and laces made from recycled water bottles.
Nothing New like converse but better because they are made from recycled plastic, fish nets, and cotton. If that’s not enough you can also earn $20 when you send in your old sneakers.
Cleaning
Cleancult clean cleaning products in zero-waste packaging.
Grove Collaborative non-toxic plant based household essential cleaning products.
Blueland non-toxic cleaning kits. Instead of sending products in plastic bottles you will receive your “forever bottle” with your first purchase then just use one of their cleaning tablets and add water.
Miscellaneous
Pela case 100% compostable phone cases.
Rareform this company uses old billboards to make bags.
Sand Cloud sustainably made clothing and accessories and check out their awesome beach towels 10% of proceeds go towards marine conservation.
Ruut Goods mouthwash tablets.
Public Goods offers a wide range of household products and they use bamboo and sugarcane instead of trees for paper products.
I would like to remind everyone that the best way to reduce waste is to try and use what you already have at home or shop second hand but when you’re unable to find what you’re looking for there try to buy sustainably made products instead.
tulhoma & co. 