Needless to say, I am loving any magazine article related to spring cleaning and one of my favorites is Body + Soul's Buyer's Guide: 50 Ways to Get a Greener Home. Unfortunately I am trying to limit my spending habits so I will have to use some imagination but here is my wish list from this lovely article:
1) Safe plastic mixing bowls (#2,4,5) to replace my sadly chipped ones. Or better yet classic yellow pyrex mixing bowls.
2) Cut back on paper towel habit with washable viscose cloths.
5) Very light shopping bags I always have on hand!
16) Give up your garbage disposal- winds up in landfill and wastes water and energy! And most of it can be composted.
17) Get a cork bathmat (Gaiam).
20) Get an aerated low flow shower head (check out Evolve's Roadrunner).
25) Get an organic mattress (thecleanbedroom.com).
29) Get a Smart Strip- a power bar the switches off when it notices appliances are idle!
38) Seal particle board furniture with Safecoat Safe Seal to keep from off gassing.
40) Stop printing everything- save electronic copies. Back up with a portable hard drive. And if I must print, then print on both sides.
41) Buy eco-friendly toys. Or better yet, get hand me downs.
45) Pack waste-free lunches. Stop using wraps!
46) Hang dry laundry when possible. (Saves 4.4 pounds of carbon per load.)
47) Use a push mower.
48) Compost.
What I need to start doing: cut back on paper towel habit, get shower aerators, get smart strips, seal particle board furniture, stop printing everything, stop buying new toy, pack waste free lunches.
What I can pat myself on the back for: byo shopping bags (most of the time), composting, not garborating, using a push mower, sometimes using glass storage containers...
