April I focused on 5S in the dining room. Part of that process was evaluating how to reduce waste, particularly with paper napkins and towels.
There are two areas I am working on:
1. Napkins
Eating with a toddler can be messy business, but I am trying out cloth bibs for baby and cloth napkins for the rest of the family. I went shopping after the holidays and found some cheap placemat/napkin sets to use for everyday meals. Since it is just my husband and I, we do not go through them very quickly.
I have a stack of washcloths that I use for wiping up baby and messes after meals and throw them in a wash pile each day. I have enough to last me a week. You can use baby washcloths, cloth diapers or rags.
2. Paper towels
I used to lean on paper towels because they are easy. You can wipe up spills and throw them away without another thought.
The trick to create an easy to use system with cloth, is to make rags and/or towels accessible and plentiful. I realized I had a lot of kitchen towels around that I never used. Once you clean up a spill, hang the towel in the laundry room to dry. I rarely have more than half a load at the end of the week.
Next step for cutting waste in the kitchen/dining areas is reducing packaging. I buy a lot of high use dry goods in bulk at Club stores, but that usually comes with a lot of extra boxes. Granted, most of it is recyclable, but another option would be to bring my own containers and fill them at the bulk bins of the grocery store. I have not made any changes yet, just thinking about it.
What waste reduction ideas do you use at home?
1. Napkins
Eating with a toddler can be messy business, but I am trying out cloth bibs for baby and cloth napkins for the rest of the family. I went shopping after the holidays and found some cheap placemat/napkin sets to use for everyday meals. Since it is just my husband and I, we do not go through them very quickly.
I have a stack of washcloths that I use for wiping up baby and messes after meals and throw them in a wash pile each day. I have enough to last me a week. You can use baby washcloths, cloth diapers or rags.
2. Paper towels
I used to lean on paper towels because they are easy. You can wipe up spills and throw them away without another thought.
The trick to create an easy to use system with cloth, is to make rags and/or towels accessible and plentiful. I realized I had a lot of kitchen towels around that I never used. Once you clean up a spill, hang the towel in the laundry room to dry. I rarely have more than half a load at the end of the week.
Next step for cutting waste in the kitchen/dining areas is reducing packaging. I buy a lot of high use dry goods in bulk at Club stores, but that usually comes with a lot of extra boxes. Granted, most of it is recyclable, but another option would be to bring my own containers and fill them at the bulk bins of the grocery store. I have not made any changes yet, just thinking about it.
What waste reduction ideas do you use at home?
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