It’s Plastic Free July, that time of year in the Zero Waste world where Instagram is flooded with snapshots of reusable coffee cups, bamboo toothbrushes and 30 day challenges, let’s face it… it probably sounds like the rest of the other 11 months of the year in the Zero Waste world right?

See, here’s the thing. Plastic Free July is a month dedicated to kick starting your journey to Zero Waste, and it’s awesome. People are doing some amazing things but … yeah there is a but… It’s getting oversaturated in bragging.

Now I am the first person to hold up my hand and say ‘I did this awesome thing, someone notice me.’ But it gets yucky and gross and people switch off from braggers and attention seekers quick.

Instead of following the braggers and those who say ‘do these 100 things and you will be awesome at Plastic Free July.” only to realize that the moment you try to repeat what they did, you realise your location, financial budget and unique living ways will determine how Zero Waste you can be.

Here is a list of Instant Zero Waste wins, this is NOT a list of what you need to buy to be successful. It’s what you can do RIGHT NOW to up-level your waste reduction.

WWW your trash

What? Who? Why? I hate the term ‘trash audit’ that other people use. It sounds boring and makes checking your household bin a chore.

So what is WWW your trash? Put simply, analyze the contents of your bin and make a note of it so you can find ways to reduce what you throw away.

This is how you do it: Empty your bin just before you take it out for the waste removal truck and write down everything that you see in this order. What, Who, Why?

Make your own Zero Waste kit

Never be caught outside of your home without a reusable coffee cup, drink bottle, cutlery set and napkins. Check out this video of my inexpensive way to always be prepared outside your home.

Prepare your ‘DO NOTS’.

Something so small like a take away coffee cup or a straw is a big contributor to café and restaurants plastic waste. When you next order a drink or food remember to tell the server what you do not want.

This is the golden egg of Zero Waste advice… remember there are people in the world that have no idea how damaging plastic is and your request to avoid a straw is bizarre.

To avoid people generating waste for us, here are some examples of quick win statements to say:

1. Please DON’T put a straw in my drink because I am avoiding single-use plastic.
2. I have my own coffee cup, can you put my coffee in here.
3. I don’t need any napkins, I’ve come prepared- but thank you.
4. Can you put my cold drink in a mug instead of a plastic cup?

To x10 this method, when you place any order at a bar or to a server, show them the reusable item you have with you. This tactic prints a photo in their head of your reusable item making it more likely they will remember to make your drink or food and stick to your no single use item request.

Plan your weekly meals

Plan what you’re going to eat over the next week and repeat this plan every week. You will find that if you plan ahead of time, you eat up the food that spoils quicker which can significantly reduce your food waste and extend your shopping budget.

Make room for leftovers

No doubt we sometimes prepare more food than needed, instead of scraping the leftovers into the bin, put them into the fridge and finish them later. You can store them in a container or to keep it super simple, put the food on a plate with a bowl over the top. Oooh… remember to add your left over meals to your weekly meal plans.

Use less products… seriously do it.

This tip applies to everyone; it doesn’t matter if you are using a shampoo bar or supermarket branded washing up liquid. Extend the life of your products by using 50% less.

Let’s face it, we don’t think about how much washing up liquid or shampoo we use at a time. We just squirt, lather and go. A lot of products contain sodium lauryl sulfate which is a lathering agent, meaning the product will lather up a lot if you agitate it enough. So instead of waiting for the bubbles to form by squirting the washing up liquid into the water directly under the tap, add a couple of drops and then swish the water around with your hand to make the lather. Use less washing up liquid, less shampoo, less conditioner, toothpaste… anything that you use to clean your home or body.

Kick ass and tackle other peoples litter

Take the time to feel honored and humble that you are making a positive difference to our environment. Look back to a time when you weren’t so appreciative of our Earth. Can you remember a time when maybe you littered? Do you remember that time when you didn’t think twice about the plastic packaging that can’t be recycled? Step up your humble game and pick up other people’s litter, it doesn’t have to be a daily beach litter pick, it can just be a simple act of putting a discarded crisp packet into the nearest bin.

Put an end to junk mail

In under a record breaking time of- 10 minutes you can reduce your junk mail. All it takes is to confirm your address details to a US or UK service to remove your details from marketing mailing lists and the crafty skills to make a ‘NO JUNK MAIL’ sign to stick near your post box. Click here to stop junk mail

Reuse dish sponges

Look I get it… yes it does feel strangely good to use a crisp brand new dish sponge. See here’s the thing, because of this crisp feeling, we think sponges need to be thrown out when they become soft. Instead throw your old dish sponge into the washing machine and it can be reused. For extra bacteria removing power, rinse the sponge under water and microwave for 30 seconds to zap away any nasties. (The microwave step isn’t a must)

Extend the life of your Razor

If shaving is your preferred method of hair removal, here are some tips to maximize the life of your razor blade and stretch it to last longer.

1) After shaving remove all hair and soap scum
2) Let the razor dry outside of the bathroom – high humidity will cause rust
3) OPTIONAL: Dip the razor head into a small cup of rubbing alcohol or good quality vodka to displace any water.
4) Store the razor away from damp air. Yep. Never leave your razor in the bathroom, instead store it in a container in your bedroom or in your wardrobe.

Remove make-up the waste free way

If you are a wetwipe fanatic, then release the guilt of the wipes clogging up the drains and expanding landfill piles with this: Repurpose a good quality oil that you have in your home, almond oil, coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil (yes I’m being serious) and a cotton t-shirt you no longer wear and voi-la your own make up remover. You can be extra crafty and cut out cotton rounds from the t-shirt and stitch the outside to prevent fraying, or here’s the lazy way (the method I use) cut up squares with some pinking shears to stop the fraying. Wash the cotton rounds in the same way you would your clothing.

SHIT HAPPENS OKAY?

Was that the first swear on this blog? Maybe it was… yet it’s totally necessary and I’ll tell you why. See here’s the thing, we all want to do better for the environment and find ways to make it easier and stress free. And heavens for bid, if an unexpected visitor came around and left their junk food wrappers in the kitchen or your boyfriend purchased a years supply of dental floss (true story)… rant rant rant.

What I mean is… there will be mistakes. There WILL be times you will buy an item that has unexpected plastic packaging. There may be times you leave the home in an emergency and have to depend on convenience plastic wrapped takeout food. There WILL be times other people who aren’t Zero Waste bring items into your home that make you want to pull out your hair and scream into a pillow.

Whatever happens, the smallest knock back can make us feel that we haven’t accomplished enough.

Look, before we enter the, ‘SCREW IT I’M GIVING UP’ phase, you gotta learn to laugh the mistakes away and continue hitting your waste reduction goals.

The sooner you forget about the plastic that your hayfever tablets comes in, the viral video on Facebook of a new plastic toy that will be forgotten about in 2 weeks or what your co-worker recycles, the better. Stop focusing on the bad shit that has already happened and focus on the right now and the future.

Unlimited plant food from your waste

Yes this tip does break the rules a little bit as it isn’t something you can do to achieve an instant win. But… it’s something I want you to think about as you continue along your journey. What are you doing with the food waste you are making? One super easy option that requires no garden is compost worms. Here’s my most popular Youtube video ever that explains how you can make your own DIY worm bin for under £10.

Record your achievements

We take it for granted when we achieve something amazing, we never give ourselves enough credit and the happy moment vanishes too soon. Always find reason to see the gratitude in your journey. If you aren’t recording your wins, go grab a notebook or open up a Google document and write down all of the amazing things you have achieved so far.

And even better. A lot of us Zero Wasters are on our own along this journey and we find it hard to connect with like-minded people in the real world. Well, this is something you WILL love! Join the Zero Judge Zero Fluff Zero Waste Facebook group and connect with other people who are waiting to hear about your unique journey to Zero Waste.

Did I miss any Instant wins? Tell me in the comments below