Ideas for Plastic-Free July

Today we are five days into the 8th Plastic-Free July, and we at Rust & Fray are hoping it’ll be the biggest one yet. Plastic-Free July started in 2011 in Perth Australia by a woman named Rebecca Prince-Ruiz as a personal challenge, along with around 40 people in her local community. During the month she discovered that going plastic free was much harder than it seemed, and so she has committed herself to finding plastic reducing solutions while getting more and more people on board with going plastic free. Today the Plastic-Free July movement is international, with millions of people in over 80 countries taking a pledge to reduce or eliminate their plastic consumption, spearheaded by Prince-Ruiz’s 2017 non-profit The Plastic Free Foundation. 

So what can you do to reduce your plastic consumption? Here are some ideas to get you going:

Food: 

• Say no to plastic straws
• Bring a reusable grocery bag
• Bring food containers with you for takeout
• Bring your metal utensils with you
• Say no to frozen reheat meals
• Buy fresh bread and fresh vegetables
• Choose glass food containers when possible
• Skip the chewing gum (yup, most gum includes plastic)
• Use beeswax cloth wrappers instead of plastic wrap
• Avoid non-stick cookware

Personal Care and Cleaning

• Check lotion labels for plastic ingredients and microbeads
• Use solid bar shampoo and conditioner
• Use solid bar shaving cream
• Use a safety razor instead of disposable razors
• Use vinegar or baking soda instead of chemical cleaners to clean your kitchen
• Bring your own cleaning products instead of using a hotel’s mini cleaning containers
• Buy makeup in metal containers or bamboo containers, especially if the company has a refill scheme.

Fashion

• Avoid synthetic fabrics whenever possible
• When not possible, but synthetic fabrics from upcycled or recycled based companies
• Use a Guppybag or CoraBall when washing synthetics to catch microfibers
• Use soap nuts as a laundry detergent
• Buy from second hand or sustainable fashion brands instead of the often plastic-filled fast fashion brands.
• Use baking soda for odor removal and spot stain removal instead of washing the entire piece after every wear to help prevent microfiber shedding (as well as save water)
• Use white vinegar as a fabric softener or skip using fabric softeners all together. 
• Use wool dryer balls instead of dryer sheets.

Thank you for reading, hope you’ve got some more ideas for 2019’s Plastic-Free July challenge. Got another hot tip? Let us know in the comments! If you enjoyed our content be sure to follow our Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for more.